Tag: Health

The Sleeping Giant of Mediterranean Herbal Medicine: Helichrysum italicum

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Helichrysum italicum (Roth.) Don. (Asteraceae) is an iconic plant of the Mediterranean area (Figure 1), but the use of its essential oil in glamorous perfumes and personal care products has turned it into a veritable icon of luxury. However, just like the geographical distribution of Helichrysum species extends beyond the Mediterranean region, the properties of H. italicum are not limited to fragrance as they can benefit human health as well. In this context, H. italicum can be viewed as the sleeping giant of Mediterranean herbal medicine, and its extracts have the potential to be developed as dietary supplement ingredients just like its essential oil has been used successfully in perfumery and aromatherapy. Waking this giant will not be simple, but recent studies have provided the basis for a Helichrysum renaissance. This article outlines the fascinating ethnopharmacology of H. italicum in the light of modern molecular investigations of its…

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The Skin You’re In (#herbs, #IBS & #skincare)….

aspiringherbalist's avatarMy Herbal Adventures...

My skin has been a nemesis of mine since I was a teenager. Yet, the worst years were in my early twenties for breakouts and trial after trial of trying to fix what seemed to only get worse. As I tried to figure out how to fix it from the outside, without being willing to change my eating habits, it only got better when my alcohol consumption and relationship with nutrition & food changed in my mid-twenties. To this day I still struggle with my skin more than anything else in my lifestyle routine; due to a few reasons I will discuss below.

IBS! This has been a new discovery for me in the past few years. My sensitive stomach is really what has now been defined and given a name; Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Here are the list of symptoms in case you are unfamiliar:

  • Changes in normal bowel movements…

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Food as Medicine: Pear (Pyrus communis and P. pyrifolia, Rosaceae)

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

The genus Pyrus consists of 30 deciduous species and is closely related to the genus Malus, which includes apples (Malus spp.). Both genera are part of the economically important Rosaceae family.1,2 Similar to apples, Pyrus fruits are classified as pomes, where the seeds are contained in a central, compartmentalized core.3 The Pyrus genus is native to Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.1 Capable of living for more than 250 years, the pear tree is one of the longest-living fruit trees.1 Cultivated pears are derived from one or two wild pear species widely distributed in Europe and western Asia.2 Of the 5,000 varieties cultivated worldwide, the two species grown commercially are the European pear (P. communis) with its juicy, aromatic, bell-shaped fruit, and the Asian pear (P. pyrifolia) with its crisp and crunchy, apple-like shape and texture.1,2,

The…

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Breathing Techniques for Anxiety [Guide]

ecogreenlover's avatarecogreenlove

You have a built-in stress reliever, always free and always available: your breath. Fortunately most of the time you don’t need to think about breathing. With no conscious effort, your body keeps the oxygen, carbon dioxide, and pH levels of your blood in balance by varying your breathing rate. However, you have the power to consciously control your breath when you want to, and learning to do so can be an incredible tool for health and wellbeing.

For thousands of years, people have learned to control breathing for health and spiritual reasons. In the Indian yogic tradition, breath control is called pranayama, and it’s practiced to facilitate meditation, enhance physical yoga practices, and change mood. Scientific research affirms pranayama can help people feel better. The practice of Sudarshan Kriya yoga, a series of breathing exercises, has been shown to reduce anxiety, relieve insomnia, and dramatically reduce the symptoms of post-traumatic…

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All About Your Heart; 6 Weight-Friendly Juice Recipes

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Juicing has become a popular way to boost energy and lose weight. You may have heard juice cleansing radio ads, seen (or bought) expensive juices in the store, or maybe you’ve even made juice from scratch. But does juicing for weight loss work?

Juicing refers to using a juicer or blender to liquefy fruits, vegetables, and herbs. Juices differ from smoothies because the latter include additional ingredients like milk, yogurt, seeds, and sweeteners. Juices typically contain only the liquid components — although some juices contain pulp. Making your own blends is easier with a juicer, although some people use a blender.

When used with other dietary and lifestyle changes — particularly increased exercise and a plant-based diet — juicing can help you lose weight. You can add juice to your regular diet to maintain a healthy metabolism and detoxify your body, and some people juice-fast as a short-term detox or body cleansing regime.

Is Juicing Good…

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All About Your Heart; Foods That Lower Blood Pressure

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

There is a virtual cornucopia of foods, herbs, and other forms of nourishment that are readily available to lower high blood pressure, or hypertension, naturally. Fruits, vegetables, and nuts are just a handful of healthy things you can eat to promote healthy blood flow. Learning the benefits of these foods and determining which ones are best for your diet may help to lower your blood pressure and maintain circulatory health.

The Importance of Your Blood

“Blood is a very special juice,” wrote the famous 18th-century author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, but it is more than just “special.” Blood is the fuel that sustains human and animal life. It enables the body to stay alive by carrying oxygen and nutrients to living cells, taking away waste products, and transporting immune cells to fight infections. The average human adult body contains more than six quarts of blood which travels through the blood vessels and…

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The Essence of Your Essential Oils

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarGood Witches Homestead

About Your Essential Oils…

The Essence…

    • Essential oils are organic, volatile, liquids that are secreted by tiny structures in a plant’s various parts such as the seeds, leaves, fruits, flowers, resins, and woods.
    • An essential oil gets its name from the plant from which it is derived.
    • These oils were given the name “essential,” because they were believed to capture a plant’s essence, that is its odor and flavor. They lend plants their distinctive fragrance.
    • Essential oils act like their original plant’s defense mechanism and are more powerful due to the concentration of healing compounds collected in the oil.
    • The specific ratio of the constituents in an essential oil gives it its specific wellness-enhancing and therapeutic qualities.
    • Fragrance oils are artificial and synthetically created by chemists, thus they do not contain the same therapeutic benefits as essential oils.
    • It is best to avoid essential oils under specific circumstances, especially when…

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Liver Cleanse: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

If you have a sluggish metabolism, are constantly ill, or follow a poor diet, it’s time to discover what a cleanse can do for you. Follow our simple, step-by-step guide to our 6-day liver cleanse.

The liver is the human body’s largest internal organ and one of the most important for survival. Without it, bodily tissues would die from lack of nutrients and oxygen and the digestive process would not be able to take place. One of the liver’s most important functions is the removal of toxins from your system. This function is why cleansing your liver and living a healthy lifestyle is so crucial. Performing a liver cleanse can help remove toxic buildup for overall health and wellness. Before doing a liver cleanse, it is important to understand what the liver is and all of the necessary functions it performs.

The Liver’s Location & Design

Inside your body, the liver sits…

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The Liver Cleansing Juice You’ll Crave!

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarCrooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Beets, kale, ginger, lemon, and carrots are some of the best liver cleansing foods. Juice them together and you have a delicious and easy way to cleanse your liver. This juice will kick-start your day!

Beet Juice Recipe with Liver Cleansing Foods

Your liver is your main detoxifying organ, and it can get bogged down from time to time depending on your diet, activity level, and environment. When an overload of toxins becomes too much for your liver to handle, toxic compounds can store within tissues and decrease your quality of health. Cleansing your liver with a liver detox can be helpful for revving up the function of your body’s natural detox mechanisms.

Juice Your Way to Health

If you’re cleansing your liver, you need to provide your body with nutrition that is easy to digest. You don’t want your body to spend its energy digesting food, but you definitely need to keep…

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Establishing a Ritual of Daily, Weekly, and Monthly Self-Care

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs's avatarGood Witches Homestead

There’s something to be said about intentionally setting aside time in our hectic schedules to focus entirely on our lives, our bodies and our health (both mental, and physical).

But so often, this is easier typed than done.

I believe in our culture, there’s certain guilt about slowing down, even for a short time, especially when it’s for the sake of our own wellbeing. We’re fascinated by the hustle, by the busyness of it all, and drawn into that hamster wheel of constant productivity, for the sake of getting ahead.

But I can attest, alongside so many others, that establishing a ritual of daily, weekly, and monthly self-care, slowing down and tuning out (in order to really tune in), can greatly benefit whatever your life’s work is. Whatever that hustle is meant for.

I have struggled with establishing this routine—busyness being that back-of-the-mind itch that keeps me from slowing…

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