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Cholesterol -- A Guide to Common Herbs

In today’s world, almost everything is free… not that everything has no price.  It just seems that we have reached the era where we become more aware of our health conditions.  Thus, it seems to be the era of everything that is -free.  Try scanning every available product in your local grocery and you will see what I mean.
Your bread is bromate-free; your yoghurt is fat-free; your cooking oil is cholesterol-free; your canned soup is preservative-free; and the list goes on and on. Now you are beginning to wonder about the next -free commodity that you would encounter. This is not exactly bad.  In fact, health experts encourage us to be more sensitive about the foods we eat and the nutrients that we get from them.  However, not everything that is –free is healthy.  Our bodies need certain substances to be able to function well.
Let us take a look at cholesterol for instance.  Very simply defined, cholesterol is a fatty substance that occurs naturally in the blood, cell walls, and most body tissues. Cholesterol is made by the liver, and it enters the body via foods rich in saturated fat.
There are two types of cholesterol; these are what they termed as the good and bad cholesterol.  Like the literary split personality of Jekyll and Hyde, it has a good side because it is needed for certain important body functions. But for many people, cholesterol also has an evil side. When present in excessive amounts, it can injure blood vessels, cause heart attacks, and stroke. Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) is the "bad" cholesterol.  This is the form in which cholesterol is carried into the blood and is the main cause of harmful fatty buildup in arteries. The higher the LDL cholesterol levels in the blood, the greater the heart disease risk.
On the other hand, High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) is the “good” cholesterol. This "good" cholesterol carries blood cholesterol back to the liver, where it can be eliminated. HDL helps prevent a cholesterol buildup in blood vessels. Low HDL levels increase heart disease risk. 

So before you go into your cholesterol deprivation program, remember that cholesterol is essential for human life. It builds and repairs cells, it is used to produce sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone, it is converted to bile acids to help you digest food and it is found in large amounts in brain and nerve tissue.

A Guide to Common Herbs

Herbs are nutritional foundation nutrients and good alternative medicine to nourish the body's deepest and most basic elements. Medicinal herbs have been used safely and effectively since the time of recorded history for an endless list of reasons from health, healing, weight loss/gain/maintenance, to survival and more. Herbs can offer the body nutrients it does not always receive, either from a poor diet, or environmental deficiencies in the soil and air. They are great body balancers that help regulate body functions.
The benefits of herbs are many and varied. Even the once skeptical traditional medical community is starting to embrace alternative medicine practices using herbal remedies and healing philosophies and practices incorporating herbal medicine and medicinal herbs. Chinese herbs have been used by the Chinese for over 4,000 years to promote health and as healing agents. Chinese Herbs are taken as tonics to enhance physical and mental well being. Since the dawn of man, herbs have been used for healing purposes and to promote wellness. Today, herbs are still the alternative medicine and primary source of health care for 80% of the world.
Here are some of the more well-known herbs and plant products and their modern uses.

Herbs

Modern Uses

Bilberry Fruit Extract, Vaccinium myrtillus

Various microcirculatory conditions. Night blindness and poor ability to adapt to bright light.

Cascara Sagrada Aged Bark, Rhamnus purshiana

Constipation.

Cayenne Pepper Fruit, Capsicum annuum

Carminative, diaphoretic, counter-irritant.

Cranberry Fruit, Vaccinium macrocarpon

Prevention of urinary tract infections.

Dong Quai Root, Angelica sinensis

Various menstrual disorders.

Echinacea Herb, Echinacea purpurea

As supportive therapy for colds and chronic infections of the respiratory tract.

Evening Primrose Oil, Oenothera biennis

Conditions related to deficiency of essential fatty acids (e.g., chronic fatigue syndrome) and alcoholism.

Feverfew Leaf, Tanacetum parthenium

Treatment of migraines, fever, menstrual disorders..

Garlic Cloves, Allium sativum

Elevated levels of cholesterol in blood and as a preventative measure for age dependent vascular changes.

Ginger Root, Zingiber officinale

Modern Use: Prevention of the nausea and vomiting of motion sickness, dyspepsia, stomachic.

Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Ginkgo biloba

Memory deficits, dementia syndromes. Improvement of distance and pain-free walking in peripheral arterial occlusive disease. Vertigo and tinnitus.

Asian Ginseng Root, Panax ginseng

Tonic for invigoration and fortification in times of fatigue and debility, physical or mental exhaustion, stress, inadequate resistance to infections.

Siberian Ginseng Root, Eleutherococcus senticosus

Tonic for invigoration and fortification in times of fatigue and debility, also during convalescence.

Goldenseal Root, Hydrastis canadensis

Catarrhal conditions of the upper respiratory tract associated with colds and flus. Mucosal inflammations.

Gotu Kola Herb, Centella asiatica

Improved memory. Venous insufficiency.

Grape Seed Extract, Vitis vinifera

Microcirculatory maldistribution of blood flow. Altered capillary fragility and permeability. Anti-inflammatory.

Green Tea Leaf Extract, Camellia sinensis

Chemopreventative. Hypercholesterolemia.

Kava Kava Root Extract, Piper methysticum

Conditions of nervous anxiety, stress, and restlessness. Sedative and sleep enhancement.

Licorice Root, Glycyrrhiza glabra

For catarrhal conditions of the upper respiratory tract and gastric/duodenal ulcers. Bronchitis. Adrenocorticoid insufficiency.

Milk Thistle Seed Extract, Silybum marianum

Toxic liver damage, and for supportive treatment in chronic inflammatory liver disease and hepatic cirrhosis.

Saw Palmetto Berry Extract, Serenoa repens

Urination problems in benign prostate hyperplasia stages 1 and 2.

St. John's Wort Herb Extract, Hypericum perforatum

Mild to moderate depressive states.

Valerian Root, Valeriana officinalis

Restlessness, sleeping disorders based on nervous conditions.

 

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