Almost a month ago, my lungs were congested again. I had been researching the health benefits of raw garlic, which includes:

• Traditional cough and cold remedy
• Helps in the treatment of tuberculosis
• Relieves sore throat and toothache
• Powerful antioxidant (garlic contains high levels of selenium and Vitamin C)
• Boosts immune system to fight infection
• Helps lower bad cholesterol levels (LDL)
• Helps to lower blood pressure
• Remedy for arteriosclerosis
• Good for the heart
• Anticoagulant properties
• Helps relieve rheumatism pain
• Reduces cancer risk and also aids in treatment

Garlic is known to have antibiotic, antifungal and antibacterial properties, so it has been used for centuries to treat many health problems. To cut to the chase, I decided to eat a whole bulb of garlic daily more than three weeks ago. That’s  anything from 12-16 cloves of raw garlic each day. I ate half a bulb twice a day – once in the morning and once in the evening, with food and lots of water to prevent any burning sensation in my stomach as the garlic went down. To my surprise, my congested lungs cleared up in less than 36 hours.

As a bonus, I realised that I was no longer suffering from fatigue, a malady which had been plaguing me for more than a fortnight, forcing me to take naps almost every day. I haven’t felt tired or sleepy ever since I started eating raw garlic daily.

So I’ve been burping something terrible every day, and passing more gas than I’ve ever had in my whole life but, having seen how garlic has improved my health and well-being so far, I’m going to keep eating a whole bulb of raw garlic daily just to see what else garlic may remedy in my body. I’ll keep you posted.

When the project finally ended over a week ago, I eagerly looked forward to sleeping normally again. Quality, uninterrupted sleep at night, in a dark room without distracting light or sound, encourages the body to naturally produce melatonin, a powerful antioxidant. This period of blissful sleep, which follows the body’s natural circadian clock rhythm, is the best time for the body to rest, repair and rejuvenate. When we deprive ourselves of this natural sleep pattern, our immune systems become depressed and we are more likely to fall ill and age faster.

To my aggravation, I found myself having difficulty returning to sleeping at night. Despite being utterly exhausted, sleep eluded me. I tossed and turned every night. Nothing would get me to fall asleep. I was a total wreck during the day, and just couldn’t get anything done. I’ve completely neglected this blog for weeks now, and even simple tasks like walking my dog have been very trying.

Then two nights ago I slept almost uninterrupted for almost nine hours, at night, when it was peaceful and dark. I did it again last night. So I’m finally able to write this blog post, at long last. And I’m back to enjoying my walks with Ginger.

In May 2009, Professor Paolo Sassone-Corsi and his team from the University of California, Irvine, reported that women working the night shift are four times more vulnerable to breast cancer because of a disruption in their internal physiology – or circadian clocks. Disrupting these clocks can also lead to other kinds of illnesses. We need to listen to our internal clocks!

Sleep – it’s one of the most powerful secrets behind natural healing and wellness. Make it your priority to get sufficient quality sleep every night.

Scutellaria Barbata or the Baikal Skullcap is known by many synonyms, such as apigenin, baicalin, ban-ji-ryun (Korean), banjiryun (Korean), ban-zhi-lian (Chinese), barbatin A, barbatin B, barbatin C, benzyaldehyde, berberine, carthamidin, flavonoidglycoside, flavonoids, Herba Scutellariae Barbatae, hexahydrofarnesylacetone, isocarthamidin, Lamiaceae (family), luteolin, menthol, neo-clerodane diterpenoids, PC-SPES, pheophorbide A, resveratrol, SBJ, scutebarbatine B, scutellarein, Scutelleria baicalensis, Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi, Scutellaria bardata, Scutellaria barbata D. Don, Scutellaria rivularis Wall., scutellarin, wogonin.

The National Cancer Institute thesaurus describes Scutellaria Barbata D. Don (Lamiaceae) as having potential antineoplastic activity. Containing the antioxidant flavone scutellarin, herba Scutellaria barbata has been shown to induce apoptosis of ovarian and breast tumor cells in vitro.

A research article from the Sept. 17, 2004, issue of the journal Life Science concluded that Scutellaria Barbata significantly inhibited growth of a human lung cancer cell line. A study in the August 2009 issue of the European Journal of Cancer Prevention found that an extract of Scutellaria Barbata induced apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in a mouse liver cancer cell line. Many more studies support these findings.

In vitro studies have shown that Scutellaria Barbata exerts anticancer effects via caspase-dependent apoptosis (1,2,3), and by downregulating Bcl-2 protein that is expressed by tumor cells (4). Scutellaria Barbata also increased macrophage function in a murine carcinoma cell line that resulted in inhibition of tumor growth (5). It was shown to affect the metabolism of mutagenic compounds such as benzopyrene, thereby reducing their ability to bind DNA (6).

According to a study published in the January 2009 issue of Planta Medica which researched 13 different Scutellaria species, Scutellaria contains a combination of plant chemicals that together can significantly slow the growth of several different cancers. “On the basis of our preliminary results, we expect maximum benefit from Scutellaria…in combination with standard therapy such as surgery, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy,” says Prahlad Parajuli, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Wayne State University and Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan.

Past studies have shown that Scutellaria has potent antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties, which come primarily from natural plant chemicals (phytochemicals) called flavonoids. Most of the research conducted on Scutellaria so far has focused on the roots of the herb, which are rich in the flavonoid wogonin. However, the leaves and stems are also thought to be high in cancer-fighting phytochemicals, according to study co-author Nirmal Joshee, PhD, assistant professor of Plant Science at Fort Valley State University in Georgia.

After analyzing leaf, stem, and root extracts from 13 different Scutellaria species, the researchers found that each extract contained different combinations of six flavonoids: apigenin, baicalein, baicalin, chrysin, scutellarein, and wogonin. Most extracts contained three or four different flavonoids. Two extracts contained all six flavonoids.

Human breast, prostate, and brain cancer cells, as well as non-cancerous cells, were then treated with the Scutellaria extracts. Nine of the extracts significantly halted the spread of cancer cells. The higher the dose and longer the duration of treatment, the more effectively the extracts killed cancer cells. Four extracts—all from the Scutellaria leaf—were particularly effective at triggering the death (apoptosis) of brain cancer cells.

The researchers also looked at how the flavonoids in Scutellaria—both individually and in combination—affected cancer cells. A combination of four flavonoids, each at a low dose, blocked the growth of brain cancer cells by almost 50 percent. However, when those same flavonoids were given individually at the same dose, they had no effect on the cancer, which suggests that each one possesses a different anti-cancer mechanism and the effects are amplified when the different flavonoids work together.

Certain flavonoids in Scutellaria also appeared to target specific types of cancer. For example, baicalein significantly slowed the growth of brain cancer cells. This may be because individual flavonoids affect mechanisms that are unique to each cancer, said the authors in their report “In vitro antitumor mechanisms of various Scutellaria extracts and constituent flavonoids” in Planta Medica. 2009;75:41-48.

A drug based on the extract of Scutellaria barbata is also being developed to destroy the blood vessels supplying tumours. Professor Alan McGown and colleagues at the University of Salford have so far tested the drug in the laboratory on human cancer cells from tumors such as breast and lung cancers. In an anti-angiogenic approach, the drug works by attacking the tumor’s blood vessels, starving the cancer to death by blocking its supply of oxygen and nutrients. Co-researcher Dr Sylvie Ducki said: “If you target the vessels you are stopping the ‘food’ getting to the tumour and the tumour from spreading.” The drug is selective – targeting only tumour vessels and leaving blood vessels supplying healthy tissues alone. This is unlike conventional treatments which usually target tumour cells but also the normal cells, causing a lot of side effects.

A company called Bionovo has developed and is working to patent an extract of Scutellaria Barbata which it calls BZL101. The company’s researchers believe the herb’s main agent has the ability to specifically identify and target malignant cells, leaving normal cells intact and healthy. The oral anti-cancer drug BZL101 works by eliciting a cancer cell’s innate mechanism of self-suicide, or apoptosis. The drug selectively releases Apoptosis Inducing Factor-1 (AIF1) from a cancer cell’s mitochondrial membrane. AIF then moves to the cell’s nucleus, disintegrating the DNA structure, and fragmenting and killing the cancer cell. Bionovo’s scientists say that although AIF exists in all cells, this protein-translocation process can be elicited exclusively in cancer cells while avoiding normal cells.

Researchers from the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and The Cancer Research Laboratory, University of California at Berkeley, recently reported that BZL101 disrupts proliferation of human breast and prostate cancer cells through distinct mechanisms dependent on the cancer cell phenotype.

After completing a phase I study on BZL101, researchers at The University of California at San Francisco and the Komen/UT Southwestern Breast Cancer Research Program at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
presented encouraging data at the 28th Annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. Some 16 patients has been evaluated in the clinical trial, receiving 350 ml (12 grams dry solubles) per day of the Scutellaria Barbata extract in tea form. Details of their findings are given in their report “Herba Scutellaria Barbatae for Metastatic Breast Cancer”.

Clinical trials are tedious affairs and it takes a long time to get a drug to market. Meanwhile, I’ll continue to enjoy the benefits of Scutellaria Barbata the old-fashioned way, brewed together with another ancient Chinese anti-cancer herb Oldenlandia Diffusa. This cancer-fighting combo makes a delicious, slightly bitter, smoky-flavored herbal tea, which I like to sweeten with another traditional Chinese herbal remedy, Lo Han Kuo, a dried fruit favored for its immune-system boosting properties. All these ingredients are easily available from any traditional Chinese medicine shop in Chinatown. Just ask for “Ban Zhi Lian” (Scutellaria Barbata), “Bai Hua She She Cao” (Oldenlandia Diffusa) and “Lo Han Kuo” (Momordica Grosvenor).

Incidentally, the fact that at least two known natural aromatase inhibitors – apigenin and chrysin – are flavonoids commonly found in the Scutellaria family of herbs, should make this herb even more appealing to people with hormone-sensitive cancers, such as estrogen receptor positive breast cancer. I just had my second cup of this cancer-fighting herbal tea for the day and I must say it’s a delicious way to take my medicine. Cheers to herbs!

References:
(1) Kim DI, et al. Regulation of IGF-I production and proliferation of human leiomyomal smooth muscle cells by Scutellaria barbata D. Don in vitro: isolation of flavonoids of apigenin and luteolin as acting compounds. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2005; 205(3):213-224.
(2) Yin X, et al. Anticancer activity and mechanism of Scutellaria barbata extract on human lung cancer cell line A549. Life Sci 2004; 75(18):2233-2244.
(3) Powell CB, et al. Aqueous extract of herba Scutellaria barbatae, a chinese herb used for ovarian cancer, induces apoptosis of ovarian cancer cell lines. Gynecol Oncol 2003; 91(2):332-340.
(4) Kim KW, Jin UH, Kim DI, et al. Antiproliferative effect of Scutellaria barbata D. Don. on cultured human uterine leiomyoma cells by down-regulation of the expression of Bcl-2 protein. Phytother Res. 2008 May;22(5):583-90.
(5) Wong BY, et al. Oldenlandia diffusa and Scutellaria barbata augment macrophage oxidative burst and inhibit tumor growth. Cancer Biother Radiopharm 1996; 11(1):51-56.
(6) Wong BY, Lau BH, Teel RW. Chinese medicinal herbs modulate mutagenesis, DNA binding and metabolism of benzo[a]pyrene 7,8-dihydrodiol and benzo[a]pyrene 7,8-dihydrodiol-9,10-epoxide. Cancer Lett 1992; 62(2):123-131.

Researchers have found that dark chocolate has cancer-fighting properties, as well as helps lower blood pressure and stroke risk. Care for some chocolate-powered antioxidants?

This recipe for carrot, celery, orange and coriander soup is a good way to get these carrot benefits into your body. Celery and coriander are also sources of apigenin, a natural aromatase inhibitor, while oranges are a source of naringenin, a natural aromatase inhibitor as well. In addition, oranges are a traditional source of Vitamin C, an antioxidant. If you’re dealing with an estrogen-driven health condition like breast cancer or endometriosis, this is one dish you should try out. Not only does it taste delicious, it can also be eaten chilled and it can even be frozen. How convenient is that?

For added antioxidant and cancer-fighting benefits, try adding turmeric.

Carrot, Celery, Orange & Coriander Soup
(4-6 servings)

Ingredients
1 kg carrots, washed, peeled and cut in chunks
2 stalks / ribs celery, washed and cut in chunks
3 shallots, peeled
1-2 garlic cloves
20 grams coriander, washed; reserve leaves for garnish
Juice and zest of 1 orange (reserve zest for garnish)
1 tsp white or black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 litre water

Method
1. Wash, peel (where needed) and cut all vegetables.
2. Put all vegetables in a large stockpot with the water. Bring to boil then simmer till tender.
3. Add orange juice and stir.
4. Blend soup to your desired consistency. Add more water if needed. Season to taste.
5. Serve warm or chilled, garnished with coriander leavers and orange zest.

Recent research on chocolate and stroke risk includes two large studies which suggest that dark chocolate helps lower the risk of stroke. In the first study, 44,489 people ate one serving of dark chocolate per week. Tough work, but somebody had to do it. Anyway, the researchers found that these people were 22% less likely to have a stroke than people who did not eat chocolate.

The second study covered 1,169 people who ate 50g of chocolate once a week. The chocolate-eaters were found to be 46% less likely to die after a stroke compared to people who did not consume chocolate.

Other studies have shown that consuming a small portion of dark chocolate every day can reduce blood pressure in people with high blood pressure. Chocolate is also said to reduce LDL cholesterol. This dark confection contains serotonin too, which acts as an anti-depressant.

Before you celebrate this good news by wolfing down a whole box of chocolates, here’s a cautionary word from researcher Sarah Sahib of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario: “More research is needed to determine whether chocolate truly lowers stroke risk, or whether healthier people are simply more likely to eat chocolate than others.”

If dark chocolate isn’t your thing or if you’re concerned about putting on weight, an antioxidant supplement containing cocoa bean extract, like Neways Revenol, might suit you better.

At a recent conference, the head of Angiogenesis Foundation, William Li, said that dark chocolate and red grapes join blueberries, garlic, soya bean and tea as ingredients that starve cancer while nourishing bodies. The foundation works at identifying foods containing natural chemicals that choke off blood supplies to tumors, starving them to death.

It pitted some foods against approved drugs and found that soya bean, parsley, red grapes, berries and other comestibles (foods containing essential nutrients which help to maintain life) were either as effective or more potent in battling cancer cells. Eaten together, the foods were even more effective in fighting cancer.

If you’ve never tried it before, red wine and dark chocolate go really well together. Why not treat yourself to this powerful cancer-fighting combination tonight? If you’re not much of a drinker, like me, try to keep your fridge stocked with red grapes. After indulging in a handful or two, treat yourself to a piece of really dark chocolate. Mmmm. Now that’s what I call good medicine!

Sadly, wisdom often comes at a great price. I know now that what you put IN your body, as well as ON your body, affects your health. Before I was first diagnosed with breast cancer, I was never one to take health supplements, let alone herbal remedies. Now, supplements, herbal remedies and safe personal and household care products have become a part of my ammo against cancer and other diseases. Blood tests don’t lie.

One mainstay in my health supplement cabinet is a concoction of echinacea root, Asian ginseng root, hawthorne berry, hyssop, Irish moss, rosemary, mullein leaf and other goodies. These herbs are known to boost the immune-system and help keep the body functioning properly. This herbal concoction is based on an ancient Chinese medicine recipe, but conveniently formulated into little brown pills, under the label VMM by Neways. So much easier to use than searching for each herb and boiling them for hours, don’t you think?

This combination of herbs is a power-packed herbal remedy because:

Echinacea stimulates the body’s immune system by activating white blood cells, protecting cells from harmful foreign. Echinacea works as a natural antibiotic, which can suppress the activity of viruses. It has an immune-stimulating effect through the activation of T-cells (natural bacteria killers of the immune system).

Ginseng, used in traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years, is an immune system booster and natural detoxifier. It has beneficial elements called ginsenosides, which work like natural steroids and helps develop brain activity as well as creates activity similar to estrogen. Most varieties of ginseng contain eight ginesenosides, whereas the Chinese/Korean form contains 24 to as much as 28. Ginseng stimulates the immune system by promoting the production of the body’s own virus-fighting chemicals. It is an antioxidant which helps to prevent the cumulative cell damage which can cause dreaded diseases like cancer. It reduces cell damage from radiation and chemotherapy, and increases the absorption of nutrients in the intestines.

Ginseng helps keep the liver, adrenal glands, and thyroid healthy, helps prevent illnesses and slows down the aging process. Many Asian studies have discovered this medicinal plant’s ability to slow the progression of cancer. For instance, two compounds in ginseng, ginsan and polyacetylinic alcohol, show promise in killing lung cancer cells and slowing tumor growth.

Hawthorn berry is loaded with B-complex vitamins, as well as many minerals, flavanoids and biovflavanoids. It contains potent antioxidants which help fight harmful free radicals. Hawthorn is recognized as having cardiotonic properties, as it benefits the heart and cardiovascular system. It has the ability to dilate the coronary arteries, thus improving blood and oxygen supply to the heart muscle. It also strengthens the heart muscle, helping the heart to beat more forcefully and efficiently. Hawthorne also seems to dilate the highways of other blood vessels around the body, allowing blood to circulate more freely with less strain on the heart.

Hyssop is a healing herb that was used even in Biblical times. David was recorded as saying, “Purge me with Hyssop and I shall be clean.” (Psalms 51:7) Ancient healers knew hyssop to be a cleanser of the body. This herb increases the secretion and discharge of urine and removes any obstruction to body secretion or excretion by opening the natural passages or pores of the body. It also promotes bowel movement.

Irish Moss, a kind of seaweed, contains 15 of the 18 elements that make up the human body, including Vitamins A, D, E, F and K. It is rich in iodine, calcium and sodium as well as sulphur, potassium and phosphorus. It has been used to treat bladder disorders, bronchitis, bad breath, intestinal disorders, glandular problems, goiter, swollen joints, lung difficulties, thyroid conditions, tuberculosis, tumors, ulcers and varicose veins. Irish moss also helps soften the skin and prevent wrinkles.

Rosemary has been used for centuries to treat a wide range of ailments, such as stomach upsets, digestive disorders and headaches. Modern research shows that rosemary can also help prevent cancer and age-related skin damage, boost the functioning of the liver and act as a mild diuretic to help reduce swelling. The herb is able to inactivate toxins and then eliminate them from your liver.

Two of the most important ingredients in rosemary, caffeic acid and rosemarinic acid, are potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents. Interestingly, rosemary offers a safe and natural alternative treatment to Tamoxifen. Researchers from the Department of Chemical Biology, New Jersey State University in the US, found that a 2 per cent concentration of rosemary extract administered for three weeks was able to significantly inactivate excess oestrogen. Rosemary stimulates liver enzymes, which in turn inactivates estrogen hormones like estrone and estradiol, the most dangerous form of estrogen.

Mullein, a member of the snapdragon family, was used by ancient Greeks to treat respiratory disorders. It relieves the symptoms of sore throats, coughs, bronchitis, asthma, and some allergies. Traditionally, it is also used to treat diarrhoea and gastrointestinal aliments. The plant has anti-inflammatory properties and can be used topically to soothe skin irritations such as rashes, boils and chilblains.

Thyme, another popular ancient herb, is used to treat acute and chronic bronchitis, whooping cough, and inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, as it possesses expectorant and bronchial antispasmodic properties. All the members of the mint family, including thyme, contain terpenoids which have cancer preventive properties. Rosmarinic and ursolic acids are major terpenoids in thyme with anti-cancer properties.

Give your health a boost. Get your disease-fighting and immune-system boosting Neways VMM here.

He’s a lot like me. I hate taking medicine. I caught the bug which was making its rounds during the recent holiday season and it got me bad. My throat was so sore and painful that sometimes it felt like I had daggers down my throat. The coughing was relentless and particularly nasty at night. My nose leaked like a tap. My poor hubby was down with the same bug too, as was my mother-in-law. She even lost her voice. She took all kinds of medicine but, one month later, she’s still feeling poorly.

This time around, I decided not to take any medicine at all, not even cough syrup. Instead, I brewed pots of Momordica Grosvenor fruit, an antioxidant and immune system booster which has been popular with the Chinese for centuries. You can find it in Chinese medicine shops and groceries, where it is usually better known as “lo han guo”. Momordica is popularly used to treat respiratory ailments like cough, cold, influenza and bronchitis.

The fruit can be purchased whole and dried in its shell, or in boxes of compressed cubes, ready to dissolve in hot water. Momordica can also be found in some health supplements, such as Neways Authentic Hawaiian Noni Juice. It’s naturally sweet, so it makes a good, healthy sweetener. It’s often combined with other natural ingredients like chrysanthemum and barley to make a healthy, soothing tea.

Momordica looks like a green lime, only it has a hard shell. When dried, the shell is dark brown in color. The fruit pulp within the shell has lots of seeds. To make a pot of momordica or ‘lo han kuo’ tea, simply crack the shell like an egg, discard the shell, roughly break up the dried pulp with seeds (just peel it apart with your fingers) and put that in a teapot. Pour in boiling water and leave to infuse for at least 15 minutes. The longer you leave it, the richer the flavor. As you drink the tea, you can top up the teapot with more hot water, until the momordica tea begins to taste weak. Discard once you reach that point.

I drank a pot of momordica or ‘lo han kuo’ tea almost daily, alternating with home-made barley water every other day. That really flushed the toxins out of my body and soothed my throat and respiratory system. My husband and I recovered much faster than my mother-in-law, and without the use of medicine too, although I admit to taking my Neways health supplements daily (Revenol for antioxidants, Maximol Solutions for multivitamins and trace minerals, and VMM to boost my immune system). Try this next time the bug gets you!

You can try eating curry and other foods containing turmeric every day. Not a problem if you’re accustomed to spicy foods. However, if you’re one of those who finds eating spicy foods a challenge, what else can you do? Well, I like to make myself a spicy hot drink which is loosely based on the popular Indian marsala tea. It’s really refreshing. You can modify it to suit your taste. For instance, how many slices of ginger or turmeric you use depends on the size of the roots as well as what you can handle. Turmeric has a rather strong, distinctive taste. My simple recipe includes cayenne pepper, another cancer-fighting compound, as well as raw honey, which contains the flavonoid chrysin, a natural aromatase inhibitor. Aromatase inhibitors help fight estrogen-dominant breast cancer.

Spiced Anti-Cancer Tea With Turmeric
Ingredients:
Fresh turmeric root (one or two slices per mug)
Fresh ginger root (3-5 slices per mug)
Freshly-squeezed lemon or lime juice
Cayenne pepper powder (a few dashes per mug)
Raw honey to taste

Method:
1) Crush the turmeric and ginger slices.
2) Put cayenne pepper powder into a fine tea or spice bag.
3) Put the turmeric and ginger slices plus cayenne pepper bag in a saucepan with some water and bring to the boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for a couple of minutes.
4) Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour the liquid into mugs or cups.
5) Add fresh lemon or lime juice and raw honey to taste.
6) Drink either hot or cold.

If you’re lazy like me, you can just crush the turmeric and ginger slices, place them in a mug, pour boiling water over, and leave the mixture to infuse. After a few minutes, you can add a few dashes of cayenne pepper powder and lemon or lime juice and honey to taste. This “lazy” method will produce a gritty beverage, but the cancer-fighting properties are just the same. You can even use turmeric powder and ginger powder instead of the fresh roots, but the beverage will be really gritty, and nothing beats fresh, really.

For a more robust and tasty version, you can use brewed tea instead of just plain water. This is somewhat similar to Indian marsala tea, which also has milk added to it.

Of course, if you’re really, really lazy, you can take supplements, like Neways powerful antioxidant formulae Revenol and Cascading Revenol. Both contain curcumin as well as other known cancer-busters. Whatever works for you. Just get those anti-cancer compounds into your body!