Like its Korean counterpart (to which it has no relation), ashwaganda is classified as an “adaptogen.” In herbal therapy, this means that it aids in resistance to the effects of:

• stress
• trauma
• anxiety
• fatigue

Overall, an adaptogen strengthens immune function and physiological defenses against any kind of stressor, whether it is a physical injury, a chemical toxin or a biological pathogen, thus normalizing bodily functions and maintaining a state of homeostasis, or stable and healthy condition.

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Thankfully the holiday season is finally over. I don’t know how many more dinners and holiday cookies I could possibly eat. If you are anything like me, then you are scrambling for a way to lose those extra holiday pounds we all manage to put on. The good news is there are many ways to do just that with the right combination of herbs and spices in bulk.

The first one you can try is Cayenne. Full of vitamin A, vitamins C and B6, Cayenne also is a great source of fiber, vitamin K and manganese. It is nutritious and is a thermogenic food, meaning it burns calories through increased metabolism. This is why it is such a good tool for weight loss.

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Is there anything more relaxing than sitting back and enjoying a warm cup of tea? Tea is a great way to start the day and the perfect means to winding it down. It is also provides numerous health benefits. People have been touting the benefits of tea for centuries. Recently, there is even more emphasis on the particular types of tea.

No matter where you live, we all have our own preferences when it comes to tea. For the first time tea drinker the terminologies can be a little confusing. For example, many people couldn’t explain the difference between black, green, and white tea. Could you?

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Do you love the smell of lavender? You’re not alone. Its easy to absolutely love it. In fact, lavender has been cultivated and used for centuries by all different cultures. Did you know that dried lavender flowers have become the most popular aromatic herb?

Dried lavender holds many different benefits besides smelling so pleasant. Dried lavender flowers are often added to culinary dishes, made into relaxing teas, crafted into an essential oil as a bathwater or applied in small amounts as a skin lotion. It isn’t uncommon to see it added to pillow cases, garment drawers or homemade potpourri for its aroma or added to water and sprayed directly into the air.

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What we know as saffron spice comes from a plant called Saffron crocus, which is indeed a type of spring-blooming crocus. The parts of the plant that are used in saffron spice are the stigmas and the styles in the center of the flower. These are dried, and thus turned into a culinary wonder. Although it is an expensive spice, a little bit of it goes a long way in flavoring a variety of dishes.

Saffron rice makes a lovely accompaniment to meat dishes. You simply cook white rice with butter and onion, and then add chicken stock, salt and saffron spices and let it cook.

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Generally speaking, a tincture is a solution that uses alcohol as the extract. Many people are making tinctures with alcohol and glycerin, and have been used in traditional and alternative medicine practices. Herbal tinctures offer a popular way to use dried herbs and spices for many health purposes. They are easy to make as well.

Tinctures were used historically to preserve the potency of herbal medications. Although dried herbs can lose potency over time, alcohol-based herbal tinctures enjoy a longer shelf life.

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Dried kelp comes from seaweed, under the Latin botanical name of Ascophyllum nodosum. It also goes by the common names of egg wrack, knotted wrack or knotted kelp. It is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean, the northwest coast of Europe and East Greenland. It is thought that there are several dried kelp benefits that may come from the use of this interesting sea vegetable.

Kelp flourishes in sheltered estuaries. Plants of this seaweed have been shown to live for ten or even fifteen years. The plants will live longer the fewer stresses are placed on them in terms of temperature changes and exposure to waves, as well as the salinity of the water.

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Can artichoke extracts be used for cholesterol control? A research study published in a 1998 edition of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics described experiments in which extracts made from artichoke leaf was shown to lower levels of LDL cholesterol in laboratory rats.

What About People?

Does this work in humans? Scientists in Germany believed there were some benefits. That same year, the country’s Commission E (somewhat analogous to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which until a few years ago regulated the use of therapeutic herbs in that country) approved the use of artichoke leaf for the treatment of certain digestive problems, though not specifically for lowering cholesterol.

In 2008, a the results of a study on adult human subjects was published in the journal Phytomedicine showed similar benefits in lowering cholesterol levels with the use of artichoke leaf extract has had been achieved in laboratory rats ten years earlier.

The Mechanism

Artichoke leaf appears to work by preventing the digestive system from absorbing cholesterol into the blood system. The way this works is by stimulating the production of bile in the liver. Bile, as you may remember, is a substance that is excreted from the liver and enters the digestive tract through the gall bladder. It acts as a sort of surfactant, or “wetting agent” (like dish soap), which aids in the emulsion of fats and enabling these to be absorbed in the small intestine. Somehow, the action of biochemical agent cyanin within artichoke leaf causes the low-density cholesterol (LDLs) to pass through without being absorbed.

A Supplement, Not a Cure

It should be noted that therapy with artichoke leaf extract is most effective with combined with proper diet and exercise. In particular, persons using artichoke leaf extract should eat a diet that is high in soluble fiber (such as whole oats and other unprocessed grains) and substitute saturated fats (such as lard or butter) with unsaturated fats like olive oil. A minimum of 30 minutes of aerobic exercise daily is also recommended.

Sources:

Curries are traditionally spicy vegetable dishes found in many regions in Asia and India, although some dishes may also include tofu or meats. The word “curry” can also refer to a sauce that is used to spice up vegetable or meat dishes. Curry spices are a spice blend that varies a bit by region, but often includes a base of fenugreek, turmeric, cumin and coriander, and may also include ginger, black pepper, garlic, red pepper, fennel seed, nutmeg, cinnamon, mace, clove, cardamom, mustard seed and clove. You can purchase premixed curry spice blends, or you can buy individual spices and mix your own custom blends.

How to Make your own Biryani:
One dish that features curry Indian spices is called biryani. It features vegetables and rice in a wonderful spicy sauce, and chicken can be added to it if you wish. After placing some butter in a saucepan, you can add some Indian spices such as turmeric, cumin, coriander, cardamom and cinnamon to the pan over low heat and toast the spices for a couple of minutes, being careful not to let the pan get too hot because they can burn easily. After, stir in the rice and toast it for a minute, then add water and boil, cooking the seasoned rice. As the rice cooks, in another skillet melt butter, and saute onion, garlic and ginger, to which you will add raisins, almonds, and more coriander, cumin and cardamom, all the while stirring. To this mixture, add your vegetables. You can include your favorites, but some that work well in this dish are new potatoes, green beans, carrots and cauliflower or broccoli. Add a bit of water to the vegetables, raise the heat and cook them with the lid on the pot and then removing the lid to reduce the water, until the vegetables are tender. To finish, simply add the seasoned rice to the seasoned vegetables and mix together.

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Anise seed are the seeds of the herbaceous annual herb known in Latin by the name Pimpinella anisum, which is native to southwest Asia and the eastern Mediterranean. It is a different spice from star anise, which is also a seed but comes from a completely different plant known as Illicium verum, an evergreen tree. Anise seed is most commonly used in cooking, for popular dishes such as anise sugar cookies and anise seeds in white rice.

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