By Cathy Margolin
on July 29, 2010
I am often asked, "What's a good herb for weight loss?" Ever since ephedra was banned it seems people have wanted a substitute. Lately, one Chinese herb in particular is showing up in a lot of weight loss supplements. That herb is unripe bitter orange. Although it is not ephedra (ma huang), is does contain a similar chemical to the ephedrin called synephrine.
Bitter orange refers to the peel of a particular specie of unripe orange and has been used in Chinese herbal medicine for centuries. Also known around the world as citrus aurantium it's a native of the Far East and grows well in most warm climates. Unripe bitter orange is part of the Chinese herb pharmacopeia and has been used in Chinese cuisine, fragrance and medicine for over 2000 years.
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By Cathy Margolin
on June 27, 2010
Many young women are looking for a natural alternative to birth control pills for the PMS and cramps they get each month. Chinese herbs are very effective at controlling and eliminating PMS (premenstrual syndrome). The birth control pill is an option many women choose because they are not familiar with Chinese herbal medicine.
The approach I take is very different than the way progesterone and estrogen therapy found in the "Pill". Chinese Medicine can treat PMS and cramps successfully without artificial hormones.
Chinese Medicine recognizes that the liver is an organ that not just cleans blood but also moves blood. When the liver is overly taxed by stress, lack of sleep, drugs or accumulation of chemicals (including hormones found in our food supply) the liver…
By Cathy Margolin
on June 21, 2010
Some say Kudzu is a highly invasive weed, others call it a highly profitable cash crop or herb. I say it depends upon your point of view.
Michael Wyss, Ph.D., a Neuroscientist with the University of Alabama says kudzu contains healthy substances, called isoflavones. One particularly important isoflavone is puerarin, found only in kudzu. In fact, it’s the most abundant isoflavone in the plant. Puerarin is important because it can help control insulin for diabetics and reduce cholesterol.
The Chinese have used kudzu, a prominent Chinese herb in Traditional Chinese medicine, for centuries. It has been a proven mainstay for relieving muscular tension, reducing hypertension, dysentery and is commonly used for fevers due to the flu. Kudzu's is full of health benefits and from my point of view could be the next cash crop.…
By Cathy Margolin
on March 5, 2010
In the business world when economic times get tough a business that weathers the storm is a true survivor. A standout, that must have incredibly popular
products that make people come back for more even when unemployment is high and people are unwilling to spend. A business that survives must have proven itself worthy of providing great products at a fair price. Products that people simply can’t do without. When a business does this for 70 to 100 years or more we are all impressed. The stamina, the fortitude and adaptability to survive for so many years must mean this business has some incredible products which we all crave. Ford Motor Company and Kodak come to mind, some of the oldest American businesses.
But what do you think about a business that has survived providing the same products for 341 years?
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By Cathy Margolin
on March 1, 2010
What vegetable is green, oblong, with the skin of a toad and the name of a fruit? The answer is bitter melon, a tropical native popular in South Asia and India. Most Westerners would cringe at the taste. But it’s time it start showing up in American diets now that a new study from The Journal of Cancer Research, (March 1 issue) indicates bitter melon may also ward off breast cancer.
Bitter melon has been used in Traditional Chinese herbal Medicine for ages. This study, published by the American Association of Cancer Research and conducted in St. Louis MO, showed this Chinese herb has an ability to slow the growth and in some cases kill breast cancer cells.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer of…
By Cathy Margolin
on December 3, 2009
Ever since Dr. Oz's interview in Esquire magazine (Dec. 09) I've been fielding a phethera of questions on ginseng. Thanks Dr. Oz, I'm always happy to talk about the Chinese herbs I love. It's an added bonus that the best American Ginseng is actually grown in Wisconsin, my old stomping grounds. I also love to buy American whenever possible.
In response to a question "how to prevent swine flu", Dr. Oz says: “Vitamin D and American ginseng are the two things I recommend the most. Vitamin D because it stimulates dramatically the ability of the immune system to respond, and American ginseng because it stimulates these things called Toll-like receptors in the gut. They’re ancient – our most primitive immune response – and they make it difficult for bugs to get…
By Cathy Margolin
on July 20, 2009
The Star Anise, Illicium verum or Ba Jiao Hui Xiang has been used as a spice and medicine since antiquity. Star Anise is used dried and the seeds have a licorice-like flavor. It’s commonly sold in supermarkets and often used in Chinese cuisine to flavor duck dishes. ( I used it once in my Thanksgiving turkey, it was a hit) It’s also contains the active chemical component in the drug Tamiflu, which is now being stockpiled as a defense against the Swine flu.
Star anise was originally in the spotlight because it’s core ingredient was discovered effective as a flu fighter for the Avian flu. Now it’s being touted for the swine flu. In an announcement in Feb 2006 from the University of Tokyo’s Graduate school of Pharmaceutical sciences, they “ found a way to make Tamiflu without using…
By Cathy Margolin
on July 6, 2009
Last night I was rudely awakened at 3:00 am by a hungry cat. He climbed up my wind chime which was hanging near a mother dove nesting with her two new babies. Wind chimes don’t suddenly start chiming, normally they start out kind of slow and steady and usually build in volume as the wind picks up. This was not the case last night. The chimes were attacked as were the birds.
I heard a bird take flight and I jumped out of bed to see the culprit. I was too late and it was too dark. Upset by the attack and the rude wake up call, all I could think of was “will I be able to get back to sleep”. Mind not quite awake… I almost forget that I have the perfect Chinese herb formula for sleep. …
