Warning: Read This Before Eating Red Peppers!

- Red pepper should not be given to children under age 2. For older children, start with a small amount and use more if necessary. People over 65 often suffer a loss of taste bud and skin-nerve sensitivity.

- Chopping red peppers may burn the fingertips. In addition, red pepper does not wash off the hands easily. Even with careful washing, the pungent herb may remain on the fingertips for hours and cause severe eye pain if contaminated fingers touch the eyes.

- One French study shows that red pepper boosts resistance to infection. Some bacteria-fighting spices can be sprinkled on cuts to help prevent infection, but DO NOT do this with red pepper. It burns terribly!

- Some research suggests the herb’s stems and leaves stimulate uterine contractions in animals. Pregnant women and those wishing to conceive should stick to the powdered fruits.

- If red pepper causes minor discomforts, such as stomach upset, diarrhea, or burning during bowel movements, use less or stop using it. Let your doctor know if you experience unpleasant effects or if the symptoms for which the herb is being used do not improve significantly in two weeks.

Popularity: 22% [?]

9 Amazing Ways The Herb “Gotu Kola” Is Of Great Benefit For Health & Healing

Below is a list of popular uses of gotu kola (Centella Asiatica.)

1. Burns: Centella asiatica has been effectively used in the treatment of patients with 2nd and 3rd degree burns caused by boiling water, electrical current, or gas explosion. Daily local application of the extract produced great results if the treatment was started immediately after the accident. The extract prevented or limited the shrinking and swelling of the skin caused by skin infection, and it inhibited scar formation, increased healing, and decreased fibrosis.

2. Cellulite: Standardized extracts of gotu kola have demonstrated good results in the treatment of cellulite. The effect of centella in the treatment of cellulite appears to be related to its ability to enhance connective tissue structure and reduce sclerosis by acting directly on fibroblasts.

3. Cirrhosis of the liver: In patients with cirrhosis, regression of inflammatory infiltration was observed. No effect was observed in patients with chronic hepatitis. Other reports have supported the use of this herb in fibrotic conditions of the liver.

4. Keloids: Gotu kola has demonstrated impressive results in the treatment of keloids and hyper trophic scars. The herb reduces the inflammatory phase of scar formation while enhancing the maturation phase of scar formation. Keloids and hyper trophic scars are characterized by a prolonged inflammatory phase, which may go on for months or even years without progressing to the maturation phase. The inflammatory phase is characterized on biopsy by large numbers of immature, swollen collagen bundles intermingled with inflammatory debris, while the maturation phase is characterized by mature fibrocytes, normal collagen fibers, and few inflammatory cell elements.

5. Leprosy: Several investigators have reported impressive clinical results using Centella
asiatica and its extracts in the treatment of leprosy in both uncontrolled and controlled studies.

6. Improving mental function: A profound increase in the mental abilities of 30 developmentally disabled children treated with gotu kola has been reported. After a 12-week period, the children were more attentive and better able to concentrate on assigned tasks.

7. Scleroderma: Extract of Centella asiatica has been tested in several trials in the treatment of scleroderma (including systemic sclerosis). Presumably the positive therapeutic response is a result of centella’s balancing effect on connective tissue, thereby preventing the excessive collagen synthesis observed in scleroderma.

8. Disorders of veins: Centella asiatica are effective in the treatment of varicose veins and venous insufficiency. This appears to be due to centella’s ability to enhance the connective tissue structure of the connective tissue sheath that surrounds the vein, reduce hardening of the vein, and improve blood flow through the vein.

9. Wound healing: Extracts of Centella asiatica have been shown, in a large number of clinical studies, to greatly aid wound repair. The types of wounds healed include surgical wounds such as episiotomies and ear surgeries, skin ulcers due to arterial or venous insufficiency, traumatic injuries to the skin, and gangrene.

For more natural herbs and their healing properties.

Popularity: 21% [?]

6 Reasons Why Red Peppers Are Extremely Healthy For You

Red pepper owes its heat and its value in herbal healing to one chemical found in its fruit - capsaicin. Below is a list of it’s many benefits.

1. Digestive aid: Red pepper aids digestion by stimulating the flow of both saliva and stomach secretions. Saliva contains enzymes that begin the breakdown of carbohydrate, while stomach secretions (gastric juices) contain acids and other substances that further digest food.

2. Diarrhea: Like many culinary spices, red pepper has antibacterial properties, possibly explaining traditional claims that it helps relieve infectious diarrhea.

3. Chronic pain: For centuries, herbalists have recommended rubbing red pepper into the skin to treat muscle and joint pains. Medically, this is known as using a counter irritant, a treatment that causes minor superficial pain and distracts the person from the more severe, deeper pain. Several capsaicin counter irritants are available over-the-counter. Recently, however, red pepper has been shown to possess real pain-relieving properties for certain kinds of chronic pain. For reasons still not completely understood, capsaicin interferes with the action of the chemical in the peripheral nerves that sends pain messages to the brain. Several recent studies all showed capsaicin so effective at relieving a particular type of chronic pain.

4. Shingles: Shingles is an adult disease caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox in children. The virus remains dormant in the body until later in life when, for unknown reasons, it reappears in some people as shingles, causing a rash on one side of the body that progresses from red bumps to blisters to crusty pox resembling chicken pox. In otherwise
healthy adults, shingles clears up by itself within three weeks. But some people, typically the elderly or those with other illnesses, particularly Hodgkin’s disease, suffer severe, chronic pain. With the help of capsaicin, they don’t have to suffer as much.

5. Diabetic foot pain: Capsaicin’s pain-relieving ability has also led to its use in treating the severe ankle and foot pain known as burning foot syndrome, which affects approximately half of all diabetics. In one study, 71% of diabetics reported significant relief after four weeks.

6. Cluster Headaches: Capsaicin also helps relieve the pain of cluster headaches, extremely severe pain on one side of the head. In one study, cluster headache sufferers rubbed a capsaicin preparation inside their nostrils and outside their nose. Within five days, 75% reported less pain and fewer headaches. Though they also reported burning nostrils and a runny nose, these side effects subsided within a week.

Red pepper may help cut cholesterol and prevent heart disease. While it is too early to recommend red pepper as a means of lowering cholesterol and treating heart disease, this common kitchen spice may someday have a role to play in these areas.

In food, season to taste, but be careful. A little too much can set the mouth on fire. For an infusion to aid digestion and possibly help reduce risk of heart disease, use1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon per cup of boiling water. Drink it after meals. For external application to help treat pain, mix 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon per cup of warm vegetable oil and rub it into the affected area.

Popularity: 23% [?]