I hope that you are all enjoying your holiday season. On
behalf of Living Well Healing Arts, please accept our gratitude for your
feedback and your desire to improve your own well-being by following our blog.
This week is the final blog for 2013! I just finished posting the Top
Reads for December 2013 blog on my homepage. It highlights the most significant
headlines in health, nutrition, and drugs for the last month of this year. I hope you find some time to skim through it at
your leisure and share your thoughts with us!
Below are two more headlines displaying the power of Mother
Nature to modulate health outcomes.
Fennel for Period Pain
Many women struggle with the
agony of menstrual cramps and resort to powerful pain relievers. Unfortunately,
the long term use of over the counter NSAIDs (Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs) can lead to negative effects on the gastrointestinal intestinal tract
and heart.
There are at least three
clinical studies comparing fennel to the drug mefanamic acid, a NSAID, for
relief in women who suffer with painful periods. The 2002 study in Kerman,
Islamic Republic of Iran in and the 2003 study published in the International Journal of Gynecology &
Obstetrics demonstrated convincing evidence for the superiority in pain
relief with the use of fennel over this pharmaceutical.
Now a third study in the Iranian Journal of Nursery and Midwifery, reported on the
results of randomized parallel-group trial in 60 18-25 year olds with primary
dysmenorrhea (menstrual pain). The study compared 2% fennel extract drops to
mefenamic acid (cap 250 mg). The results are stated below:
“The present study showed that the efficacy of
fennel drop 2% in pain relief in primary dysmenorrhea is comparable to the
efficacy of common NSAIDs such as mefenamic acid cap. Investigators recommend
that another product of fennel such as tab, cap, or fennel oil might be more
acceptable than the essence. One subject had severe menstruation after taking
fennel drop.”
Ji, S. Fennel For Painful
Periods: A Clinically Proven Drug Alternative. GreenMedInfo.com. November 23,
2013.
Promising
Study in Rodents for Natural Flu Relief
Many are aware of the power of probiotics to assist
with prevention of yeast infections when using antibiotics, but they do so much
more. This weekend, I was reading several articles on the power of trillions of
bugs that exist within our body to modulate our immune health and well-being in
so many ways. This latest article discusses how a bacteria extract given to
mice protected them from flu symptom severity, which could translate to use in
humans:
“Wonder cure for killer
flu,” is the headline on the front page of the Daily Express. What the
headline fails to tell you is that the ‘cure’ – bacteria found in suguki, a
type of pickled turnip – has only been tested in mice.
The headlines were based
on a simple experiment whereby mice were given a bacterial extract called
Lactobacillus brevis (KB290) found in suguki.
The mice received the
extract for 14 days before they were infected with the flu virus.
Those receiving the extract showed less severe symptoms of flu during the
subsequent seven days. Specifically, those given the bacterial extract had less
weight loss and less severe declines in general health compared to those given
an inactive placebo.
Bazian. Probiotic pickled
turnip touted as ‘flu wonder cure’. PubMed Central. November 7, 2013.
One of my goals for the upcoming year is to provide
more opportunities to spread the word on the power of safe, natural, and
effective solutions for common health concerns. This is why Living Well will
continue to offer Essential Oils workshops monthly and why I will be holding
monthly teleseminars. May you all have a healthy and happy New Year! Thanks for
reading!
