Category: Health

By Adekunle Yusuf

 

As businesses continue to grapple with challenges due to the coronavirus, innovation is the key to remaining in business.

To this end, to cater to the surging demand for telemedicine services, MeCure Smart, an app that allows online consultations, has partnered HelloDocApp, the largest online community of doctors in Nigeria, to bring more than 10,000 doctors on its platform.

This is to cater for patients who  prefer remote consultations, since this allows the doctors and patients a very safe and effective environment to manage healthcare in the pandemic time, said Ajinkya Shelar, product manager  of MeCure Smart.

“When we launched MeCure Smart in April 2019, we were simply conducting an experiment: Is the Nigerian market ready for healthcare services through a digital platform.

Up to February 2020 and we were not able to handle the sheer volume of calls anymore. The scale and demand for tele-medicine services is overwhelming.

“Hence, we decided to tie up with HelloDoc. This partnership will allow us to onboard 4000+ doctors across every specialty ranging from general physicians to even neurosurgeons on our MeCure Smart app immediately and we intend to further expand it to up to 10,000+ doctors by end of 2020.

We hope that through this initiative anyone in Nigeria will immediately have access to quality and affordable healthcare that is also COVID safe,” Shelar added.

He explained that the MeCure Smart -HelloDoc partnership works as a pure marketplace. This, he said, means that customers can browse doctors by specialty and compare them by prior customer feedback, ratings and even pricing, adding that each doctor on the platform has a verified Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) certificate and is vetted through a rigorous background check.

FEMI KUSA

 

I salute the courage of azoospermic or zero-sperm-count men whose wives are anxious to get pregnant, and sense this may be a tall dream.

Their wives nevertheless initiate or agree to conjugation ruled by the head and not the heart, just to keep the marriage going.

These women usually do not betray their worries on their faces at home or outdoor. These relationships must be tension-packed, in homes where high pressure emotions are bottled up on both sides.

Every time I have received enquires on this subject, it has been from a woman. Last week, one of such wives told me her doctor asked her to try sperm donated by another man who would be unknown to her and her husband.

As my intuition does not accept man’s meddlesomeness with the arrangements of nature, I replied that I could not endorse it. I placed myself in her husband’s shoes.

How would I relate with a child who is my wife’s child and not mine but who, at home and outdoor, I am expected to pretend I fathered? What happens on the day of the naming ceremony or on the day of the dedication of such child to the Lord?

If I could bottle the pain in my heart and deceive men, would I know joy if I stood in the presence of the Lord to take His name in vain, and, in addition, bear false witness to Him and to the child that I was the father?

I am not saying I cannot raise children who, biologically, are not mine. I am helping to raise some orphans right now. The difference is the deceit that is in one and not in the other.

Could the mother not leak the secret some day? What would our home look like if we have four children, all of them from different fathers and I am supposed to pretend to be their father?

I may become psychologically and even physically worn down, inwardly cool and lifeless. I may feel cheated, used or abused and turn a cold fish in the night chamber.

Such a feeling is dangerous for a man these days that spouses kill each other for no just cause. The woman may sense the man would become a leaking balloon that could spill the beans, bring disgrace upon her, turn her life upside down and destroy her happiness. Could such a woman not be tempted to get rid of him?

If she became widowed, friends and family could sympathise with her and make her life more comfortable rather than if her husband leaves her.

Where this scenario does not play out, how does a donor-sperm child feel when the truth of his or her coming into being comes home to roost?

Are there no spiritual implications in all of this? Will the man who gave out his sperm to bring a soul to this earth but frivolously walks away from his responsibility towards that child, not be linked to the agony of the child?

What about the husband who caved in to the pressure of such a woman? What about the doctor who encouraged them for the comfort of his own pocket?

Does the child deserve his or her fate? Will they all have to reconvene somewhere, sometime to make amends? Child adoption, which has its own problems, could be another option for such couples. Adoption of a child presents its own challenges.

In the natural process of coming into being on earth, a child is a gift to the right mother. Souls wishing to return to the earth for one reason or another are attracted to her through vibrations or echoes of the procreative art.

And as a young human body begins to form in her womb, the soul of most corresponding nature or circumstance takes possession of it to be her child. Cases abound, though, in which “black sheep” souls may find their way in.

The child may be a “black sheep” with no features corresponding with either husband or wife. While blessings abound in the turning around of such a soul, bountiful harvests of trauma may be the profit.

Azoospermic man

The azoospermic man has no sperm in his semen and is, therefore, unlikely to make a woman pregnant. The number of predisposing conditions may be legion or few, such as…….

Extrogenation:

Azoospermia may originate from the womb if an estrongenated woman is pregnant with a male foetus. Estrogenation means an excess of the female hormone, estrogen, over its counterpart, progesterone.

Some studies suggest  excess estrogen damages Sertoli cells of the  foetal testes which are, like the Leydig cells, involved in sperm cell production and maturation.

In an animal experiment with 47 albino rats fed Estradiol, a form of estrogen, for one month, the epididymis regressed by almost 50 percent, compared with the control group.

The epididymis is a coiled, long tube in which mature sperm cells are stored and transported from the testes to another tube called the Vas-Deferens.

It is from here that the mature sperm cells are moved to the seminal vesicles which add seminal fluid to them on their onward journey to the prostate gland which enriches ” the visitors” on their way, through the urethra.

The urethra is the tube which brings urine from the urinary bladder to the penis for voiding. In some men, something unexpected may happen.

Rather than the semen flowing down through the urethra, it deviates into the urinary bladder. In the womb, too much estrogen is believed to destroy sertoli cells.

These cells are known also as  Mother or Nurse of sperm cells because they  produce the nutrition or “food” for the nurture, growth, and maturation of infant sperm cells .

Besides, they produce a protein which helps the concentration of the male hormone, testosterone, which is crucial for spermatogenesis, the process of sperm production.

Nearby are the Leydig cells which produce testosterone. Many women are estrongenated and this may account for why about one percent of men are found to be azoospermic in some population studies.

There is too much estrongen in today’s diet. Some men have been found to have more estrogen in their blood circulation than in an average woman’s body. Such men may have sperm problems.

Poultry farmers feed chicken and turkey with estrogen loaded feed so they can lay egg almost every day through over stimulation of their ovaries.

The estrogen passes into the egg and the meat. Cow farmers do the same for cow milk which many women cherish for it calcium in the hope that it would help prevent osteoporosis.

A link has been established between hormonal imbalance in women (estrogenation) and the growth of uterine fibroids, which have become common place among Nigerian women today.

On top of this, more estrogen enters male and female blood systems through cellophane food wrappers, such as sachet (pure water).

Cellophane and other soft plastics contain Zeno estrogen which is released into the food or water when they are heated.

Almost everywhere, one would find stacks of pure “water” or sachet water bags under the scorching sun. And many women now prefer to wrap hot food not with leaves, but with cellophane! If the entire population of about 500 million sertoli cells in the average adult male is wiped out in the womb, it is unlikely that azoospermia caused by this problem would be reversible.

But who knows, there may be hope where some are spared and can be nurtured to sustain some sperm cells which, strengthen and protected, can do their job. Some cases of low sperm count have this origin.

Where there is not enough nutrition because there are not enough sertoli cells, a struggle for survival takes place among infant sperm cells, with some dying off in the process of natural selection (survival of the fittest), while others suffer from stunted growth or other problems.

Mumps (Orchitis)

This is a dangerous, contagious viral infection which causes inflammation ( swelling) of either or both  saliva producing Parotid glands in front and beneath the ear.

Many Nigerians  treat these swellings with kid gloves. Yet they can cause infertility in their children in the future, damaging the testes in boys and  ovaries in girls.

In Ikot Ekwere, an  Itam community in Akwa Ibom State, children with mumps ( orchitis) were  a common sight years ago.

But these Nigerian folks appear to have a plant medicine for it and had no need for vaccination. This folk remedy is a variety of white cocoyam with lemon green stem and leaves and not deep green like the other varieties.

It was cooked for infected children to eat, and the infection disappeared. In addition, these natives searched for plantain stem stump, scooped the fermented juice inside, and gave it to the infected child to drink. I am informed it worked for them.

Thus, as this therapy was narrated to me, it reminded me of Plantain Root Juice (PRJ) therapy. It was popular in Lagos decades ago, and perhaps even now, among men who face prostrate gland challenges.

The plantain stump was uprooted and the root well washed and disinfected. Then, it was chopped into pieces which were crushed to recover its juice. The juice was bottled and sold.

Today, with the availability of modern juicers, the juice recovery method should change the old procedure. If you permit me to digress a little, I will quickly add that I have heard from a professional colleague of mine that, after much ado with other therapies, he cleared his prostate challenge with the white cocoyam.

The leaves, especially the young ones, can help the eyes, balance cholesterol level, manage weight, improve mood, reduce the effect of nicotine and drugs such as cocaine, increase energy, etc. We will talk more about cocoyam leaves some other day.

Let us quickly return to mump infection. This infection is dangerous because it can spread to other parts of the body, especially the testes.

This infection can cause oligospermia or low sperm count, damage sperm, morphology (shape) and reduce motility (motion).

After puberty, mump infection can cause testicular atrophy within two months. In this regard, it is advisable that azoospermic men make enquires about their childhood illness for the education of their doctors. Who knows how far such information may go to help them?

Vitamin E

Like the mineral Zinc, Vitamin E is well known as a fertility nutrient. In semen, as in any other substance in the body, a violent war is ever raging between Reactive Oxygen Species(ROS), which are free radicals, and anti-oxidants.

Free radicals enter the body through air, water and food, and are produced by the body’s metabolic activities. There are unbalanced molecules, because they do not have a pair of electrons in their outermost electron ring.

So, they attack balanced molecules by puncturing holes in cell walls in their bid to steal electrons for their own stability.

Literally speaking, anti-oxidants swallow free radicals and, therefore, do not let them damage the cells.  Vitamin E is one of several anti-oxidant protection the body is provided by Nature.

In one study, 48 infertile men and 20 fertile men as the control group, were tested for the levels of Vitamin E in the semen to determine how well protected against ROS their sperm cell membranes were.

The cell membrane is the covering of the cell, its skin so to say. If the cell membrane is destroyed, the cell may be damaged. In another study, infertile men aged between 20 and 45 years had their daily diet supplemented with 200 micro-grammes of selenium and 400 units of Vitamin E for 100 days.

The results of both studies suggested marked protection against ROS fragmentation of DHA, an essential fatty acid which is a component of the cell wall.

With Selenium and Vitamin E making the cell membrane impenetrable for ROS, courtesy of their protection of DHA, cellular content is protected from damage and sperm cell abnormalities ( morphology, motility, agglutination, etc.) are corrected.

There is also, evidence that Vitamin E intervenes in the tubules of the testes where sertoli cells operate. This should raise the hope of azoospermic men. For if all is not lost with these cells, this intervention may bring about some regeneration.

This may be why some incorrigibly optimistic doctors prescribe Vitamin E for azoospermia. I always suggest   anti- oxidant defence of the testes to be multi-lateral  and  not limited to Vitamin E and Selenium, its cousin.

I also advise that men do not delay support for their testicles until these important organs are discovered to have been seriously reduced in size.

So, men, check your testicles today. Are they getting smaller? If they are, something may be going on inside them which you may need to address.

Other anti-oxidants which have been established as important as Vitamin E  for testicular and sperm health include Zinc, Vitamin C, Bioflavonoids, Selenium, L- Arginine, N- Acetyl Cysteine, Alpha Lipoic Acid ( ALA), Peruvian Macca, Ashwanghadah, Wheat germ oil, CBD oil or capsules, Carotenoids, Lecithin, Omega-3 fatty acids etc.

The list is endless. At minute levels, they  are present in such foods as Spinach, Tomato, Kale, Dark chocolate, Pumpkin seed, Lentils, White and Young cocoyam leaves, pomegranate, banana   etc.

Because our focus is on Vitamin E, I would like to mention, as I sometimes do, that many people do not know how to choose a vitamin E a proprietary product that will work best for them.

They prefer cheap brands. These cheap brands are made from petroleum residues and are not very bioactive. On the label of a product, they are denoted as DL- alpha tocopherol.

Note the L after the D. All Vitamin E are tocopherol. It is the d-alpha tocopherol that is the natural Vitamin E, NOT the dl-alpha tocopherol.

Even the d- alpha tocopherol, which costs more than the dl- alpha tocopherol, is not a complete natural tocopherol, if it comes without the better tocopherol, Gamma tocopherol and Delta tocopherol.

The  Alpha, Beta, Gamma and   Delta tocopherols appearing together are called full compliment or complete tocopherol or mixed tocopherol.

What is often sold in Nigeria as natural Vitamin E is d- alpha tocopherol alone. People who may consider full complement of tocopherol expensive may be surprised to learn that there is even a higher version of it called Tocotrienols in the market.

It is a more active and more expensive version of Vitamin E. Tocotrienol is top on the prescription cards in some orthodox cancer clinics.

Tocotrienol, like Tocopherol, it is a four- member Vitamin E family on a higher footing than mixed tocopherols. In fact, it is called The VITAMIN E OF THE 21st CENTURY. While Tocopherols exist more in vegetable oils, the chief sources of tocotrienols would appear to be the OIL PALM.

That’s good news for Banga-Soup lovers like me. But I have gone a step beyond them. I eat boiled palm fruit with my corn pap, boiled rice, beans and most other foods.

Tocotrienol deals better than Tocopherol with cancer, brain challenges, heart challenges, cholesterol and diverse other health challenges, including, of course, fertility questions.

Other causes

There are more possible causes of azoospermia than we can mention here. Male fertility experts classify them into

• Obstructive and
• Non Obstructive azoospermia. The non – obstructive azoospermia includes some of the conditions described above.It will include also, challenges such as hormone deficiencies and imbalances. No doubt, under activity of the thyroid gland in some cases plays it own nasty role. All sorts of effort are made to balance the hormones.The pituitary gland which controls the endocrine glands, the family from which the male hormones comes, has to be in good shape. White or naked sugar disturbs it a lot. So does acidosis.

  My suggestion for putting the body back on track in this area is that the activities be started with regular Organic Coffee Enema heavy metal detoxification with, say, Chlorella.

  It is on a solid foundation that we can build  a safe house.  Do we not clear the weed and plough the land before we plant on it? That done, Asraagalus and Mango Seed Extract, for example, may be taken to reduce microbial load throughout the body to free  immune system energy for possible work in the reproductive system.

  Tyrosine and kale should help a weak or sluggish thyroid gland. Some people consume the raw extracts of a bull’s testes to stimulate their testes!

Today, we have the benefit of STC 30, STEM GEVITY and  CELL RESTORE,  among  other  stem  cell regenerators  to help stimulate the production of stem cells, which replace damaged cells in different parts of the body.

In obstructive   azoospermia, normal sperm production may be going on, and the sperm cells may be growing to maturity, but the tubes to deliver them to the penis may be blocked.

The passage includes the epididymis, vas deferens and ejaculatory ducts. Some of the blockages may be congenital and require surgery.

Others may be due to infections or activities  in far away places such as the lungs (fibrous-cystosis ) or right within, as in the epididymis, and inflammation for which anti-inflammatory plant medicines may be taken. Those would require immune boosters and natural antibiotics.

 

By Femi Kusa

Some men cannot hold themselves together when they are alone with a woman. One of such men, aged 50,was arrested last week after he defiled a three-year-old.

Bad as this lifestyle maybe, this man may find help in some herbs that reduce consuming sexual appetite. They would need, also, to learn the sex equation which could get them into trouble or keep them away from it.

The Police shocked the nation last week with the news that defilement and rape cases have hit almost 800 in four months, and that some of them were for ritual purposes.

Many of the raped girls were in the age range of four to 15 years. Last Saturday, a pregnant girl aged 15, who had been raped, died of COVID-19 infection.

I considered most absurd, the rape of a pregnant woman by a motorcyclist. She hired him to transport her from one place to another. He diverted their journey into a bush, raped and abandoned her there.

His case was one of those in court. Many public commentators on Nigeria’s growing rape culture have not, in my view, been fair to the men who defile children or rape women, even in marriage.

Like these commentators, I, too, have no hiding place for the rapist. He is a demented, low spirit in communion with the lower phase of existence, and he needs help.

But society does not appear to appreciate this. In the north, it has been suggested that the rapist be castrated. In the south, death by hanging has been suggested.

At present, the rapist faces a long prison term. But will these penalties stop the rape culture from growing when the urge to rape is triggered and remains unchecked? Has public execution of armed robbers stopped armed robbery, banditry, kidnapping and even insurgency? We do not even appreciate that our thoughts and the words we speak could trigger rape thousands of kilometers away from us.

Looking in this direction, will it be out of place to say that women themselves are the foundation of rape? For people who know about the male and female genders or activities in our great universe recognise that  it is not only on earth that the female specie exists.

Christians and Moslems believe in The Book of Revelations. In the book, we learn of  the Queen of Heaven, also called Elizabeth or Mother by some people. We learn that she was with a child and that the Dragon sought to attack them. The reason?

The explanation for this is simple.The Child is an allegorical expression of a  Mission  at its infancy  beside which, as mother, Elizabeth  stands… to tend and to nurture in this  of  period of preparation.

We now know, through revealed knowledge, that this mission was to proclaim the final judgement over the earth. Of course, this would lead to the binding of Lucifer, the Dragon, for the 1,000 years of peace on earth.

The Queen of Heaven or Elizabeth was beside the child and mission. Her role was to care for, and tend this Mission.

It took me quite a while, in the course of trying to understand earth life and existence, to come to terms with the knowledge that the female specie of Creation stands at least half a step above the male specie in any sphere of existence and that, even on earth, women  are psychically stronger than men, and are meant to be “decision makers”, while men are  meant to be implementers of their decisions.

And this is why, in choosing a wife, a man must ensure that he goes with a woman whose decisions and direction in life agree with his. To do otherwise is to sow the seed of commotion and upheavals in the marriage. I do not wish to digress.

I was saying “women” are to be found before “men”in any sphere of existence between the earth and the ultimate home of mankind, paradise, and that they are decision makers. The duty of women is caring and tending.

For people who are familiar with this conception of creation, the female specie, in its caring and tending duty, facilitated the departure (expulsion) of the subconscious human spirit from paradise; and its coming into being on earth as a self conscious being.

The earthly woman mans the last duty post in this marvelous process. In their wombs, Earth women grew the earthly  bodies of all of us, man or woman, and so  suffused us with their radiations  in  caring and tending   that  we become naturally  bound to them as though  through an etheric cord.

Besides, they breast-fed us, protected and nurtured us through the childhood years. As male adults, we found ourselves in the care of women who are not our mothers.

Male adults find the bodies of women charming and magnetic. Such men probably do not know why. And, being still debased, seek to touch women with  unclean hands.

Among those males who had gathered themselves somewhat for spiritual upliftment, there are two ways to see the beauty and charm of the female human body.

First, its refinement shows that the inner being which gave rise to it is of a finer consistency than the male species and, thereby, connects far more readily and easily with higher and finer powers than the opposite gender. This makes her a leader of the twain.

Secondly, her being endowed with charm is to enable every soul gravitate towards her for an onerous duty of leading humanity back home in completion of the cycle begun in paradise.

Many earth-men and earth-women will not appreciate this. Many men rate their value on the number of women they have devoured, while many women employ their gift in coquetry.

Some women are even prepared to walk naked in the streets if society permits them. In Lagos and many capitals of the earth, nudist clubs abound where women overcharge the male sexual battery regularly. The music of today’s generation fares no better.

I have seen mothers and their children at kids birthday parties dance hilariously to music which denigrate the sexual organs of women and even price their cash value to zero naira.

One singer asked: “ what is the price of your …. XXX(secret place)? Local films also contribute to the sexual bashing of a man’s brain. To worsen matters, the social media came upon the land with a devastating sub-gutter culture.

Thus, the average man you see in the street is a bundle of overcharged sexual  energy who is ready to explode at the rarest opportunity. On the way to work, in the office and on the way back home, he is loaded with scenes, thoughts,signs or gestures of sex.

If he is married, he returns home  from work to impact his wife who may not be  ready for him. He cannot understand that the human body, like the soul which helped to form it, is inviolable.

Did he not pay her dowry?  Is she, therefore, not his property? After all, she vowed at the marriage registry…. with my body I thee worship”.

Often, some husbands take their wives by force, with these thoughts and questions ringing in their heads. I have helped to resolve some marital disputes in which the couples were schooled to learn that it is possible for a husband to rape his wife.

Besides, though legally married, they might be committing adultery if they conjugate  without inward harmony and  justification for it. Probably rejected at home for one reason or another, some men end up in brothels.

Some are afraid of contracting diseases or do not wish to devalue themselves to brothel- prostitute life. So, they find girl friends who, for whatever reason, take them on.

Where there may be no money to keep such relationships going is when, I believe, such men  resort to “small” girls.

Small amounts of cash bowl these girls over, and the day there’s no cash, they may be raped if they refuse to consent. But there are some men who do not set out to rape a woman they are in bed with.

Many men stupidly believe many Nigerian women are pretenders who say “No” when, actually, they are all flaming and roaring to go.

Such men believe these women want them to give such little push as would make it appear they yielded only to force.

In such cases of misreading of the mind, the woman cries wolf afterwards, even decades after. In all of this, it should be evident that earth woman has trifled with or abandoned her calling to “bring humanity back home”.

She is leading the way downhill, and weak man is following. He finds it convenient to not   remember that he can pull back and refuse to journey with her.

And when the chips are down, he is the one society castigates, hounds and sends to jail as a sexually insane person or an animal in human body.

Society expects him to not put his fingers in fire if a woman asked him to do so. That is right. It shows he neglected to employ his FREE WILL to free himself from her.

Where something happens between him and the woman  who tormented him with near bare breasts and buttock mounds freely viewed, it is entirely his fault.

For he has, reserved in him, the power to pull away from the brink and, in  his hands, he has the simple sex equation  he can always dismantle if he does not wish to run wild.

 

Simple sex equation

The body of man is animal-derived. Man, or the human spirit, is the inhabitant of that body, which is also his housing and  work tool on earth.

In the animal body resides the Sex Instinct, basically for specie propagation. When a man is aroused, his thought reacts upon the instinctto produce feeling.

If the thought  lingers, its reaction upon feeling produces imagination. We should not forget that the human being is like a broadcast station and a television or radio receiving set.

Everything which exists, including us, broadcast its existence to the universe.

And when we think about anything, it is  as though we have  tuned ourselves to all  the “power centres” and even “ principalities “  which broadcast into  the universe the content we are thinking about.

Thus, imagination  and  thought connect us to ideas in the universe we need to actualise or experience imagination.

Actualisation is facilitated by opportunity. Opportunity is when two persons of opposite gender are alone.

So, when an opportunity exists in which a man and a woman find themselves alone, anything in the sexual field or spectrum, including consented sex,  rape and defilment, may occur .

The term a SIMPLE SEX EQUATION is my attempt to describe knowledge in this area given to mankind in the 1920s by a spiritual teacher who  explained occurance on the earth and higher spheres of existence  right up to those in paradise.

That means he teaches everything in the world and about the world itself. In this context, the earth is not the world but something like a pin- point size in the scheme.

This equation may be presented as follows:

1. THOUGHT + INSTINCT =FEELING
2. THOUGHT +FEELING= IMAGINATION
3. IMAGINATION + OPPORTUNITY= SEXUAL ACTION.

The end stage of this three-step equation may be aborted at any stage of the cycle. For example, if you find yourself developing FEELING, you may change your THOUGHT and open yourself to “ broadcasts” or “reception of more noble ideas or influences from the universe.

If you fail to block the process at that point, FEELING will develop into IMAGINATION. If it does, prevent OPPORTUNITY.

Even from the OPPORTUNITY you can still triumph. The story of the Biblical Joseph in particular teaches us this when he refused the entreaties of his boss’s wife to sleep with her.

 

Some anti-libido herbs

Where it is observed that the libido is too high and easily runs riot, herbs may be used to curb the excesses. The first step in this venture is to avoid libido-promoting herbs.

Among these are Chasteberry or Vitex, which help to balance discordant female hormones, enhance fertility and Gingko biloba, which promotes blood circulation throughout the body, especially in the upper extremities.

There is also Macca, which was first discovered in Peru to support fertility in animals. Red Ginseng is in this bracket. We cannot forget Funugreek, which is well known for combating cough, reducing blood sugar and for drying mucus.

To go off line, that is to reduce the libido, red meat should be avoided. It is said to be a major problem of many “fire – spitting” men. Many people know Hops as that bitter recipe in beer.

In women, hops causes vagina dryness. Beer drinking men may remember they are often unable to “spit fire”. That is because Hops make it difficult for men to maintain erection.

 

 

Valerian root

Valerian root has long been used to calm nerves, promote sleep, treat symptoms of  pre- menstrual syndrome and counter pain. But many users have reported reduced sex drive.

Rehmannia is a Chinese herb many people may not have heard about. It is prescribed in conditions of extremely high libido.

This herb comes from the same family as Ligistrum, another libido suppressant. They work on the nervous system to inhibit arousal.

Skull cap has been used for ages in extreme cases of bad headaches such as migraines. It is also a nervous system herb. To the bargain, it lowers blood pressure.

Low pressure patients are often unable to deliver enough blood to the penile shaft to induce and maintain erection because the heart is not working optimally.

 

Cracking the scourge

We may not win the rape war by merely casting rapists into jail to deter would-be rapists. The public execution of armed robbers by firing squad has not stopped armed robberies.

In fact, the violence has graduated into banditry, kidnapping and insurgency. The rape war should encompass crackdowns on indecent dressing, music and films.

Finally, we should always remember that everything which happens is preceded by thought. We think of getting up from a chair or of telephoning someone before we do, for example.

When we talk so much about rape, it is because we think so much about it or about sex. Thought produces thought forms which, though ethereal in nature, may become deed. Besides,woman must learn to become womanily all over again.

The womanily woman is that woman who stands at the duty post were her Creator placed her. After all, she did not create herself. She must remember the message the flowering and fruiting plants is passing to her everyday.

The flowering and fruiting plants comprises two principal parts: The aeriel part and the sub soul part. The aeriel parts is above the crown.

It produces fragrance, flowers and fruits. With this, it cares for and tends the needs of animals and man. The sub soul part of this flowering and fruiting plants is the root system.

The root system secure  the plant against atmosphereric vagaries and sense nuture through the stem for flowering.

Many nature  observers see in this imegary asb role differentiation for  the human gander. A spiritual calamity will  befall humanity if one gander abandons his duty post for the other.

We must return to the Queen of Heaven, the Child and the Dragon to appreciate deliquent woman has an objective of the Dragon when he went after the seeds of Queen Elizabeth on earth.

By making woman become degenarate and forget the primary purpose of her existence on earth, which is neither marriage nor motherhood,the Dragon has succeeded in draging most members of our humanity into the abyss.

This is why a woman has cheapened herself and the rapist and non-rapist no longer respect her. So,in the rape coauch, blame not the rapist alone but also the rape industry (musicians,film makers,advitiser etc ) and Woman as well.

By Adekunle Yusuf

 

THERE  is the need to address the problems in the  health care system, especially misdiagnosis, a specialist, Dr. Ahmed Omilana, has said.

Speaking with reporters in Lagos, during the unveiling of Fitplus Healthcare, he said besides the need to address the dilapidated medical infrastructure to boost access to care, policymakers should focus on how to overhaul the diagnostic sub-sector because it is the backbone of the sector.

Stressing that improvement in the diagnosis arm is one way to achieve better healthcare, Omilana, who is the Chairman/CEO, Fitplus Healthcare Limited, also suggested that the government should encourage people to study courses in diagnostic medicine.

This, he stated, would resolve the problem of paucity of professionals in the diagnostic arm of the medical system, which would, in turn, address misdiagnosis issues and boost public confidence in the sector.

If the health sector has more workers with adequate knowledge of medical diagnosis, the first impact will be felt in accurate diagnoses that are made, which will, ultimately, determine medical interventions and outcomes.

Although he said the government could do better than it is doing, the senior medical expert insisted that the private sector too should lead the way by investing in modern digital facilities that can open pathways to innovative medical solutions.

Omilana said Fitplus Healthcare‘s objective is strengthening diagnostic medicine through investment in sophisticated facilities.

This, he emphasised, is a quick way to fix some of the issues in the sector, which will also help in reversing the negative trend of medical tourism.

“We provide leading healthcare service and high technology laboratory equipment to deliver personalised medical diagnostics with a friendly touch.

Read Also: Tracking Nigeria’s protein deficiency crisis

 

Our facility can do all kinds of medical diagnoses that people go abroad to do. In addition assembling some of the very best in every specialty, our facilities are the most modern the industry can offer.

‘’Our corporate goals and underlying philosophy are building opportunities for the growth and development of the industry and harnessing potential in the national economy.

This is underscored by Fitplus Healthcare Limited’s commitment and patriotic zeal to shaping the future of digital medical diagnosis in Nigeria.

“The upgrade of facilities is a commitment to optimising the standard of care by staying connected to the demand of our patients and medical practitioners.

We will go extra mile in delivering technology-driven healthcare system with accuracy, quality and value. A major hurdle stakeholders are struggling to cross in the country’s health sector is the issue of misdiagnosis on the part of medical laboratory personnel operating within the hospital environment.

Due to lack of infrastructure and equipment to carry out accurate laboratory diagnosis, many doctors have been misled into committing errors while administering treatment for some health complications.

“In the same vein, inadequate laboratory reagents to investigate specimens to find the exact cause of illness while inaccurate results have come out of laboratory investigations and since doctors rely on the outcomes of such investigations, a lot of havoc has been committed, some leading to the death of patients. All of us have a role to play to stop this from happening in our country,” Omilana added.

Promoting the health and well-being of Nigerians through adequate nutrition across the lifecycle is a good way to reduce the impact of the ravaging virus and reduce post-COVID-19 burden, writes ADEKUNLE YUSUF

 

As coronavirus continues to ravage the world, many dietary experts have recommended strategies for managing patients, with many stressing that adequate nutrition could help to lessen the burden imposed by the pandemic.

The nutritionists have also advised the government that promoting the health and well-being of Nigerians through adequate nutrition across the lifecycle is a good way to reduce the impact of the ravaging virus and reduce post-COVID-19 burden.

Sadly, managing cases with adequate nutrition may be a tall dream, as many households suffer malnutrition crisis.

This means many Nigerians are deficient in the intake of proper or balanced diets, since many factors seem to have connived to deprive many families of healthy choice of foods that can fortify them with major nutrients. One of such essential nutrients is protein, which is widely regarded as the building block of life.

Nutritionists say protein can be found in every cell of the body. That is to say when people do not get adequate amounts of protein from their diet, it leads to protein deficiency, a major cause of malnutrition.

 

What protein deficiency means

 

Globally, no fewer than 795 million people do not have enough food to live a healthy life, says a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) report.

A breakdown of the report shows that one out of nine people on earth is hungry or malnourished. It said further that 59 million Nigerians are macronutrient deficient and about 45 per cent of deaths among children under five are linked to malnutrition.

Of the figures by FAO, over 13 million Nigerian children are affected by chronic malnutrition or malnourishment. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), malnutrition remains the “gravest single threat to the world’s public health”.

At the heart of malnutrition crisis in Nigeria is deficiency in protein consumption. Protein is a macronutrient that is basic for the development, upkeep, and repair of cells in the human body.

Nutritionists have warned that protein deficiency in Nigeria poses not only a major health burden, but also an economic and social burden.

An unmanaged protein deficiency crisis can engender some diseases, particularly kwashiorkor. It can also repress a youngster’s mental and physical advancement, mental hindrance (especially in infants) and cause tension, surliness, and crankiness.

In addition, malnourished women and girls of reproductive age have a high chance of giving birth to stunted babies, which further continues the cycle of malnutrition in future generations.

According to  experts, the consequences of stunting in education are also huge. Various studies show that child stunting is likely to impact brain development and impair motor skills.

Stunting in early life is linked to 0.7-grade loss in schooling, a seven-month delay in starting school and between 22 and 45 per cent reduction in lifetime earnings, says UNICEF. Stunted children become less-educated adults, thus making malnutrition a long-term and intergenerational problem.

A protein-deficient country slows economic growth and perpetuates poverty. Indirect losses for the country’s economy are caused by poor cognitive function and reduced school attainment that originate in early childhood due to under nutrition.

In fact, the education gap and consequent lower skill-level of workforce substantially delay the development of countries affected by malnutrition.

That is why it is often said that effects of malnutrition are long-term, since they can trap generations of individuals and communities in the vicious circle of poverty.

While improving nutrition is essential to eradicate poverty and accelerate the growth of low- and middle-income countries, evidence abounds that improved nutrition also acts as an impetus driving economic and social growth.

 

Nigeria protein deficiency awareness launched

 

To draw attention to the protein deficiency crisis, a campaign has been launched to emphasise the need for protein in every diet.

The awareness entitled: The Nigeria protein deficiency awareness, named carbohydrate emerged as the most consumed food among Nigerians.

The report, based on findings from a nationwide survey  in 2019 to determine the status and dimensions of protein deficiency in Nigeria, revealed that rice tops the list of foods consumed among Nigerians, with 91 per cent.

This was followed by “swallows”, such as eba, pounded yam, fufu and amala, which together got 83 per cent among respondents. The result is that this dietary habit has left millions of households with deficiency in protein.

The Protein Challenge, a protein-pull media campaign supported by the United States Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and other partners, seeks to create awareness about the prevalence, status and impact of protein deficiency in Nigeria.

A key feature of the launch of the nationwide campaign is the unveiling of the Nigeria Protein Deficiency Report. A key feature of the survey, which was geared towards determining the  protein deficiency in Nigeria, also showed that the most important determining factors on the choice of meal consumed in the country are availability at 79 per cent, and affordability at 68 per cent.

The study also identified high cost as a major disincentive for the consumption of most protein food sources.

A further breakdown of the reports also revealed that 51 per cent of respondents do not have adequate protein-rich foods due largely to the relatively high cost.

The report also showed that the most important factors determining the choice of meal items consumed across the country are availability, 79 per cent, and affordability, 68 per cent. High cost was identified as a major disincentive for the consumption of most protein food sources.

Fifty-one per cent of respondents do not have adequate protein-rich foods, due largely to their relatively high cost.

The challenge is that when people do not get adequate amounts of protein from their diet, it leads to protein deficiency, a major cause of malnutrition, especially among children.

In Nigeria, several reports indicate that protein deficiency poses not only a major health problem but also an economic and social burden.

It is the most important risk factor for illness and death, with millions of pregnant women and young children particularly affected.

The goal of the Protein Challenge is to create awareness about the benefits of proteins and encourage Nigerians from walks of life to embrace their regular consumption, regardless of the source! This campaign will focus on the (healthy) importance of regular intake of protein in the diet and work assiduously to contribute to efforts to improve the quality, quantity and consistency of the various proteins consumed across Nigeria.

It will also strive to position soybeans as the most cost-effective protein source that is available, not just for humans, but also as feed for livestock, poultry and aquaculture.

The campaign website www.proteinchallengeng.com is set up as a knowledge platform to promote the consumption of protein in general and soybeans in particular.

It will be the ‘go-to’ place for everyone interested in understanding the importance of protein to good health and well-being.

It warehouses the latest protein, nutrition, and agriculture content, news and blog posts, boasts a wide range of protein and soybean-based recipes and a growing archives of photos and videos.

With the huge number of protein-deficient people in Nigeria, the issue has become a national emergency that requires the input and collaboration of all stakeholders to address.

Since its outbreak in China last December, the pandemic has resulted in mopping up the financial resources of households, communities, states, and nations, as well as disrupting the food system and existing strategies to address high burden of malnutrition.

This requires a massive campaign to improve protein intake – a challenge that may not be solved unless the government enacts policies that can improve the economy and empower citizens to live more productively.

WHEN I proposed   last week use of  Chankapiedra  in the treatment of some  COVID-19 symptoms, I knew many people who knew Chanka piedra and use  it only as a stone crusher, either in the liver (gall stones), kidneys (Calculi or kidneys stones) or in the eyes (Cataracts of the lengs),among many stone formations in the body. I was not disappointed. And that is why chanka piedra as resurface today in a picture larger than in last week’s column (Coronavirus :Look Alike symptoms Join the Lexicon).

Chanka is an ever green rain forest multi-purpose medicinal herb which flourishes most in the rainy season. In Nigeria,we are now in the rainy season.So, it is not surprising that you will find chanka piedra growing almost everywhere,including,maybe,your door-step. It grows in flower beds, in lawns,by the road-side …anywhere.

For the  picture of  chanka piedra larger than its stone crusher image,this page gives  way  today to  contributors.The presentations are “Medically reviewed by Jonathan Ritter, PharmD, PhD (Pharmacology), Puya Yazdi, MD and written by Carlos Tello, PhD (Molecular Biology) Reviewed by Ana Aleksic, MSc (Pharmacy) and  last updated: February 23, 2020”

Carlos says:  “Chanka piedra long remained a well-kept secret, though it was widely used in both Amazonian and Ayurvedic medicine. While its name translates to “stone breaker”, this herb may also protect the liver, lower inflammation, help with diabetes, and combat infections. Find out if it can really clear your kidney stones, and learn more about its benefits and possible side effects.

What Is Chanca piedra?

Chanca piedra is part of a big plant genus known as Phyllanthus. These plants grows in tropical regions all over the world – from China to India to the vast and largely unexplored rainforests of the Amazon. “Phyllanthus” simply means “leaf and flower,” because the flowers (and fruits) of these plants are joined together with the leaves.

The myriad of chanca piedra’s folk uses reflect this plant’s incredible geographical and herbal diversity.

In India, Phyllanthus plants were traditionally used for liver and kidney diseases. In the rest of Asia, they are considered a remedy for digestive disorders, while in South America folks use them for urinary tract infections. In Africa, on the other hand, they’re deemed useful for malaria and wound healing.

And if you think these uses sound too wide-ranging for just one plant species, you’re right. In reality, two different species – Phyllanthus niruri and Phyllanthus amarus – are both referred to as chanca piedra or “stone breaker”.

The first thrives in humid, warm places and likes a bit of shade. Its exact origin is a mystery, but it flourishes in the Amazonian rainforest, India, China, the Philippines, and even the Bahamas. The second also grows in the Amazon, but it originates from Asia and South Africa .

The “Stone Breaker”

Chanca piedra is well-known for its use to dissolve kidney stones. Research suggests it may also protect the liver, fight infections, and lower oxidative stress and inflammation. Plus, it contains some potential cancer-fighting compounds that have yet to be further explored.

“Recently, Brazilian teams set out to conduct medically-oriented research about chanca piedra for the first time. They wanted to understand the traditional use of this plant by indigenous people. But despite their efforts, few records of its folk use in the Amazonian region exist.

In Brazil, people call it “Quebra Pedra,” which means “stone breaker” in Portuguese. Some consider it an excellent remedy for a range of kidney disorders .

Its use in Ayurvedic traditional medicine is well-documented. In Ayurveda, chanca piedra has been used for

• Jaundice and fever •Malaria •Diabetes•Skin diseases
• Digestive complaints (such as constipation, pain, IBD, and indigestion)•Sexually transmitted diseases (syphilis, gonorrhea)•Urinary tract infections•Menstrual problems

Chanca piedra is also used in cosmetic, dental, and skincare products, including hair dye, face creams, and toothpaste

Bioactive Components

All chanca piedra species are abundant in bioactive components, which carry their supportive health benefits. The most important ones are :

Tannins (geraniin, corilagin), which can fight viruses, bacteria, and free radicals; they also help prevent cancer

Lignans (phyllanthin, hypophyllanthin), which have anticancer properties.

Flavonoids (gallocatechin, rutin, quercetin, kaempferol) which have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

• Proponents •May dissolve kidney stones•May protect the liver, digestive system, and heart•May help with diabetes
• May lower inflammation, pain, and oxidative stress

Skeptics•Insufficient research for most benefits•Lack of research for many traditional uses•May cause infertility

• Possible drug interactions•Likely unsafe for pregnant women•Chanca Piedra Health Benefits•Get the regimen of a top biohacker preparing his body to fight Coronavirus

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Possibly effective for:

• Dissolving kidney stones

Kidney stones are deposits of minerals and salts that build up in the kidneys or urinary tract. In clinical studies with over 200 people with kidney stones, chanca piedra (Phyllanthus niruri) reduced their kidney stones, helping to clear the minerals and salt deposits.

“Chanca piedra may truly act as a “stone crusher.” According to rat and cell-based studies, it might dissolve kidney stones by :

Blocking the growth and the clustering of salts that form kidney stones

Dissolving already-formed kidney stones

Clearing this dissolved mixture of salts and minerals from kidney stones (uric acid, oxalate, potassium, calcium, and magnesium) and helping eliminate them by promoting urination.

Overall, the available evidence is limited but suggests it works. More clinical studies are desperately needed, but chanca piedra appears to be a promising herbal remedy for clearing kidney stones naturally.

• Protecting the liver

In clinical studies with over 3.5k people, chanca piedra blocked the growth and division of the hepatitis B virus, reduced virus levels in the blood (HBsAg), and recovered liver function.

However, in several studies with over 1K people with hepatitis B, antiviral drugs worked better than chanca piedra

In a clinical study on 100 people with hepatitis C, chanca piedra increased multiple important antioxidant compounds (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione, vitamin C, vitamin E). It also decreased oxidative stress and prevented liver damage

In animal and cellular studies, chanca piedra prevented liver injury caused by toxins, drugs, or alcohol and protected liver function by lowering oxidative stress and blocking harmful compounds.

Traditionally, chanca piedra has been used for reducing jaundice, a yellowing of the skin related to liver problems.

What does chanca piedra do to enhance liver function and reduce damage?

Overall, it may protect the liver by :

Decreasing enzymes linked to liver damage (ALT, AST)

Reducing bilirubin levels, high levels of which indicate liver disease

“De-blocking” liver detox pathways; it blocks an enzyme that reverses the detoxifying process of glucuronidation (beta-glucuronidase)

Increasing antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione)

Lowering oxidative stress and inflammation

To sum it up, chanca piedra may help combat viral hepatitis, but it’s probably not superior to conventional antivirals. It may also help clear toxins and support healthy liver function.

You may try chanca piedra as a supportive measure if your doctor thinks it may help in your case, but never use it in place of what your doctor recommends or prescribes.

• Protecting the heart

Chanca piedra lowered high blood pressure in clinical studies.

This benefit was explored in detail in animal studies. In rats and mice, chanca piedra had powerful lipid-balancing effects; it reduced total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, VLDL cholesterol and increased HDL cholesterol. Balanced blood lipid levels are key to preventing heart disease.

In other studies on rabbits, rats, and cells, chanca piedra reduced blood pressure, prevented excessive platelet clumping, relaxed blood vessels, and improved heart function.

It might also keep the heart healthy by decreasing enzymes that signal oxidative stress, heart or tissue damage (such as dehydrogenase, creatine phosphokinase, and alkaline phosphatase).

All in all, chanca piedra seems to be good for the heart. It may lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart damage while relaxing and protecting your blood vessels. Clinical studies are still limited, though.

Insufficient evidence for:

• Diabetes

In small clinical studies with 30 people,chanca piedra (the Phyllanthus amarus species) lowered their blood sugar levels. The same was confirmed in numerous studies with diabetic rats .

For one, it may act by blocking enzymes that digest complex carbs, such as alpha-amylase. Subsequently, it delays sugar absorption and may prevent spikes in sugar levels after a meal. Secondly, it may increase sugar storage in the liver, which reduces blood sugar levels.

Note that a small clinical trial and a few animal studies cannot be considered sufficient evidence that chanca piedra helps with diabetes. Larger, more robust clinical trials are needed.

• Protecting the gut and stomach

In a clinical study of 30 children with viral diarrhoea, chanca piedra (Phyllanthus niruri) improved symptoms such as stool consistency, fever, vomiting, stomach pain, loss of appetite, and dehydration. Overall, it worked better than the placebo

Plus the other chanca piedra species (Phyllanthus amarus) delayed diarrhoea onset in mice; in mice with diarrhoea, it normalised bowel movements .

In rats and mice, chanca piedra prevented stomach damage and ulcers caused by various harmful substances; it also decreased stomach inflammation.

Chanca piedra contains powerful antioxidants: rutin and quercitrin (a cousin of the better-known quercetin). These active compounds helped with inflammatory bowel disease and diarrhea in rats .

To sum up, the existing studies suggest that chanca piedra may help with several digestive issues, but the evidence is insufficient. More clinical trials on larger populations are needed to confirm these preliminary findings.

• Reducing pain and swelling

In a clinical study of 33 people with nerve damage caused by diabetes (also known as diabetic neuropathy), chanca piedra decreased pain and the sensation of numbness, tingling, and in the legs.

According to studies in mice and rats, it blocks pain signals and swelling indirectly: by lowering inflammatory compounds that build up around nerves.

Again, only one clinical trial and a few animal studies have investigated the potential benefits of chanca piedra in pain and swelling. Further clinical research is required.

Animal and Cell Research (Lack of Evidence)

No evidence supports the use of chanca piedra for any of the conditions listed in this section. Below is a summary of the existing animal and cell-based research, which should guide further investigational efforts. However, the studies listed below should not be interpreted as supportive of any health benefit.

Infections

In mice and cells, chanca piedra inhibited the growth of various bacteria, fungi, and parasites, including those that cause malaria, snail fever, and infections of the urinary tract, bowel, stomach, blood and skin (Plasmodium species, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus, Enterobacter, Bacillus, Salmonella, Streptococcus, Helicobacter pylori , Candida).

Furthermore, in cells, it blocked the replication of hepatitis C and hepatitis B, HIV-1, herpes virus (HSV-1) and dengue virus.

To sum it up, chanca piedra may fight incredibly diverse types of infections. However, its efficacy in humans is unknown as the available data are limited to animal and cell-based studies.

Cancer

Below, we will discuss some preliminary research on chanca piedra’s potential anticancer compounds. It’s still in the animal and cell stage and further clinical studies have yet to determine if these compounds are useful in cancer therapies.

Do not under any circumstances attempt to replace conventional cancer therapies with chanca piedra or any other supplements. If you want to use it as a supportive measure, talk to your doctor to avoid any unexpected interactions.

In mice and rats, chanca piedra blocked cancer growth, reduced tumors and increased survival rates.

In test tubes, it prevented the growth and spread of different cancer cells (lung, breast, colorectal, liver, ovarian, skin, pancreas, brain), triggering their death.

Inflammation and oxidative stress

Chanca piedra reduced oxidative stress and lowered inflammation in rats, mice, and cell-based studies.

This herb may act by: Increasing important antioxidant, detoxifying compounds (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione) Lowering key inflammatory cytokines, enzymes, and messengers (TNF-a, IL-1 beta, bradykinin, prostaglandin, Cox-2, NF-êB)

Increasing IL-4, which can act as an anti-inflammatory cytokine

Activating immune cells (lymphocytes and other white blood cells)

Brain protection

In mice, chanca piedra improved memory and reversed amnesia.

To understand how it might act, we’re going to dive into neuroscience a bit, so bear with us.

Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter mainly used by the rest-and-digest nervous system. It supports cholinergic activity in the body that counters your fight-or-flight response. Acetylcholine is extremely important for memory, focus, and good cognitive function.

Chanca piedra may work by blocking the enzymes that break down acetylcholine (acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase). In turn, it might boost acetylcholine levels i it the brain, which would be useful to people with Alzheimer’s disease. And while this is promising, remember that the research is still preliminary. We have yet to see clinical studies of chanca piedra in people with cognitive dysfunction.

Protection from radiation

In mice and cells, chanca piedra (Phyllanthus amarus) prevented radiation damage by lowering oxidative stress and increasing antioxidants compounds in blood and liver.

With more clinical research, it might be used to reduce the side effects of radiation therapy in cancer patients.

Hair growth promotion

In one study, researchers gave testosterone to mice to induce baldness. Chanca piedra (Phyllanthus niruri) blocked an enzyme (5á-reductase) involved in baldness and increased the animals’ hair growth. Since overactivity of this enzyme is thought to underlie baldness in men, chanca piedra might turn out to be a targeted remedy for hair re-growth.

This may sound like great news to many, but we still don’t know if it can enhance hair growth in humans.

Other traditional uses

The uses below have been brought up in literature and are common in folk medicine, but there are no scientific studies about them :

• Jaundice •Fever
• Skin diseases (scabies, rash) •Cough

Asthma and lung inflammation (bronchitis)

• Ringworm •Eye and mouth inflammation
• Constipation and low stomach acid
• Sexually transmitted diseases (syphilis, gonorrhea)
• Urinary tract infections •Menstrual problems
• Anemia•Leprosy •Anorexia •Limitations and Caveats

Studies about the benefits of chanca piedra are limited; many are reviews and historical documents rather than clinical trials.

Furthermore, the few clinical trials that were carried out had a small number of participants and some of their findings are debatable. Additional research on the benefits and side effects of chanca piedra should be encouraged.

Chanca Piedra Side Effects & Precautions

Stomach pain

Diarrhea

Headache or dizziness

However, the other species – Phyllanthus amarus – could be toxic in high doses. It enlarged blood vessels and caused kidney damage in rats and mice.

Pregnant women and women taking fertility-enhancing drugs should avoid taking chanca piedra. Traditionally, this plant was used for abortions and may cause abnormalities with the fetus. It should also not be taken while breastfeeding or by children due to the lack of safety data in these two populations. Although there is no clinical evidence, chanca piedra lowered both male and female fertility in mice.

Additionally, chanca piedra may reduce blood sugar levels. Its combination with anti-diabetes therapies (e.g. glimepiride, insulin, rosiglitazone, tolbutamide) might cause excessive drops in blood sugar levels.

Since chanca piedra may reduce blood pressure, it may also increase the effects of blood pressure-lowering drugs .

Chanca piedra (Phyllanthus amarus) can increase urination and interfere with the effects of water pills (diuretics); this can result in additional fluid loss.

This herb may also counter the effects of norepinephrine. Norepinephrine constricts blood vessels, while chanca piedra (Phyllanthus niruri) contains a compound that can relax them.

Takeaway:

Chanca piedra is a medicinal herb used for over 2,000 years for a variety of diseases, including jaundice, kidney stones, gut disorders, and malaria. It is used by folk healers in the Amazon and Ayurvedic practitioners alike.

Comments

A herb with the credentials of chanka piedra is worthy of inclusion in many war amouries when we support the body to engage microbial invasions and infections. That way why it’s found a place in the suggestions of last week for treating some COVID19 symptoms.