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  • Some herbal guardians of health in 2017 (2)

    YEAR 2018 is unfolding, gradually pulling away from 2017 towards 2019. This process reminds me of what happens when a human soul leaves the flesh, in what we call death on earth. As the Soul pulls away from the discarded earthly vessel or cloak, it drugs out and pulls along for a while the Astral body. The Astral body is a prototype of the Soul after which the physical body developed in the womb, and through which the Soul would interact with its earthly vessel throughout its sojourn on earth. It is this Astral body which the Soul would soon discard on its journey that men sometimes see or sense and call “ghost”. (This is not a subject for today).

    Like the Soul and the body, I believe we can talk of interfacing between 2017 and 2018. In my view, I believe this “ghost” resides in our memory. Thus, we cannot do away with 2017 simply because we are in 2018. But we can take the memories of 2017 into 2018 as a guide into 2019 and the years onward. This was why this series was begun last week to remind us of healing plants which attended to our health requests in 2017 and, possibly, learn more about them in 2018 which promises to usher in new healing herbs from the treasure troves of Mother Nature. If we do not do this, we run the risk of the memories of 2017 gradually fading into extinction just as the “ghost” and the corps disintegrate when their animating essence pulls farther and farther away from them.

    The first part of this series reminded us of Apple Cider Vinegar, Red Kidney Bean Pod, Bone Marrow Meal, Cellgevity, Wheatgrass, Libido Aids, Lion’s Mane Mushroom and Orange Peel powder. The second part of this series reminds us of Lemon grass, Mango Seed Extract, Sensitive Plant and Sea Salt.

    Lemon grass

    In Nigeria, we take Lemon grass for granted because it grows almost everywhere, especially in the villages and country side. I, too, used to take Lemon grass for granted. Even when I lived at 39 Emina Crescent, off Toyin Street, in Ikeja, Lagos, and grew more than 100 heads of Lemon grass in the flower beds, I knew it more as an anti-malarial herb. The subsidiary tea company of a multi-national company which had wanted to produce an indigenous Nigerian herbal tea, had studies conducted for it by the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO) which confirmed the anti-malaria activity of the water extract of Lemon grass. But the multi-national company threw out the plan to protect the tea from its own country. Nigerians are an indolent lot when it comes to business opportunities. Not even another report by the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) that Lemon grass conquers malaria fever parasite would encourage an entrepreneur to start a Lemon grass farm of cottage industry status. When I began to advocate this through this column, an Englishman said he got the idea on the internet, came to Nigeria to farm Lemon grass, and the outcome is Dara Dara tea produced as Lemon grass cuttings on Billing’s way, Oregun, Lagos.

    In my days on Emina Crescent, malaria fever was unknown in my family because everyone started the day with a glass of Lemon grass tea on empty stomach. To prove to any Doubting Thomas that Lemon grass could knock out malaria fever faster than any pharmaceutical medicine, I kept a bottle of Lemon grass essential oil in my office. I infused no more than two drops in a 1.5 litres of water which was to be sipped throughout the day by anyone who complained of malaria fever. In many cases, the malaria fever-stricken person began to sweat it out within minutes and sprang back to life in hours.

    More benefits

    For a common plant taken for granted, the health benefits of Lemon grass are amazing. For example,

    1. it fights cancers. There are many chemical substances in Lemon grass which help it to do this. The most well reported is CITRAL. At the BEN GURION UNIVERSITY in Israel, researchers found that Citral induced apoptosis (suicide) in cancer cells. So, to help cancer patients in Israel undergoing radiation or chemotherapy, they are encouraged to drink fresh lemon grass tea. Other studies suggest that Citral slows growth of breast cancer cells.
    2. Fights depression. Many cases of depression are linked to nutritional deficiencies, which Lemon grass is said to prevent. Some of the nutrient deficiencies often listed as possible causes of depression are Magnesium, Vitamin D, Zinc, Vitamin B12, Selenium, Omega-3 fatty acids, Vitamin B6 and Iron, among others. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Nutrient Data Base, composition and required daily allowances (RDA) in hunderd grams of lemon grass, carbohydrates account for 25.31 gramme (g) or 19%; protein 1.82g (3%); Total fat 0.49g (2%) Cholesterol 0mg (0%); folate 75ug (19%); pyridoxine I.e Vitamin B6 0.080mg (6%); Riboflavin vit B2 0.135mg (10.5%); Thiamine Vit B1 0.065mg (5.5%); Vitamin A 6mg; Vitamin C 2.6mg (4%); Sodium 6mg; Potassium 733mg (15%); Calcium (6.5%); Copper 0.266mg (29%); Iron 8.17mg (102%); Magnesium 60mg (15%); Selenium 0.7ug (1%); Zinc 2.23mg (20%).

    Without much ado, it is obvious from the foregoing that, as a good source of iron, lemon grass can boost haemoglobin count of the blood, perhaps better than most inorganic blood tonics and provide potassium for resolving primary hypertension, among its many benefits. In conditions of depression, some of these nutrients support the production of Serotonin and Dopamine which, in various ways, help to balance and calm the brain and the mind. What a waste we make of fertile arable land in Nigeria by not cultivating Lemon grass on it.

    Unfortunately, Nigerian methods of extracting these nutrients by boiling lemon grass leaves, sometimes over many days, destroy many of these nutrients. Happily, today however, Factory-finished Lemon grass powder and even essential oil extracts are available on the health store shelf.

    1. Helps digestion. With antiseptic compounds which kill bacteria and parasites, such as Staphylococus aureus and E.coli, lemon grass supports the digestive process, kills bad bacteria, repopulates friendly bacteria, removes bloating, indigestion, flatulence, stomach and intestinal spasms, cramps and vomitting, among other ailments.
    2. Helps cholesterol balance. In 1989, researchers at the University of Wisconsin in the United States found that 140mg of Lemon grass oil taken everyday reduced high cholesterol levels in many subjects. It also crashed other blood fats. High blood pressure yielded as well to the high potassium content of lemon grass, according to the study.
    3. It is a detoxifier. Diuretic action of Lemon grass improves frequency and quality of urination, thereby cleaning out the kidneys, liver, pancreas and bladder and ridding the body of uric acid.
    4. Treats arthritis. Being anti-inflammatory, joint troubles and pain such as arthritis, rheumatism, gout, osteoarthritis may yield to Lemon grass which has been found to neutralise cyclooxygenase-2, an enzyme implicated in inflammatory conditions, particularly in joints.
    5. Promotes sleep. Lemon grass helps to correct insomnia by calming spasmodic nerves and muscles, thereby increasing the duration and depth of sleep.
    6. Helps colds, flu, bronchial asthma et.c. In Asia, Lemon grass is widely used to treat cold and cough and other respiratory conditions, including bronchial asthma. Anti bacterial and anti-fungal properties in Lemon grass recommend it to people challenged with fever, cough and other symptoms of cold and flu. Muscle and joint pains may be relieved with massage of Lemon grass essential oil born on a carrier oil such as olive oil to reduce its concentration. Either as tea extract, oil or powder added to drinks or meals, Lemon grass can help to break mucus and phlegm associated with bronchitis or bronchial asthma.
    7. Helps other conditions. Space and time do not permit mention of all the activities of Lemon grass. I would nevertheless like to mention that some studies find it useful in Type-2 diabetes, and that it boosts immunity, stimulates metabolism, prevents inflammation, supports free radicals destruction and DNA synthesis. These and more, are why I often recommend the oil or the powder products for many ailments. I am used to Doubting Thomas resistance when it comes to suggesting Lemon grass for conditions other than malaria fever. The man challenged with arthritis or diabetes, or the woman confronted with breast cancer or problems unrelated to malaria fever, who has not seen Lemon grass in this new light, will naturally be tempted to wonder: what has Lemon grass got to do with this? Well, the possibility of what it may have to do with it is what we have been discussing with the recommendation, again, that this herb be a member of the family herbal kitchen cabinet this year.

    Mango Seed Extract

    The mango is off season now, in Nigeria. But echoes of the last fruiting season are still resounding in countries where its medicinal values are well appreciated. India is one of such lands. When the mango fruits, Indians do not only eat the green but vine-ripened fruits as well. They employ the young leaves for a number of medicinal purposes. What I found most intriguing about their use of the mango, long ago, was that they did not consider the seed to be a waste, as we do in Nigeria. They broke it open and got out the soft Kernel within it. Indian women till this day make the kernel into a paste which they apply into their secret places before sexual intercourse. As it kills germs and even sperm, it serves them as a contraceptive. Thanks to H.K. Bakhru for this information which he shares in his book HERBS THAT HEAL.

    Mango Seed Extract is rare on the shelf in Nigerian health food stores. It helps many conditions of health, such as…dry skin, dandruff, diarrhoea, obesity, throat infections, dental health, female reproductive questions, high blood cholesterol, digestion questions, heart health, bee or scorpion bites, healthy hair, dry lips, diabetes.

    Where Golden Seal Root is not readily available, I often suggest Mango Seed Extract for vaginal infections, be it vaginitis or candidiasis and other fungal problems which troubles some women for life. If the tissue had been broken by germs, MSE may feel peppery a little. To offset this, the powder may be formed into a paste with either egg white or such antibiotic/antibacterial natural preparation as PROPOLIS CREAM. The application helps to resolve such questions as Vaginitis and Leucorrhea. For women who have had multiple births, it helps to relax vaginal walls. Many women who suffer in silence from vaginal infections when no pharmaceutical medicine appears to be of health may wish to try MSE.

    As a beauty agent, MSE powder can be made into an MSE butter by mixing the powder with, say, virgin Olive oil or shea butter or Neem oil. The butter strengthens hair, prevents hair loss, dandruff, scalp infections, moisturises dry or chapped skin, eliminates acne and warts. In this regard, MSE may be seen as a cousin of Orange Peel powder.

    For the obese and the diabetic, MSE is useful. It moderates intestinal and liver enzymes to reduce absorption of glucose. It reduces total cholesterol level and raises counts of the good cholesterol. This has beneficial effects on the heart, thereby reducing the risks of heart disease, heart attack and strokes. Improvements in blood circulation are also noticed in MSE supplement users. When MSE is taken with lime or lemon, it reduces abdominal circumference.

    Touch-me-not (Mimosa Pudica)

    Last year, this sensitive plant was presented as a female companion, especially when it comes to uterine bleeding. Last year, many female readers of this column who made enquires about their health were challenged with uterine fibroids which bled excessively during their periods. Mimosa Pudica readily came to mind as an aid for such women.

    The Yoruba of South-western Nigeria call this plant PATANMO or PADIMO. Patanmo means “put the lap together or hide the lap”. Padimo means “hide the secret place”. This led to this name being regarded as a code for the astringent nature of this herb when it comes to bleeding, especially from the vagina. But the health benefits of Mimosa go beyond this.

    Men also benefit from this herb. Many men suffer from piles or hemorrhoids which bleed. Because of stress and other factors, they suffer from low sexual drive and erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation and hydrocele. Hydrocele is a disturbing problem for affected men for it may impair their fertility. It is the accumulation of serous fluid in the testicular cavity. But it may also develop anywhere in the body. Hydrocele in the testes may develop from infections of a clogged inguinal lymphatic system. It may also be a warning sign of elephantiasis developing in other parts of the body. Mimosa Pudica is also well recommended for other glandular swellings. In its healing literature, it is often suggested that the juice may be applied on the swollen area. When the juice is not available, a paste of the powder may be made and similarly applied. For joint pains and the pain of arthritis, a paste of the new leaves or of the powdered leaves is made and applied on the joints overnight and washed away in the morning. The pain and the swelling are said to subside as therapy progresses.

    Generally speaking, Mimosa Pudica will also lower high blood sugar, stop itchy skin, resolve diarrhoea.

    In this review, we are returning to where we came from…to women. So, on a parting note today, I would say Mimosa Pudica helps to uplift sagging breast. In its literature, it is suggested that a paste of this herb and Ashwagandha root be prepared and applied on the breasts. Ashwagandha, widely used in Ayuverdic (Indian) medicine for thousands of years, has restorative properties.

    Sea salt (a)

    In the 1980s, I was shocked when a professor of medicine at the University of Lagos College of Medicine said at a public lecture that sodium was not the culprit in hypertension. I did not seek to find out what he meant by this. Doctors always warned that we consume less salt, and here he was asking us to take more. I was all the more shocked later on when I sold Dr. F. Batmanghelidj’s books in the 1990s. He taught the world about the value of drinking more water. His first book was titled YOUR BODY’S MANY CRIES FOR WATER. The follow-up was YOUR’RE NOT SICK, YOU’RE ONLY THIRSTY. By the time he died, Dr. Batmanghelidj was writing another book on STRESS DEHYDRATION AND CANCER. In his earlier books, Dr. Batmanghelidj went on to suggest that it was “criminal” for doctor to withdraw sodium from the diet if a patient was down with edema, which is what many doctors still do. Dr. Batmanghelidj said a shortage of sodium in the body actually causes those swellings! May doctors regard his view as blasphemous of medicine, if not criminal.

    Up till today, I would rather err on the side of caution and, so, would not suggest that the sodium content of food be increased in edema or hypertension situations. But the kind of sodium we are referring to as the culprit in these and other conditions is not sea salt but refined Sodium chloride or table salt.

    Sea salt is different from table salt in many respects. Dr. Batmanghelidj, like the Lagos Professor of medicine, probably sensed the need for the consumption of sea salt. To their defence have come studies which show that sodium in the body may not be harmful if there is enough potassium in the body to keep it in check. Unfortunately, the daily diet of many people is potassium deficient.

    Sea salt is produced by evaporating sea water or from harvesting from salt caves. It is darker than table salt because it retains between 75 and 80 minerals and trace elements from sea water. These inhibit the dangerous activities of Sodium in the body. Table salt is essentially Sodium and Chloride without these sea minerals and trace elements and is uninhibited. The trace elements and minerals in sea salt include Sodium and Chloride as macro nutrients and micro nutrients such as Calcium, Magnesium, Bromide, Potassium, Iron, Copper and Zinc. All of these and more are bleached out of sea salt in the production of table salt to which is then added anti-caking agent before it arrives on the dining table or the kitchen shelf.

    The discussion continues next week.

     

  • NAFDAC warns women against Drug abuse

    NAFDAC warns women against Drug abuse

    The National Food and Drugs Administration and Control ( NAFDAC ) has warned women against drug abuse.

    Mrs Roseline Ajayi, the Deputy Director and Kwara State Coordinator of NAFDAC gave the warnings while speaking with newsmen on Tuesday in Ilorin.

    According to her, the abuse of drugs is becoming prevalent among women.

    “I have heard the story that drug abuse is quite prevalent among ladies and I think it is about the environment where they live.”

    “In an environment where alcohol is consumed freely, where you have frustration, joblessness and pressure in the home-front, people tend to take solace in something and they go after doing something that will make them forget about their sorrow,’’ she said.

    The coordinator said that the agency discovered that soft drinks were being laced with drugs such as tramadol and codeine cough syrup before being taken.

    Also Read: Court to NAFDAC: Warn consumers against taking Fanta, Sprite with Vitamin C

    “Because of the stigma that women might face if they come out openly that they take drugs, they do it clandestinely by lacing soft drinks with hard drugs to prevent people from suspecting them,’’ he said.

    Ajayi said the agency had stepped up its awareness campaign against drug abuse and misuse through enlightenment on dangers and consequences of drugs abuse.

    According to her, the agency is ready to partner with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to effectively combat drug-related offences.

    She urged Nigerians to uphold family ties and values, adding that parents should watch and relate well with their children while giving them the needed support.

    Ajayi also spoke on the need for government to step up effort to stem the rate of unemployment so that the rate of drug
    abuse could reduce.

    “When youths are gainfully engaged, they will be busy; their minds will not go into illicit drugs consumption,’’ she said.

    NAN

  • Govt launches three-year plan on family health

    Govt launches three-year plan on family health

    A family planning costed implementation plan for 2016 to 2018 to provide direction for a sustainable family planning programme with detailed activities, strategies, goals and indicators to address all components towards achieving the state’s vision on family and reproductive health has been launched by the Ogun State Primary Health Care Development Board.

    The three-year plan is aimed at increasing the contraceptive prevalence rate among families in the state from 26% to 52% by 2018.

    Speaking at the launch of the programme at a ceremony held at Hilltop Tavern, Abeokuta, the state Commissioner for Health , Dr Babatunde Ipaye, said  the document was developed under the guidance and oversight of the board with support from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), affirming that the plan would ensure the sustainable and successful implementation of the state’s family planning programme and policies in the coming year.

    Ipaye, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr. Nofiu Aigoro, noted that the state had adapted and implemented many national policies and strategic plans, including the National Population Policy for Development, National Reproductive Health Policy and Strategic Plans, among others.

    “Over the years, the Ogun State government has adapted and implemented many national policies and strategic plans which included the National Population Policy for Development, National Reproductive Health Policy and Strategic Plans and National Guideline on Contraceptive Logistics Management system”, the commissioner said.

    In his address, the Acting Executive Secretary, Ogun State Primary Health Care Development Board, Dr.  Elijah Ogunsola, said the state was committed to increasing the contraceptive prevalence rate from 26% to 52% by 2018 to promote the healthier family life in the state.

    On the occasion, the Country Representative of the United Nations Population Fund Agency (UNFPA), Dr. Omolaso Omosehin, commended the state government for creating awareness on family planning, calling for training and re-training of health workers as well as re-orientation of the populace.

     

  • Some herbal guardians of health in 2017 (1)

    The year just gone by, 2017, was an exciting one. By exciting I mean that many readers of this column in need of help for their health received many opportunities to do so. Thanks to all those researchers and doctors worldwide who kept sharing with us the knowledge of natural healing foods and medicines which the Almighty Creator permitted them to learn from Mother Nature. This column is, therefore, an expression of gratitude to the Creator and to these fine human spirits through brief reminders of some of those healing herbs and foods we were privileged to learn about last year.

     

    Apple Cider Vinegar

    I give the first slot to this wonderful herbal medicine not because, in nursery rhyme, A stands for Apple. A woman I have known for about 25 years died last Saturday from bleeding after surgery. I wondered if she could not have lived if she took Apple Cider Vinegar for four or six weeks before the surgery. Immediately I heard the story, many cases of bleeding helped by ACV, as Apple Cider Vinegar is also called, flooded my thoughts. One was a dutiful reporter in The Guardian newspaper newsroom of the 1980s. She returned late to the newsroom one day, well beyond the deadline for her report. Deadline breaches are grave sins in the newsroom. A breach may delay the printing time and cause such print-run shortages as may cost the company millions of Naira on the news-stands. I gave her a typical dress-down of an angry editor. She cried and cried. At about 9p.m, she came to my office to apologise with explanations which made me feel small inwardly. She had been bleeding vaginally for one week and had only managed to be coming to work. That day, she fainted in the taxi she boarded to the office and had to be revived in hospital. As she was still bleeding, I asked her to go next day to Pa JOHNSON’S Health shop on Olonode Street in Yaba, Lagos, and purchase ACV. Another health shop which sold it in Lagos at that time was at 118 Ogunlana Drive, Surelere. Within one week, the bleeding stopped for all time. For ACV miraculously stops bleeding.

    Another case I remembered was that of a boss of mine who had to have surgery for Inguinal hernia. This is a condition in which the intestine enters the scrotal sac through a weakness in abdominal architecture, sometimes causing swelling and pain in the testes. The surgeon had thought my boss would bleed and had readied blood for transfusion. But having been on ACV therapy for six weeks prior to the surgery, he did not.

    Yet another case was a mother who had her uterus evacuated because of large growths of uterine fibriods which caused vaginal bleeding. She had become so pale and weak that blood for transfusion was arranged before surgery. But she did not bleed. In my wife’s child-bearing years, she always took ACV in the last month before labour. While other women bled in the labour room, she did not. I learned about ACV from a pocket book of the benefits of this wonderful gift of Nature written by Cyril Scott. ACV, according to him, is good for the hair, scalp, eyes, sinuses, gums and teeth, skin, bones, nail, blood, digestion and flatulence, among other benefits. He says they contain Phosphate salts, the lack of which may cause eye and brain discomfort, among other health slacks. ACV is known to aid weight management, reduce acid reflux, high blood pressure. It reduces high blood sugar and high blood cholesterol levels. ACV fights allergies, balances the blood pH, relieves cold symptoms, helps detoxification et.c. The brand I recommend, which I have away used, is that branded BRAGGS WITH MOTHER.

     

    Red Kidney Bean Pod

    This remedy was mentioned in this column many times last year. It has a reputation for reducing high blood sugar, weight loss, promoting urination and removing dropsy or edema, whether it be of heart or kidney origins. It is claimed, also, that this pod helps conditions of kidney Stones and Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs).

    More about this herb later.

     

    Bone Marrow Meal

    Some readers were confused about the differences between bone meal and bone marrow meal. Bone meal is high-grade animal bone (preferably grass-fed) crushed to powder for its Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Protein in particular and fed to cows to prevent Mad Cow Disease. Its use as a human food supplement for calcium and other minerals became unpopular because of possible lead contamination. Bone Marrow Meal, on the other hand, is the soft tissue content in the bone hollow, sometimes, with some purified bone meal. This column recommended it to chemotherapy patients with bone marrow damage and other challenges. The experience of  Swedish doctor (Mrs) Astrid Brohult provided the spur for this. In about 1952, she worked in an hospital leukemia (blood cancer) ward for children who suffered from bone marrow cancer. Chemotherapy devastated them all the more. But when Dr. Brohult added bone marrow to their meals, the children dramatically recovered. She and her husband, a biochemist, were to discover two important components in bone marrow meal which may have accounted for such recoveries…Alkylglycerol and Squalene. Modern studies reveal that the bone marrow exhibits large amounts of Vitamin A, Collagen, Iron, Omega-3 fatty acids, minerals and Vitamins, Proteins. Chemotherapy destroys them in addition to damaging the capacity of the bone marrow to produce red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelet cells. This is one of the reasons chemotherapy patients are weak, suffer from excruciating pain with because of their reduced oxygen content, suffer from illnesses and bleed.

    There is no doubt that a supply of these ingredients in bone marrow meal can jump start a weakened system back to life. Bone marrow meal has been found to promote digestion, repair damaged body cells, protect the health of the heart and the blood vessels, support joint mobility and protect them, support the production of white blood cells, maintain health of the skeletal system, boost immunity, fight cancer, increase the body’s metabolic rate and detoxification process. Thus, bone marrow meal is good not only for cancer-challenged people but for everyone as well.

     

    Cellgevity

    Already with us for about two years now, this food supplement blossomed last year amid claims that it had helped some people throw off some serious health yokes. It attracted two articles in this column titled CELLGEVITY, SENIOR CITIZENS AND THEIR HEALTH CHALLENGES (1) and (2). The Cellgevity story is all about a landmark food supplement which enables the body to make more energy and an abundance of the body’s master antioxidant, Glutathione, which Nature puts in human, animal and plant tissues to ward off disease. It is made from three amino acids…Glycine, Glutamin and Cysteine. Cysteine is, arguably, the most crucial. Stomach acids transform it and, so, not enough of it gets to the cells for the manufacture of Glutathione. Meanwhile, drugs such as Paracetamol and Panadol deplete the body’s stocks of Glutathione and cause Cysteine to be excreted in the urine. Efforts to load more Cysteine into the system have until now been compromised by stomach acid inhospitality, stress, fatigue, toxins, liver weakness and other factors. Then, after several years of research, CELLGEVITY arrived on the scene in the United States with a technology which protects Cysteine from stomach acid and delivers it safe and sound to the cells to make Glutathione and energy.

    More information is available in www.olufemikusa.com.

     

    Libido aids

    These days, I listen to late night news on radio before I knock off for the night. The news comes on just after or before relationship programmes. One of these is EDUN OKAN (d:d r:d) (HEART PAIN), a raw Yoruba programme by FAAJI FM Radio. It is presented by a harsh, if not brutal, unsparing and sometimes rude man. In one of the last ones I listened to, one man called in on the phone to complain that his wife who was breast feeding a four-month old baby by him was “sleeping” with a youth in their multiple-room residence (face-me-I-face-you) residence who was infected with tuberculosis. The complainant said he appealed to the boy to no avail and gave up. Happily, he said, the chap soon died of his tuberculosis. He wanted the programme to help him appeal to his wife that, now that her lover was dead, she should remain faithful to him. What sort of man is this, I wondered. But before I could call JACK ROBINSON, many calls poured in, either castigating him for being a she-man or advising him to do something about his manliness. The presenter literally dragged him in the mud and asked if his wife was around and listening to the programme. To my surprise, she was right beside him in bed, awake and listening! The presenter literally took her to the cleaners, calling her a disgrace to womanhood and asking her to go on her knees before her husband and plead for forgiveness. She agreed to do so! The comments of other people were not lost on me…this must be why many men today seek sex libido enhancers!

    In my days as a young man, PASUMA STRONG was the in-thing among men. It also went by the name PASUMA FORTE. Today we have such male aphrodisiacs as LIBIDO TONIGHT, LIBIDO MAX, STEEL LIBIDO, ROBUST ROOTS, AFRICAN BLACK ANT and EROXYL FOR MEN, to mention a few of the ones which appeared in this column as aids for underactive men last year.

    The list was incomplete without such other food supplements as Zinc, L-Arginine, Macca, and CoQ10, to mention a few.

    These remedies are either quick-acting, slow working or a combination of both. They aid the production of male hormones, stimulate nerve response, support blood delivery to the penile shaft, and turgidity and staying power. Some men require detoxification in the nerve junction (Frankenhauser’s) in the pubis region which controls erection and all that. Chlorella and Cilantro may help out in such a case. For other men, too much stress has weakened their adrenal glands, causing adrenal burn-out in some cases. The stress need not be physical. It could be oxidative, in which antioxidants are needed, heavy metal toxicity in which case heavy metal chelators are called for. Sometimes, bacteria, viruses, fungi, yeast, even mold, may be at work. This would call for antibacterials such as Amazon C-F, antifungals such as Amazon A-F, antivirals such as Amazon A-V and a broad-spectrum fighter such as GOLDEN SEAL ROOT and MANGO SEED EXTRACT. All of them were mentioned in this column last year either for this condition or others. To cap the stress therapy, it was suggested that nutrition which supports adrenal recovery be adopted. Borage Oil and Licorice and Ginseng and adaptogens were suggested.

     

    Wheatgrass

    It still holds the prospect of being a great alkalinising agent and healer, long, long after Dr. Anne Wigmore popularised it. For an alkalinising and mineralising agent is crucial in many of today’s degenerative diseases which research suggest have their origins in over-acidity of the body through diet, environmental, negative emotions and stress of all sorts, among others. As a child, Anne watched her grandfather heal the “injuries of World War II soldiers with wheatgrass grass juice”. As an adult, Anne developed gangrene in one lower limb. Doctors advised amputation. Anne objected. Gangrene is dead tissue that spreads. Death of cells and tissue occurs when they do not receive enough oxygen through blood circulation due to one problem or another. Anne watched her condition grow worse. But she remained adamant. No one would remove any part of her body. She would spend the evenings in the wheel chair in her garden. She began to observe sick cats which came to the garden to eat a particular grass. Soon, they would get well. She, too, began to eat this grass. This grass was wheatgrass. Anne regained health and life in her dying limb when she began to eat wheatgrass and take wheatgrass juice, as some accounts have said, fanatically. Dr. Anne Wigmore died at the age of 85, not from gangrene or any other ailment, but from suffocating smoke in a fire which engulfed her clinic. She left behind a legacy of wheatgrass as a supportive herb in health and illness.

     

    Lion’s Mane Mushroom

    I do not know if Dr. Rita Levi Montalcini is still alive. The last time I followed her work, she was 103, reading, writing and making speeches. As a young Italian doctor during World War II, she sought to discover which herb in the plant kingdom could heal damaging or mangled nerves. Her laboratory was her bedroom. She moved from one house to another during the bombings. Eventually she discovered Lion’s Mane Mushroom to be best suited for the job. And she won a Nobel Prize for it.

    Lion’s Mane Mushroom supports the brain to produce Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) or Nerve Growth Hormone (NGH) which not only protects the myelin shealth of the nerves. Picture to yourself the electrical wiring in your house. Electricity is conducted by the thin copper wires that are insulated with a plastic covering. That, too, is the configuration of the nerves. The nerves conduct plant and impulses throughout the body and are protected by a myelin shealth as covering. If anything goes wrong with this shealth, the nerves are exposed and may be endangered. People who have holes in a tooth or more know how it hurts when the nerves in the pulp are exposed and come in contact with food, water or germs. Sometimes, the pain is such that affected people will death. Modern researches have expanded the scope of Dr. Montalcini’s work. Now, it is known that Lion’s Mane Mushroom is helpful not only in all neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, seizures, tremours, Restless Leg Syndrome, premature ejaculation and urinary incontinence, among many nerve-related conditions, but helpful as well for such conditions as digestion difficulties, immune response and even cancer.

    Some people do not easily recognise that they have nerve challenges. One of my friends knew of his only when he had to share a hymn book with another worshipper during a church service and he discovered that his hand was shaking. Another could not insert a key into the key hole of a car door or house door without the support of the other hand. There are people, men and women, who let go before they arrive in the urinal. And when the vision begins to blur, it may be time to check if the pressure of glaucoma may not have caused nerve damaged or mangling in the eye. In nerve conditions, Lion’s Mane Mushroom goes well with Vitamin B1 and the B-complex family.

     

    Orange peel

    As I do not mind bitter principles in my diet, I go for the gentle bitter of Orange peel in almost every home cooked meal. Outdoor, I add the factory-made orange peel powder to meals such as rice, beans or pap or yam porridge. I like bitter principles in food because I learned long ago from the Yoruba proverb that “Ore enu l’ota inu” (friend of the mouth is enemy of health within), referring to the sweet principles whereas “ota enu l’ore inu” (enemy of the mouth is friend of health within). Thus, when I feel like having a meal of eba and egusi (melon) soup, for example, and I do not have Orange peel powder, I parboil Orange peel and turn the garri for eba in the water extract of the peel. I do not throw the peel away. I shred it into the egusi soup. I add Orange peel to rice or beans when it is half boiled. This way, I have been able to curb the tendency of my random blood sugar to shoot to about 150, and bring it down to under 120. For orange peel has anti diabetes principles apart from being anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial, nutritive, anti-asthma and, a lungs cleanser and a cough remedy. In articles posted on www.olufemikusa.com, which features these herbs, I mentioned how orange peel powder brought down by 150 points in one week a woman’s 500 plus blood sugar count and how, eating the peel over meals, resolved some cases of bronchitis.

  • Health benefits of pawpaw

    Health benefits of pawpaw

    Pawpaw, known botanically as carica papaya, is often called a wonder fruit for all its great properties. It is a nutritional storehouse and has effective digestive enzymes. Often nutritionists ask you to increase your fruit intake and papaya is often on that list. Papaya contains numerous minerals and chemicals, flavonoids as well as carotenoids. This fruit is believed to also promote improved cardiovascular health and protection from colon cancer.

    This fruit is considered so full of health benefits that it promotes digestion, builds the immune system, prevents constipation, lowers inflammation, reduces pain from burns, especially if the skin of the papaya is used, can prevent heart disease, complications from diabetes and atherosclerosis.

    Papaya is also a good source of fibre, which helps bring down cholesterol.

    There is no perfect time to enjoy a fruit, but it is best eaten before a meal as after a meal the body converts the fruit into sugar while before a meal you absorb all nutrition.

    Everybody wants to maintain smooth, healthy, youthful and glowing skin. In most cases, unhealthy or dull skin is a result of poor eating habits and a weakened digestive system.Poor nutrition and the accumulation of harmful toxins in the body are the main reasons for dull skin. One common solution for all these disorders is papaya. In order to make use of papaya for skin, care, you can also apply the papaya pulp on your skin in addition to eating it regularly.

    A unique enzyme in papaya, referred to as papain, has a considerably positive effect on the digestive system. Its regular consumption, it performs all the functions necessary for maintaining a healthy skin: it eliminates the toxins from the body, treats constipation, and greatly helps in proper digestion. Most beauty care professionals recommend papaya for skin care. In addition to using papaya for glowing skin, you can use papaya for skin whitening as well, if you feel that your skin is turning dark due to over exposure to sun or pigmentation.

    In order to make best use of papaya for skin care, mix one teaspoon of honey with about 100 gm of papaya pulp, and apply it to your face. Keep this mask for 15 to 20 minutes and then wash with cold water. This is one of the best home remedies for skin care, and it will solve all your skin related problems including acne and black heads.

    Papaya fruit is a rich source of antioxidants, Vitamins B and C, carotenes, flavonoids, and minerals including potassium and magnesium, and fiber. As such, papaya imparts numerous health benefits. One of the health benefits of papaya is that it helps in the management of diabetes. It is recommended by doctors on account of its ability to lower blood sugar levels.

    Diabetes mellitus is caused by decreased production of insulin hormone or body resistance to the hormone, leading to accumulation of sugar in the blood. In diabetes, patients are forbidden to consume most of fruits on account of their carbohydrate content. However, benefits of papaya for diabetic patients could be attributed to its low sugar content and high content of minerals and fiber. You can also use papaya leaves for diabetes. You can soak papaya leaves in water, strain the extract, and consume it three times a day to reduce blood sugar levels.

     

    • Source: www.diethealthclub.com

     

     

  • Pharmacists endorse N50b Oyo Health Fund

    Pharmacists endorse N50b Oyo Health Fund

    The Oyo State chapter of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has expressed support for the establishment of Oyo State N50 billion Health Endowment Fund.

    The state’s PSN Chairman, Abiodun Ajibade, expressed the council’s support for the fund while handing over drugs estimated at N344,000 to the state at the weekend.

    Ajibade said the council provided the drugs for use in state’s and local governments’ hospitals as well as health centres across the state.

    The PCN urged the state government to recruit more pharmacists for hospitals to boost healthcare delivery.

    Ajibade, who handed the drugs to the Commissioner for Health, Dr Azeez Adeduntan, said the gesture was aimed at reducing the money the state government spent on providing drugs to its hospitals and primary health centres.

    He said: “I will like to reiterate the need to employ more pharmacists to man many of the health facilities in the state. There is also the need for refurbishing and face-lifting many of the pharmacies in the hospitals. Our donation of drugs worth N344,000 today is to make a statement that the PSN in Oyo State is solidly behind the N50 billion state’s Health Endowment Fund that was launched recently.”

    The donated drugs comprise antacids to cough syrups, analgesics, vitamins, antibiotics and bottles of blood tonic.

    The PCN chairman urged the state government to give more attention to the refurbishing of many pharmacies in hospitals across the state.

    Adeduntan said primary health centres, particularly those in rural local government areas and local council development areas, would benefit from the distribution of the drugs.

  • Bitterleaf healing power

    Bitterleaf healing power

    Bitterleaf is one of the widely use cooking vegetable in Africa and it can grow in any part of the world
    Very few people are aware that this vegetable is highly medicinal and can be used to cure diseases as well as help to keep our body in good health condition. The important thing this leaf does is to clean the blood, hence prevent sickness. This made by squeezing the fresh leaves to get the juice. Drink about a glass of the juice 3 times a day.
    •Bitter leaf also cleans the lymphatic system as well.
    •For smokers or those that are been exposed to secondary smoke, bitter leaf is useful by protecting the body against pollutants that come from cigarette smoke and some dangerous gas.
    •The juice prevents malaria sickness due to the presence of Natural Quinine.  Regular intake of this bitter leaf juice will prevent malaria sickness
    •It also yield the healing power of Sexually Transmitted Diseases(STD). The drinking of the bitter leaf juice daily and also squeeze the leaves and paste it on the patches and warts that appear on the skin will vanish in course of days.
    •It is useful for treating of ringworm, eczema and other diseases, just squeeze and paste it regularly, drink the fresh bitter leaf juice, this will clear them off in no time.
    •It is useful in curing loss of memory. It could be a symptom of diabetes or a sickness on its own. Whatever the nature, bitter leaf is very good for treating this ailment.
    •If you often feel weak and tired or you lack vitality and vigour, squeeze the bitter leaf in water, take a glass 3 times daily.
    It is good in treating stroke, strengthens the muscle and cleanses the system.
    •In treating pneumonia, squeeze the fresh leafs of the plant in water. Take a glass full thrice daily. Warm the solution on fire each time before you drink.
    •Insomnia  is an inability to sleep well, take 2 glasses of bitter leaf juice every night. You may add a little honey if you wish.
    •It prevent Arthritis or rheumatism in patients.  It soothes swollen joints and eradicates the pain.
    •Chew the tender stem and swallowing the juices is a well known remedy for stomach aches.   Alternatively, pound the fresh leaves in a mortar to extract the juice, add a pinch of salt to three tablespoons of the undiluted juice and drink. This version is reported to bring immediate relief.

  • Plantains are essential for healthy Pregnancy

    Plantains are essential for healthy Pregnancy

    PLANTAINS belong to the same family as bananas but they have to be cooked to be eaten.

    Plantains are delicious and can be found in many places in the world. Here are a few health benefits of plantains: •Plantains are very reliable sources of starch and energy. •Plantains contain a high amount of dietary fibre which helps ensure healthy bowels and

    reduces constipation. •Plantains have more vitamin C than bananas. Consumption of foods rich in vitamin-C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen- free radicals. •Plantains have more vitamin A than bananas. In addition to being a powerful antioxidant, vitamin A plays a vital role in the visual cycle, maintaining healthy mucus membranes, and enhancing skin complexion. •As in bananas, they too are rich sources of B-complex vitamins, particularly high in vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine).

    Pyridoxine is an important B-complex vitamin that has a beneficial role in the treatment of neuritis, anemia, and to decrease homocystine (one of the causative factors for coronary artery disease (CHD) and stroke episodes) levels in the body.

    •Plantains also contain folates, niacin, riboflavin and thiamin. Folates (folic acid) are essential for healthy pregnancy.

    •Plantains also provide adequate levels of minerals such as iron, magnesium, and phosphorous. Magnesium is essential for bone strengthening and has a cardiac-protective role as well.

    •Plantains have more potassium than bananas. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps control heart rate and blood pressure, countering negative effects of sodium.

    •Plantains are famed to be diuretic and can help prevent kidney and bladder problems.

    •Plantains ease the discomfort associated with the menstrual period.

  • Kano spends N81.2m on maternal health

    The Kano State government will spend N81.2 million for the second round of the 2017 Maternal, New Born and Child Health (MNCH) week, it was learnt yesterday.

    The scheme is targeting over 2.6 million children under the ages of five and 650,000 expectant women.

    Commissioner for Health Dr. Kabiru Ibrahim Getso, who addressed reporters on activities lined-up for the week-long event, said the event will be held in collaboration with the Ministry for Local Government, UNICEF and other development partners.

    His words: “The week will also allow us deliver health services to mothers, new born, and children through the existing healthcare system, at both primary and secondary levels of care. The programme will hold between December 18 and 22.”

    Getso said the services to be rendered include de-worming of children from one to five years, immunization of children under five, ante-natal care services, malaria, prophylaxis for expectant women, vitamin A supplement for children between six months and six years, nutritional status screening, HIV/AIDS counselling, testing services, birth registration, among others.

    “These services and interventions will be delivered free in 39 secondary hospitals and over 1,200 primary health care centres across the 44 local government areas, including about 7,000 health personnel, which will be followed  by an increase of coverage expected to reach more expectant women and children,” he added.

  • ‘Telecoms masts constitute no health hazard’

    ‘Telecoms masts constitute no health hazard’

    The Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) has said World Health Organisation (WHO) has given a clean bill of health to telecoms masts and towers that they do not constitute health hazards.

    The Executive Vice Chairman, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, spoke at the weekend at the ‘NCC day’ at the trade fair in Port Harcourt.

    Represented by the Head, Department of Projects, Bashir Idris, Danbatta warned against resisting expansion and improved service delivery by communities and individuals, who refused right of way access to telecoms companies for fear of the myth.

    He said: “There are individuals who believe that telecoms masts and towers constitute health hazards to human beings. The commission maintains that WHO has affirmed that no result of any such hazard has been established against base stations.

    “Therefore, any individual or community adducing such reasons to deny right of way to telecoms companies and prevent them from expanding services are contributing to the poor quality of service in the network.”

    The vice chairman hinted that NCC would soon issue a directive to service providers to give 14- day window to subscribers to enable them roll over unused data.

    He said the move will stop the present practice where subscribers lose their unused data if they fail to renew on the date of expiration of the subscription.

    Danbatta said the issue of data expiration at the end of 30 days had been an issue of concern among consumers, noting that the commission had put service providers on special notice about the present monitoring of user experience and would call them to account in due course.

    He said the commission had embarked on sensitisation programmes to inform consumers about their rights and responsibilities.