It Could Be Anything!
It Could Be Anything!
Number Nineteen ©March, 2001 ••••••• Don Harthcock, Editor OpinionSoup may contain language and topics unsuitable for children. "The healing process can be a catalyst for deep transformation in a person's life." ~ Peter Levine
IN THIS ISSUE:
ON CAROB & KING JAMES - Personal From Donny
DHA - Learn to love fish!
EUPHORBIA/SPURGE - a weed for skin cancer
FALSE UNICORN - something wonderful for the girls
GERMANIUM - jumper cables for your immune system
HAWTHORN - Have a heart? You need to know more about Hawthorn.
JUST SAY "NO" - Mae West, Lorenzo, Cocaine, and Tallulah Bankhead
VITAMIN K - unknown to Rasputin
LOMATIUM - Send those viruses packing.
MESQUITE - You don't know enough about it!
The Food and Drug Administration has not evaluated any of the statements made in this publication, nor is that likely ever to happen. This publication is not meant to be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Since this publication is not intended to be diagnostic or prescriptive, the authors assume no responsibility for any adverse reactions resulting from the use of any information contained in it.
ON CAROB AND KING JAMES
PREFACE: Linguists and other scholars all know that translating something literally, word-for-word, is not always useful. If a Russian tells you "Poshol k'chortu," (Go to Hell), and your translator repeats it literally in English, "Went to Hell," you will not be properly insulted.
If a Cuban says to you, "Mas vale un pajaro en mano, que cien volando," you might HEAR "More value one bird in hand, than 100 flying," but you will know that he has INTENDED the similar proverb we use in English: "A bird in hand is worth two in the bush." Still, thousands have built entire RELIGIONS around literal translations.
If the Rosetta Stone had led Egyptologists to conclude that a certain hieroglyphic said, literally, "My cat just farted," do you think they would have published it that way? Only if they had worked for King James (comfortably dead by that time). Even then, they might have paraphrased Shakespeare and said, "Something's rotten in Cairo," leaving historians to ponder whether they were reading about political intrigue or flatulent cats.
••••••••••••• Now, let's talk about Carob and Locusts and John the Baptist and translators.
John the Baptist was a wild and crazy guy, in a saintly kind of way, but he probably didn't eat locusts with his wild honey, out there in The Wilderness (maybe a couple of incidental bees). Not the winged kind of locusts that my cats catch and bring to me, that is. Literalists, particularly Baptists, will insist that he ate actual locusts "because the Bible says so," and Donny concedes the possibility that he did eat insects (it would have been migrating grasshoppers), but it was most likely Carob Pods that John munched on.
Translators of the Bible at that time, however, were in deathly fear of King James, who was a real nut case. "You can't put what it MEANS; put what it SAYS!" the King's editor probably ordered his scholars, giving rise to the phrase "it loses something in the translation." The main things that the King James version of the Bible lost, with its literal translation, were FACTS.
William Shakespeare was very familiar with King James, by the way. The witches were added to Macbeth, originally witchless, just to please His Royal Highness (who was very "into" witches).
Maybe St. John didn't really have any honey, either; Carob is not only a Locust tree...it is a Honey Locust!
image courtesy living-foods.com
At any rate, Carob, Ceratonia siliqua, is an eastern Mediterranean evergreen tree of the Pea Family. It is also known as St. John's Bread. Leguminous Carob Pods contain a sweet, edible pulp favored by wilderness prophets, and seeds that yield a gum used as a stabilizer in food products. A powder or flour made from Carob Pods and seeds is used as a substitute for Chocolate (a poor substitute, say my taste buds).
Low-fat Carob, also called Algarroba, is rich in Calcium, actually containing more Calcium than milk. Carob is very rich in Potassium; it also contains other Minerals and Vitamins A and B. It has been used to cure diarrhea.
One of my Southern Baptist Aunts freaked out when she heard me telling my sister about Carob and John the Baptist.
"Don't you know you'll go to Hell for trying to change the Bible?" she asked, outwardly calm but inwardly hysterical.
An astonishing number of people, like my aunt, have no idea how much the Bible actually HAS been "changed," over the centuries, or how much change was made in the very act of gathering these ancient manuscripts into a "book" in the first place. If there were a Hell, it would be very crowded, indeed.
BACK TO INDEX
- wherein "Fatty" is not only good; it is Essential
DHA is an Omega-3 EFA (Essential Fatty Acid), beneficial to your heart and circulatory system...also an important factor in prostate health. Deficiency in DHA has been linked to depression and dementia, even to Alzheimer's.
Cold-water fish (bluefish, herring, mackerel, salmon, trout, tuna) are rich sources of DHA, and DHA supplements are available, as well. See Essential Fatty Acids.
Eating Fish May Prevent the Onset of Alzheimer's
A recent study published in Lipids reports that eating DHA-rich fish appears to protect people from Alzheimer's disease, as well as other forms of dementia.
Further, a study of 70 elderly Toronto people, 25% of whom have Alzheimer's Disease, was recently completed at the University of Guelph. It was concluded that the "healthy" people had high levels of a fatty acid from fish in their blood, and that the group with dementia had much less of it.
Julie Conquer, a Guelph biology professor and the study's lead author, said that the people with some form of dementia had on average 30% to 40% less DHA in their blood than the healthy group. She doesn't know why, and she acknowledges there's another possible interpretation: that whatever causes Alzheimer's also breaks down DHA in the blood.
A similar conclusion was reached by researchers noting the high level of Aluminum in the brains of Alzheimer's victims, and the very low level of Vitamin B12. In other words, it is not known if levels of any of these substances, whether high or low, are a cause or an effect of Alzheimer's.
DHA and certain other Omega-3 Fatty Acids also lower your risk of heart disease.
Red meat has no DHA. A possible alternate source is eggs, but the amount of DHA in eggs depends upon what the hens eat. Still, Dr. Conquer's research group concludes that there is strong evidence we should all eat more cold-water fish.
Reference (in part): HealthMall.com, and other sources
BACK TO INDEX
EUPHORBIA Peplus (Radium Weed)
- the poisonous weed that can cure skin cancer
The extremely large genus Euphorbia embraces many cacti and succulents, including the Spurges, Poinsettia, Snow-On-The-Mountain and Crown of Thorns. Most of them are at least mildly poisonous, and some of them are used medicinally as purgatives.
Various Euphorbia spp. were poisonous herbs of medieval magic "under the rule of Mars," used for working spells of death.
"Radium Weed" for Skin Cancer? Euphorbia peplus (Radium Weed), also known as Petty Spurge, has long been a folk remedy for skin cancer. A poisonous weed of European origin (for which I can find no photograph), it is commonly found in Australian urban areas. It has been a "home remedy" for skin conditions, for centuries.
Donny has learned that this particular Euphorbia's active compounds have been patented by the Australian company Peplin Biotech, an action that would not be possible in the U.S., where natural botanicals are not patentable. Garry Redlich, Managing Director of Peplin Biotech, commented that "the company has been particularly interested in this family of plants because of the folklore. We've done three years of rigorous testing of its anti-cancer activity."
Recently, the constituent healing agents of E. peplus were tested at Brisbane's Mater Adult Hospital, where 40 patients with sunspots, squamous cell carcinomas and basal cell carcinomas were treated. At the Prevention of Skin Cancer and Melanoma Conference in Brisbane earlier this year, Dr. Jonathan Ramsay reported that early results "are promising."
In a whopping 88% of patients in this study, Ramsay said, the sun spots and cancers cleared up completely. Donny would certainly agree that this is indeed "promising." Most of the patients were treated for three days, and side effects were limited to local pain and irritation, according to Peplin Biotech.
Donny warns that neither Euphorbia nor any herb will cure deadly melanoma cancers. If you suspect that a dark, scaly patch on your skin is melanoma, you should immediately consult with a health-care professional. If your condition is non-melanoma, educate your doctor about Euphorbia and Peplin Biotech.
Reference (in part): HealthMall.com and other sources
BACK TO INDEX
FALSE UNICORN (Helonias, Starwort)
- A pony with a cardboard horn on its forehead?
image courtesy http://www.ncpmh.org/
False Unicorn, Chamaelirium luteum, is native to Mississippi and grows primarily in the southeastern United States. The roots of False Unicorn, reputed to prevent miscarriages, contain the greatest amounts of the active constituents. They are made into a tonic for the ovaries and uterus, and they make a rejuvenating tea that is beneficial altogether, to new mothers. In larger doses, this tea is diuretic and emetic.
Many herbalists recommend False Unicorn for amenorrhea (lack of menstruation), menorrhagia (heavy menstruation), dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation), and for PMS (but how do it know?).
The medicinal use of False Unicorn Root was learned from Native Americans, who used this herb for a large number of women's health conditions, including all those listed above. It was also an important remedy for "morning sickness."
It is generally believed that steroidal saponins are the source of False Unicorn's healing power, but this "common knowledge" is not confirmed by any clinical research. In fact, Donny is unaware of any research at all on this powerful herb.
"What's the point?" ask doctors, pharmaceutical companies and the FDA. "We've got all these great drugs for you; who wants to chew on a root?"
Generally, False Unicorn Root is taken as a tincture, at 2 - 4 ml per day. It is almost always taken in combination with other herbs supportive of the female reproductive organs, particularly Vitex (Vitex agnus-castus). See Chaste Tree.
No information is available on adverse effects from using False Unicorn in measured amounts. Its long history of use by pregnant women would suggest that the FDA regard it as GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe), but as far as Donny knows, they've never heard of it.
Reference (in part): Out of the Earth: The Essential Book of Herbal Medicine, by Sy Mills; Viking Arkana, Middlesex UK, 1991
WARNING: LARGE DOSES OF THIS HERB, TAKEN ALONE, CAN LEAD TO CARDIAC ARREST.
BACK TO INDEX
- Japanese researchers get the jump on the U.S. again, thanks to the FDA
This Trace Mineral is found in soil and was not thought to have a great deal of importance in human health. Recently, however, Japanese researchers have synthesized a Germanium compound which seems to boost the immune system. These researchers claim that Germanium also shows promise in helping prevent cancer, killing viruses, and improving the circulatory system.
Although Germanium is thought to be non-toxic, the FDA warns that Kidney damage is a possible result of long-term use. As soon as one of their pet pharmaceutical companies obtains a patent for a Germanium product, the FDA will change their mind, no doubt, and say that it's OK.
Germanium is available now at some cost, at your Health Food Store.
BACK TO INDEX
- Maybe I have one; maybe I don't.
Crataegus oxyacantha is a small tree of the Rose Family with beautiful pink/white flowers that are among the first to bloom in the Spring. I have one in my back yard, and I really enjoy it. There are about 280 known Hawthorn species, and various trees of this overcrowded genus are native to all temperate zones, including North America. C. oxyacantha is perhaps the best-known Crataegus, but there are many others, all with medicinal value.
LATE-BREAKING HERBAL NEWS FLASH: My sister Jan told me last week, "That's not a Hawthorn. That's a Burning Bush." I took off my shoes.
AND NOW, MY FINAL ANSWER: My Hawthorn/Burning Bush/Guess What Bush is a Quince. I knew it all the time. See Quince.
Hawthorn berries, leaves and flowers are used in a tonic for the heart and for treating arteriosclerosis, arthritis, stress and "nerves." Considered to be one of the most valuable natural cardiovascular tonics available, Hawthorn Extract is standardized to Oligomeric Procyanidins and Flavonoids. Hawthorn is considered very safe, but see your doctor first if you are taking a heart medication or if you suspect that you have a heart problem.
Recent studies show that Hawthorn works by dilating blood vessels (increasing blood flow and lowering blood pressure), and by strengthening the actual heart muscle. It is mildly sedative.
Unregulated in the U.S., Hawthorn is a Traditional Medicine in France. Approved as an over-the-counter drug in Germany, it is available in the UK only by prescription. The heart-friendly effects of Hawthorn are CUMULATIVE.
BACK TO INDEX
- Mae West said, "I generally avoid temptation, unless I can't resist it."
••••••••••••• THE BALLAD OF LORENZOLorenzo was a teller in a Downtown National
His life was ordinary and his mind was rational
He had a lovely wife and two ordinary kids
Had a Overtown connection on the weekend brought him lids of marijuanaTo set his mind free (set your mind free Lorenzo)
Well now every Sunday night would bring a Monday right behind
Lorenzo aired his head out and he drove back to the grind
With the men he was so cordial with the women such a flirt
Met a sweet young thing from Bógota and that's when all the hurt beganShe wanted more than just a man (watch your caboose Lorenzo)
Working late again he told his wife but we know where he went
Maria was the Kilo Queen and all his money spent
Lorenzo never gave a thought to all his foolish deeds
He snorted up his savings but he put away those weeds to be a snowmanFlirting with a felony (you're on the edge Lorenzo)
Now Lorenzo had become quite changed his wife could plainly see
His skinny frame alarmed her and his personality
On a Jones he phoned Maria and he said What can I do?
She said My piggy bank is stuffed can I depend on you to do some laundry?You're working so conveniently (don't do it Lorenzo!)
So Maria brought the money and she knew just what to do
With the cashier's checks Lorenzo changed her tainted cash into
But they did it once too often caused suspicion with the staff
The cameras got the story and Lorenzo got the shaft he's working at Raiford nowMaria is a deportee (you play you pay boys and girls)
Why do you tell this story? people often ask of me
I say It's not a tale of woe it's just philosophy
Now anything can happen people's lives are sometimes wrecks
But Lorenzo and Maria wrapped that rope around their necks and life is short!You better set your mind free (set your mind free Lorenzo)
My own addiction to cocaine nearly killed my spirit, nearly ruined my life completely, and caused profound misery and grief to those I love best. May you never give in to the desire just "to try it."
Here's what Tallulah Bankhead had to say about it: "Cocaine habit-forming? Of course not! I ought to know; I've been using it for years."
BACK TO INDEX
A fat-soluble vitamin occurring in leafy green vegetables, tomatoes and egg yolks, Vitamin K promotes blood clotting (by forming Prothrombin) and prevents hemorrhaging. Also critical in digestion and proper liver function, K exists in several related forms such as K-1 and K-2.
Well-known for its role in bone repair, Vitamin K may help prevent osteoporosis in the eldering (I don't like the word "elderly"...its connotation with young people offends me. I do think it's funny that some Nashville agents now call the Everly Brothers "The Elderly Brothers.")
It is reported that some researchers believe that Vitamin K boosts the immune systems of children and helps fight cancer. Combined with Vitamin C, Vitamin K can relieve "morning sickness" during pregnancy.
Vitamin K is important in maintaining vitality and longevity, and it has a number of natural food sources: alfalfa, blackstrap molasses, egg yolks, fish-liver oils, green leafy vegetables, kelp, milk, polyunsaturated oils, tomatoes and yogurt.
(VITAMIN) K-1
A yellow viscous oil found in leafy green vegetables or made synthetically, used by the body to form Prothrombin and in veterinary medicine as an antidote to certain poisons.
(VITAMIN) K-2
A crystalline compound isolated from putrefied fish meal (that's REVOLTING) or from various intestinal bacteria (give me a BREAK), used to stop hemorrhaging and in veterinary medicine as an antidote to certain poisons.
BACK TO INDEX
LOMATIUM (Sierra Biscuit Root)
- Gedouddaheah, Herb Boy; we want Terpin Hydrate!
photo by Bro. Alfred Brousseau, St. Mary's College CA
Lomatium dissectum, a Western North American member of the Carrot Family, supports the immune system. It is antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic and antiviral.
Usually sold in combination with Osha, Lomatium Root is useful for colds, flu, sore throats and congestion. It is also combined with Lysine to combat herpes. See Osha. See Lysine.
Many Native Americans tribes used Lomatium Root to treat infections, particularly those affecting the lungs. Lomatium, still wildcrafted, was used with good results in the southwestern United States during the horrific influenza epidemic of 1917, which killed millions worldwide.
The principal antimicrobial agents of this herb appear to be Tetronic acids and a luteolin glucoside. Interactions with other constituent agents are not well-understood. In fact, little is understood about how even the known components actually interact with human immune systems. Of course, this is true only because researchers and your government (who funds them) are not interested in learning these things. Your government is interested only in the business of pharmaceutical manufacturing, which is responsible for killing about 100,000 Americans every year.
Lomatium greens may be eaten in the spring, but they are too tough later in the year. A medicinal tea is made from the aerial parts; the roots are edible raw, or they can be peeled and dried, then ground into flour. If you have the patience to collect the tiny seeds (about the size of portulaca seeds), these are also edible.
CAUTION: LOMATIUM RESINS AND COUMARINS MAY CAUSE A WHOLE-BODY RASH AND/OR NAUSEA. It is unknown whether the resins are necessary in the healing action of Lomatium.
Lomatium extracts (or isolates, with the resins removed) can be used in the amount of 1 - 3 ml per day. Lomatium tincture (1 - 3 ml three times per day) can also be used, but it may still cause a rash in some individuals. "Lomatium tincture should not be used unless a very small amount of it is first tested for a reaction; however, even very small amounts can cause a reaction in sensitive persons." (M. Moore).
CAUTION: DO NOT USE LOMATIUM IF YOU ARE PREGNANT OR NURSING.
Reference (in part): Medicinal Plants of the Pacific West, by Michael Moore; Red Crane Books, Santa Fe NM, 1993
BACK TO INDEX
- for bees, Bossy, barbecue and bottoms
photo courtesy desertusa.com
Several small trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis, native to hot, dry regions of the New World, are known as Mesquite. P. veluntina and P. glandulosa, native to the American southwest and northern Mexico, are called Honey Mesquite and Western Honey Mesquite. Like their cousin Carob, also of the Pea Family, these are also sometimes called Algarroba. P. juliflora is native to the Gulf Coast and Caribbean Islands, from Mexico to Venezuela.
Bees love Mesquite, and the resulting "Desert Honey" has many fans, including some wandering prophets who possibly strayed into the desert from California, Taos or Sedona. They won't be doing any baptizing, however. See Carob.
Mesquite is an important forage crop for animals of the southwest, both wild and domestic. Mesquite chips added to charcoal are very popular for grilling. Aromatic Mesquite meal is high-energy food, an ingredient of Pinole.
Mesquite wood is prized for use in handcrafted southwestern furniture. Donny wants to know how much Mesquite is left, out there!
A decoction of Mesquite bark, leaves, pods and/or twigs yields a healing wash for abrasions. Ingested, the tea is antibacterial and astringent. It will treat diarrhea, hemorrhoids and ulcers.
Mesquite is high in calcium, iron, lysine, magnesium, potassium and zinc. Like carob, Mesquite pods are sweet; therefore, the ground meal is also sweet. It contains no gluten.
"Mesquite" evolved from the Spanish Mezquite, from the Aztec Nahuatl word Mizquitl.
OpinionSoup is published by Don Harthcock. OS#19 ©March, 2001, Don Harthcock, OpinionSoup.com. Portions of OpinionSoup may be reproduced on your site with proper credit and a link. This instruction supercedes all previous prohibitions. Taping OS to refrigerators, posting on bulletin boards & emailing to friends is waycool, highly-recommended, and much appreciated.
BACK TO TOP | BACK TO INDEX | BACK TO HOMEPAGE | Previous Issue | Next Issue
About Us | Alternative Info Sources | Impressive People | Links | Music | Recipes | Subject Index | All the OpinionSoups | Sweepstakes
