--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300023Date: 11/02/97 From: MEG UMANS Time: 07:31am \/To: DAVID NASH (Read 1 times) Subj: Re: Melatonin -> S> I take one tablet at bedtime. 200mcg. -> -> 200? I use half that amount. In reading on melatonin, the suggested -> use is to use smallest amount. If I take 200, I am spacey and -> listless for Yes, and a similar guideline I read is that the most useful amount increases with increasing age. They suggested: under age 50, 1 mg; age 50-65, 2 mg; over age 65, 3 mg. --- PCBoard (R) v15.23 (OS/2) 5 * Origin: Exeter's Place * Gilbert, AZ * (1:114/449) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300024Date: 11/02/97 From: DIA SPRIGGS Time: 04:25pm \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: herb photos Anyone have any good, seeable herb photos they'd like to have photo credit on used in an herbal CD? --- D'Bridge 1.30/002111 * Origin: THE SOURCE BBS Miami, Fla 305-624-2190 135/68 (1:135/68) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300025Date: 11/02/97 From: DIA SPRIGGS Time: 06:28pm \/To: SHARON MCCORMICK (Read 1 times) Subj: Re: On drug laws Apology accepted but let's not start another round of uncomfortable discourse. Most software has a great feature...it allows you to see the header and who the post is from..if it's from a person you know will probably annoy you...DON"T READ IT..... --- D'Bridge 1.30/002111 * Origin: THE SOURCE BBS Miami, Fla 305-624-2190 135/68 (1:135/68) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300026Date: 11/02/97 From: DIA SPRIGGS Time: 06:31pm \/To: DAVID NASH (Read 1 times) Subj: Re: On drug laws I'm sure you're a very nice person, David. LEt's not start another round of fighting. You said you would accept another post from Jane. No, I think not..we're not going to start up again. People that you don't want to hear from, read their posts, etc. don't read them. You know it's really hard to get upset over things you don't read and it's hard to fight with someone who won't answer you. It gets really boring if you just sit and talk to yourself. --- D'Bridge 1.30/002111 * Origin: THE SOURCE BBS Miami, Fla 305-624-2190 135/68 (1:135/68) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300027Date: 11/02/97 From: ALEX VASAUSKAS Time: 10:35am \/To: DAVID NASH (Read 1 times) Subj: Melatonin & Valerian David Nash wrote in a message to Alex Vasauskas: DN> Hello! You seem to be a thinking person. Glad to have 'met' you... Ah ... flattery ... but, you are right ;-) I'm pleased to meet you too. DN> Wish I could be as consise and intelligent as your postings seem to DN> be. You can be me if you want to. But, from what I have seen (as in your post to Jane) you communicate well in your own voice and I like the color. DN> Have you any thoughts about melatonin and valerian root? The DN> combination works quite well for me, the only side effect I noticed DN> I cured by smaller doses! When it comes to using chemicals, I like to know as much as I can about the benefits and possible detriments. I feel most comfortable about using herbs that have a long record of use about which I can read. Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) is a major herb (actually it is the root and not the herb or leaf that is used) for relieving stress on both the body and the mind. When used for sleep, it seems to LET rather than MAKE you sleep. For example, it helps slow down thoughts racing around in your head at bedtime when something important will be happening the next day and you need to sleep to be rested. (In apparently about 20% of people it acts as a stimulant, and those can use something else like scullcap (Scutellaria laterifolia) and/or hops (Humulus lupulus).) Valerian is often used along with scullcap and hops as an herbal sleep aid formula -- a person might try the these others or a combination if the de-stressing effect of valerian alone isn't enough. The use of valerian has a long history. Valerian, in a related species called "wild nard", was used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. It was apparently first referred to as "valerian" in the ninth century, and first appeared by this name in records of Anglo-Saxon herbal medicine in the 11th century. Throughout all of this history, valerian appears to have the effect of a tranquilizer that relieves mental stress and the effects of this stress on the body, and, unlike modern manufactured chemicals, strengthens the nervous system of those who use it to relieve this stress. Although herbals talk about taking this root as a tea, the only pleasant way I know of to consume it is in a capsule. Cats love it. Maybe there are some people who enjoy the smell. To me it smells rank -- like really dirty, sweaty, long-unwashed, kept-in- a-moldy-shoe feet. The ancient Greeks called it "phu" because this was what people said when they smelled it :-) I don't know anything about melatonin. I have no personal experience with it and I don't know anyone who uses it. I found the following info about it, but I don't know how accurate it is. Anyway, FWIW: ===BEGIN from Paul Bergner (bergner@concentric.net), Editor, http://www.concentric.net/~bergner/MHHOME.HTM Medical Herbalism: I'm not surprised that melatonin is gone in Canada, and I predict that it will go the way of DHEA here in the U.S. -- meaning that it will be a prescription-only controlled item, treated like opiates. I've just researched and written a lengthy article about melatonin, and frankly I am shocked that natural healers would use this substance casually like a sleeping pill. Melatonin is a powerful hormone that affects the entire metabolic cycle, not just the sleep- wake cycle. We rail against hormone-replacement therapy with estrogen- progresterone, and then casually offer patients enough melatonin to raise blood levels 10-20 times their normal levels. This is bound to be a Devil's bargain, and it is only a matter of time till regulatory agencies throughout the world discover this and rightfully take measures to protect the public. For instance: melatonin production by the pineal gland appears to be an important part of the aging clock. The pineal glands of young mice, transplanted to old mice, make the old mice "younger" and they live about 1/3 longer. On the other hand, the pineal glands of older mice, transplanted into younger mice, immediately makes them "older" and they live about 1/3 shorter lives. So what happens when some guy named Joe in Iowa takes ten mg of melatonin (about twenty times what you need to achieve normal blood level peaks) to sleep most nights for three years (this is actually happening all over the place today) and then can't get the melatonin? Will his pineal have lost its ability to produce the same levels as previously? Most hormones have a negative feedback loop of one sort or another -- would levels that high reduce endogenous production over time? Will poor Joe then age ten years over the next few months? I think melatonin has a proper place in natural medicine, in the treatment or palliation of cancer, used for brief periods for jet lag, and possible for the elderly, and may be a few more uses. But IMO over-the-counter status is inviting health disaster. ====END DN> Oh shoot, I meant to notice where you DN> were posting from. Hate to ask a dumb question, where are DN> you from? This is very close: 61 deg. 25' N / 149 deg. 40' W ;-) Bests, Alex --- * Origin: 61 deg. 25' N / 149 deg. 40' W (1:17/75) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF300028Date: 11/02/97 From: SHARON MCCORMICK Time: 10:42am \/To: GEORGE LAGERGREN (Read 1 times) Subj: Re: Melatonin GL> Sharon , there are generally three dosage levels of GL> melatonin: 300 mcg; one mg; and three mg. GL> GL> So your dosage level is at the lower end. Some people GL> report taking a higher dosage of melatonin causes a GL> sleep "hangover" effect. I didn't exactly research it or anything, I just picked up a bottle of it at the local pharmacy. But we've found it just fine, and never had a problem with the sleep hangover effect. --- GAPNet Enhanced * Origin: QUACKERS BBS - Cleveland, Ohio (1:157/443.0) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF400000Date: 11/03/97 From: ALEX VASAUSKAS Time: 10:10am \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: Eczema * Forwarded (from: HERBS-N-SUCH) * Originally from Alex Vasauskas (1:17/75) to Linda Miller. * Original dated: Mon Nov 03, 08:52 Linda Miller wrote in a message to All: LM> Can any one give me an herbal solution they have used to clear up LM> eczema? LM> At one time I hit on the right combination and maintained eczema LM> free hands for a number of years. I am now wearing topcort & LM> bandaids trying to settle it down some. Assuming that you are eating a healthy, balanced diet and that your skin is not just reflecting some internal imbalance or stress, calendula (Calendula officinalis) is certainly worth a try. It has been used for over 1,000 years as a completely safe general skin treatment. Although it heals the skin a little slower than steroids, unlike steroids, it won't impair your immune system. According to ethnobotanist Douglas Schar (whom I have put to the test and never found to be wrong about herbs), calendula extracts have been found in the laboratory to be anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiprotozoal, antiulcerous, immunostimulating, and promoting of epithelization. Here is what he says about eczema: "Another common skin complaint today is eczema, and as with many chronic conditions, there aren't always easy answers to the problem. Many herbalists have discovered that getting patients off dairy products eliminates the condition. Others have found that eczema sufferers are allergic to aluminum, and replacing all aluminum cooking utensils with stainless steel makes a huge difference. Even with these two known causes of the disorder out of the way, some people still suffer from eczema, and for many of them, calendula creme works to keep the condition under control. Part of the syndrome is terrible itching which leads to scratching which leads to scabs which lead to scratching, and so on. Calendula creme both soothes the itching and speeds the healing of the broken tissue, thus ending the itch cycle." _The Backyard Medicine Chest_, by Douglas Schar. I personally know one woman whose eczema was not decreased by her dermatologist's treatments but eliminated by stopping drinking milk. I know another person who started using calendula creme on his eczema patches -- he had started using the steroid creme from his dermatologist, and this worked. But, then he replaced the steroids with calendula, and this had the same effect -- the eczema went away, and it continues to stay away with daily use of the creme. You can buy the creme in the store, but it is expensive. I follow Schar's formula and make a calendula tincture and lotion from plants that I grow (he doesn't do the part with clipping and saving the flowers all summer -- he just pulls the plants when they are in full bloom): I start one group of plants first thing in the spring, and I clip the flowers from these just before they come to full bloom and dry them on a screen during the summer. (These plants produce new flowers every 2-4 days!) I start a second group of plants so that they will just start to flower near the end of summer. From this second group, I pull ten of the plants just before they begin to flower. I divide my harvest into two batches of calendula consisting of five plants each and half of the flowers for each batch. Chop and shred these batches separately. Put one batch in a large container and pour 10 cups boiling water over it, let it stand until cool, and then strain it (I use women's socks from pantyhose material) into a large jar. Cover the jar and put it into the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Put the second batch into another large jar, put 10 cups of vodka (the higher the proof the better) over it, cover it, and store it in a dark place for 2 weeks. Shake it well daily. After 2 weeks, strain this batch and combine it with the water-extract batch to make your final tincture. I store it in large olive jars and wine bottles in a dark place. The reason for the two different extractions is to get as much as possible of both the water soluble and alcohol soluble parts of the calendula into solution. Water soluble chemicals in the plant treat viral conditions while the alcohol soluble ingredients are anti-bacterial. You can vary the proportions and try different thicknesses of cremes and lotions as a base, but I find that mixing 1/2 tincture and 1/2 skin lotion works well as a (very thin) calendula skin lotion. --- * Origin: 61 deg. 25' N / 149 deg. 40' W (1:17/75) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF400001Date: 11/02/97 From: GEORGE LAGERGREN Time: 11:39pm \/To: DAVID WILSON (Read 1 times) Subj: Re: More on SP David, I have a herb catalog that says saw palmetto berries are good for clearing mucus in the head and nose. Have you noticed whether SP helped you with any head/nose mucus? ... "Scotty, beam me up another Blue Wave message." ___ Blue Wave/386 v2.30 [NR] --- Amie v0.98 * Origin: The Edge BBS * Severn, MD * (410)551-2586 (1:261/1454) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF400002Date: 11/02/97 From: GEORGE LAGERGREN Time: 11:39pm \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: CODEX Treaty More on the CODEX International Treaty to regulate dietary supplements -=> Quoting Ms Linda to <=- ML> From: Ms Linda ML> Subject: Re: ILLEGALITY OF MOST HERBS, VITAMINS, & SUPPLEMENTS IN USA ML> MAY BE REALITY SOON!! Reply-To: mslnda@erols.com ML> Newsgroups: alt.health ML> http://www.erols.com/mslnda/myms/msandme.htm ML> For the full article, http://healthysource.com/codex.html, and this ML> is a real problem for people in the nutritional industry as well as ML> every citizen in the United States and every other free nation. ML> The issue is originating from the United Nations/World Health ML> Organization and has had little to no press coverage. Seems the ML> government you so fully trust is pulling a fast one by not allowing ML> this information to go public. ML> Visit this site for full details: ML> http://healthysource.com/codex.html or purchase a copy of "The ML> Experts' Optimal Health Journal", Volume 1, Issue 4 available by ML> calling the subscription number: 1-514-899-9200 This publication is ML> put by Richard A Passwater, PhD and Neil Solomon, MD, PhD. ML> This is a very real problem. The government/FDA wants full control ML> of distribution of all vitamins/nutritional supplements. If we sit ML> idle, this will become a reality. ML> Take care, ML> Linda ML> -- ML> **************************************** ML> Trust in the Lord with all your heart ML> and lean not on your own understanding. ML> In all your ways acknowledge Him and He ML> will direct your paths. Proverbs 3.5-6 ML> **************************************** ML> Kaire info = http://www.pychealth.com ML> News Item: Please read this web page and ML> get involved to help SAVE the nutrition ML> industry: http://www.erols.com/mslnda/codex.html End of message ... "Scotty, beam me up another Blue Wave message." ___ Blue Wave/386 v2.30 [NR] --- Amie v0.98 * Origin: The Edge BBS * Severn, MD * (410)551-2586 (1:261/1454) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 257 ALTERN. MEDICINE Ref: EF400003Date: 11/02/97 From: ALEX VASAUSKAS Time: 07:22pm \/To: ALL (Read 1 times) Subj: "Women's" herbs * Forwarded (from: HERBS-N-SUCH) * Originally from Alex Vasauskas (1:17/75) to Greg Mayman. * Original dated: Sun Nov 02, 18:46 Greg Mayman wrote in a message to Alex Vasauskas: AV> That price might be enough to convince a person to give angelica AV> (Angelica archangelica) a try as an alternative ;-) GM> AA is relatively common, but to date, I haven't seen any claims for GM> it, which makes me think that it does not have the same GM> effects. Both A. sinensis and A. archangelica are listed as antispasmodics, tonics for women, and as treatments for cramps, and particularly menstrual cramps, and stimulating menstruation. The tonic properties are supposedly greatest in dong quai, but angelica is also considered to be very effective. As for menstrual cramps, the women I know who have taken decoctions of the bark of Viburnum genus have invariably had the cramps quickly relieved. These plants include crampbark (Viburnum opulis), black haw (Viburnum prunifolium), and up here in the Great White North -- high bush cranberry (Viburnum edule), which is common in the woods. The beverage can be very astringent due to the tannin content, but this is tamed by adding milk. Some honey also helps make it more drinkable. The muscle relaxants in these herbs are also effective for relieving spasming skeletal muscles. ___ - Origin: 61 deg. 25' N / 149 deg. 40' W (1:17/75) --- * Origin: 61 deg. 25' N / 149 deg. 40' W (1:17/75)