Holistic Health Articles and Research Related to Herbal Medicines, Foods and Phytochemicals

Sunday, 30 September 2018

Dried Peas Delay and Decrease Postprandial Plasma Glucose and Insulin Concentrations Effectively In Type 2 Diabetes, Scientists Find

By Kyle J. Norton, Master of Nutrition

Scientists may have found a whole food with a potential effect of management of type 2 diabetes, some studies suggested.

Types 2 Diabetes is a chronic and medical condition characterized insufficient insulin entering the bloodstream to neutralize the levels of glucose.

Types 2 Diabetes is caused either by cells in pancreas dying off or receptor sites clogged up by fat and cholesterol.

In some cases, diabetes can also be caused by allergic reactions of cells in the immune system.

The exact causes of type 2 diabetes are unknown as researchers do not know why? people with same
health condition, some are susceptible to early onset of type 2 diabetes, while others do not.

However, some researchers suggested there are some major risk factors such as genetics and lifestyle associated with early onset of insulin resistance.

Epidemiological studies also suggested that conditions such as overweight, obesity, physical inactivity, family history, race, age, and high blood pressure are some prevalent risk factors of type 2 diabetes, especially, in women with polycystic ovary syndrome and previous gestational diabetes.

According to the World Health Organization, the number of people with diabetes has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014.

The global prevalence of diabetes among adults over 18 years of age has risen from 4.7% in 1980 to 8.5% in 2014.

Diabetes prevalence has been rising more rapidly in middle- and low-income countries.

Sadly, untreated or improperly managed diabetes are leading causes of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations, and adult-onset blindness.

Dried peas are a small but nutritionally mighty member of the legume family, genus Pisum belongings to the family Fabaceae.

Fried peas also healthy sources of protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals that are good for everyone diet.

The Nutrients and Chemical constituents
1. Carbohydrates
2. Dietary fiber
3. Fat
4. Protein
5. Vitamin A ( Beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin)
6. B vitamins
7. Vitamin C
8. Calcium
9. Iron
10. Magnesium
11. Phosphorus
12. Potassium
13. Zinc Beside it main component of Polyphenolic compounds, it also contains saponin pisatin, L-pipecolic acid, glycoside-Pisatoside, tocopherols,.... and cerebroside.

To understand more of low-glycemic response versus a high glycemic response breakfast meal on postprandial serum glucose, insulin and free fatty acid (FFA) responses after consumption of a standardized mid-day meal in adult individuals with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), researchers launched a randomized crossover intervention using control and test meals was conducted over a 3-week-period following an overnight fast of 8-10 h.

Patients included in the study were given either Breakfast (A), a high glycemic load breakfast meal consist of farina (kJ 1833; carbohydrate (CHO) 78 g and psyllium soluble fiber 0 g) or breakfast (B) a low-glycemic load breakfast meal consists of a fiber-loop cereal (kJ 1515; CHO 62 g and psyllium soluble fiber 6.6 g) randomly.

Forty-five Type 2 DM subjects included in the study have completed the requirements. By observation of post-breakfast analyses experiment, researchers found that

* Breakfast B had a significantly lower area under the curve (AUC) values for plasma glucose and insulin compared to Breakfast A (P<0.05).

* Post-lunch analyses indicated similar glucose responses for the two breakfast types.

* Insulin AUC values for Breakfasts B were significantly lower than Breakfast A (P<0.05) (95% confidence level).

These result suggested that psyllium soluble fiber have a strong effect to reduce fasting glucose compared to a meal without. However, intake of psyllium soluble fiber showed insignificant improvement postprandially in the glycemic, insulinemic and FFA responses after the consumption of the lunch meal.

Dr. Clark CA, the lead researcher also indicated, "These data revealed no residual postprandial effect of the psyllium soluble fiber breakfast meal beyond the second meal consumed".

Additionally, in the study to evaluate the glycemic and insulinemic effects of dried peas compared to potatoes researchers at the University of Göttingen conducted a study, using 3 different meals based on dried peas, potatoes, or both in patients with type 2 diabetes undergoing dietary treatment.

The tested meals were prepared according to local recipes and consumed at weekly intervals in random order at lunchtime, contained comparable amounts of carbohydrate, fat, protein, and water. The carbohydrate source of the meals differed and was supplied from either dried peas (meal 1), potatoes (meal 3), or a combination thereof (meal 2). Peripheral and venous blood was sampled over 180 min.

In the final report, researchers wrote,
* The increases in postprandial plasma glucose and insulin concentrations were delayed and significantly smaller after the peameal than after the potato meal.

* The areas under the glucose curve were 164, 257 and 381 mmol x 180 min/L for meals 1, 2, and 3, respectively (P < 0.01).

* The areas under the insulin curve were 13.8, 15.4 and 31.2 nmol x 180 min/L, respectively.

These results further reaffirm the effect of dried peas in delay and lower postprandial plasma glucose and insulin concentrations compared to potatoes.

Interestingly, researchers also strongly suggested, "..... carbohydrates in dried peas may be largely disregarded in carbohydrate counting and that type 2 diabetic patients should probably increase their consumption of low-glycemic, high-fiber foods at the expense of high-glycemic, low-fiber foods".

Taken together, dried peas may be considered as functional food for diabetes management by reducing postprandial plasma glucose and insulin concentrations in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Natural Medicine for Fatty Liver And Obesity Reversal - The Revolutionary Findings To Achieve Optimal Health And Lose Weight

How To Get Rid Of Eye Floaters
Contrary To Professionals Prediction, Floaters Can Be Cured Naturally

Ovarian Cysts And PCOS Elimination
Holistic System In Existence That Will Show You How To
Permanently Eliminate All Types of Ovarian Cysts Within 2 Months

Back to Kyle J. Norton Homepage http://kylejnorton.blogspot.ca

Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299

References
(1) Effects of breakfast meal composition on second meal metabolic responses in adults with Type 2 diabetes mellitus by Clark CA, Gardiner J, McBurney MI, Anderson S, Weatherspoon LJ, Henry DN, Hord NG. (PubMed)
(2) Comparison of the effects of dried peas with those of potatoes in mixed meals on postprandial glucose and insulin concentrations in patients with type 2 diabetes by Schäfer G, Schenk U, Ritzel U, Ramadori G, Leonhardt U.(PubMed)

Saturday, 29 September 2018

Green Tea, The Beverage Which Blocks The Onset of Ulcerative Colitis, Researchers Find

Kyle J. Norton

Green tea may have a therapeutic and positive effect for prevention and treatment of Ulcerative Colitis, some scientists suggested.

Ulcerative Colitis is a digestive condition characterized by inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that induces chronic inflammation and ulcers (sores) in the digestive tract.

According to statistic, approximately, between 250,000 and 500,000 people are infected by ulcerative colitis in the United States. The risk of ulcerative colitis onset is between 2 to 7 per 100,000 persons.

Most common symptoms are abdominal pain and diarrhea. However, some patients may also experience symptoms of fatigue or tiredness, loss of appetite, dehydration feeling the urge to empty the bowels constantly,.... and weight loss.

If you have some of the symptoms of above, please check with your doctor to rule out the possibility of ulcerative colitis.

Researchers do not know the exact cause of Ulcerative Colitis.

Neither they know why ulcerative colitis induces chronic inflammation and ulcers (sores) in the digestive tract.

However, they do know that certain risk factors are associated to the development of the disease, including genetic mutation of a certain gene, environmental toxins, overreaction of the immune system,.... and long-term high levels of linoleic acid intake.

Green tea, a precious drink processes numbers of health benefit known to almost everyone in Asia and Western world.

As yin in nature, long-term injection of large amounts may obstruct the balance of yin-yang, induced "yin excessive syndrome" or "yang vacuity syndrome" including weaken immunity and painful case of GERD,... according to traditional Chinese medicine's Yin-Yang theory.

Mild to moderate ulcerative colitis (UC) patients, 15 received 400 mg or 800 mg of total Polyphenon E daily, administered in split doses or and 4 in placebo in a double-blinded, placebo-controlled pilot study, researchers at the end of the experiential indicated that oral administration of the extracts exerts a potential effect of reduced levels of inflammation through the improvement of the reading of the mean UC disease activity index score compared to the entry score.

After 56 days of therapy, Polyphenon E treatment group exhibited strong improvement of over response rate of 66.7% (10 of 15) and remission rate of 53.3% (8/15) compared to 0% (0/4) in both response rate and remission rate in the placebo group.

Dr. Dryden GW, the lead author, after taking into account of other co-founder said, "Administration of Polyphenon E resulted in a therapeutic benefit for(ulcerative colitis (UC)) patients who were refractory to 5-aminosalicylic and/or azathioprine".

Polyphenon E is a high-quality tea catechin extracted from natural tea leaves.

Further analysis of green tea bioactive polyphenols, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) on dextran sulfate sodium- (DSS-) induced ulcerative colitis in rats and to explore the roles of TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway, indicated that application of the extract significantly improves the intestinal mucosal injury in rats though inhibited production of inflammatory factors which were overexpression during the acute phase of injuring and damage to induced further damage to the tissue.

Moreover, green tea bioactive polyphenols, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) also reduced chronic inflammation and maintained the balance of the ratio of Th1/Th2 T-helper (Th) lymphocytes that prevent alterations in cellular immunity in patients with ulcerative colitis.

Imbalance of Th1/Th2 was found to associate to the occurrence and development of ulcerative colitis.

Additionally, injection of green tea EGCG also reduced the levels of TLR4 signaling in activated the intracellular signaling pathway NF-κB and inflammatory cytokine production to imitate inflammation.

Amazingly, researchers also found that injection of TLR4 antagonism not only shows a significantly reduced the protective effect of EGCG on intestinal mucosal injury colitis but also increased the expressions of inflammatory factors in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Moreover, in the examine the antioxidant activity of green tea catechins in model of colitis induced by 2.4.6 trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) using 35 young adult Sprague-Dawley rats which are divided into four groups: normal control (n=5), catechins (n=9), TNBS (n=9) and 2.4.6 trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) plus catechins (n=12), at the end of the experiment researchers at the Joint study, American University of Beirut, found that groups with TNBS and catechin express strong anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects of amelioration of symptoms and expression of ulcerative colitis through stabilizing the mast cells production, induced by injection of TNBS in compared to TNBS treated group.

Dr. the lead authors in the joint study suggested that the study depicted a significant amelioration in the TNBS- and EGCG-treated rats compared to the non-treated animals in similar to histological data, as the mechanism of action occurred basically through the NF-kB pathway and possibly through a crosstalk with other pathways.

Taken together, green tea and its bioactive polyphenols may be considered as functional foods for the prevention and treatment of ulcerative colitis through the expression of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity.

Intake of green tea extract should be taken with extreme care as acute toxicity has been reported in some cases.

https://kylejnorton.blogspot.com/2018/09/green-tea-beverage-which-blocks-onset.html

Sources
(1) A pilot study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of an oral dose of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate-rich polyphenon E in patients with mild to moderate ulcerative colitis by Dryden GW1, Lam A, Beatty K, Qazzaz HH, McClain CJ. (PubMed)
(2) Tea catechins induce crosstalk between signaling pathways and stabilize mast cells in ulcerative colitis by Gerges Geagea A1,2, Rizzo M2, Eid A1, Hajj Hussein I3, Zgheib Z1, Zeenny MN1, Jurjus R4, Uzzo ML5, Spatola GF5, Bonaventura G5, Leone A5, Massaad-Massade L6,7,8, Jurjus A1.(PubMed)
(3) EGCG Maintains Th1/Th2 Balance and Mitigates Ulcerative Colitis Induced by Dextran Sulfate Sodium through TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB Signaling Pathway in Rats by TNBS,1 Liu Xuelei,2 Dong Wanwei,3 Liang Linlang,1 and Chen Keyan3(Hindawi)

Alternative Therapy: Long Term Yoga Practice Improves Cognitive Function of Patients with Schizophrenia

By Kyle J. Norton (Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)

Epidemiological studies do agree that yoga lesson may reduce symptoms and complications expression in patients with Schizophrenia, a renowned university study suggested.

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder induced inconsistent or contradictory elements such as the breakdown of certain relation in thought, emotion, and behavior, leading to faulty perception, inappropriate actions,.... and feelings.

The exact causes of schizophrenia are unknown. However, the National Health service suggested that certain risk factors involving physical, genetic, psychological and environmental circumstances are associated with the likeliness of a person to develop the condition.

Sadly, researchers do not know, why people with the same health condition, some are susceptible to Schizophrenia development the while others do not.

Furthermore, stressful or emotional life event might trigger a psychotic episode in patients with Schizophrenia.

Yoga, the accident technique practice for harmonized external and internal body well being, through breath control, meditation, bodily movement, and gesture..... has been well known for people in the Western world and some parts in Asia due to health benefits reported by various respectable institutes' research and supported by health advocates.

In the clinically stable, adult outpatients with SZ (n=286) completed baseline assessments randomized to treatment as usual (TAU), supervised yoga training with TAU (YT) or supervised physical exercise training with TAU (PE) researchers at the joint study led by the University of Pittsburgh filed the following results
* After six months and follow up, yoga showed a significant improvement of speed index of attention domain compared to control groups.

* In cognitive domains, yoga group demonstrated a significant improvement compared to PE and with TAU alone, respectively

The further assessment also suggested that both YT and PE improved attention and additional cognitive domains well past the training period, but only the YT group showed a beneficial effect of on speed index of attention domain.

These results of improvement may be attributed to the repeated practice of attentional focus and redirecting attention may be a possible active ingredient for developing greater attentional control

Moreover, the physical and cognitive benefits associated with yoga and mindfulness may be due to mechanisms that activated the parasympathetic nervous system through meditative or contemplative practices.

Some researchers also suggested long-term yoga practice increases body perception, stronger functional connectivity within the basal ganglia and increased activation of grey matter volume and amygdala with regional enlargement.

Additionally, in the review literature published in the databases of MEDLINE, PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, BIOS, AMED, PsychINFO involved randomised controlled trials (RCTs) including people with schizophrenia comparing yoga as a package of care with standard-care control, researchers found only 3 studies with all outcomes were short-term (less than eight weeks) with none of them displayed a significant change of yoga group in compared to control.

The findings indicated that short-term yoga practice may have a little effect of improvement of cognitive function.

More importantly, in patients perspective, a study of total of 100 schizophrenia patients (male: female = 57:43; age: 35.8 ± 9.2 years) attending the psychiatry out-patient services of a tertiary neuropsychiatry hospital administered a survey questionnaire, researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences reported the following results
* 46% participant was aware that yoga is also one of the complementary therapies useful in schizophrenia.

* 32% had tried yoga in the past for some reasons, but only 31% of them were continuing yoga with reasons of lack of motivation (31%) and inability to spare time (27.6%).

* However, the majority (88.5%) of them were willing to take up add-on yoga therapy on out-patient basis along with their regular medical follow-up.

Taking all together, long-term yoga lesson may be used as a secondary and therapeutic enhancement of cognitive function in patients with schizophrenia.

Natural Medicine for Fatty Liver And Obesity Reversal - The Revolutionary Findings To Achieve Optimal Health And Lose Weight

Ovarian Cysts And PCOS Elimination
Holistic System In Existence That Will Show You How To
Permanently Eliminate All Types of Ovarian Cysts Within 2 Months

Back to Kyle J. Norton Homepage http://kylejnorton.blogspot.ca

Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton, Master of Nutrition
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

Sources
(1) Yoga as part of a package of care versus standard care for schizophrenia by Broderick J1, Vancampfort D.(PubMed)
(2) A randomized controlled trial of adjunctive yoga and adjunctive physical exercise training for cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia by Bhatia T1, Mazumdar S2, Wood J3, He F2, Gur RE4, Gur RC4, Nimgaonkar VL5, Deshpande SN6.(PubMed)
(3) Yoga for schizophrenia: Patients' perspective by Govindaraj R1, Varambally S1, Gangadhar BN1.(PubMed)
(4) Effects of weekly one-hour Hatha yoga therapy on resilience and stress levels in patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders: an eight-week randomized controlled trial by Ikai S1, Suzuki T, Uchida H, Saruta J, Tsukinoki K, Fujii Y, Mimura M.(PubMed)
(5) A yoga program for cognitive enhancement by (PMC)

Eggplant, The Anti Cancers Night Shade Vegetable, Scientists show

By Kyle J. Norton, Master of Nutrition

Eggplant, the nightshade vegetable may be considered a functional food for the prevention and treatment of cancers, some researchers suggested.

Cancers are class of chronic diseases caused alternation of DNA of healthy cells.

In other words, healthy cells become cancerous if they grow uncontrollably and disorderly out of range of a normal healthy cell population which can only divide between 40 and 60 times.

According to the Hayflick limit theory, most cells survival is totally dependent on the telomeres on the ends of each chromosome.

Every time, healthy cells undergo division, the telomeres are shortened. Once the telomeres shorten to a critical length, the cells will die off.

In advance stage, traveling through fluid and blood circulation, most invasive cancer cells can infect healthy cells or tissue a distance away from the originated site.

According to the statistic provided the Canadian Health Service, In 2017, over 200,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer and 80,000 will die from cancer.

Sadly, 1 in 2 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime and 1 in 4 will die from the disease.

Lung, colorectal, breast and prostate cancers are the most common cancer found in Canadian, accounting for half of all cancers diagnosed.

And 60% of Canadians diagnosed with cancer will survive at least 5 years after their diagnosis.

Eggplant is a species of S. melongena, belonging to the family Solanaceae and native to India.

The plant has been cultivated in southern and eastern Asia since prehistory.

Eggplant is famous with its deep purple and the best eggplant can be found from August through October when it is in season.

Nutritional Supplements
1. Carbohydrates
2. Sugars
3. Fiber
4. Fat
5. Protein
6. Thiamine (Vitamin B1)
7. Riboflavin (Vitamin B2)
8. Niacin (Vitamin B3)
9. Pantothenic acid (B5)
10. Vitamin B6
11. Folate (Vitamin B9)
12. Vitamin C
13. Tryptophan
14. Manganese
15. Calcium
16. Copper
17. Iron
18. Magnesium
19. Phosphorus
20. Potassium
21. Zinc

Chemical constituents
The vegetable chemical compounds containing include sterols (i.e. typical plant sterols, androstane, pregnane and cholestane derivatives, steroidal alkaloids, and sapogenins), phytosterols, triterpenes, δ-amyrin, Chlorogenic acid, Nasunin, and other Polyphenolic compounds.

In the effort to find the plant-derived foods such as potatoes, eggplants, and tomatoes with potential antiproliferative activities against human colon (HT29) and liver (HepG2) cancer cells, researchers at the Yeungnam University conducted a study to evaluate series of structurally related individual compounds in these plants, using microculture tetrazolium (MTT) assay.

Glycoalkaloids solamargine and solasonine and their common aglycon solasodine; and the nonsteroidal alkaloid jervine isolated from eggplant were selected to test the anti cancers possibilities compared to other compound isolated from potatoes and tomatoes.

After taking into account other factors, researchers found that
* Glycoalkaloids derived from eggplant exerts the most active anticancer cells compared to others. However, its hydrolysis products are less active compared to glycoalkaloids.

* Compounds isolated from eggplant are very effective against the liver cancer cells compared to colon cancer cells.

Dr. Lee KR, the lead author on the final report said, "....safety considerations should guide the use of these compounds preventative or therapeutic treatments against carcinomas".

Furthermore, the study to investigate the inhibitory effect of eggplant (Solanum melongena var. marunasu) extract on the human fibrosarcoma HT-1080 cell invasion of reconstituted basement membrane [Matrigel (MG)], researchers discovered

* Delphinidin, a flavonoid pigment contained in the peel demonstrates the most effective against human fibrosarcoma HT-1080 cell.

* Interestingly, application of eggplant extract and delphinidin did not affect tumor cell adhesion to MG or haptotactic migration to MG.

Further analysis of these effects, researchers found that the inhibition of cancer was attributed to
delphinidin of blocking the activity of Matrix metalloproteinases MMPs which are responsible for the degradation of most extracellular matrix proteins during organogenesis, growth and normal tissue turnover.

The findings suggested that the frequency of eggplant intake may associate to reduce the risk of cancers. However, further data collection on large example size and multi-center studies performed with human consumption of the whole food eggplant during the course of cancer will be necessary to complete the picture of eggplant and its bioactive ingredients anti-cancer possibilities.

References
(1) Glycoalkaloids and metabolites inhibit the growth of human colon (HT29) and liver (HepG2) cancer cells by Lee KR1, Kozukue N, Han JS, Park JH, Chang EY, Baek EJ, Chang JS, Friedman M.(PubMed)
(2) Inhibitory effect of delphinidin from Solanum melongena on human fibrosarcoma HT-1080 invasiveness in vitro by Nagase H1, Sasaki K, Kito H, Haga A, Sato T.(PubMed)

Friday, 28 September 2018

Alfalfa, The Functional Herb Which Protects Our Body Against Type 2 Diabetes, Researchers Reveal

By Kyle J. Norton, Master of Nutrition

Scientists may have found a whole herb which processes anti-diabetes property, some scientists suggested.

Diabetes is a chronic condition characterized by insufficient insulin entering the bloodstream to regulate the glucose as a result of either cell in pancreas dying off or receptor sites clogged up by fat and cholesterol.

In some cases, diabetes may also be caused by allergic reactions of cells in the immune system.

The actual causes of diabetes inflammatory condition are debatable.

Some researchers also do not know why some people without genetic mutations are susceptible to type 2 diabetes while others do not.

However, certain risk factors such as overweight and obesity (overexpression of fatty tissue that causes insulin resistant), physical inactivity, family history, race,,,,, and age. ...

Women developed gestational diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome,.... and high blood pressure is also some major risk factors associated to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.

The first line medicine used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes is metformin which processes a significant effect in improving the body tissue sensitivity to insulin. In other words, metformin improves the body uses insulin more effectively. and lowers glucose production in the liver.

In the stage prediabetes, patients may not experience any symptoms. However, untreated diabetes or diabetes that do not manage properly, may increase the risk of cataracts and glaucoma, foot damage.

In advance stage, untreated diabetes can also cause nerve damage or poor blood flow to the feet which in turn, increases the risk of various foot complications.

Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the genus Medicago, belonging to the family Fabaceae, It has been cultivated all over the world as hay for cattle feeding.

The leaves, sprouts, and seeds to make medicine has been used in traditional medicine over thousands of year to treat high cholesterol, asthma, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, enhance digestive system, bleeding disorder, kidney, and urinary tract infection, etc. North America aboriginal has used Alfalfa seed as food, such as making bread and mush.

Ingredients
1. Essential amino acids
2. Calcium
3. Magnesium
4. Potassium
5. Iron
6. Phosphorus
7. Zinc
8. Beta carotene
9. vitamin C
10. vitamins D
11.Vitamin E
12. Vitamin K

It chemical constituents include flavones, isoflavones, sterols, Bichanin, Coumestrol, Diadzein, Formonetin, Genistein,.... and coumarin derivatives.

In the study to examine the Lucerne (alfalfa) effect by oral administrated the herbal extract through diet (62.5 g/kg) and drinking water (2.5 g/l) in reducing the hyperglycemia of streptozotocin-diabetic mice, researchers found
* Application of aqueous extract of lucerne exerts a significant stimulation of insulin secretion from the pancreatic B-cell line.

* Application of aqueous extract of lucern also promotes insulin-like activity in inhibited overexpression glucose.

* The sequential extraction with solvents revealed .higher insulin-releasing activity in both methanol and water fractions compared to one extract constituent.

Further analysis also suggested that the activity of the extract was found to be heat stable and enhanced by exposure to acid and alkali (0.1 M-HCl and NaOH).

Dr. Gray AM, the lead author at the final report wrote, "The results demonstrate the presence of antihyperglycaemic, insulin-releasing and insulin-like activity in the traditional antidiabetic plant, Medicago sativa".

Additionally, in the study to reaffirm the effect herbal alfalfa against onset of diabetes researchers launched a study to compare alfalfa with other herbal medicine including dried leaves of agrimony (Agrimonia eupatoria), blackberry (Rubus fructicosus), celandine (Chelidonium majus), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), lady's mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris), and lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis); seeds of coriander (Coriandrum sativum); dried berries of juniper (Juniperus communis); bulbs of garlic (Allium sativum) and roots of liquorice (Glycyrhizza glabra).

In mice administrated by streptozotocin (200 mg/kg i.p.) to induce the development of hyperphagia, polydipsia, body weight loss, hyperglycemia and hypoinsulinemia, researchers found that

* Herbal alfalfa exerts a strong effect in reduced the level of hyperglycemia during the development of streptozotocin diabetes compared to others herbs.

* Herbal alfalfa reduced polydipsia and a reduced rate of body weight loss.

* Alfalfa initially countered the hyperinsulinaemic effect of streptozotocin, without affecting the fall in plasma insulin.

Dr. said, after taking into account of other co and confounders, " The results suggest that certain traditional plant treatments for diabetes, namely alfalfa,.......can retard the development of streptozotocin diabetes in mice".

Taking all together, herbal alfalfa may be considered a functional herb for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes.

However, additional data collection on large example size and multi-center clinical studies performed with human consumption of the whole food during the course of the disease will be necessary to complete the picture of alfalfa anti-type 2 diabetes possibilities.

And long-term multiple dietary supplement consumption of a broad array of vitamin/mineral, herbal, and condition-specific dietary supplements on a daily basis should consult with their doctors or related field specialist before applying.

Anise, The Herb Which Exerts Antinociceptive Activity Against Primary Dysmenorrhea, Scientist Find

By Kyle J. Norton, Master of Nutrition

Herbal Anise may process an antinociceptive activity in reducing the expression of primary dysmenorrhea, some scientists suggested.

Primary dysmenorrhea pain is a menstrual pain caused by sensory neurons stimulus triggered by overproduction prostaglandins, hormones that lead to uterus contract before or during menstruation.
Antinociceptive activity is an action or process of blocking the painful or injurious stimulus by sensory neurons.

Some women may experience periodic pains during or prior to, or after menstrual periods in the lower abdomen.

In traditional Chinese medicine, dysmenorrhea is defined as a pain in the lower abdomen that can spread over to the whole abdomen and lumbosacral region, depending on the diagnosis.

According to statistic, primary dysmenorrhea affects more than 50% of women in late adolescence and the early 20s. Most primary dysmenorrhea appears 6 to 12 months after the first period due to immature of the reproductive organs of young girls,
Anise is a flowering plant of the species of Pimpinella anisum, genus Pimpinella, belonging to the family Apiaceae native to Egypt and the Mediterranean region.

The popular herb has been used in traditional herbal medicine as a fragrance in soaps, oils, and mouth fresheners and stomachic, antiseptic, anti-spasmodic, carminative, digestive, expectorant, stimulant and tonic agent and to treat head-lice and mites, increase blood pressure, prevent formation of gas in the gastrointestinal tract,.... and menstrual cramps.

The Chemical Ingredients
Besides the main ingredient Anethole, herbal anise also contains, D-pinene, I-phellandrene, Alpha-terpineol, Safrol, Methyl chavicol, Resin, Shikimic acid, etc.

In the finding of natural ingredient treat primary dysmenorrhea without inducing side effects, Dr. Khodakrami Nahid, MSM and colleague conducted a study to examine the effect of an Iranian herbal drug in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea.

The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial among 180 female students at Isfahan University dormitory aged 18 to 27.

Participants were randomly divided into three groups: herbal drug were given 500 mg of highly purified saffron, celery seed, and anise (SCA) extracts three times a day for three days, starting from the onset of bleeding or pain, mefenamic acid, and placebo.

After following the participants for two to three cycles from the beginning of menstruation through the three days of bleeding and the severity and duration of pain at 2 and 3 months were measured.

At the final report of the study, researchers filed,

* Women received Anise extract and mefenamic acid showed a statistically significant reduction in pain scores and pain duration scores.

* The decrease in pain score was reflected by a significant reduction in other herbal drug use among the treatment groups compared to the placebo group but lesser compared to Anise group.

* Application of Anise extract demonstrated a magnitude of the reduction which is significantly greater compared mefenamic acid and placebo groups.

* However, both herbal drugs and mefenamic acid effectively relieved menstrual pain as compared with the placebo.

These results suggested that herbal Anise processed strong antinociceptive activity against pain caused by primary dysmenorrhea may be considered as a functional herb for the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea.

Natural Medicine for Fatty Liver And Obesity Reversal - The Revolutionary Findings To Achieve Optimal Health And Lose Weight

How To Get Rid Of Eye Floaters
Contrary To Professionals Prediction, Floaters Can Be Cured Naturally

Ovarian Cysts And PCOS Elimination
Holistic System In Existence That Will Show You How To
Permanently Eliminate All Types of Ovarian Cysts Within 2 Months

Back to Kyle J. Norton Homepage http://kylejnorton.blogspot.ca

Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

References
1. Herbal combination for primary dysmenorrhea by Tori Hudson, ND
2. The effect of an Iranian herbal drug on primary dysmenorrhea: a clinical controlled trial.

Arnica, The Herb Which Speeds Up Bruise Healing, Scientists Reveal

Herbal Arnica may process a property of speeding bruise healing without inducing adverse effects, some studies suggested.

A bruise is a condition characterized by black and blue marks on the skin due to trauma, caused by an object or force strikes the body, leading to damage to capillaries and sometimes venules that allow blood to seep, hemorrhage, or extravasate into the surrounding interstitial tissues.

A bruise can also be induced by surgery caused by instruments which pierce into the deep layer of the skin to create an opening.

Most Bruising resolves themselves in a few days or weeks.

Some bruise may cause pain but the pain usually goes away when the color of the area fades away.

Bruising, also known as a contusion, is defined as a condition of

Some researchers suggested that

Most common causes of bruising are sport related.

Sport physical activities can sometimes cause broken bones, strains and sprains, dislocations, torn tendons,..... and muscle swelling. Overuse of body muscles in sport is one of risk factor that can cause, inducing bruising.

Ice and heat therapies by Appling ice or heat immediately after the injury to reduce blood flow around the area. were found to be effective in preventing bruising.

Arnica is a herbaceous species, genus perennial, belonging to the family Asteraceae, native to Europe and Asia.

The herb has been used in traditional medicine for centuries to treat strains, sprains, and bruises.

The chemical ingredients besides major bioactive compound helenalin, Anica also contains 11,13- dihydrohelenaline, chamissonolid, Sesquiterpene lactone, lignans of the furofuran, dibenzylbutyrolactone, dibenzylbutyrolactol types, pinoresinol, epipinoresinol, phillygenin, matairesinol, nortrachelogenin, and nortracheloside,..... and six dibenzylbutyrolactol derivatives.

In the assessment of the comparative utility of topical formulations in hastening the resolution of skin bruising, researchers at the Northwestern University, conducted a double (patient and rater) blinded randomized controlled trial with numbers of healthy volunteers, age range 21-65 years.

After four standard bruises of 7 mm diameter each were created on the bilateral upper inner arms, 5 cm apart, two per arm, using a 595-nm pulsed-dye laser (Vbeam; Candela Corp., Wayland, MA, U.S.A.). on each subject, each bruising area was injected by one topical agent, including 5% vitamin K, 1% vitamin K and 0·3% retinol, 20% arnica, or white petrolatum, twice a day for 2 weeks.

At the end of the 2 weeks experiment, researchers found that

* All four treatment score a significant improvement in the change in the rater bruising score.

* The mean improvement associated with 20% arnica was greater than with white petrolatum (P=0·003), and the mixture of 1% vitamin K and 0·3% retinol.

* However, 5% vitamin K cream processes the highest bruise healing score compared to other applications.

These results suggested that topical 20% Arnica ointment may be able to reduce bruising more effectively than placebo and more effectively than low-concentration vitamin K formulations, such as 1% vitamin K with 0·3% retinol.

In a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial with three parallel arms to reaffirm Arnica efficacy in the control of bruising, reducing swelling and promoting recovery after local trauma, 64 adults undergoing elective surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome were randomized to take three tablets daily of homeopathic Arnica 30C or 6C or placebo for seven days before surgery and fourteen days after surgery.

According to the summary of the experiment final report, researchers showed

* There were no group differences on the primary outcome measures of pain (P=0.79) and bruising (P=0.45) at day four.

* Swelling and use of analgesic medication also did not differ between arnica and placebo groups.

* Adverse events were reported by 2 patients in the arnica 6C group, 3 in the placebo group and 4 in the arnica 30C group.

These results strongly indicated that Arnica does not process analgesic property.

Moreover, in the study to assess Arnica decreases bruising and muscle pain efficacy, the Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial including 53 subjects.

Measurement of ankle range of motion and muscle tenderness were also recorded during Leg pain induced by calf raises.

Then, each participant received 2 tubes of cream, 1 with active Arnica and 1 with placebo.

The creams were applied to the lower legs immediately after the exercise, and again at 24 and 48 hours post-exercise according to the "RIGHT" or "LEFT" labels.

At 48 hours post-exercise, subjects had their ankle range of motion and muscle tenderness measured.

Subjects used the analog scale to rate pain in each leg at baseline, 24 hours, 48 hours, and 72 hours.

At the final day of study, by analyzing the reported returned by participants, scientists found that

* No significant differences in pain scores were seen before exercise.

* Pain scores on legs treated with Arnica were higher than scores on those receiving placebo 24 hours after exercise respectively.

* Pain scores on day 3 and day 4 were not significantly different.

* There was no difference in muscle tenderness.

* Ankle range of motion did not differ significantly on either day 1 or day 3.

Dr. Adkison JD, the lead author suggested, Arnica may increase pain in the affected area within 48 hours immediately after application.

Taking all together, herbal Arnica may be used as a therapeutic treatment for speeding up bruise healing however, patients should be aware that topical application of herbal Arnica does not process analgesic property. In some cases, it may increase pain in the affected area.

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Back to Kyle J. Norton Homepage http://kylejnorton.blogspot.ca

Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

References
2. Accelerated resolution of laser-induced bruising with topical 20% arnica: a rater-blinded randomized controlled trial. by Leu S, Havey J, White LE, Martin N, Yoo SS, Rademaker AW, Alam M.(PubMed)
3. Homeopathic arnica for prevention of pain and bruising: randomized placebo-controlled trial in hand surgery. by Stevinson C, Devaraj VS, Fountain-Barber A, Hawkins S, Ernst E.(Pubmed)
4. The effect of topical arnica on muscle pain" by Adkison JD, Bauer DW, Chang T., (PubMed).
5. Cosmetics and herbal remedies with Compositae plant extracts - are they tolerated by Compositae-allergic patients?" by Paulsen E, Chistensen LP, Andersen KE., (PubMed)
6. Contact allergy to Compositae plants in patients with atopic dermatitis. [Article in English, Serbian]" by Jovanović M, Poljacki M, Duran V, Vujanović L, Sente R, Stojanović S., (PubMed)