Broccoli can relieve inherited skin condition

Epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS) comprises a group of inherited disorders in which the skin blisters extremely easily and can be extremely painful to the sufferer. The problem lies in the genes that hold the instructions necessary for production of certain proteins in the top layer of skin. These instructions have a minor fault, rather like a typing error, with the result that the proteins are incorrectly formed, and unable to fulfil their role as scaffolding for the topmost layer of skin. The result is that the top layer of skin does not ‘stick’ securely to the layer beneath it, and where the two layers separate a blister develops.

Even the mildest form of EBS can leads to blistering of the hands and feet and the condition is more common than you might think. If only one of the two parents has the condition then there is a 1 in 2 chance it will be passed on their children.It may be obvious from birth, or develop during the first few weeks of life. Sites of blistering respond to areas where friction is caused by clothing and frequently appear around the edges of the nappy, but may not be noticed until the child begins walking, when foot blisters start to appear. There is currently no effective treatment that can cure it, though a number of measures can be taken to relieve the symptoms. However, a new study that was reported at the American Society for Cell Biology 47th Annual Meeting shows that eating broccoli could be of great benefit. Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, found that the natural compound sulforaphane, which is present in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables, can help treat this disorder. Sulforaphane has already been lauded for its cancer-fighting powers and so the researchers carried ouit an experiment where they found that mice with EBS who were exposed to sulforaphane, had significantly reduced skin blistering. Patient trials have not yet been conducted, but in the meantime anyone suffering from this condition could benefit from eating broccoli at least 2-3 times a week.

Abandon antibiotics if you have sinusitis

If you have a blocked, painful nose, throbbing cheeks and forehead it could be sinusitis. It often comes with a cold. The mucus in your sinuses, air filled spaces in your cheekbones and forehead, can become infected causing inflamed sinuses. You can get acute sinusitis, a one-off nasal infection or chronic sinusitis where you keep getting infections. It normally clears up on its own or with the help of decongestants or painkillers, but antibiotics may be prescribed although recent research shows they are ineffective.

Trials undertaken at University of Southampton, showed that the antibiotic Amoxicillin was no more effective than a placebo in altering the symptom severity, the duration, or the natural history of the condition was the researchers conclusion. This is concerning, as up to 92% of patients with acute sinusitis in Britain and 85% to 98% of such patients in the U.S.A. receive antibiotics, even though doctors rarely confirm a bacterial infection for which they would be effective.

If you do suffer from sinusitis and want some natural relief, then this suggestion might help you stay well, or at least cut the duration of the condition.

Good old fashioned steam inhalation is still one of the most effective ways of clearing your nose, and chest. Try adding five drops each of the aromatic oils of eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus) and sage (Salvia officinalis) to a bowl of hot water and cover the bowl and your head with a large towel to trap the steam. Do this twice a day and just relax and breathe in until the steam has evaporated. The aromatic oils from eucalyptus and sage leaves help halt bacterial growth and reduce the risk of getting secondary infections. These herbs have both decongestant and antibacterial properties and are an excellent remedy for respiratory problems, including chest congestion, bronchitis, bronchial cough and sinusitis. You could also try adding a couple of crushed garlic cloves in the water as garlic has great antiviral and antibacterial properties.

Toning Up Your Digestive Tract

December usually is the start of the ‘out of the window’ with sensible eating plan. It’s a sociable time; office parties, Christmas lunches and dinners with friends and neighbours and what they all have in common is rich food and usually some alcohol. It is of course great fun, but if you are not used to eating that sort of diet in such quantity and with such regularity it can put a real strain on your digestive system and one of the results can be constipation and bloating. There are of course numerous products you can buy to help you with it, often expensive, usually with additional additives in terms of chemicals, sweeteners and colourings.

How about something incredibly cheap, natural and yellow? It’s called a lemon and is the simplest way to help your system stay toned and ready to cope with that additional load. All that extra food and drink puts a large strain on your liver, gallbladder, and pancreas and so you don’t digest your food properly and the result is discomfort. One of the great things about lemons is that they are the most amazing cleaners for your body and a great source of Vitamin C and potassium. How do they do that? First by building up enzymes in your liver, so it can detoxify toxins in your blood, and then they help to prevent kidney and pancreatic stones forming by combining with calcium in your body.

All you need to do to get these great health benefits is to drink the juice of a lemon in a large cup or mug of hot water every single morning after getting out of bed. Make it the first thing you do, and don’t eat anything before it or for at least 30 minutes afterwards. If that sounds too sour for you then add some honey or maple syrup to sweeten it but however you drink it I promise you will feel the benefit – oh and it helps keep your skin clear too!

Think Z’s for winter protection

I am not talking about catching up on your sleep, though winter is the time for slowing down and even hibernating if you are a bear! Z is for zinc and although perhaps it’s best known, and most popular effect is on the sex drive, it is also essential for supporting the immune system.

Many people get shots for flu or pneumonia with the onset of winter, but their effectiveness is reduced if you don’t have a strong immune system to help support their benefits. It’s a bit like swallowing vitamins to help your health,but not eating regularly or well – they will not do the job on their own. The truth is that once you get over the age of 55, you are likely to have a zinc deficiency and this leads to a greater susceptibility to infections, and increased oxidative stress. The good news is that this is easily reversed by taking a zinc supplement for just one year. The suggested dose is 45mg daily and a US study that showed that just that amount reduced the incidence of infections and inflammation. Speaking specifically about pneumonia, there is a new study from the Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in the US that looked at residents in Nursing homes in Boston. Half the residents were given a placebo, and half given daily supplements of vitamins, including zinc. The trial lasted a year and at the end of it everyone was given a blood test to check their zinc levels. Interestingly the trial only gave people half the recommended dietary allowance, and yet those who received the supplements and had nearly normal zinc levels had less incidence and duration of pneumonia, together with less use of antibiotics. Of those who were given antibiotics, the patients with low blood levels of zinc needed greater amounts than those with reasonable zinc levels.

The researchers were very clear that taking zinc supplements could help the over 55′s to reduce the frequency and serious effects of attacks of pneumonia – which can be fatal in vulnerable patients.

Although the US study suggested 45mg a day for supplementation, the RDA (recommended daily allowance) is just 11 mg for men and 8 mg for women. Many nutritionists consider the RDA to be far too low but you might want to start with that and gradually increase the amount – or talk it over with your doctor if you are concerned.

Need more reasons to up your zinc levels? As well as helping protect your immune system zinc is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, protects your eyes from age-related macular degeneration and it inhibits the abnormal blood clotting that contributes to heart disease. Don’t like supplements? Make a point of adding zinc-rich foods to your daily diet such as red meat, poultry, beans, nuts, whole grains, and dairy products. Two of the best sources are oysters and cabbage, though not at the same time if you have any respect for your taste buds!

Natural remedy for cold sores

Lemon Balm is best known for its calming properties, and has been used for centuries as a mild form of tranquilliser, (a sort of medieval form of Valium if you like), and it has properties that inhibit bacteria and viruses. It now appears that it can also help you with one of winter’s biggest bugbears, cold sores. A study carried out in Germany at the University of Heidelberg has found that the plant contains a naturally occurring ingredient that actually stops the herpes virus from getting into the skin cells. If you are prone to this unpleasant and unsightly condition, then get a natural lip balm from the health store that contains the herb, or make a daily cup of lemon balm tea part of your winter regime – it makes a very refreshing herbal tea and would be a very calming start, or end, to the day – certainly a bit healthier than coffee!

Tangerines may tackle cancer

One of the delights of the winter period for me as a child was the appearance of tangerines. Oranges were just too much trouble to tackle, but those small, sweet tangerines were just right for small fingers. Now it appears that new research by the Leicester School of Pharmacy has revealed that tangerine peel can kill certain human cancer cells. They found that salvestrol, which is a chemical produced by plants to repel attackers such as insects or fungi, was also able to kill cancer cells. Salvestrol is converted into a toxic compound by a particular enzyme which is found in much higher levels in cancer cells. It was found to be 20 times more toxic to cancer cells than to healthy cells. Eating tangerine peel doesn’t seem like much of an appetiser, but if you want to protect against cancer than salvestrol is found in other fruit and vegetables including those other winter favourites broccoli and Brussels sprouts.

Probiotics strengthen immune system

Probiotics are living microorganisms, usually lactic acid bacteria, that help maintain the natural balance of the intestines especially after a period of taking antibiotics which can seriously disrupt that balance. Now it appears they can also help to strengthen the immune system and reduce the effect of allergies. A quick look in the chiller cabinet in the supermarket will show you that ‘probiotics’ are listed on the labels of products like drinks and yoghurts, though as these often contain sugar it might be better to take a plain acidopholus supplement or add in foods that contain probiotics such as plain, live, yoghurt and aged cheeses.

Pain relief on a plate

Usually, if you are in pain you reach for a pill. However, depending on the severity of your discomfort there are some foods that you might like to try. If you prefer a natural solution, you may want to visit your health store for white willow bark. In 1827, a French chemist named Leroux extracted a substance from the bark of a white willow tree that he named “Salicin.” This substance is the main active ingredient of white willow, and it works as a pain reliever. Many years later two other – Felix Hofman and Fredrick Bayer – found a related compound to salicin, and later developed a synthetic version of that compound. This led to the development of the commercial product known as aspirin. White willow doesn’t have the side effects of aspirin because it is naturally converted in the body to salicylic acid, which is mild and does not upset the stomach. You can use it wherever you would normally use aspirin: pain relief, to reduce fevers, and as an anti-inflammatory where it is particularly useful for arthritis and rheumatism. It is available as tablets or capsules, though the capsule form has a faster action.

However, if aspirin is your drug of choice for pain relief, then its effects will be accelerated if you drink a cup of strong coffee at the same time, according to research conducted by Dr Bernard Schachel of Yale University. If you are a cook, then there are a range of options available to you: eating chilli peppers can help reduce pain because they are an excellent source of caspsaicin, a substance found by researchers at the University of Alabama to diminish many kinds of pain, especially chronic pains, including those associated with pinched nerves, as in sciatica. Many everyday foods also have a high content of salicylates, like white willow bark, and they too have both analgesic effects and can also combat inflammation. Good sources of foods that are proven to have pain-reducing properties include: garlic, ginger, onions, cherries, prunes, blueberries, curry powder, dried currants and dates, paprika, liquorice, and peppermint.

Natural ways to control high blood pressure

As there are 16 million people in the UK with high blood pressure (hypertension), and of those nearly a third are not aware that they have the condition, it is obviously an issue that needs to be addressed. High blood pressure is defined as being at a level consistently at or above 140mmHg and/or 90mmHg and it is a both a preventable and manageable condition. You would think that as it is the direct cause of half of all strokes and heart attacks in the UK that those who have it would be regularly monitoring it, but sadly only 10% of those diagnosed with the condition have their blood pressure controlled to target levels.

Yet there is something that is so incredibly simple, that everyone can do, at no cost and no risk that will naturally help control high blood pressure. Hypertension results from the balance between two factors: how hard the heart is pumping (cardiac output) and how easily plasma can diffuse out of your capillaries (peripheral resistance) and most people with high blood pressure have a normal cardiac output but increased peripheral resistance. That resistance means you are more at risk of heart attacks and strokes and the most likely cause is dehydration.When you are dehydrated the level of blood in your body falls but the body has it’s own incredibly clever regulatory system where it prioritises the maintenance of your essential organs and shuts down blood supplies to the capillaries of non-essential areas like the muscle and skin. The effect of this is to increase your peripheral resistance and also to increase the production of histamine, a hormone-like substance, and this causes your blood vessels to narrow and this in turn further increases blood pressure. This can be also exacerbated by the fact that many treatments for hypertension include the taking of diuretics and this again reduces the amount of fluid in the body.

The remedy? Drink at least two litres of plain, still, water every day – not tea, coffee, soft drinks as a substitute but pure unadulterated water. Often the easiest way to measure is to have a full bottle by the kettle and make sure it is empty by the time you have that bedtime drink – or even earlier for preference so you aren’t then getting up too often in the night.

If you want to try and control your blood pressure without drugs, then one of the most effective supplements is Co-enzyme Q10. This is a substance which is produced naturally in the body and taking it has lowered blood pressure as effectively as prescription medications in a number of patients. Unlike some of the drugs, it’s only side effects are the good ones of lowering cholesterol and preventing diabetes and gum disease and the recommended dose for supplementation is normally between 60-120mg a day, but always start on the lower amount first and in consultation with a natural practitioner.

Echinacea vindicated

It’s a winter regular, the first sign of cold weather and I head for the Echinacea tincture to strengthen my immune system through the winter. Herbalists and anecdotal evidence has long believed that Echinacea is very effective at warding off colds and now there is further proof from scientists at the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy. They have not identified the precise mechanism by which it does this, but the study revealed that although the common cold is caused by 200 different viruses, Echinacea usage showed consistent reduction in the chances of catching a cold by up to 58%. Their findings came from reviewing the results of 14 separate clinical trials and found that Echinacea not only helped prevent colds, it also reduced the length of an established cold by a day and a half. Time for me to take my tincture!

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