“If only our customers would buy more from us” is a resounding phrase that is heard throughout many businesses these days as the demand for increased sales to offset rising costs. While we may wish to have more revenue by selling more, our

customers are at the other end of the spectrum facing rising costs themselves. They are looking at their money

and wondering how they can make it last longer. Every time they spend their money, they are facing a risk. Yet more often than not as businesses and organizations we don’t consider the risks that our customers face on a daily basis when thinking about buying from us.

From the Natural Path Newsletter
by Linda Woolven M.H., R.Ac & Ted Snider
 

Natural citronella has gone mainstream: you can find citronella mosquito repellents everywhere. But the best natural insect repellent may be yarrow extract (Phytomed 1998;5(4):311-23). The same study that ranked yarrow number one also found citronella and eucalyptus oils to be effective and lemongrass to be 85% effective as a mosquito repellent. A study of over 4,000 natural compounds found lemongrass to be the very best (Greenhouse Management and Production 1999). A third study also found lemongrass to be extremely effective (Acta Trop 2015;142:127-30). This study also found the essential oil ylang ylang to work very well. The essential oils were put in a carrier of coconut oil, soybean oil or olive oil. 

A study that looked at the Aedes aegypti mosquito that carries dengue fever found citronella and cinnamon essential oils to be effective. The most effective essential oil against this strain of mosquito was the little known litsea essential oil (J Athropod Borne Dis 2016;10(3):370-380). 

While the Aedes aegypti mosquito carries dengue fever, it is Anopheles stephensi that carries malaria. When a study looked at these 2 mosquitoes as well as the Culex quinquefasciatus, whose bite can cause encephalitis, the most effective essential oils included litsea again as well as cajeput, violet and catnip (Parasitology Research 2006;99:478). 

A study that put essential oils on people’s forearms under laboratory conditions found that undiluted clove essential oil provided 100% repellency against 3 species of mosquito for 2-4 hours (Phytother Res 2005;19(4):303-9), which is a very impressive result. 

Another study suggests that the essential oils of turmeric and citronella are effective (J Vector Ecol 2001;26(1):76-82). One study actually suggests that the essential oil and extract of turmeric may be comparable to DEET (J Med Entomol2015;52(5):979-86).

A recent laboratory study suggests that fatty acids from coconut oil is a stronger and longer lasting repellant than DEET and that it works against mosquitoes and ticks (Sci Rep. 2018 Sep 19 ;8(1):14053). 

Carrot seed essential oil may also be effective (J Am Mosq Control Assoc. 2018 12;34(4):272-280). And one study found that celery extract is remarkably effective when applied to the skin  (Trop Med Int Health. 2005 Nov;10(11):1190-8) Neem oil may also be effective (J Insect Sci. 2019 Nov 1;19(6)).

Maleria
For protection from malaria, you should know about a species of the herb wormwood called Artemisia annua, or Sweet Annie. 

Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, a single cell parasite transmitted by mosquitoes. It can be deadly. According to the World Health Organization, in 2017, there were an incredible 219 million cases around the world. 

Artemisia annua is a traditional herbal treatment for malaria in Asia. In 2015, Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for her work in 1972 in isolating artemisinin as one of the antimalarial components of Artemisia annua and developing it into a drug that saved the lives of millions of people. The problem was that the Plasmodium parasite began to develop resistance to the drug. The solution was to begin combining artemisinin with other antimalarial drugs into a cocktail known as Artemisinin Combination Therapies (ACTs). But, in time, the clever little parasite began to adapt and develop resistance to that pharmaceutical treatment as well. The need became urgent for treatments that were more resilient to resistance. 

Artemisia annua has a 2,000 year history of use that is backed up by research in China and at the Walter Reed Army Research Institute in the US. Though artemisinin got all the attention, Artemisia annua actually has more than 20 antimalarial components that work synergistically against the malaria parasite, making it a promising challenger to the drug. The herb has demonstrated a greater than 95% malaria cure rate in small studies with the important advantage that drug resistance was 3 times greater with the artemisinin drug. 
A controlled unblinded study found that Artemisia annua tea was as effective at symptom relief as quinine and effective, but not as effective, at completely curing the malaria (Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 2004;98:318-321). 

Now, Sweet Annie has been put to its most important test. A double-blind study compared Artemisia annua to an African species of wormwood known, very imaginatively, as African wormwood (Artemisia afra), and to ACT. The study included 943 children and adults with malaria. The study did not include people whose malaria was already severe. Each person was given either ACT or .33 litres of tea made from one of the two wormwoods every 8 hours for 7 days. The tea was made from 5g of dried leaves and twigs that were steeped in boiling water for 10 minutes. 

After one day, the parasite count went down by 85.2% in the ACT group but by 97.7% in both of the artemisia groups. In both artemisia groups, by day 2, there was a total clearance of the parasite; some people in the ACT group still had parasites until day 14. By the second day, the malaria cure rate was 34.3% on the ACT but it was 88.8% in the African wormwood group and 96.4% in the Sweet Annie group. 

By day 28, the cure rate for children was 49.5% on ACT, 91.2% on African wormwood and 100% on Sweet Annie. For adults, the cure rate was 30% on ACT, 90.7% on African wormwood and, again, a full 100% on Sweet Annie. In both wormwood groups, fever cleared in 24 hours versus 48 hours on ACT. 

The two wormwoods were not only better, they were safer: 42.8% of ACT people experienced adverse events versus only 5% of the artemisia people. 

This study shows that both wormwoods and, perhaps especially Artemisia annua, or Sweet Annie, are better than and safer than ACT drug therapy. Given that the cure rate in the ACT group was so poor, it has been suggested that Artemisia annuamay be effective against ACT resistant malaria. 

Artemisia annua is safe, effective, inexpensive and easy to get (Phytomed 2019;57:49-56).
Goldenseal may also help, and a test tube study suggests that curcumin may inhibit the growth of malaria (Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2005;326(2):472-4). A double-blind, placebo-controlled study that combined zinc with high doses of vitamin A found that that combination significantly reduces the risk of malaria (Nutr J 2008;7:7). 

If you do get malaria, then, strangely, lime juice might help. A study of children with malaria found that adding lime juice to their treatment significantly sped up the time it took to reduce the load of parasites by more than 75% and significantly increased their odds of completely getting rid of the parasites by the third day of treatment (Phytother Res 2011;25(10):1547-50).

To Increase Your Sales by Educating Your Customers, Start Giving The Natural Path Newsletter to Your Customers Today! 

The Natural Path is a natural health newsletter specifically designed to help Canadian health food stores increase their sales by educating their customers. The Natural Path contains no advertising and never mentions a brand name.

Contact Ted Snider at tedsnider@bell.net or at 416.782.8211.

For comprehensive natural help with your health, make an appointment to see Linda Woolven now. Linda’s clinic is now open for virtual appointments. Linda is a master herbalist, acupuncturist, and solution-focused counselor with a practice in Toronto. Linda is also an artist whose paintings hang in galleries and private collections across North America. You can see some of her paintings here.

Neurotransmitters are chemicals in the brain that act as messengers between neurons. The effects of neurotransmitters are far-reaching and encompass most bodily processes, including: physical and cognitive performance, weight, the perception and response to pain, sleep patterns and our emotional and mental state of being. If neurotransmitter chemicals are imbalanced, the entire body is thrown off kilter, and it is estimated that 80 percent of people have some form of neurotransmitter imbalance.
 
A March 2010 study found that toxin exposure can affect neurotransmitters  ̶  even halt their activity. This leads us to wonder: how are we affected?
 
There is no doubt that human exposure to toxins is on the rise. According to WHO:
"Unintentional poisonings kill an estimated 355,000 people globally each year. In developing countries – where two thirds of these deaths occur – such poisonings are associated strongly with excessive exposure to, and inappropriate use of, toxic chemicals. In many such settings, toxic chemicals may be emitted directly into soil, air, and water – from industrial processes, pulp and paper plants, tanning operations, mining, and unsustainable forms of agriculture – at levels or rates well in excess of those tolerable to human health.”
 
One of the most notorious environmental toxins is Round-Up weed killer. In 2015, WHO declared Monsanto's signature product, Round-Up (or glyphosate), as carcinogenic. However, the tables seemed to turn in 2016 as Round-Up/glyphosate was given a clean bill of health by the UN’s joint meeting on pesticides residues (JMPR), just two days before a crunch EU vote on whether to relicense it. Interestingly, later in the year, it was announced that pharma giant Bayer would be purchasing Monsanto. Bayer CEO Werner Baumann said, "This step is entirely logical. The two companies are a perfect fit and complement each other ideally."

Leg Extensions Help Prevent Knee Pain and Degeneration
 

The Quadriceps muscle consists of 4 muscles on the front of your thigh that merge together above the kneecap to form the tendon (patellar tendon) that goes over the kneecap to insert on the lower leg bone (the Tibia). The Quadriceps muscle on the innermost aspect of the front of your thigh is known as the Vastus Medialis. Unlike the other Quadriceps muscles, it is not used during normal walking. It only contracts in the last 10 degrees of knee extension. As a result, many people have weak Vastus Medialis muscles from lack of use, which greatly contributes to the risk of knee problems, especially chondromalacia patella, patellofemoral syndrome, or lateral dislocation of the kneecap itself.

An excellent way to maintain Vastus Medialis strength is to incorporate the knee extension machine into your strength training program. Two to three sets of 8-12 repetitions, twice or three times a week, can make a big difference in preserving your knee function and preventing various knee inflammatory and degenerative conditions.

Reference: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6458583/

Dr. James Meschino
DC, MS, ROHP

 

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