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Lotus seeds ‘Lian Zi’ strengthen the digestive system and the kidneys. The seeds are also used for strengthening certain types of heart deficiency. White lotus seeds (peeled before drying) are better quality 
than the red lotus seeds (unpeeled product). Soak overnight and cook with soups and warm cereals, or mix with rice. Lotus seeds are also included in several herbal medicine formulas.
indications:
Seaweed, salty and cold, has the following medicinal functions:
Here is a recipe for seaweed salad using hijiki seaweed, given to me by my friend Junko. It is possible to substitute another type of seaweed.
Ingredients:
Soak dried hijiki in water for 20 minutes. Strain and set aside.
Prepare the veggies: peel the skin off the lotus roots, cut carrots, green beans, and inari nomoto into medium pieces.
Add oil to frying pan or wok. Stir-fry lotus root, add a little water to steam cook . Add carrots and cover. Then, add green beans at the end.
Add 1 tablespoon sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon mirin sake. Add bonito flakes. Once everything is stir-fried, add hijiki and a little oil. Continue to cook on medium heat. Then add salt, and possibly more sugar and mirin to taste. Also, you can add soy sauce to taste.
Link to inari nomoto: http://www.mountfuji.co.uk/acatalog/Mount_Fuji_Sushi_Seasoning___Sprinkles_44.html
Mung beans bring healing to the body especially in the spring and summer time, when temperatures are hotter. The sprouts can help to detoxify the body, clear internal heat, and quench thirst. Here’s a tasty recipe from my friend Linda:
Korean Mung Bean Sprout Salad (Sukju namul)
Water — 4 cups (enough to immerse sprouts)
Salt — 1 teaspoon
Mung bean sprouts — 1/2 pound
Scallions, minced – 3-6
Garlic, minced – 3-12 cloves
Sesame oil — 1 teaspoon
Sesame seeds, toasted — 1 teaspoon
Salt — to taste
Bring the water and salt to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high flame. Add the sprouts and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat, cover tightly and set aside for another 2 minutes.
Drain the sprouts, rinse them with cold water and squeeze out any extra water with your hands.
Toss the sprouts with the remaining ingredients and set aside for 30 minutes to let the flavors mingle. Serve at room temperature.
Thanks for the recipe, Linda!
CAUTION: Not for cold conditions. It may be best to avoid mung beans if trying to get pregnant as they are very cooling to the body.
Kudzu root, the invasive plant of the south, really does have some great value. In fact, its unusual a
bility to grow several feet in one day is testament to its strength and ability to replenish the body’s resources. This healing, fibrous root can be used as a cooling, regenerative medicine and is common in many traditional Asian formulas. When it is purified as a starch (root fibers removed), you can use it as a food. It is easy to use as a thickener (instead of corn starch) for soups, stews and dessert puddings. Incorporating foods like this into your diet is a great way to help balance your body while going about your life.
Kudzu root has the
following functions:
Kudzu Pudding for clearing heat:
1 cup pear juice or mint tea
2 full teaspoons Kudzu powder
Makes enough thin pudding for 1-2 servings. Double or triple depending on number of people.
Add liquid to pot and begin to heat. Meanwhile, powder Kudzu starch with mortar and pestle or by other suitable means. In separate bowl, mix kudzu powder with 1/4 cup water or more as needed, similarly to how one dissolves corn starch. Slowly add kudzu mixture to pot. Boil slowly and stir regularly until the preparation thickens. This can take as much as 20 minutes.
Common uses:
Mountain Garden Herbs in Burnsville, NC is an organic grower of kudzu in the United States.
http://www.mountaingardensherbs.com/
Mimosa Tree Flower Tea ‘He Huan Hua Cha’
6 grams Mimosa Flower ‘He Huan Hua’ (Albizzia julibrissinis)
honey (to taste)
Place mimosa flower in a cup and soak in boiling water. Strain. Add honey to taste and drink when cool.
Functions:
Nourish heart and fortifies the spleen
Resolves depression and moves liver qi
Clears the mind and encourages a cheerful spirit
Indications:
Upset emotions and troubled mood
Nervous exhaustion
Fatigue and listlessness associated with unsmooth mood
Chest oppression and discomfort
Sighing
Mental sluggishness
Eye diseases
I also like to mix mimosa flower with various types of green tea. It gives the tea a sweet flavor and has nice benefits for the health.
MRSA is a type of staph infection. MRSA (pronounced ‘mer-sa’ or simply ‘m-r-s-a’) is an abbreviation for ‘methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus’. This type of staph bacteria causes infection in different areas of the body, just like other types of staph. One difference is that MRSA is resistant to some commonly used antibiotics, which is why this type of infection is sometimes referred to as a ’super-bug’.
microscopic view of MRSA
Herbs have long been used in both eastern and western countries to treat infection and some of them are quite strong and can even treat antibiotic resistant staph infections like MRSA.
Of the great many herbal botanicals that act like antibiotics, two herbs that show promising ability to treat MRSA are Tumeric (Curcuma) and St. John’s Wort (Hypericum). These medicinals can be used internally or externally as a skin soak. Be aware that each of these has cautions and contraindications and that it is best to work with an herbalist when considering correct dosage of these medicinals for the treatment of MRSA. Click here to check out some recent western medical research on Tumeric and St. John’s Wort:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16161063?log$=activity
Tumeric Rhizome
CAUTION:
Tumeric is an herb that promotes blood circulation and should not be used with blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin. Tumeric should also not be used before or after surgery.
St. John’s Wort can affect the way that the liver metabolizes certain drugs, which means that their processing time may be altered. For example, a women taking birth control pills and St. John’s Wort at the same time can become pregnant because the processing of the birth control pill might be slowed down.
Fresh St. John's Wort
These lovely red berries are also called wolfberries or ‘Gou Qi Zi’.
Botanical name: Lycium barbarum
Goji berries, with their sweet taste, enter and work in a moistening and strengthening way upon the channels of the kidney and liver. The energetic temperature of these berries is neutral, which means that they can easily be used with both warm and cold cases.
According to Eastern medicine, goji berries have 3 traditional functions. These are:
1. Tonifies and strengthens the blood, yin and essence of both the liver and kidney channels (or meridians)
According to this function, Goji berries have been traditionally used for the following symptoms:
2. Benefits the essence and brightens the eyes
This function means that Goji berries can treat:
3. Moistens and strengthens the yin fluids of the lung
According to this function, Goji berries can be used for the following symptoms of lung dryness:
DOSAGE: Daily dosage of Goji berries is typically 6-12 grams.
CAUTION: Be cautious with the use of goji berries in the case of dampness in the spleen (loose stools, poor appetite, etc.) as this herb is already moistening.
Caution should also be used in the case of dampness in the lungs (wet phlegm, nasal mucus, etc.).
Also, ask your acupuncturist about the use of goji berries in pregnancy.
RESEARCH: There is a lot of research currently being done on the effects of Goji berries. Studies show that Goji berries have an overall positive effect on the functions of the body, including sleep, mood, mental clarity and energy.
Studies show that Goji berries can lower the blood pressure.
Many studies indicate the Goji berries can boost immunity to disease by increasing the white blood cells and the red blood cells, which are part of the yin moisture of the body. This research indicates the Goji berries can reduce the growth of cancer cells.
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
from A Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson.
I have not seen or read this book, but I do like this quote. There seems to be an urban myth going around that this quote is from Nelson Mandela’s 1994 inaugural speech. I does sound like something he might have said.
Happiness, health and prosperity to you in the year of 2010.
Gout is a very painful type of arthritis that can come on suddenly with much redness, swelling, warmth, pain and inflammation. Arthritic gout is caused by an excess build-up of uric acid in the body. Uric acid is the end-product caused by the breakdown of purines. Purines are compounds that are naturally found in the body and are found in many foods. Many foods, but not all, that are high in purines can trigger an attack of gout. Decreasing the consumption of foods high in purines can reduce gout inflammation. Plant-based diets are generally low in pur
ines.
Cherries contain an enzyme that helps the break down and excretion of uric acid. Eat 1 cup of cherries every day to relieve pain and inflammation. Regularly eating cherries can help prevent future attacks. Look for fresh raw cherries first. Frozen or canned unsweetened cherries or 100% pure cherry juice may also be helpful.
Alcohol increases production and decreases excretion of uric acid, which is not helpful. For prevention and especially during acute bouts of gout, most of the protein in the diet should come from legumes, cheese, milk, and eggs.
Here are some generally agreed upon dietary guidelines for preventing and reducing the occurrence of gout.
Foods containing high amounts of Purine (avoid)
Foods containing moderate amounts of Purine (avoid)
Low-Purine Foods
Lana Farson, M.S., L.Ac.
Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist • Professor, Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine College
510-847-6459 • 3441 Golden Gate Way Suite H, Lafayette, CA 94549
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