Lana Farson, M.S., L.Ac., Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist

Lana's Thoughts on Health and Healing…

Take care of yourself with sustainable, natural medicine. Good for you. Good for the earth.

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Lotus seeds

April 24, 2010 – 12:56 pm

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 lotus seedsthan 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:

  • chronic diarrhea (spleen qi deficiency)
  • loss of appetite
  • premature ejaculation
  • uterine bleeding
  • vaginal discharge
  • palpitations
  • anxiety
  • insomnia
By Lana •• Posted in All About Herbs, Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Men's health •• Comments (2)

The Cleansing Power of Seaweed

April 6, 2010 – 9:33 pm

Seaweed, salty and cold, has the following medicinal functions:seaweed salad with hijiki and lotus root

  1. Clears heat, transforms phlegm nodules
  2. Promotes urination
  3. Modern Research: lowers cholesterol
  4. Modern Research: binds heavy metals to cleanse them from the body

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:

  • Dry hijiki – 1 package
  • Fresh lotus root  – 3 smaller ones
  • Carrots
  • Green beans
  • Inari nomoto – 1 can (soybean)
  • Oil
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar
  • mirin sake
  • miso paste
  • bonito flakes

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

By Lana •• Posted in Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Healthy Lifestyle •• Comments (2)

Summer time cure: mung beans

March 25, 2010 – 10:28 pm

Korean Mung Bean salad2Mung 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.

By Lana •• Posted in Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Specific Conditions •• Comments (0)

Kudzu – a nourishing & healing root starch

March 6, 2010 – 6:48 pm

Kudzu root, the invasive plant of the south, really does have some great value.  In fact, its unusual akudzu pudding - croppedbility 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 theGe Gen (dried) 015 following functions:

  • Relieves muscles, clears heat
  • Nourishes yin, alleviates thirst
  • Release rashes to the surface (to bring them up and out of the body)
  • Alleviates diarrhea (when herb is toasted)
  • Modern research: decreases blood pressure, reduces blood sugar

Kudzu Pudding for clearing heat:kudzu root starch- package

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:

  • To lower a fever, treat colds
  • To regulate the bowel movement (calm hypermotility if loose or induce softer BM if hard)
  • To stimulate the appetite
  • To relieve fatigue
  • To relax the muscles, shoulders and back of neck

Mountain Garden Herbs in Burnsville, NC is an organic grower of kudzu in the United States.

http://www.mountaingardensherbs.com/

By Lana •• Posted in All About Herbs, Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Specific Conditions •• Comments (1)

Smooth your mood with Mimosa Flower Tea

February 18, 2010 – 12:05 pm

Mimosa Tree Flower Tea ‘He Huan Hua Cha’tea pot

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.

By Lana •• Posted in All About Herbs, Dietary Supplements, Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Healthy Lifestyle •• Comments (0)

Herbal Defense against MRSA infection

February 1, 2010 – 2:00 pm

MRSA is a type of staph infection.  MRSA (pronounced ‘mer-sa’ or simply ‘m-r-s-a’) is

Microscopic view of MRSA

Microscopic view of MRSA

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’.

Herbs & MRSA

Of the great many herbal botanicals that act like antibiotics, two herbs in particular currently show a promising ability to treat antibiotic resistant staph infections like MRSA.  These two herbs are Tumeric (Curcuma) and St. John’s Wort (Hypericum).   These medicinals can be used internally or externally as a skin soak.  Tumeric, a common cooking ingredient especially in Indian food, stains the skin bright orange and is probably best used internally.  St. John’s Wort is very well known for its ability to treat depression.  See related post here.

It is best to work with an herbalist when considering whether or not these herbs are right for you.  A trained herbal healer will be able to determine the correct dosage of these medicinals for the treatment of MRSA and the correct method of usage and administration.  Be aware that each of these herbs has cautions and contraindications, which are listed below.

Herbal Cautions:

Tumeric Roots - increase blood circulation

Tumeric Roots - increase blood circulation

Tumeric is an herb that promotes blood circulation and should not be used with blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin.  This botanical should not be used before or after surgery.  Tumeric should be used cautiously with pregnancy because in some cases it can act as a uterine stimulant.

St. John’s Wort has two main cautions.  The first is that this herb increases photo-sensitivity to the sun and may be best to avoid using internally during the summer.  Ironically when the oil of St. John’s Wort is applied to the skin, it acts as a strong sunscreen.

St. John's Wort Flowers & Leaves

St. John's Wort Flowers & Leaves

The second caution for St. John’s Wort is that it can affect the way that the liver metabolizes certain western pharmaceuticals.  This means that the processing time of these pharmaceuticals 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.

Research

Click below to view some recent western medical research on Tumeric & St. John’s Wort:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16161063?log$=activity

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12234572?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=2

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11518059?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=4

By Lana •• Posted in Miscellaneous •• Comments (1)

Longevity food – Goji berries

January 29, 2010 – 11:24 am

These lovely red berries are also called wolfberries or ‘Gou Qi Zi’.Gou Qi Zi (scanned)

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)

Here are some examples of what Goji berries has been traditionally used for:

  • sore back & legs
  • abdominal pain
  • reduced sexual strength
  • dryness along the kidney and liver channels
  • infertility & impotence
  • high blood pressure
  • grey hair

2. Benefits the essence and brightens the eyes

Here are some examples of symptoms treated by Goji berries according to this function:

  • blurred vision
  • dry eyes
  • diminished visual acuity
  • dizziness

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:

  • dry or consumptive cough
  • blood-streaked sputum
  • thirst
  • chronic, dry throat

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 immunity, blood pressure, sleep, mood, mental clarity and energy.  Have a look at these studies:

Studies show a positive effect on health in general:

Goji Berries: Immune Function & General Well-being

Studies show that Goji berries can lower the blood pressure:

Goji Berries: effect on hypertension

Studies show that Goji berries can increase the immune system. Here’s research indicating that Goji berries can reduce the growth of cancer cells:

Goji Berries: effect on gastric cancer

Goji Berries: effect on colon cancer

Goji Berries: effect on breast cancer (by favorably altering estradiol metabolism)

Goji Berries: effect on prostate cancer

Goji Berries: effect on tumors


By Lana •• Posted in All About Herbs, Healthy Lifestyle, Mama - Baby stuff, Men's health •• Comments (1)

We are brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous

January 7, 2010 – 2:07 pm

“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.

By Lana •• Posted in Miscellaneous •• Comments (1)

Diet Help for Gout

December 1, 2009 – 9:30 am

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 purcherriesines.

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)

  • mussels
  • sardines
  • herring
  • hearts
  • yeast (as a supplement) and probably breads that contain yeast
  • smelt
  • sweetbreads

Foods containing moderate amounts of Purine (avoid)

  • Alcoholic beverages (especially beer)
  • Asparagus
  • Bouillon
  • Broth
  • Consomme
  • Gravy
  • Meats (chicken, turkey, partridge, pheasant, veal, grouse, mutton, goose, bacon, sausage, rabbit and other meats)
  • Meat Extracts
  • Mince meat
  • Organ meats (brain, kidney, liver, sweetbreads, pate)
  • Seafood (salmon, trout, sardines, scallops, herring, haddock, anchovies, mackeral, lobster, crab, caviar / roe and other seafoods)

Low-Purine Foods

  • yeast-free grains and breads
  • Butter, polyunsaturated margarine, & other fats
  • Cereals
  • Cheese
  • Chocolate
  • Coffee
  • Cream soups made of low purine vegetables
  • Eggs
  • Fruit and fruit juices
  • Milk and milk products
  • Noodles
  • Nuts
  • Olives
  • Peanut butter
  • Rice
  • Salt
  • Sugars, sweets, and gelatin
  • Cherries (very beneficial)
By Lana •• Posted in Foods, Drinks, Recipes, Healthy Lifestyle, Specific Conditions •• Comments (0)

Cleanse with Clay!

November 2, 2009 – 7:53 pm

Certain types of clay from the earth have an astringent, pulling nature.  This cleaning ability is activated when wet clay getting facialgoes through its drying process.  When used externally on the body, this means that clay can be used to draw out toxins or other foreign particles from the epidermis.   The external use of clay is quite safe.  A clay poultice can be used as a remedy for:

  • Bee stings
  • Acne
  • Skin wounds
  • rashes
  • To draw out toxins and foreign substances (such as splinters, dirt & city grime)
  • To heal first degree burns and repair damaged tissue

Clay comes in different colors, each appropriate for a different types of skin.

  • Delicate, dry skin: use white or light blue clay
  • Medium or mixed skin types: use yellow, green and lavender
  • Oily skin: reds and black clay

How to make a clay poultice:

4-16 oz clay (depending on size of area to be treated)

Distilled water (or herbal liquid)

Mix clay with enough water (or herbal liquid) to make a thick paste.  Spread with a spoon or clean paint brush onto skin, pressing it into the flesh so that it adheres. Leave on until clay dries and pulls away.  This clay mixture can be used as a facial mask.

Clay Facial Mask: made with clay and liquid mixture (either water or herbal teas – such as green tea)

  • Okay to mix colors to treat specific conditions on different parts of face
  • The thicker that it is applied, the longer it takes to dry (increasing the detoxifying and drying effect)

Internal Use:

The internal use of clay is best done under the guidance of an herbal practitioner, as it is important to make sure that your body’s constitution matches the therapeutic effect of the clay.  Clay is not used internally when one has a common cold, flu, symptoms of damp-heat, or during pregnancy.

powdered clayInternal use of clay can be used for:

  • Diarrhea (due to deficiency)
  • Bleeding
  • Increasing immunity
  • detoxification

Common types of medicinal clay: Bentonite Clay, Montmorillonite Clay

Other names: Halloysite, kaolin, Hydrous aluminum silicate


By Lana •• Posted in All About Herbs, External Healing, Healthy Lifestyle, Miscellaneous •• Comments (0)