Cat's whiskers tea ( Orthosiphon stamineus ) active against colon cancer is not genotoxic.

Studies of Cat's whiskers tea ( Orthosiphon stamineus ) pharmacological profile have revealed antioxidant properties and other potentially useful biological activities. A study http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22136553 demonstrated that leaf extract inhibits growth of colon tumor and proliferation of blood vessels in mice.

But what about the genotoxic potential of the plant ?  it poses no genotoxic risk says an other study http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378874110007658
in which Orthosiphon stamineus extract was administered by gavage up to 4000 mg/kg body weight/day for 3 days : salmonella/microsome mutation assay and the mouse bone marrow micronucleus test did not indicate induced chromosome damage.

Medicinal, Hoya and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Find all Aleyagarden posts on http://aleyagarden-blog.blogspot.com/

Seeds for Salads : Parsley, Flax, Pepper Grass, Black Caraway et Bon Appetit !

There is no excuse for plain old green salads now : add seeds of Lepidium sativum  http://www.aleyagarden.com/hbalepidisat.html,

Petroselinum crispum http://www.aleyagarden.com/hbapetrosel.html , Nigella sativa http://www.aleyagarden.com/hbanige.html
Flax seeds : these four are among the most beneficial seeds and they are great-tasting in salads packed with flavor and crunch.

Not to mention that they are very cost-effective.

Sprinkle over salads, roasted vegetables or dips

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Compensate for the missing nutrients, antioxidants and other benefits : use plant powders

      Children who weigh around 25 kg should eat 300 gr of  fresh vegetables daily to support their immune system in  fighting diseases, including the most serious ones later in their life. But rarely modern nutrition meets the standards, not mentioning the toxicity issues, including pesticides etc.        

Plant powders are an excellent source to compensate for the missing nutrients, antioxidants and other benefits. Most don't need pesticide for their cultivation. Sold as powders there is no need keeping the leaves away from insects activities. 

Some are bitter ( often due to antibiotic properties ) and need some strategic step by step introductions in various hides, but some are not and would only add a salty flavor to the dishes and liquids : for instance dried Acanthus ebracteatus and Orthosiphon aristatus ( Java tea, Cats Whisker )  are tropical plants that taste slightly salty, and have huge benefits; - tropical plants evolve in very adverse conditions and many develop efficient anti-disease properties -

They are also extremely cost - effective against the most common vegetables . ( but not always when they are sold in fancy products supported by an expensive marketing )

Acanthus ebracteatus is  anti-inflammatory, antioxidant ; the roots are used as a cough remedy, whole plants as astringent, expectorant, and stimulant. Used against chronic fever, asthma; later in life the plant is active against  inflammation in arthritis and uric acid deposits, hepatitis.
In wound healing Acanthus ebracteatus promotes the formation of new bloods vessels, like Aloe vera the plant helps prevent scar formation. Scientific papers have reported an antitumor activity in mice without chronic toxicity.
 

Orthosiphon aristatus ( Java tea, Cats Whisker ) : grown throughout Southeast Asia and Australia, traditionally leaves of Java tea have been used as diuretic, and to treat rheumatism, abdominal pain, kidney and bladder inflammation, edema and gout.
The plant is bestowed with high amount of flavones, polyphenols, bioactive proteins, glycosides and vast quantities of potassium.
More than twenty phenolic compounds were isolated. Used to treat renal inflammation, kidney stones and urinary tract infection; renal cleansing.

it has strong anti-oxidant and anti-inflammation action.

Reported ( Sahib et al. 2009 ) to enhance the efficacy of tamoxifen an antagonist of the estrogen receptor in the treatment of hormone-sensitive breast cancer. In other studies the activity against colon cancer and non genotoxicity were demonstrated http://aleyagarden-medicinal-plants.blogspot.com/2013/09/cats-whiskers-tea-orthosiphon-stamineus.html


Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Are the expensive Moringa capsules cost effective against other vegetables in our diets ?

    Moringa is praised everywhere on the internet for its nutritional / medicinal value. Indeed  its trace elements , anti-inflammatory and other beneficial phytochemicals are hardly found in other foods unless we combine very high quantities.

But are Moringa capsules still cost effective against common vegetables if we target basic nutritional requirements ?
To find a solution to this sort of " what if " problems Excel provides an optimizer ( the Solver utility ) in the Tools  :  we let the program find the best combination of food quantities for the smallest total cost.

This is how the chart was done :

From a publication by the FDA we took the nutrients ( in gr. mg and %DV ) of daily rations of vegetables. We entered these quantities for these selected basic nutrients : Potassium, Carbohydrates, Fibers, Proteins, Vitamins, Calcium and Iron in 1 gr. of each vegetable as well as 1 gr. of dry Moringa powder.

We also entered the cost per 1 gr. ( in the last column on the right ). Here we take in account that such cost must include the energy of cooking. ( noteworthy Moringa capsules, as other dried edible plants and spices don't involve these cooking costs )

Then the program asks us to enter the constraints : we say that we don't want a solution that offers more than 150 gr of each vegetable ( which is a very large quantity ); no more than 20 gr of dry Moringa ( that is about 40 capsules ! ); also knowing that Moringa is full of Vitamin A we don't want an excessive amount of Vitamin A ( is there a liver toxicity caused by very high amounts of Vitamin A  ? ) so set a maximum %. etc.

Finally the targets :  they are the daily requirements of a woman. They are entered in the last range at the bottom : 4700 mg of Potassium, 325 g of carbohydrates etc. up to the 4 figures of 100 to the right that stand for 100% of the intakes.

.. And what solution does the Solver find after many iterations ? ( the numbers of the solution - weights of the plant species and the total cost - are given in range # 12 )

The solution found by the program fully supports the cost effectiveness of Moringa oleifera powder : " despite its much higher cost per gr. use as much as you can to minimize your total cost " , the Solver says, Moringa oleifera is even more cost effective than tomatoes in this chart !   ... and we are just talking about basic nutrients. There is no doubt that if we selected harder to find phytochemicals Moringa would always be on top of the combinations with the smallest possible cost !

We note that the solution found in the chart above for a total of 7.9 $ doesn't bring all of the Potassium needed, the Proteins, Carbohydrates, Fibers, Proteins, Calcium and Iron. Only the daily requirements of Vitamins A and C are covered. 
This confirms that we need to vary our food ! Curcuma and other tropical assets would love to be included in such optimization problems.

How many capsules can a 7 years child take every day ? read  ore on http://aleyagarden-medicinal-plants.blogspot.com/2013/09/how-many-capsules-of-moringa-oleifera.html

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Dry Moringa oleifera and dry Broccoli : the mineral intake compared

1 gram of dry Moringa oleifera ( 2 servings of 500 mg capsules ) vs. dry Broccoli : compare their mineral content.
Calcium (Ca) : Moringa  16-22 mg, Broccoli 4-5 mg ------------------
Potassium (K) : Moringa 8-18 mg,  Broccoli 3-4 mg -------------------
Magnesium (Mg) : Moringa 3.5-5 mg,  Broccoli  0.2 mg -------------------
Phosphorus (P) : Moringa 2-6 mg, Broccoli 6 mg -------------------
Iron (Fe) :   Moringa 0.18-0.28 mg, Broccoli 0.07 mg.  --------------------
Manganese (Mn) : Moringa 0.05-0.09 mg, Broccoli 0.02 mg --------------------
Zinc (Zn) :   Moringa 0.015-0.03 mg, Broccoli 0.04 mg ---------------------
Copper (Cu) : Moringa 0.07-0.011 mg, Broccoli : - Read  more about the toxicity threshold : how many capsules of moringa oleifera can we give to a 7 years child ? Are the expensive Moringa capsules cost effective against other vegetables in our diets ? " Use as much as you can to minimize your total cost " , the Solver says, Moringa oleifera is even more cost effective than tomatoes ! ... and we are just talking about basic nutrients. There is no doubt that if we selected more subtle phytochemicals Moringa would always be on top of the combinations with the smallest possible cost ! http://aleyagarden-medicinal-plants.blogspot.com/2013/09/are-expensive-moringa-capsules-cost.html Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

How many capsules of Moringa oleifera should I give to my 7 years old daughter ? Any idea for hides ?

Pediatrics recommend 300 gr of fresh vegetable for a 4 - 7 years old child. 
 

A capsule of Moringa oleifera weighs about 0.5 gr,  10 times less than its corresponding fresh matter. So the intake of 1 capsule is more or less equivalent to 5 gr of the fresh plant : a few capsules daily for a 7 years old child is still far under the required 300 gr of fresh matter ( noteworthy Moringa is grown without pesticide , which is not the case for many vegetables ).

About toxicity is dose dependent in all foods : a study has found intake of dry extract of Moringa oleifera to be safe up to 1000 mg ( about 2 capsules ) per kg of body weight : http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22101359

If your daughter weighs for instance 25 kg then 50 capsules daily would still be far under the toxicity threshold according to the paper. This is a very high quantity. But 1 or 2 capsules daily could be enough, mainly because of the need to vary our food so that Moringa can be associated with other food sources.

Moringa is not very bitter and can be sprinkled everywhere. It will go unnoticed in fungi and fish sauce, or in ketchup, except that it will darken the bright red color. ( a trick is to cover the mix with a layer of non mixed, bright red ketchup ) If you use Curcuma with chocolate powder, for instance in pancakes ( a regular intake of Curcuma is highly recommended ) Moringa and even the bitter antibiotics like Andrographis paniculata can also be introduced in small quantities without altering the taste. The taste of the chocolate changes when Curcuma is associated, it is richer but your 7 years old daughter may appreciate this richer taste and take Moringa with it !

Mean nutritional values of 1 gram ( 2 servings of 500 mg capsules ) of Moringa oleifera leaf powder.

Proteins 0.20-0.26 grams ( a recommended intake for children between 4 and 9 years is above 10 gr )
Total ash (= total minerals) 0.08-0.11 grams
Calcium (Ca) 16-22 mg. This is about 2.5% of the recommended intake for children between 4 and 9 years
Potassium (K) 8-18 mg
Magnesium (Mg) 3.5-5 mg
Phosphorus (P) 2-6 mg
Iron (Fe) 0.18-0.28 mg. This is about 3 % of the recommended intake for children up to 12 years
Manganese (Mn) 0.05-0.09 mg
Zinc (Zn) 0.015-0.03 mg
Copper (Cu) 0.07-0.011 mg
Vitamins
Vitamin C 0.15-1 mg
Vitamin A (as s-carotene) 40-80 ug retinol eq.
Vitamin E (as a-tocopherol) 0.80-0.15 mg  

According to a study :
http://www.moringanews.org/doc/GB/Posters/Broin_poster.pdf  30 gr of dry leaves ( that would equal about 60 capsules ) for children under 3 can cover  " one third of the daily
allowance for proteins, 75% of the calcium needs, more than half of the iron necessary, the
totality of the recommended dietary allowance for vitamin A, and almost one third of the needs in
vitamin C. "

Compare the mineral intake in dry moringa oleifera and dry broccoli

Are the expensive Moringa capsules cost effective against other vegetables in our diets ? " Use as much as you can to minimize your total cost " , the Solver says, Moringa oleifera is even more cost effective than tomatoes ! ... and we are just talking about basic nutrients.
There is no doubt that if we selected more subtle phytochemicals Moringa would always be on top of the combinations with the smallest possible cost !
http://aleyagarden-medicinal-plants.blogspot.com/2013/09/are-expensive-moringa-capsules-cost.html

  
Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

 

Linnaeus and Rousseau

After Galileo who had seen the universe like a book, philosophers and scientists in the 18 th century in Europe were fond of issues about reality, languages and signs, the origin of ideas... The century

saw the profusion of dictionaries. J.J. Rousseau ( who died like Linneaus in 1778 ) had imagined a set of signs that were due to transcript plant information. Interestingly, like Linnaeus  Rousseau overlooked the medicinal information. ( in picture " Le catalogue de la vie", Francois Dagognet ).

Citrus hystrix ( Kaffir lime ), a note in tomato sauce

 

Citrus hystrix ( Kaffir lime ) juice is used in Thailand in some formulations of high quality shampoos. The leaves are a must in Green Curry. They also give an interesting note in the tomato sauce for pasta.

Air quality with plants that detoxify the polluted air in homes

Are plants air cleaners ?


Benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, ammonium chloride, pentachlorophenol (pcp), carbon monoxide, radiation from our appliances like computer monitors and television sets... air within our homes , classrooms, kindergartens, offices and factories is significantly more polluted than the air outside. All habitats with low ventilation and with an aim to reduce energy costs caused by air purifier devices are concerned. Awareness of this public health issue has much improved over the recent years. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ranks now indoor air pollution—which originates from many conventional building materials and chemicals commonly used indoor —as one of the top five threats to public health. An average American home has 100 to 200 different air contaminants.

International agencies such as WHO or Greenpeace have issued precise guidelines and warnings based on scientific findings that are worth reading and thinking over. [see our post : WHO and Greenpeace warnings ] The findings are alarming, especially considering that most of us spend our time dwelling in our homes and in office buildings.

" Since man's existence on Earth depends upon a life support system involving an intricate relationship with plants and their associated microorganisms, it should be obvious that when he attempts to isolate himself in tightly sealed buildings away from this ecological system, problems will arise. " says Wolverton a former NASA scientist in " Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Pollution Abatement".

In the eighties the NASA researched techniques for cleansing the atmosphere in space stations to keep their habitat fit for travels over extended periods of time. Unexpected experiment results over two years in investigations supported by the NASA and the Associated Landscape contractors of America (ALCA) [see below : Scientific sources ] confirmed that certain tropical plants with low light requirements were able to use stunning mechanisms to remove harmful gases out of the air, thanks to their particular ability to photosynthesize in harder conditions. This removal is more efficient with time. We show below test results after only 24 hours of exposure. The results are just amazing. Certain plants clean air in habitats : this can be up to 90 % of the volatile pollutants.

Since then an increasing number of laboratories the world over have sustained that a wide range of volatile contaminants toxic to human health could be efficiently trapped and degraded with certain plants that have evolved in tropical forests. We show below a chart of the plants with the corresponding rates of degradation.

Further below on this page is an extended A to Z list of the plants that have been tested by various programmes following the first experiments cited above. Not only are these tropical and sub tropical plants able to tolerate low light, they are generally easy growers with low maintenance requirements. They are ideal for promoting green choices in our indoor setting. Some are supplied by aleyagarden.com

It would be demonstrated that one plant for every 10 square metres suffices to remove out of a room 70 - 90 % of the pollutants, provided that several species are mixed. The time of removal varies from a few hours to only a few days. [see below : Air Cleaning Plants in Scientific Literature]

SOURCES of the AIRBORNE POLLUTANTS :
Sources of airborne Benzene : Petroleum Products Synthetic Fibers Plastics Inks & DyesRubber Products Detergents Tobacco Smoke

Sources of airborne Formaldehyde : Foam Insulation Plywood or Particle Board
Carpeting Furniture Paper Products Cleaners

Sources of airborne Trichloroethylene : Dry Cleaning Inks & Dyes Adhesives Varnishes Lacquers Paints
 Plant species that are most efficient at air decontamination - they are listed below - originate from tropical and sub-tropical forests, where they evolved receiving light filtered through the canopy : in order to survive they used a leaf composition allowing them to photosynthesize efficiently despite the reduced light. In this connection they could find ways to process gasses in the air efficiently.
PLANTS that DECONTAMINATE VOLATILE POLLUTANTS THROUGH THE PROCESSES OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Removal from a Sealed Experimental Chamber by Houseplants During a 24-h Exposure Period
Plants breaking down Benzene & % of Benzene d ecomposition : Hedera helix 90%  Spatiphyllum 80% Dracaena marginata 79% Dracaena deremensis 78% Dracaena deremensis
'Warneckii' 70% Sansevieria spp 48%
Plants breaking down Formaldehyde & % of Formaldehyde decomposition : Aloe barbadensis 90% Chlorophytum comosum 86% Philodendron 86-76% Dracaena fragrans 70%
Dracaena Massangeana 70% Ficus benjamina 70% Epipremnum aureum 67% Syngonium
podophyllum 67% Dracaena marginata 60% Dracaena deremensis Warneckii
50% Spathiphyllum 50%
Plants breaking down Trichloroethylene & % of Trichloroethylene decomposition : Spathiphyllum 50% Dracaena deremensis Warneckii 24% Dracaena deremensis 20% Dracaena marginata 13% Hedera helix 11%
Plants breaking down carbon monoxide & % of carbon monoxide decomposition : Chlorophytum comosum 96% Epipremnum aureus 75%
----------------------------------------
A
Aechmea fasciata
Aglaonema spp
Aloe vera
Anthurium spp
Areca catechu
Araucaria heterophylla

B
Begonia semperflorens

C
Calathea spp
Chamaedorea elegans
Chamaedorea seifrizii
Cissus rhombofilia
Chlorophytum spp
Chrysalidocarpus lutescens
Chrysanthemum morifolium
Codiaeum variegatum
Cyclamen persicum

D
Dendrobium spp
Dieffenbachia
Dracaena

E
Epipremnum spp
Euphorbia pulcherrima

F
Ficus spp

G
Gerbera jamesonii

H
Hedera helix
Homalomena spp

K
Kalanchoe blossfeldiana

L
Liriope spicata

M
Maranta leuconeura
Musa cavendishii

N
Nephrolepis exaltata
Nephrolepis obliterata

P
Phalaenopsis spp.
Philodendron spp
Phoenix robelenii

R
Rhapis excelsia
Rhododendron

S
Syngonium podophyllum
Sansevieria spp
Schefflera spp
Schlumbergera bridgesii Schlumbergera rhipsalidopsis
Spathiphyllum spp.









WHO air quality guidelines
http://www.euro.who.int/air/activities/20050223_4

Updated 08 January 2008

Table of contents

Preface (11kb PDF)

Part I. General

1. Introduction (35kb PDF)

2. Criteria used in establishing guideline values (70kb PDF)

3. Summary of the guidelines (39kb PDF)

4. Use of the guidelines in protecting public health (52kb PDF)

Part II. Evaluation of Human Health Risks

5. Organic pollutants

5.1 Acrylonitrile (178kb PDF) *

5.2 Benzene (83kb PDF)

5.3 Butadiene (72kb PDF)

5.4 Carbon disulfide (194kb PDF) *

5.5 Carbon monoxide (204kb PDF)

5.6 1,2-Dichloroethane (176kb PDF) *

5.7 Dichloromethane (184kb PDF)

5.8 Formaldehyde (284kb PDF)

5.9 Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (104kb PDF)

5.10 Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) (262kb PDF)

5.11 Polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (331kb PDF)

5.12 Styrene (314kb PDF)

5.13 Tetrachloroethylene (222kb PDF)

5.14 Toluene (91kb PDF)

5.15 Trichloroethylene (219kb PDF)

5.16 Vinyl chloride (181kb PDF) *

6. Inorganic pollutants

6.1 Arsenic (64kb PDF)

6.2 Asbestos (194kb PDF) *

6.3 Cadmium (200kb PDF)

6.4 Chromium (67kb PDF)

6.5 Fluoride (48kb PDF)

6.6 Hydrogen sulfide (148kb PDF) *

6.7 Lead (225kb PDF)

6.8 Manganese(183kb PDF)

6.9 Mercury (219kb PDF)

6.10 Nickel (64kb PDF)

6.11 Platinum (193kb PDF)

6.12 Vanadium (170kb PDF) *

7. Classical pollutants

7.1 Nitrogen dioxide (136kb PDF)

7.2 Ozone and other photochemical oxidants (289kb PDF)

7.3 Particulate matter (353kb PDF)

7.4 Sulfur dioxide (168kb PDF)

8. Indoor air pollutants

8.1 Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) (99kb PDF)

8.2 Man-made vitreous fibres (MMVF) (229kb PDF)

8.3 Radon (224kb PDF)

Part III. Evaluation of Ecotoxic Effects

9. General approach (28kb PDF)

10. Effects of sulfur dioxide on vegetation - critical levels (243kb PDF)

11. Effects of nitrogen-containing air pollutants - critical levels (391kb PDF)

12. Effects of ozone on vegetation - critical levels (314kb PDF)

13. Indirect effects of acidifying compounds on natural systems - critical loads (196kb PDF)

14. Effects of airborne nitrogen pollutants on vegetation - critical loads (332kb PDF)

Annex I List of Contributors (183kb PDF)

(*) 1987 evaluation retained, not re-evaluated
writes in a reference report of November 2006


..." Cleaning up our chemical homes , changing the market to toxic - free products " :.... Chemicals out of control. Hazardous substances that are commonly used as chemical additives in consumer products can migrate out of the product over time. These same chemicals are consistently found in breast milk and umbilical cord blood, which demonstrates their wide, uncontrolled and undesired dispersion. Greenpeace testing has shown that hazardous, man-made chemicals are also widespread in house dust, rainwater and the bodies of eels. These substances can cause a wide range of health effects, including effects on the reproductive system, immune system and impacts on the nervous system and behavioural development. Exposure of the unborn child to minute quantities of hazardous substances can result in permanent irreversible damage... "
Hoya and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com




- Air Cleaning Plants in Scientific Literature.
This link http://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp provides technical reports written by Dr. B. C. Wolverton. Click on the "NASA Technical Report Server" link above. At the search window, type wolverton into the box to gain access to a number of reports (most are downloadable in PDF format).
BULTEAU G., 2004, Définition d'une méthodologie d'évaluation des procédés d'élimination des composés organiques volatils de l'air intérieur, Thèse de Doctorat en Sciences pour l'ingénieur, spécialité génie des procédés, soutenue le10/12/04, Université de Nantes, 228 p.
CORNEJO J.J., MUNOZ F.G., MA C.Y. & STEWART A.J.,1999, “Studies on the decontamination of air by plants”,Ecotoxicology, 8, p.311-320.
DINGLE P., TAPSELL P. & HU S., 2000, “Reducing formaldehyde exposure in office environments using plants”, Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology,64, p.302-308.
GIESE M., BAUER-DORANTH U., LANGEBARTELSC. & SANDERMANN H. Jr., 1994, “Detoxification of formaldehyde by the spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum L.) and by soybean (Glycine max L.) cell-suspension cultures”, Plant Physiology, 104, p.1301-1309.
KORTE F., KXESITADZE G., UGREKHELIDZE D., GORDE ZIANI M., KHATISSASHVILI G., BUADZE O., ZAALISHVILI G.& COULSTON F., 2000, “Organictoxicants and plants (review)”,
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety,47, p.1-26.
RZEPKA M.A.,CUNY D., BULTEAU G., LAKEL A., CAZIER F., VAN HALUWYN C., 2005, “Accumulation and effects of formaldehyde in plants perspective for an use for indoor air
treatment ?”in: Third international conference on plants and nvironmental pollution; Lucknow, Inde, 28/11/05 - 2/12/05.
SCHMITZ H., HILGERS U. & WEIDNER M., 200, “Assimilation and metabolism of formaldehyde by meaves appear unlikely to be a value for indoor air purification”, New Phytologist,147 (2), p.307-315.
UGREKHELIDZE D., KORTE F.& KVESITADZE G., 1997,
“Uptake and transformation of benzene and toluene by
plant leaves”, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 37, p.24-29.
WOLVERTON B., C. & WOLVERTON J., 1992, Interior
plants and their role in indoor air quality : an overview, Wolverton Environmental Services.
WOLVERTON B. C., MCDONALD R. C. & MESICK H. H.,
1985, “Foliage plants for indoor removal of the primary
combustion gases carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide”
Journal of the Mississipi Academy of Sciences, 30, 1-8


Herbs, Spices, Hoya and other plant collections are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

How to assess easily the quality of a dried antibiotic plant in capsule

A natural antibiotic such as Andragrophis panicualta is characteristically bitter on the tip of the tongue. With a bit of experience it is easy to assess the quality of any dried plant in capsule : with your tongue ! This is a great advantage ( but not the only one ) over fake drugs that are not easily detectable.
http://www.aleyagarden.com/hbaandropani.html

Information released by investigators linked to INTERPOL suggests that fake drugs may be used in more places than we think, such as European hospitals. The same international police focuses on pharmaceutical crime in Asian countries. In 2013 Thai patients might be treated by up to 50% of fake medcine from all sources ( drug shops, pharmacies but also hospitals ). Some suggest that in 2013 n Russia the rate would be around 20 %. read more : http://www.interpol.int/Crime-areas/Pharmaceutical-crime/Pharmaceutical-crime

 

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

 

I have No time for Vegetables, but I discreetly sprinkle Moringa oleifera everywhere

MORINGA OLEIFERA dried leaves

A FULL SPECTRUM SUPER NUTRIENT-RICH RAW FOOD that Your kids will not notice in their favorite dishes with :
- proteins that can be rarely found in any other herbs and green leafy vegetables.
- minerals like calcium, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, selenium, and magnesium.
-  vital B-complex  such as vitamin-B6 (pyridoxine), thiamin (vitamin B-1), riboflavin, pantothenic acid, and niacin
- and other healthy things for their immune systems.

Dry moringa oleifera and broccoli : compare their mineral contents

How many capsules of moringa oleifera can I give to my 7 years old child ?

More on this miracle food from the tropics in Wikipedia

Are the expensive Moringa capsules cost effective against other vegetables in our diets ? " Use as much as you can to minimize your total cost " , the Solver says, Moringa oleifera is even more cost effective than tomatoes ! ... and we ...are just talking about basic nutrients.
There is no doubt that if we selected more subtle phytochemicals Moringa would always be on top of the combinations with the smallest possible cost !
http://aleyagarden-medicinal-plants.blogspot.com/2013/09/are-expensive-moringa-capsules-cost.html

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on
www.aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact :
aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Clitoria ternatea and Clinacanthus nutans extracts are more efficent than drugs against the virus Herpes simplex

" I have tried all available drugs against the activity of the virus herpes simplex on my face, nothing works. I haven't seen on the internet any recommendation for a particular medicine either. What can I do ? "
A harsh and risky method consists in drying the affected area with isopropanol on a piece of cotton. However as the interest for medicinal plants increases more people affected by herpes simplex apply the extract of a plant called Clitoria ternatea, which has antiviral properties with a broad spectrum,

Clitoria ternatea

or Clinacanthus nutans.
This information is not largely spread as the economic returns are low : you can grow the plant yourself and the quantity needed for treatment is a few droplets only. Usually the extract is in glycerin. At the start of the activity, apply two to three drops of the extract -  it is important that the application be done right at the beginning of the activity and that the quantity be no more than a few drops.

In animal tests the methanolic extract of Clitoria ternatea roots demonstrated nootropic, anxiolytic, antidepressant, anticonvulsant and antistress activity. Read more on :  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clitoria_ternatea
An other study has revealed that Clitoria ternatea and 10 more tropical plants have the most potent anti-viral extracts with broad spectrum activity among a selection of thirty plants.
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/233946926_Medicinal_plants_of_Tamil_Nadu_(Southern_India)_are_a_rich_source_of_antiviral_activities
Pharmaceutical Biology, 2009; 47(5): 422–429 RESEARCH ARTICLE Medicinal plants of Tamil Nadu (Southern India) are a rich source of antiviral activities S. Vimalanathan1, S. Ignacimuthu2, and J.B. Hudson1 1Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada, and 2Entomology Research Institute, Loyola College, Chennai, India
These plants are:  Gymnema sylvestre R. Br. (Asclepiadaceae), Pergularia daemia (Forsskal) Chiov. (Asclepiadaceae), Sphaeranthus indicus L. (Asteraceae), Cassia alata L. (Caesalpiniaceae), Evolvulus alsinoides L. (Convolvulaceae), Clitoria ternatea L. (Fabaceae), Indigofera tincto- ria L. (Euphorbiaceae), Abutilon indicum G. Don. (Malvaceae), Vitex trifolia L. (Verbenaceae), Clerodendrum inerme (L.) Gaertn (Verbenaceae), and Leucas aspera Spr. (Lamiaceae), which showed anti-MCV and anti- HSV activities at a concentration as low as 0.4 μg/mL.

In Southeast Asia the flowers of Clitoria ternatea are used to colour food. In Malay cooking, an aqueous extract is used to colour glutinous rice for kuih ketan (also known as pulut tai tai in Peranakan/Nyonya cooking) and in nonya chang. In Thailand, a syrupy blue drink is made called nam dok anchan (น้ำดอกอัญชัน), it is sometimes consumed with a drop of lime juice to increase acidity and turn the juice into pink-purple. In Burmese and Thai cuisine the flowers are also dipped in batter and fried.  Read more on :  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clitoria_ternatea

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on
www.aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact :
aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Salones de Te and Llajwa : spices in Bolivia

Read in Wikipedia : " Strangely, and very much like the British, Bolivians observe an afternoon tea break. Usually the tea breaks take place around 4 and 5 pm at salones de té' (tea rooms). These tea rooms often double as bakeries so that tea and pastries are enjoyed together. Cups of black tea are usually taken with biscuits such as Galletas Maria. Often, Bolivians drink yerba maté in place of the more common black tea."  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivian_cuisine

Do " salones de te "  and Llajwa (Spicy Bolivian Salsa) contribute to the low cancer rates of Bolivia ?
Read on : http://www.hispanic-culture-online.com/bolivian-food.html#ixzz2Y85cEpkV
Bolivian recipes include potatoes, which Bolivians love and serve several times per day.. Bolivians use spices like ajíes and peppers in large amounts. They also use the same cooking tools as other people when making foods like lechon, and tools for grinding and spreading the condiments and spices. Bolivia makes use of a multitude of spices in their cooking as they abundant in the country... "

More on the Llajwa , spicy Bolivian salsa http://boliviancookbook.wordpress.com/sauces/llajua-spicy-bolivian-salsa/

A Spiced Breakfast – The Flip Side of Quinoa
http://naturallygreencooking.com/2013/02/24/a-spiced-breakfast-the-fli-side-of-quinoa/

 

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Wouldn't various teas be a better protection than the single Camellia sinensis

The UK has lower cancer rates than the rest of Europe. Is it related to the habit of drinking tea ? " .. when confounding factors like poor diet and smoking are avoided and animals are given nutritionally balanced food, cancer protection by tea clearly can be observed. " http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/sp-su99/tea.html But wouldn't various teas be a better protection than the single Camellia sinensis ?

My child has a sore throat and refuses to take syrups, what can I do ?

Acanthus abracteatus a plant found in the mangroves of south-east Asia and available at almost all herbal stores in the South East Asian region is one solution ( it is also available at www.aleyagarden.com  ) : dried and sold in capsules it is an efficient remedy, versatile, ready to use and cheap. At the onset of the inflammation a bit of a capsule poured in a sweet drink such as a favorite chocolate milk with honey and lemon juice is proven effective by countless uses. Some introduce also curcuma powder to the recipe to add many nutriments and a flavor.


 
 

Beyond its activity on sore throat Acanthus ebracteatus has been studied for its effects on tumor angiogenesis and on tumor growth in nude mice implanted with cervical cancer : read more on http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3437799/

 

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Make with Citrus hystrix ( Bergamot ) a low-cost shampoo that does not make your head itch

Are you looking for a shampoo that does not make your head itch ?

Among others a natural low-cost and low-tech shampoo that is said to work very well is the infusion of Citrus hystrix ( Bergamot ) in molasse ( the by-product of sugar cane ). Or brown sugar instead of molasses. But the infusion takes - at least - 7 days ...

Some people don't use molasses or brown sugar and just let Citrus hystrix boil in water until the texture is soft ( this takes about one hour ), mix in the blender and press : this liquid is the shampoo - they say this shampoo is even better than mixed in sugar - http://www.aleyagarden.com/heandbaapsh.html  

 

 

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Herb - infused Honey : is alcohol necessary ?

An elixir ( Wikipedia ) is a "..  hydro-alcoholic solution of at least one active ingredient. The alcohol is mainly used to:

• Solubilize the active ingredient(s) and some excipients
• Retard the crystallization of sugar
• Preserve the finished product
• Provide a sharpness to the taste
• Aid in masking the unpleasant taste of the active ingredient(s)
• Enhance the flavor .. "

Alternatively it is common to replace alcohol with honey as the solvent of dry herbs in a recipe.

Cold infusion is for this the simplest method : place the herbs in a jar, cover them with honey and allow the blend to sit for 2 weeks, then press through a fine mesh strainer. This is slow and can result in a sticky mess hence hot infusion may be preferred : as honey is heated it absorbs flavor faster and becoming thinner it is easier to pour. The hot infusion method is usually done with a double boiler to prevent the honey from burning.

Infused honey stored at room temperature will keep indefinitely, refrigeration would cause crystallization.

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Popular African spice blends

Some popular African spice blends include curcuma, galangal, anise, mace, tamarind, cardamom, cloves, pepper, cumin, nutmeg, chilies, cilantro, cinnamon, fenugreek, garlic, ginger, mint, onions, parsley, sesame, fennel seeds, garlic, lavender ...
Among them in Northern Africa are the notorious Harissa from Tunisia, the Chermoula, the Egyptian Dukkah, in Morocco the La Kama, the Berber blend and the Ras-el-hanout.  

Ras-el-hanout is known to include up to 50 plant ingredients mixed to favor couscous, tajines (slow-cooked stews) and rice.  Learn the recipes on wikispices.com

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Uncooked freshwater fish and some Thai fermented products : risks of viral infections

For their survival in the adverse environments of the hot and humid tropical forests, plants develop the ability to synthesize a wider variety of protective chemical compounds than temperate plants; these potent phytochemicals scavenge free radicals and reduce oxidants, with beneficial effects on long-term health when consumed by humans.

 Since ancestral times, generations of the large and diverse population in India have been using tropical plants for their diets - India has one of the lowest incidence of cancers in the world,  in 2008 the Age-standardised incidence rates per 100,000 men were 360.5 in Australia but only 92.9 in India : almost 4 times less ! Similar rates are observed in the Arabian Peninsula closely linked with Asian spices throughout its history.

  Wherever in the world, as long as traditional lifestyles are associated with nutrition habits centered on a variety of whole tropical herbs and spices they protect against cancer and other diseases.  Not all traditional habits are healthy however : in south East Asia the consumption of freshwater uncooked fish or the different types of fermented fish and pork products is known to spread viral infections that cause hepatitis,

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Hawayij : recipe of a protective spice blend of Saudi Arabia

Many observers believe that the Hawayij blend of Saudi Arabia in traditional diets has health

benefits :


Ingredients :
• 2 Tablespoons black pepper - Piper nigrum -
• 1 Tablespoon caraway seed - Carum carvi -
• ½ teaspoon cardamom seed - These are of the genus Elettaria , commonly called cardamom, green cardamom, or true cardamom, distributed from India to Malaysia or of the genus Amomum commonly known as black or brown cardamom, kravan, Java cardamom, Siamese cardamom, white cardamom, or red cardamom and distributed mainly in Asia and Australia -
• 1 teaspoon saffron threads - spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus native to Greece or South West Asia -
• 1 teaspoon turmeric - Curcuma longa native to tropical South Asia -

Recipe :
Black pepper, caraway and cardamom seeds are toasted and stirred over high heat for 2–3 minutes with a wooden spoon and ground in a mortar to a powder. Then the dried slices of Curcuma longa are ground and added with the saffron threads to the mortar and mixed. Read more on the role of spices in the Saudi Arabian cuisine : http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/198802/the.flavors.of.arabia.htm

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com

Moringa oleifera and Caesalpinia pulcherrima extracts tested for mosquito repellent activity

Have you ever wondered if you could make yourself a mosquito repellent lotion that would not be toxic to your skin ? the Asia Pacific Journal of Biomedicine has an answer with reports of tests including starved mosquitos ready to bite ( three species ), human volunteers with arms in a cage, one being covered with extracts of Moringa oleifera and Caesalpinia pulcherrima : at a concentration of 5 mg per cm2 of skin, the extract of  Caesalpinia pulcherrima   is 100 % efficient 3 hours; see the chart  ! Here is the article.
Leucas aspera is an other plant known in Asia for its traditional use as insect repellent.

Herbs and Spices, Hoya, Hoya seeds, Orchid seeds, Ferns, Fern spores are for sale on aleyagarden.com Plant care is available in various posts of this blog. Contact : aleyagarden@hotmail.com