As you chop apples and nuts for Passover haroset or put
finishing touches on Easter dinner, be thankful that herbs can save
your life. Wars and plagues have always been with us. Today, the war
in Iraq can be viewed on TV in real time, and germs, dangerous by
themselves, can be weaponized to become still more deadly. SARS
(sudden acute respiratory syndrome) is only a coming attraction of
future plagues. Germ warfare on the human race, whether the germs
originate in nature or a laboratory, has already begun. Remember last
year's anthrax plague? This and future newsletters can help you and
your family survive with herbs used for centuries by traditional
Chinese doctors and cooks.

The Bible's Book of Exodus tells us that 3,000 years ago, when
the Israelites were enslaved under the rule of Pharaoh Ramses II, God
selected Moses to demand freedom for his people. When Pharaoh
refused, God sent down plagues on the Egyptian people--frogs, lice,
flies, cattle disease, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally
the death of firstborn children. Plagues in modern times--carried by
the blood or feces of cattle, pigs, rodents, or the U.S. Postal
Service--can spread with great rapidity because of air travel. On the
Internet you can read headlines from everywhere about the spread of
SARS. As of this writing, the World Health Organization believes that
both chlamydia (a bacteria normally transmitted sexually) and the
coronavirus (commonly found in animals) could be "sources of SARS."
In two days, the epidemic has jumped from 60 cases in the U.S. to
115. It may become even worse then we fear because the means of
transmission are not necessarily identical with the source.

Do you imagine that Asians have given up all business travel? A
resounding "bu-se!" China has survived wars and plagues for thousands
of years. The earliest textbook of Chinese herbal medicine for the
control of epidemic disease was written after a doctor had lost his
entire family to a plague. That same herbal tradition is at work
today. The Chinese language press and media in America have caused a
run on herb shops in our Chinatowns. Before you buy a face mask,
avoid public places where people sneeze, or allow your kids to be
whisked away to quarantine when their classmates cough, consider
adding Chinese antibiotic, moistening, and immune-enhancing herbs--
these are recommended to prevent and treat symptoms of SARS. Hospital
care, if you catch the disease, can do little more than keep you
quiet, hydrated, and isolated.

Here are simple ways to help you and your family stay well despite
the dangers we all face:
• Avoid indigestion by turning OFF the news at mealtime.
• Add moistening foods as needed such as asparagus, cooked
oatmeal,
almonds, tofu, rice and soy milk, and soups.
• For thick mucus, sluggish digestion, and water retention with
joint
aches, avoid aspirin, which weakens the body¹s ability to release
uric acid and increases bleeding stomach ulcers. Instead, eat
watermelon and cook the rind as a tea, a good source of potassium.
Eat celery, a source of natural sodium that makes joints supple.
• To protect against radiation and tone the thyroid, place one
drop
of iodine on the skin daily and let it absorb. If it still shows the
following day, stop and continue when it disappears.

Asian Medicinal Mushrooms
Shiitake and Reishi are wonderful foods that promote health and
rejuvenation because they have natural antiviral and antibacterial
effects. They help to prevent cancer and heart trouble and reduce
arthritic discomforts. If you do not like a bitter flavor, add reishi
extract to red wine. It reduces junk food cravings as it helps
eliminate extra pounds.

Instant Chi Gung for Improved Fitness and Mood
I heard of a Chinese master who honed down his chi gung exercises to
a two hour routine. In New York or L.A., anyone who can afford to
spend two hours daily should consider getting a life.
Here is a quick form of meridian massage useful for anyone who wants
to increase endurance, brighten mood, and strongly detoxify the body.
Add one cup of liquid bleach or apple cider vinegar to warm bath
water. Antibacterial bleach removes dead skin to enhance sweating. It
dries the skin, should not be used more than once or twice weekly,
and requires lubrication afterwards. Vinegar is mild and helps
detoxify the liver and blood. During the soak, do the following
movements (several times each) for fifteen minutes:
• Rub hands together to warm them and dry wash face and scalp
• Massage around the eyes
• Pinch the face all around the hairline and chin several times
• Massage behind the ears by squeezing them together top and
bottom
• Massage each breast with circular motion then reverse direction
• Rub hands together and sweep arms from elbow to hands
• Rub with circular movements at navel and on back; reverse hands
• Rub hands together and sweep from knees to ankles
• Rub bottoms and tops of feet firmly.

Increase Resistance with the Ginseng.
You can use ginseng or other tonics such as astragalus (huang qi) in
pills or powders. You can cook ginseng slices in water for an hour or
in soup. I steep a root for three weeks in a bottle of vodka or gin
to make an extract and use 20 drops to 1/2 shot once or twice daily
as needed. The alcohol extracts healing properties from the herb and
maintains freshness for a year or more.

Chinese ginseng - Weakness, low sexual vitality, rheumatism, low
blood pressure
American ginseng - Fevers, thirst, night sweats, diabetes, sweet
tooth
Siberian ginseng - High Anxiety, insomnia, poor memory, nerve pain
Tienchi ginseng - Bruising, internal bleeding, poor circulation,
angina

Daily Beverages and Tea Sweeteners
These simple home remedies can take the edge off anxiety
because they improve symptoms of an upper respiratory tract infection
without weakening the body. Add the appropriate herbs or spices to
tea as needed for weakness, cough, fever, and dry mouth. When used
for prevention, adjust the dose for your comfort. Chills and diarrhea
signal that you have overdosed on antiinflammatory herbs.

Antibiotic herbs used for colds and sore throat are bitter.
Sweeten cold tea with honey or warm tea with loquat cough syrup as
needed. Spices are also tasty. You might add a pinch of honeysuckle
flowers to steep with your morning green tea, but you need to improve
the flavor by adding cardamon or fennel seed powder. If tea increases
bloating, pain or diarrhea, add spicy caraway seed powder. If you
feel weak, achy and cold most of the time, if you wheeze or have
shortness of breath walking up stairs or after sex, add a pinch of
clove powder to water or tea. Clove is a strong adrenal stimulant
useful for incontinence and sexual weakness. It has been recommended
for weakness in TB. If you perspire too frequently from fatigue, make
a tea from sage leaves.

The following herbal granules make nice beverage sweeteners
that your kids can enjoy:

Isatis Instant Beverage (Ban Lan Gen) recommended for fever and
headaches from malaria, encephalitis and other epidemic disease
Sheshecao (oldenlandia diffusa) for fever, skin blemishes, anxiety,
insomnia
Lo Han Kuo Instant Beverage for dry mouth and throat, feverish cough
Honeysuckle and chrysanthemum Instant beverage for sore throat,
colds
Yin/Yang Sisters Instant Beverages "Clean Habits" and "Breathe Free."
These powdered herbs can be added to juice or water. Call: (212) 962
5417.


Heavy Duty Herbs for Lung Infections
These are bitter tasting, strongly antibiotic herbs. Use pills
or add the powder to empty capsules and take 3 - 6 daily for dry
cough either without mucus or with thick yellow or green mucus. If
watery diarrhea occurs, reduce the dose. AVOID echinacea, which
increases inflammation, dry cough, and dizziness.

Yu xing Cao (Houttuynia cordata) has significant inhibitory
effects against streptococcus pneumonia, staphylococcus infections,
and has lowered mortality in tuberculosis. It inhibits influenza and
is usually recommended for dry cough with yellow-green sputum, lung
abscess, and painful urinary dysfunction. This can be combined with
Platycodi Grandiflori (ji geng) for lung abscess, fever and cough
with fetid sputum. Add honeysuckle flowers, chrysanthemum flowers,
and dandelion herb for abscesses and boils.

Chuan Xin Lian pills (Andrographis paniculata) for swollen neck
glands, sore throat, infections, and fever. The normal dose is 3 -4
pills three times daily, but use a dose that eases symptoms.

Powdered isatis leaf (da qing ye) and stem (ban lan gen) are by
far the strongest forms of this antibiotic plant often recommended
for fever, mumps, and painful swollen throat conditions and jaundice.
Isatis has an inhibitory effect against shigella, dysentery,
salmonella and leptospirosis.

In the case of cross-species diseases such as leptospirosis, the
infection has crossed over from animals to man--like a plague from
the Bible. According to the Miller-Keane Medical Dictionary,
2000, "leptospirosis" refers to a group of infectious diseases due to
certain serotypes of Leptospira. The best known is Weil's disease;
others are mud fever, and autumn fever. The germ is a spiral organism
that infects the kidneys of cattle, swine, dogs, cats, rats, and
other animals. The organisms are spread through animal urine. The
germ enters humans through skin abrasions. The disease is most common
among people who handle infected animals.

Like SARS, leptospirosis begins with fever, acute headache,
chills, and sometimes nausea and vomiting. Only rarely is the disease
fatal. Vaccines for animals provide only partial immunity to the
disease and there are no vaccines for human beings. Improved
sanitation is necessary, especially in parts of the world where human
and animal waste is used as fertilizer. A cross-species disease could
be a deadly pandemic waiting to happen. By nature, it has the basis
of a stealth weapon: It is hard to identify and isolate. It moves
quickly and freely between people and animals and causes internal
damage.

It is heartening to think that Chinese herbal medicine has
treated such illnesses since the days when Adam, Eve, and the Serpent
haggled over the apple. Passover and Easter celebrations include
sharing traditional foods with family. Pungent herbs like parsley,
dandelion, and hyssop may remind us of the bitterness of slavery.
However, the slavery of ignorance and prejudice do great harm. To an
herbalist, bitter herbs are deeply cleansing and often antibiotic.
They clear the way for future health and beauty. May the season bring
you and yours happiness.

HERB OF THE WEEK

If you prefer using foods instead of vitamin supplements to
improve health, make sure the food has concentrated nutritional
value. Make sure it is a super food. PuraPharm Lingzhi Health
Strengthen Formula is made from top quality wild Ling zhi, using the
latest low temperature extraction method to preserve all the active
ingredients of the original herbs. Every batch is certified to
consist of not less than 25% Polysaccharides. It is one of the
Lingzhi products with the highest concentration of Polysaccharides
that can strengthen the immune system, promote blood circulation,
reduce fatigue, and prevent pre-mature aging.

The best way to use an extremely important herb such as ling zhi
is to take it when it cannot be eliminated from the body. It may be
taken with food that is not strongly spiced. Never mix it with coffee
or tea because they are cleansing. I prefer taking a capsule before
bed on an empty stomach. I even enjoy its bitter taste. The healing
powder is quickly absorbed by mouth and is carries by the blood to
reduce inflammation in blood vessels near the heart. It is deeply
soothing and calming for me to consume a "tree spirit" that has
healed and protected us since the time of the dinosaurs.