How to Make Herbal Tinctures from Dried Herbs I have several tincture recipes posted (including my two favorites: Chamomile Tincture and Digestion Tincture ) but I realized that a post with general instructions on how to make a tincture from any herbs would be helpful. A tincture is a concentrated liquid form of an herb that is easy to make and easy to take. Tinctures preserve and concentrate the properties of the herb, making them more effective and longer lasting. Alcohol based tinctures have a shelf life of several years and are easy to use when needed! If you’ve ever bought tinctures from the store, I’d encourage you to try making your own, as they are very inexpensive to make and can be made in minutes. Tincture Making Supplies: I make most tinctures in an alcohol base as this makes them the most long lasting, but tinctures can also be made with glycerine, vinegar or even with honey to make a syrup! To make a tincture, you will need the following supplies: How to Make a Tincture: First, pick which herbs you plan to use.
What is Leptin? Welcome! If you want to lose weight, gain muscle, increase energy levels or just generally look and feel healthier you've come to the right place. Here's where to start: Visit the Start Here and Primal Blueprint 101 pages to learn more about the Primal Lifestyle. Thanks for visiting! Just about every physiological process occurring under the hood can be attributed to one hormone or another. One crucial hormone that we’re still learning about is leptin. By counteracting the effects of neuropeptide Y, a potent feeding stimulant secreted by the hypothalamus and certain gut cells.By counteracting the effects of anandamide, another feeding stimulant.By promoting the production of a-MSH, an appetite suppressant. Leptin is secreted by fat cells and is received by receptors in the hypothalamus. Put simply: long-term, leptin signals that the body has adequate adipose tissue (energy) stores; short-term, leptin signals that the body has had enough to eat. But why are so many people so overweight?
All Natural Herbal Hair Color Recipes Since I posted by recipes for homemade shampoo and DIY dry shampoo I’ve gotten a few emails asking about natural/herbal options for hair color. I’ve experimented with natural hair lightening in the past, but hadn’t tried dark or red shades. Many wasted herbs and a bunch of randomly colored streaks on the underside of my hair later, I figured out some good dark and red options as well! I started with sandy blonde hair, so I used the lightening herbs on most of my head, and I’m the blondest I’ve been since childhood (with some interesting red/brown streaks underneath). These are natural colors and as such will create natural hues on your hair. Also, I haven’t tried these on dyed/chemically treated hair, so I don’t know how it reacts with those types of hair! Herbs for Light Hair I’ve tried several basic herbal variations including: Pure, strong Chamomile Tea (brewed with 1/2 cup herbs per 2 cups water) and sprayed or poured on hair and left on for several hours. Ingredients: Ingredients:
Why Tea Is So Healthy for You (and How to Get the Most from Every Cup) Growing Herbs, Planting Herbs, How to Grow Herbs The best tips for growing herbs indoors, outdoors, and in container herb gardens. Learn how to plant and care for herbs when home gardening. Plant a kitchen herb garden to supply fresh herbs to spice up your meals. Design Your Own Vegetable Garden Layout Using our Free "Vegetable Garden Planner" Software! Why Grow an Herb Garden? The practice of planting herbs has been undertaken on every continent for hundreds of years. Herbs are prized for their scents, medicinal properties, and seasoning qualities in gardening, aromatherapy, arts and crafts, home remedies, and cooking. Planting a small sized kitchen herb garden supplies a wide range of flavorful, therapeutic, and fragrant herbs. Download Free Garden Planning Worksheets, Garden Diary, Zone Chart, Or Planting Guide Common Types of Herb Gardens Visiting herb gardens is the best way to decide on which plants to select and where to place your garden. Indoor Herb Gardening Many herbs can be successfully grown indoors in a container herb garden.
The Energy of Food: Receive Greater Health From What You Eat digg HJ: Plants, which eventually become our food, as living, breathing things, have an aura — just as we do. This aura can be considered the energetic signature of a given food or plant and like our aura it can be repaired, magnified and even damaged through certain cooking or growing methods (eg. microwaving, conventional farming utilizing high synthetic inputs, etc.). The aura of a food is the general reflection of the state of health it is in and has a direct correlation with the physical and energetic nutrition it transfers to us when we eat it. I find that these types of experiences tend to happen after eating at events which have a focus on higher consciousness and healing. Food can also be charged with special devices that have been created based on various sacred sciences, which also amplify or repair any existing vibration in the food one eats. - Truth Prana You Can Eat By Dr. Prana is the energy that creates and constitutes the whole universe. In the USA, Drs. Dr.
The Lazy Lady’s Guide to DIY: Hanging Herb Garden in Ladyguides on Persephone Magazine. At some point near the middle of March, I always decide that I’m “done” with winter. The sweaters and jackets get pushed to the back of the closet, the flip flops come out, and I inevitably freeze my butt off for several weeks until the weather catches up with my warm-weather state of mind. Likewise, my cravings for fresh herbs and veggies are always a little ahead of the season. Growing your own herbs is a great way to save money and avoid buying too much at a time and letting most of it go to waste. What you’ll need: Tin containers with snap-on plastic lids (tea, cocoa, and coffee cans are a good bet), coat hangers, pliers, scissors, herbs (I bought basil, rosemary, dill, and cilantro for about $2.50 each), masking tape, coffee filters, a nail, a hammer, X-acto knife, scrap fabric or paper, and glue or spray adhesive. After you’ve emptied and cleaned your cans, remove the bottom of the can with a can opener. Slide the bottom inside the can, holding it up from inside. Happy growing!
Counteracting Acidic Diet Reduces Markers of Bone Loss in Older Adults BOSTON, Dec. 3 -- Alkaline compounds, whether from supplements or a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, may counteract bone loss in healthy older adults, researchers said. Increasing alkaline content of the diet with bicarbonate supplementation significantly reduced levels of the bone turnover markers urinary N-telopeptide and calcium excretion (both P=0.001), Bess Dawson-Hughes, M.D., of Tufts University here, and colleagues found in a randomized controlled trial. Because fruits and vegetables are metabolized to bicarbonate, a dietary approach may have a similar effect, they wrote in the January issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. "Increasing intake of alkali merits further consideration as a safe and low-cost approach to improving skeletal health in older men and women," they said. However, supplements may be an easier solution, the researchers noted. MOST READ IN Primary Care false
Edible Flowers, How to choose Edible Flowers, Eatable Flowers, Edible Flower Chart, List of Edible Flowers, Incredible Edible Flowers Edible flowers are the new rage in haute cuisine Photo of edible flowers picked in Linda's garden in July (lavender, thyme, dill, cilantro, day lily, squash blossom, Nasturtiums, chives, and basil). After falling out of favor for many years, cooking and garnishing with flowers is back in vogue once again. Flower cookery has been traced back to Roman times, and to the Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Indian cultures. Edible flowers were especially popularin the Victorian era during Queen Victoria's reign. Today, many restaurant chefs and innovative home cooks garnish their entrees with flower blossoms for a touch of elegance. One very important thing that you need to remember is that not every flower is edible. In fact, sampling some flowers can make you very, very sick. You also should NEVER use pesticides or other chemicals on any part of any plant that produces blossoms you plan to eat. Never harvest flowers growing by the roadside. How To Choose Edible Flowers - Edible Flower Chart: Directions:
See What Happens When You Eat Garlic On an Empty Stomach Not everyone thinks that eating garlic on an empty stomach is beneficial. You may often hear people say that it is only your grandmother and her friends who think that this home remedy is really beneficial. However, it is actually quite effective in preventing and treating many diseases. Scientists have conducted many studies and the results showed that when you consume garlic before you eat or drink anything will only increase its power, making it an extremely strong natural antibiotic. Why is it Good to Eat Garlic on an Empty Stomach Many people have found that garlic can actually relieve the symptoms of hypertension. Garlic is also efficient in treating stomach problems, such as diarrhea. As we already mentioned, garlic is really effective in treating stomach problems – it stimulates proper digestion and good appetite. Garlic is popular for its health benefits in every part of the world. Garlic And Alternative Medicine Other Health Benefits of Garlic What Should You Remember
Building a Square Foot or Raised Garden Box with Wood | My Square Foot Garden This spring my friend Tara and I tackled this project together. Here’s a list of materials and costs: wood (two 16′ 2×10 boards, one 8′ 2×10 board-$31 total)16 corner brackets ($.56 each, $9)wood stain (1 can from the “oops” pile-$5)screws ($5)miscellaneous parts ($3)weed mat (free)kite string (free)1 bale peat moss ($8)1 bag perlite ($13)3 bags chicken compost ($11)11 bags steer compost ($15)6 gallon bucket of coffee grounds (free) Total Cost: $100 Tools and equipment: electric drillscissorsshovelglovespaintbrush First, of course, we made a plan. We made a bit of a mistake at HD-we allowed the store employee to pick our boards for us (they were heavy!). Since we knew the exact lengths we needed, we had the HD employee to cut the wood right there. We lay the boards on a flat surface (patio) and screwed the corner brackets on the insides. Upon the advice of the guy at HD, we bought stain and stained the boxes. One of us stained, while the other prepped the area. Voila! Happy gardening!
When To Test Blood Sugar After Meals For some reason the past week brought me a bunch of emails all asking the same question: Are we supposed to test our blood sugar one hour after we start or end a meal? As is true with everything involving diabetes the answer is not simple due to variations in individual blood sugar responses. The reason we test one hour after a meals is to learn how high our blood sugar goes in response to the specific meal. So we want to be testing at the moment when our blood sugar is at its peak. Studies tell us something about the average time it takes for the carbohydrate in our food to turn into blood sugar (carbohydrates are the main nutrient that causes elevated blood sugars). That explains why the same meal consumed at the same time by two different people may peak at different times--and why I can't tell you exactly when to test. That's why you might try varying the time at which you test a carefully chosen test meal to see if your personal peak is later than average. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Square Foot Gardening Soil--Mel's Mix | My Square Foot Garden You may be asking “whose mix”? Mel Bartholemew is the author of All New Square Foot Gardening and the founder of the square foot gardening method. He recommends filling your garden boxes with a special mix, instead of dirt. Here’s the mix, how much it cost, and the benefits: Mel’s Mix 1/3 vermiculite1/3 peat moss1/3 compost (from as many sources as possible) This is done by volume. The Cost I was able to buy the peat moss and compost at WalMart or Home Depot, but I only found the vermiculite at IFA Country Stores (Intermountain Farmers Association). 2 large bags (3.5 cu ft) vermiculite, $18.00 each1 large bale (3.8 cu ft compressed, expands to be more) peat moss, $9.008 bags (1 cu ft) compost, $2.00 each (average price)6 extra bags (1 cu ft) compost, $2.00 each (average price)TOTAL COST (three 4′x4′ boxes): $73.00 The Benefits Why not just use dirt? Planting and germination–Mel’s mix is much lighter than dirt, and it doesn’t get compacted down because you never walk on it. Cost Savers Update
Effect of skipping breakfast on subsequent energy intake.