Throughout history saffron has been used for many things. Although it is known as the most expensive spice in the world, it was and still is commonly used as a dye and as a spice by wealthy people in many parts of the world. Crocus sativus, also known as saffron, is one of the most expensive spices in the world due to the extensive harvesting process which has to be done manually. While it is historically known for being a spice as well as a dye, it also has been discovered to have some very interesting medicinal effects, such as improving glycemia (diabetes), reducing cancer, and improving impotency in males. Because of these recent discoveries, humans must have wanted to produce saffron for more biological reasons than to be visual or pleasing to the palate.
Originally known as Crocus cartwrightianus, the saffron plant belongs to the family Iridaceae which contains many varieties of lilies (M. Camper, AGRI/IE 116 lecture, October 7, 2013). Over the course of history, Crocus sativus has been completely domesticated and therefore relies on human intervention to pollinate the plant so it can reproduce (M. Camper, AGRI/IE 116 lecture, October 7, 2013). It is a perennial bulb that flowers in the fall and contains two flowers per bulb (M. Camper, AGRI/IE 116 lecture, October 7, 2013). The stigma of the flowers is the part of the plant that is harvested to produce what we know as saffron (M. Camper, AGRI/IE 116 lecture, October 7, 2013). It was originally used in Egypt by healers in order to treat urinary infections, internal hemorrhaging and poisoning (M. Camper, AGRI/IE 116 lecture, October 7, 2013). It can also be poisonous in high doses, however the quantity found in most food won’t have these effects. The first documentation of i...
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Ultima, an elderly curandera, teaches a young boy about herbal remedies by gathering plants growing in the llano to cure the sick. She uses herbs like juniper, yerba del manso, oregano, manzanilla, and osha. Juniper can be used for nausea, headaches, and even some bug bites. It is also used for ceremonial fires. “Of all the plants we gathered none was endowed with so much magic as the yerba del manso” (Anya 39). Yerba del manso could cure burns, sores, piles, colic in babies, bleeding dysentery, and even rheumatism. Oregano can be used for coughs, fever, asthma, and bronchitis. “We wandered on and found some oregano, and we gathered plenty because this was not only a cure for coughs and fever but a spice my mother used for beans and meat" (Anya 40). Ultima also gathers an herb called manzanilla. Manzanilla is used to calm anxiety and settle stomachs. It also eases heartburn, nausea, and vomiting. Ultima uses it to cure a man’s mollera illness. “We were also lucky to find some osha, because this plant grows better in the mountains . It is like yerba del manso, a cure for everything” (Anya 40). Osha helps with coughs, colds, cuts, bruises, stomach troubles and rheumatism. It can also keep poisonous snakes
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Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and Western Medicine (WM) differ from each other in many ways. TCM favors a holistic approach, views the universe and body philosophically and develops inductive tools and methods to guide restoring the total balance of the body. In Chinese medicine, the correct balance between Yin and Yang make up the vital energy, Qi, an essential life-sustaining substance of which all things are made. Some Traditional remedies include herbal medicines, acupuncture, massage and moxibustion, an herbal heat therapy. Western medicine is closely linked to the scientific method and emphasizes biochemical processes causes disease, its treatment and health. This form of treatment views all medical phenomena as cause-effect sequences and relies on drugs, radiation and surgery to alleviate symptoms and cure diseases. As you see, the two types of medicine are completely challenged differently depending on the doctor, the diagnosis, and the treatment options. All of these are completely different when compared with each other.
Garden cress, botanically was called Cardomine, a diminutive of Cardamom, called in Latin Nasturtium, sometimes called nose-smart ( kara-damon, Heart-afflicting), so nasturtium is nasi-tortium ( nose-twisting), called so in sequence of its pungency, Called Ladies smock because the flowers resemble linen exposed to whiten on grass. There is, however, a purple tint which mars its perfect whiteness.
Herbal products are medicinal agents obtained from the plants. It’s all started 100 years ago by ancient people. Since synthetic medicine are not yet invented by that time, ancient people had invented medicine out of the plants. Through generations the original herbal medicine had been modified due to the new knowledge discovered and technologies invented.