Putting my herbs to the Test

Well for the very first time in a long time i have come down with a wind-cold attack. Frankly speaking i have a cold. As i am in training for the Noosa triathlon and have been expending exuberant amounts of energy into work and training, finally something had to succumb, and that was my health. Struck down with a cold and going against my own advice. I know exactly when i caught this wind-cold attack and it was from not wearing enough layers of clothing on bike on my way back to work from training.

So this afternoon i had to leave the office. Bag packed with some King Tim Cough Syrup and a batch of powdered herbs. As i have a close friend down from Brisbane for the weekend, i thought to myself i really don't have anytime to be under the weather. I have work in the morning and commitments in the afternoon.

As a Chinese herbalist i decided to let my herbs speak for themselves or pardon the pun let the feet do the walking. My challenge to myself is too see by tomorrow morning, mid morning that my cold will be almost gone (completely) and i will be a functioning human being!

Tonight for dinner I've had my soup that i prescribe for my clients, desert was a dose of King Tim, my trusted herbal prescription and a multivitamin. A hot shower to follow and into my pyjamas, couch, DVD and blanket.

The Common Cold

The Common Cold and Spring

The season of spring brings not only the warmer weather but also the wind. This time of year i will often see lots of clients with common colds. Generally, the common cold is often caused by an invasion of wind and cold. The areas which are most affected are exposed necks, backs and heads. During spring i advise you to keep warm by wearing a scarf and avoid the wind if possible.
The typical symptoms of a common cold consist of: sore, tight neck, runny nose, headache, chills.

If you feel you are coming down with a cold the best home remedy for the common cold is:

Miso Soup
3 spring onions, white parts only, coarsely chopped
2 slices of ginger, 20 cent piece
2 sprigs of mint

Add spring onions and ginger to saucepan, adding 2-3 cups of water. Bring to boil then for the last couple of minutes add mint.

Strain liquid into miso soup and eat/drink.

If you get the cold just when its starting- on its first day. You will stop it in its track. I have this everytime i'm coming down with a cold! It works like a treat and suprisingly tastes good!!

Why do our stomach's make loud noises?

Yesterday i had one of my clients ask me why her stomach makes loud noises? This is an interesting question, as from time to time we all hear our stomach's talking to us. The term used to describe such noises is called “borborygmus”. The word borborygmus is known as an onomatopoeia; a word created to sound like the noise or event that it represents. The Ancient Greeks were the first to use the word in effort to describe the sound made by a hungry stomach.

Borborygmi- the growl or rumble occurs most often when we are hungry,
or just after we have eaten a meal. It originates in the stomach or upper part
of the small intestines as muscles contract to clean house, moving food and
digestive juices down the digestive tract. The intensity of sound differs
according to the intensity of the contractions and the contents of the stomach
and intestines.

Borborygmi is not an inherited trait or condition. It is possible
(whether you realize it or not) that you suffer from alactasia
(or lactose intolerance) – an inherited condition
causing the lack of the enzyme needed to digest milk sugar.
Try modifying your diet and see if you get better results.
If you eliminate milk and milk products (cheese,creams, etc.) from your diet
for a few days you may note a dramatic drop in the frequency (no pun intended)
in the noise or it may stop altogether.
Otherwise, for the time being at least if this embarrassing situation happens
to you in the library, or some other quiet setting where others can hear it,
a temporary solution that sometimes helps is to apply a bit of pressure to
your abdomen or simply slip a cracker or cookie into your mouth to “fool”
your stomach into believing that there is more to come.
Both of these solutions seem to work for most people.