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Friday, January 29, 2010

Random Hints and Tips

Use turmeric extract and curcurmin for health and taste. It turns out that turmeric is being touted as a healthy spice. It is claimed to have a whole laundry list of health benefits:

1. It is a natural antiseptic and antibacterial agent, useful in disinfecting cuts and burns.
2. When combined with cauliflower, it has shown to prevent prostate cancer and stop the growth of existing prostate cancer.
3. Prevented breast cancer from spreading to the lungs in mice.
4. May prevent melanoma and cause existing melanoma cells to commit suicide.
5. Reduces the risk of childhood leukemia.
6. Is a natural liver detoxifier.
7. May prevent and slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease by removing amyloyd plaque buildup in the brain.
8. May prevent metastases from occurring in many different forms of cancer.
9. It is a potent natural anti-inflammatory that works as well as many anti-inflammatory drugs but without the side effects.
10. Has shown promise in slowing the progression of multiple sclerosis in mice.
11. Is a natural painkiller and cox-2 inhibitor.
12. May aid in fat metabolism and help in weight management.
13. Has long been used in Chinese medicine as a treatment for depression.
14. Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, it is a natural treatment for arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
15. Boosts the effects of chemo drug paclitaxel and reduces its side effects.
16. Promising studies are underway on the effects of turmeric on pancreatic cancer.
17. Studies are ongoing in the positive effects of turmeric on multiple myeloma.
18. Has been shown to stop the growth of new blood vessels in tumors.
19. Speeds up wound healing and assists in remodeling of damaged skin.
20. May help in the treatment of psoriasis and other inflammatory skin conditions.
Turmeric can be taken in powder or pill form. It is available in pill form in most health food stores, usually in 250-500mg capsules.
http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/20-health-benefits-of-turmeric.html

The active (medicinal) ingredient in turmeric is curcumin, this is what gives it the yellow color, and it has the medicinal properties listed above. You will not get much curcumin in the bottle of turmeric you get from the spice section of the store, in order to get medicinal quantities you will need to get the concentrated forms also known as an extract found in pill form, these usually come in 250 to 500 mg per pill, you need to read the label to make sure you are getting 95% curcumin. If you wanted to get that much curcumin from your spice jar, you would need to consume a full ounce (28 grams) of turmeric each day, there is approximately 2% curcumin in un-concentrated turmeric. What I do is I use turmeric as a spice in as much food as I can each day, and take a turmeric supplement each day.

Here is a great source for bulk quantity of turmeric extract (curcumin) in powder form,
http://purebulk.com/curcumin-turmeric-extract-powder
It is not recommended for pregnant women, it can cause uterine contractions, I wonder if any midwives have used this to help encourage contractions during a birth? Just a thought.
Also, don't use it if you are allergic to this or ginger, they are a related.


Recycle spray bottles - use for:
Bleach water - you can use this even if you have a septic system without worry of damaging your system, spray sinks to disinfect, spray surfaces to disinfect, spray on white clothing to spot treat stains, spray on dish rack to disinfect, spray on ceramic bowls and plates if you have used turmeric to remove yellow staining (especially if there is any cracking or crazing in the ceramic surface). I make a fairly weak solution, mostly water, with just a splash of bleach, if you can smell the bleach when you spray it, it's strong enough. You still need to be careful what you spray, if you get this on colored fabric, it will make bleached out spots. Don't use a microfiber cloth or material to wipe this bleach water, you should never use bleach on a microfiber cloth, it will destroy the fabric. One potential problem you will find as you use your spray bottle, it clogs a tiny bit as the bleach water dries on the nozzle, you can either rinse the nozzle after each use, (I never remember to do that), or you can put your finger over the nozzle hole and spray a few times, I don't know exactly why that works, but it does, once the bleach water solution starts coming through the nozzle, it should spray freely after that.

Pour H2O2, otherwise known as hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle, use full strength, do not add water.
Every time you open the bottle of peroxide, it loses some of its strength, it becomes weaker. It starts out as H2O2, each time you expose it to the air, it loses some of its oxygen molecules, essentially becoming H2O which is water. It starts out at 3%, that's pretty weak to begin with, by the time you get halfway through the bottle, it has lost a great deal of its effectiveness, especially if you accidentally left the lid off for any amount of time. By placing your peroxide in a spray bottle, you isolate it from the air (or at least being exposed to any new air) each time you want to use it, so your peroxide will stay closer to full strength all the way through.

You can also spray your peroxide anywhere you want, directly on a wound, (no more dabbing with cotton balls and the resulting drips and pain), and this protects the unused peroxide, you aren't contaminating your peroxide by using cotton balls, or dipping anything into your bottle. You can spray your toothbrush before you brush your teeth, I use it to wet my toothbrush, I use tooth powder instead of toothpaste, this gets my toothbrush wet with something that will do more good for my teeth and mouth than straight water, then I pour the tooth powder onto the toothbrush. After I rinse my toothbrush and tongue scraper, I spray each with more peroxide to disinfect before putting away. You can also spot treat clothing or cloth that has (fresh) blood stains, it will bubble up and help "bleach" out the stain before it has a chance to set.

You can put isopropyl alcohol in a spray bottle too, do not dilute with water, use full strength.
This makes using alcohol easier, you can spray it directly on a wound, or use on hard surfaces to disinfect, just spray and wipe. I was a hairdresser for 11 years, that's how we cleaned up between customers, we put it in a spray bottle, we sprayed it on the chair, on the floor, on the counter tops and shampoo bowls between customers, we sprayed, let it sit for a bit, then wipe. It tends to evaporate quickly so using it in a spray bottle means you get to use more of the product you purchased and you do not have to worry about spilling or contaminating your alcohol.

Let me know your tips & tricks to make your life easier and inexpensive.
Are you taking turmeric supplements? If so, what do you think?



I am not a doctor or health professional, nothing said here is meant to be used to diagnose or treat any potential health issues, if you have any concerns about anything written here, be sure to ask your health professional. I am not responsible for the use or misuse of any information you glean from this blog.

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Wretha,
properly pronounced wreetha, (included for the text reader),


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7 comments:

  1. Just a tip; if you alergic to any of the ginger family, you shouldn't use tumeric. Unfortunetely, I found this out the hard way. lol

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  2. Ohhh, bummer Herbalpagan, yeah I can imagine how that can be. Hope it wasn't too bad for you.

    Wretha

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  3. Good tips here. I like the bleach in a spray bottle. I think I am going to do that. Thanks!

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  4. Well TexasMan, at least it's cheap on ya when you read my blog, it could be worse...:)

    Thanks Sheryl, that's probably the one I use the most, it's great for getting out stains in older sinks too, just spray and leave, it does a pretty good job.

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  5. Hydrogen peroxide also degrades in sunlight(the reason its sold in brown bottles), so try to use an opaque sprayer if possible.

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  6. Good tip Jeff, if you are lucky, you can find a spray top that will fit the original bottle of peroxide, that would be the best situation.

    Wretha

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