Best Natural Cough Reducing Antitussive Agents

Best Antitussive Agents to Relieve Cough NaturallySayer Ji – If you’re dealing with a nagging cough due to a bout of cold or flu, or because of a chronic illness like bronchitis or sinusitis, fast relief from symptoms is a must. But what can safely and reliably ease a persistent cough without risk of serious side effects, including dependency?

Medicated cough syrups often contain psychoactive ingredients like dextromethorphan (DM) and promethazine-codeine, which can be habit-forming and dangerous, especially for children. With potential side effects including irregular heartbeat and blood pressure, liver damage, extreme agitation, brain damage and even death,[i] there is a pronounced need for effective and safe cough remedies. Continue reading

It’s About Thyme! Powerful Benefits of this Super Herb

Catherine Ebeling – You probably have this herb in your kitchen cabinet right now. It works well in salad dressings, sauces, stews, soups and tea. Right?

It’s a staple in many Mediterranean dishes as well and has been used for years as both an ingredient for food, a food preservative and a medicine. Whether fresh or dried, thyme is a staple in French cooking as the herb combination bouquet garni, used in stock, stews, soups and roasts. Most all savory dishes taste even better with a bit of thyme.

The ancient Egyptians used thyme as an embalming oil. Hippocrates recommended thyme for respiratory diseases or coughing. Back in the Roman days, it was used as a way to stop the effects of poisoning and even afterwards, it was used as a bathing ingredient to suck toxins out of the body. It was used as a cure for melancholy or shyness as well. Thyme actually has been used as an effective antibiotic as well. When the Plague swept across Europe, people wore posies of thyme as a source of protection. Continue reading

Powerful Thyme Herb Benefits for Your Health

thymeDr. Edward F. Group – There are few things a sprig of thyme won’t make immensely better. This versatile herb blends well with a myriad of flavors and is packed full of health-promoting compounds, vitamins, antioxidants, and other nutrients. Thyme belongs to the genus Thymus which is part of the mint family and closely related to oregano — another powerful herb. Native to the Southern Mediterranean regions, this perennial herb is now grown around the world for its culinary and therapeutic uses. While this herb will liven up your cooking, thyme may also help expel harmful organisms from your body and support your mental and physical health.

What Is Thyme?

Thyme is an evergreen herb that blooms with small white, pink, and purple flowers. They hybridize easily and grow quickly in sunny areas with well-drained soil. Thanks to its ease of cultivation and growth, there are over 300 varieties of thyme in existence today. Each variety has unique flavors and applications for cooking, oils, medicines, or decoration. Common thyme (T. vulgaris) and lemon thyme (T. citriodorus) are used for cooking, while Spanish thyme (T. zygis) and creeping thyme (T. serpyllum) are popular in many herbal supplements.[1] Continue reading

Essential Oils Oregano, Rosemary, Effective In Ringworm Treatment

NaturalSociety  July 25 2013

Ringworm is a fungal infection of the skin, most commonly treated with over-the-counter creams. But this infection is notoriously resistant to treatment and often comes back again and again. Of course there are numerous home remedies for ringworm, with a recent study indicating that essential oils may be as effective (if not more effective) than conventional treatments for ringworm, giving us another natural remedy to add to our “medicine” cabinet.

According to scientists with the Department of Veterinary Science at the University of Pisa in Italy, a combination of 5% oregano essential oil, 5% rosemary essential oil, and 2% wild thyme essential oil mixed into a base of sweet almond oil was effective at treating severe ringworm infections in cats and sheep.

As GreenMedInfo reports, this fungal infection is common in animals as it is in humans. Because it is contagious and difficult to get rid of, some veterinarians don’t even want infected pets in their clinic. In humans, the telltale signs of ringworm are red, itchy patches of skin that are often shaped in a circle, hence the name. Despite the name, however, ringworm is not a worm or parasite at all. In fact, it’s a similar fungus that causes jock itch and athlete’s foot; all three are known as “tinea”.

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