It's time for berries! Let's rediscover those little wonders of nature, which are jampacked
with more nutrients than most cultivated fruits. Wild berries are even more
nutritious and you can get them for free.
The Pixar Way: 37 Quotes on Developing and Maintaining a Creative Company (fr...
To Your Berry, Berry Good Health
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Have you ever had the pleasure of picking your very own berries fresh from bush, shrub or vine
and experiencing the burst of flavour and fragrance warm from the sun? MMMM-mmm - that taste
sensation of sweet and sour, fruity flavour wakes up your taste buds and is so scrumptious.
Blueberries, strawberries, cherries, cranberries, mulberries, raspberries and blackberries to name
just a few of the obvious ones, and then there are the super-berries like: goji berries, acai and
others and all are turning out to have remarkable health benefits.
New studies are showing that berries contain unique phyto-chemicals that may help to prevent
cancer, heart disease, age-related declines and much, much more. It would make sense to enjoy
them as often as you can, however, for most of us this is not going to be often enough. That's
because the greatest health benefits come with consistent, regular use of a wide variety of berries.
It is with regular use that come the greatest benefits, this means eating 1 to 1 ½ cups of
mixed berries a day, everyday. So my suggestion is to find a good quality supplement containing
berry extracts and eating fresh berries whenever possible.
Goji berry (Fructus Lycii) has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousand of years,
and I for me this is a high recommendation, as the Chinese did not pay their doctors to cure them
like we do, the village or regions doctors were only paid, by the whole village, for as long as their
patients remained well. Imagine if we required our doctors to do this? The sickness industry might
actually become the health industry J
The Legends
1. Chinese Wolfberry can be used to nourish a weak body, improve vision, and promote longevity.
There are many legends associated with Chinese Wolfberry. A famous Chinese physician, Li
Shizhen (1518 - 1593) who lived during the Ming Dynasty (1368 to 1644 A.D.), compiled the Great
Compendium of Herbs (or Compendium of Materia Medica), which stated, "The Bao Shou herb
store recorded an elixir that promotes longevity. A bizarre barefooted man named Zhang passed
the formula of this elixir to an elderly person at Yi Shi county, who followed the recipe and lived for
over a hundred years. The elderly man could walk extremely fast as if he was flying. His gray hair
turned black again. His aged teeth were replaced with new ones and he was very virile in the
bedroom. The herb is mellow and can be taken often to eliminate excessive heat in the body, and
will also improve vision."
2. During the prime of the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 A.D.), a caravan on the Silk Road stopped for
a rest at an inn and noticed a young lady reprimanding and whipping an old man. A merchant
approached them and enquired the young lady, "For what reason are you assaulting and abusing
this elderly person?" The lady replied, "I am disciplining my great-grandson. It is none of your
2. business." Everyone at the scene was shocked by her reply. Further enquiries revealed that the
lady was more than three hundred years old! The old person was being punished because he
refused to take a type of herb and started to age. Amazed at the magic of the herb, the merchant
bowed to the lady with respect and asked, "May I be so bold as to ask the lady what type of
magical herb do you take?" The lady replied, "This herb has five names. You want to take a
different part of the herb each season. In spring you take its leaves, which is known as the
essence of heaven herb. In summer you take its flowers, which is known as the longevity herb. In
autumn you take its fruits, which is known as Chinese Wolfberry. In winter you take the bark of its
roots, which is known as the skin and bone of the earth, or the staff of the deities. Taking these
four parts in the four seasons respectively, will give you a life as lofty as heaven and earth."
Thereafter the Chinese Wolfberry was introduced to the Middle East and Western countries and
was eulogised as the divine herb from the East. In 1933 the Ministry of Public Health of China
approved goji berry to be marketed as a botanical medicine and it continues to be a revered and
popular health tonic in China today.Goji berry's Important PhytochemicalsPolysaccharides - long-
chain sugar molecules that are one of the distinguishing characteristics of goji berry, are a primary
source of dietary fibre in the intestinal system, and once they have been metabolised in the body
they:
Support and maintain the health of the colonic mucosal lining
Lower pH and reduce the risk of colon cancer
Enhance mineral uptake
Stabilise blood glucose levels
Stimulate the immune system
Offer antioxidant protection - Zeaxanthin - an antioxidant in the carotenoid family - a group of fat
soluble pigments found in plants that play a key role in immune system support, are found in
abundance in goji berries. Zeaxanthin is a powerful protector of your vision, that allows you to
distinguish fine detail and protects against macular degeneration, helps to prevent cataracts from
forming and may retard the aging of the lens. Beta-carotene - is found in red and orange coloured
foods, it is important for the synthesis of Vitamin A, which is essential for the health of your vision,
cell structure, bones and teeth, and healthy skin. Goji berry has one of the highest beta-carotene
content for edible plants.
Goji for Cardiovascular Health: In the book 'Discovery of the Ultimate Superfood,' the authors
document the science behind goji and list 67 medical studies showing how goji supports health
heart function. One study of the antioxidant activity of goji and two other Chinese herbs found goji
to be the strongest inhibitor of lipid peroxidation (a major factor in heart disease).Reduces Blood
Glucose Levels and Lipids (fats)After three weeks of eating a diet supplemented with goji berry,
laboratory animals with non-insulin dependent diabetes II showed a significant decrease in weight,
cholesterol, triglycerides, and insulin levels, leading the researchers to conclude that goji berry
may also be helpful in improving insulin resistance. Another study found that goji contains potent
antioxidants that reduced blood glucose levels, and total cholesterol and triglyceride
concentrations in rabbits, while increasing high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL)-"good
cholesterol" levels after 10 days of treatment.
Immunity Booster: In a 1988 report published by the State Scientific and Technological
Commission of China, researchers discovered that after eating 50 grams of goji berry, human
3. volunteers showed an increase in white blood cell count and a 75 percent increase in the antibody
immunoglobulin A (lgA). In a more recent animal study, goji berry polysaccharides stimulated
production of interleukin-2, a hormone-like substance that stimulates the growth of blood cells
important to the immune system, which protect against cancer cells and microbial invasion.
Protects DNA Against Damage: One of the most amazing things about this berry is that it has
been shown to actually protect against DNA damage and reduce DNA damage that has already
occurred in animals ... which means it may very well counteract aging. Although studies haven't
been done yet on humans, the potential is tremendous. A recent study at the Fudan University in
Shanghai, China, found that when goji berry polysaccharides were given to laboratory animals
with DNA damage and non-insulin dependent diabetes, the animals showed a decrease in blood
glucose levels and an increase in serum levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD)-an important
antioxidant. Additionally, goji berry decreased DNA damage, possibly by decreasing oxidative
stress levels, leading the researchers to theorize that goji berry extract supplementation may
prevent the development of complications or even the tendency for diabetic animals to develop
other health problems.
Brain Health: MaintenanceAlzheimer's disease is predicted to become an epidemic for Baby
Boomers, and there are currently about 70,000 scientists working around the world to find a cure.
In a recent study at the University of Hong Kong, researchers theorized that since goji berry
extract has anti-aging effects, it probably also has neuroprotective effects against toxins in
neurodegenerative diseases, namely Alzheimer's disease. They were right. Goji berry extract
protected the brain neurons of laboratory animals from the toxic effects of beta amyloid protein-a
culprit in Alzheimer's disease. The researchers concluded that studies on anti-aging herbal
medicine like goji berry might open up a new therapeutic window for the prevention of Alzheimer's
disease.
Cancer Inhibitor: Thousands of studies have been done using a variety of dietary supplements,
with most of them on animals. A clinical trial done in China in 1994 on goji berry showed very
promising results. Seventy-nine advanced cancer patients were treated with LAK/IL-2 (a cancer
drug) combined with goji berry. Initial results indicated that regression of the cancer was achieved
in patients with malignant melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, colorectal carcinoma, lung cancer,
nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and malignant hydrothorax. The response rate of patients treated with
LAK/IL-2 plus goji berry was 40.9%, while that of the patients treated with just LAK/IL-2 was 16.1%
(P
Liver Protector: Goji berry is a potent hepatoprotective, or liver protector.One study discovered
that goji berry helps counteract carbon tetrachloride toxicity in the liver.A goji berry compound
called cerebrosides-a combination of sugar and fat (glycolipids)-was shown to protect liver cells
from a toxic dry-cleaning chemical better than the well-known liver protectant milk thistle. Pyroles,
another hepatoprotective compound in goji berry, are unusual molecules that have a nitrogen
atom in their central ring and were found to outperform goji berry cerebrosides in protecting the
liver.
Based on scientific studies, we know that berries and more importantly goji berries contain unique
physio-protective and restorative compounds that support your good health and may even extend
4. your life. We're bound to learn even more in the future about this "King of the Berries", so take
advantage of modern research and the ancient wisdom of China, today. After all the Chinese have
been keeping themselves healthy and living longer for literally thousands of year using goji. Isn't it
time you tried it?
Annie Robinson has been a Natural Practitioner for over 20 years, she specializes in metabolic
disorders and their core preventable solutions. She also holds a Masters in Coaching and NLP
and a Grad Dip in Education (science and history). Her passionate belief in everyone's ability to
heal and manage all patterns of disease is her focus and her eBooks: "A Rainbow on My Plate"
and "Sick, Tired and Overweight", available on the website: http://health-fitness-videos.com/
[http://www.health-fitness-videos.com/] were written for all those who are failing in their search for
a way to heal the modern fallout diseases from the modern epidemic of Metabolic Syndromes
causes by Insulin Resistance (diabetes, heart disease, depression, PCOS, high blood pressure,
obesity, and chronic fatigue.
Article Source:
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