Trust for the American Medical system should be in question by Black Americans, seeing their past with experimentation on various communities of people. Currently, growing numbers of people are becoming dependant upon drug assistance programs to sustain their health ailments; in short, Americans are becoming drugs addicts.

Before the growth of the American Medical Association, and even America itself, cultures of people trusted in the earth for healing. The earth produces chemically sufficient herbs that interact with the human anatomy to prevent disease, sickness, and other health problems.

Afromerica will begin a series on the herbs of the earth that we see and use everyday. If used for the treatment and purpose of self-healing alongside faith in the natural resources of God, many people can avoid becoming drug addicts, dependant on American medicine. Below are descriptions of many herbs taken from a reliable source - documented at the bottom of the page.

Please research the source for yourself before taking any medical advice from this series. These are simple preventative health remedies that all Americans should take into consideration, especially Black Americans. If used correctly and regularly, we can avoid many of the diseases that American medicine has attributed to the Black gene.

Cinnamon

Recent studies have determined that consuming as little as one-half teaspoon of Cinnamon each day may reduce blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels by as much as 20% in Type II diabetes patients who are not taking insulin.

Most people are familiar with the sweet but pungent taste of the oil, powder, or sticks of bark from the Cinnamon tree. Cinnamon trees grow in a number of tropical areas, including parts of India, China, Madagascar, Brazil, and the Caribbean. Cinnamon is also a primary ingredient in our highly successful Gluco-Essentials - Blood Sugar Support Blend.

Cinnamon is also known by the names Sweet Wood, Cassia and Gui Zhi. The parts of this plant used medicinally are the dried inner bark of the shoots, and the oil distilled from the bark and leaves. Cinnamon is an ancient herbal medicine mentioned in Chinese texts as long ago as 4,000 years.

Cinnamon was used in ancient Egypt for embalming. In ancient times, it was added to food to prevent spoiling. During the Bubonic Plague, sponges were soaked in cinnamon & cloves, and placed in sick rooms. Cinnamon was the most sought after spice during explorations of the 15th and 16th centuries. It has also been burned as an incense.

The smell of Cinnamon is pleasant, stimulates the senses, yet calms the nerves. Its smell is reputed to attract customers to a place of business. Most Americans consider Cinnamon a simple flavoring, but in traditional Chinese medicine, it's one of the oldest remedies, prescribed for everything from diarrhea and chills to influenza and parasitic worms.

Cinnamon comes from the bark of a small Southeast Asian evergreen tree, and is available as an oil, extract, or dried powder. It's closely related to Cassia (Cassia tora), and contains many of the same components, but the bark and oils from Cinnamon have a better flavor. Cinnamon has a broad range of historical uses in different cultures, including the treatment of diarrhea, rheumatism, and certain menstrual disorders.

Traditionally, the bark was believed best for the torso, the twigs for the fingers and toes. Research has highlighted hypoglycemic properties, useful in diabetes. Cinnamon brandy is made by soaking crushed Cinnamon bark a "fortnight" in brandy. Chinese herbalists tell of older people, in their 70s and 80s, developing a cough accompanied by frequent spitting of whitish phlegm.

A helpful remedy, they suggest, is chewing and swallowing a very small pinch of powdered cinnamon. This remedy can also help people with cold feet and hands, especially at night. Germany's Commission E approves Cinnamon for appetite loss and indigestion. The primary chemical constituents of this herb include cinnamaldehyde, gum, tannin, mannitol, coumarins, and essential oils (aldehydes, eugenol, pinene). Cinnamon is predominantly used as a carminative addition to herbal prescriptions.

It is used in flatulent dyspepsia; dyspepsia with nausea, intestinal colic and digestive atony associated with cold & debilitated conditions. It relieves nausea and vomiting, and, because of its mild astringency, it is particularly useful in infantile diarrhea. The cinnamaldehyde component is hypertensive and spasmolytic, and increases peripheral blood flow.

The essential oil of this herb is a potent antibacterial, anti-fungal, and uterine stimulant. The various terpenoids found in the volatile oil are believed to account for Cinnamon's medicinal effects. Test tube studies also show that Cinnamon can augment the action of insulin. However, use of Cinnamon to improve the action of insulin in people with diabetes has yet to be proven in clinical trials.

Topical applications of Cinnamon include use as a hair rinse for dark hair, and as a toothpaste flavoring to freshen breath. As a wash, it prevents and cures fungal infections such as athletes' foot. It is also used in massage oils. You can also place Cinnamon in sachets to repel moths. Its prolonged use is known to beautify the skin and promote a rosy complexion. The common name Cinnamon encompasses many varieties, including Cinnamomum cassia and Cinnamomum saigonicum, which are used interchangeably with Cinnamomum zeylanicum.

Back to Herb Series

Source from: http://www.viableherbalsolutions.com/singles/singles.htm

© 2005 by Afro Staff