Helpful Herbs for Overindulging and Hangovers this Christmas

Your health is precious leading up to Christmas. Over indulgance, extra activities, travel and cold weather gives your immune and digestive system extra work. Thankfully, there are herbal remedies can help you stay healthy and have fun this Christmas.


For the festive season, I recommend Bitters (a.ka hangover bitters) to help with sluggish digestion, low energy, and hangovers. It works well with Detox Tea.


To enjoy a good time without the after effects, take a dose before you go out, another when you come home and again in the morning. See  http://www.healthandherbs.ie for more information on Bitters and to be prepared.

Happy Chrismas to you all. Nollaig Shona Daoibh.

Herbal Remedies for Winter

Cold weather lowers your immune system. Longer inactive periods spent indoors and less vitamin D mean our bodies become more vunerable to colds, congestion, flu, chest and sinus infections. Along with a good diet, enough sleep and exercise, herbal remedies can support the body to ensure that your winter is not dominated by illness.

Herbs are an effective treatment for many of the common health problems we live with today.stress, digestion problems, recurrent respiratory issues including sinusitus, immune boosting, fatigue, hormone support, urinary tract issues, skin problems and weight management. Problems for stress, digestion problems, recurrent respiratory issues including sinusitus, immune boosting, fatigue, hormone support, urinary tract issues, skin problems and weight management. stress, digestion problems, recurrent respiratory issues including sinusitus, immune boosting, fatigue, hormone support, urinary tract issues, skin problems and weight management.pro Herbs can help fight winter bugs in a natural way, with minimal side-effects.”

Dr. Dilis Clare is unique in Ireland as both a GP and Medical Herbalist, she draws on her experience in both fields providing a holistic knowledge base. She has been running Health and Herbs an integrated health clinic on Sea Road in Galway for the past fifteen years. She believes passionately in the healing properties of herbs and seeks to educate people about how herbs can improve their lives today.

Dr Clare has her own range of herbal remedies to boost your immune system through the winter months or fight infections as they arise. Dr Clare’s herbal tinctures are great to use as a first line of action and if taken immediately can stop infections arising or shorten the length of illness. There are herbal remedies to suit all the family.

To use medicinal herbs most efficiently, treat upper respiratory tract infections from the first sneeze, even before your nose starts streaming.

Visit Dr Clare’s dispensary for advice on using Dr Clare’s Traditional Cold Tea and Chest and Sinus Blend for those winter illness.

Read the article on managing sinusitus or get further information on all Dr Clare’s products log onto www.healthandherbs.ie 

Sugar: Is it really that bad?

Stevia Tea

Sugar: 
Is it really that bad? 



Sugary foods are hard to avoid and even harder to resist. However the sugars in processed foods are particularly bad news, combining corn syrup, refined flour and unhealthy fats. Remember the problem with sugar is the refining process. 



Stevia is the latest kid on the block. It is a herb, I found the plants in a local garden centre last year and it has a lovely white flower. Steviol glycosides are intense sweeteners (stevioside and rebaudioside) extracted from the leaves of the stevia plant (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni). Stevia ranges in sweetness from 40 to 300 times sweeter than sucrose. It is a green leafy plant and I have noticed that some of the products on the market are white powder. So where has the plant gone. I recommend that you buy a green whole plant product in order to call this a natural product as opposed to a refined extract.

Sugar itself is natural, it comes from raw sugar cane and the first extract is black strap molasses. This is rich in B vitamins and is not nearly as much of a problem as refined sugar that has no nutritional value at all. Lots of new health foods are being launched including xylitol, agave syrup and stevia. I will add maple syrup to this list even though it is not currently hitting the news. 

However these are all a lot more expensive than black strap molasses. I quite like the taste of black strap molasses on toast, but it is a bit like marmite, it is not to everyone's taste. It is particularly suited to sweetening flapjacks, just add according to taste. Also you can use a mixture of black strap molasses and another natural sweetener such as dried fruit and agave syrup. 

At last we have the evidence linking sugar and diabetes. 

Is it time for the governments to limit exposure to sugar, e.g. it should be limited in aisle space, discouraging packaging and more expensive, and carry a health tax?

The Relationship of Sugar to Population-Level Diabetes Prevalence: An Econometric Analysis of Repeated Cross-Sectional Data. (1)Authors: Sanjay Basu mail, Paula Yoffe, Nancy Hills, Robert H. Lustig.

Conclusion:The worldwide secular trend of increased diabetes 

prevalence likely has multiple etiologies (causes), which may 

act through multiple mechanisms. 

Our results show that sugar availability is a significant 

statistical determinant of diabetes prevalence rates worldwide. 


Remember when ever you use sugar sprinkle the confection with a generous shake of cinnamon, this reduces the sudden leap in your blood sugar and the subsequent drop 20-30 minutes later. 

In November 2011, the European Council and the European Parliament approved the use of Stevia extracts as a sweetener and a food additive. Since then a wide range of stevia-based products have hit the market. However these come as a white powder! does this sound familiar? What part of the stevia plant is pure white? just like refined sugar it is processed stevia that is being marketed heavily. Find a stevia supplier that has a green powder if you want to sprinkle or bake, if liquid infusion suits use stevia dried leaf, use a teaspoon to a small jug and add boiling water. using a tea ball makes it easy, or you can use a tea strainer. This sweet water makes a sweetener your tea or coffee, I use it to sweeten stewed rhubarb, I add a little to pancakes so that added sugar isn't needed.

So yes sugar really is that bad, diabetes is associated with higer rates of obesity, heart disease and cancer. Enjoy the alternatives and enjoy life.

Enjoy
Dr Dilis
(1). www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0057873

Hearts and Bones: East meets West

As the bright evenings come in it is lovely to get out and about in the evenings. As you exercise for heart health it is good to know your bones get stronger and your digestive tract has a good squeeze as you breathe deeply. Remember to walk more than you talk, if you can talk comfortably you need to pick up the pace a little. A research study shows that people with osteoporosis are nearly six times more likely to have coronary heart disease than those without.
You might like to know that you don't have to pound the pavement to improve heart resilience and build stronger bones.
• T’ai chi reduces fall risk.  While Spring is wonderful for getting outdoors, we need to be thinking about preventing dangerous falls all year-round. A recent study focused on the use of t’ai chi-based exercise for keeping dementia patients and their caregivers safe from falls. After 16 weeks of practicing t’ai chi, participants scored better on functional tests designed to test fall risk.
• T’ai chi training improves cardiovascular health and muscle strength. In another study, older women built muscle strength and heart health by performing t’ai chi as little as three times a week for 16 weeks. This news is very important as many people still think cardiovascular health can only be achieved by pounding away on a treadmill or practicing high-intensity yoga. This study emphasizes that t’ai chi provides a great exercise alternative, especially since we know it also calms our minds, another important benefits for bone health.

To evaluate your very own individual risk of fracture
 go to http://www.shef.ac.uk/FRAX/?lang=en
This is a brilliant, easy to fill, and WHO validated  risk assessment tool.  It calculates how likely you are to have an osteoporotic (low impact) fracture over the next ten years. Many people are reassured to find the risk is relatively low, especially if they don't SMOKE! (Make a note of your weight and height in metric values before you start). If you have had a Bone Density Scan then type in the results where indicated. If you do not know the results contact the clinic and request them. They may charge a small administration fee, but you are fully entitled to your results (under the Freedom of Information Act).
This overall score is the most accurate weighting for your fracture risk.

Tai Chi Galway contacts
Jo Pender 086 8893441
info@taichijopender.com

Chen tai chi Ireland 085 1547157
niall.taichi@gmail.com

Hope it's useful.
Take care Dr Dilis

References: Yao, L., Giordani, B, Algase, D.L., You, M., Alexander, N.B (2012). Fall Risk-relevant Functional Mobility Outcomes in Dementia Following Dyadic Tai Chi Exercise. Western Journal of Nursing Research. Published online 2012 April 19. doi: 10.1177/0193945912443319. PMCID: PMC3468653
Lu X, Hui-Chan CW, Tsang WW. (2013) Effects of Tai Chi training on arterial compliance and muscle strength in female seniors: a randomized clinical trial. Eur J Prev Cardiol. April;20(2):238-45. doi: 10.1177/2047487311434233. Epub 2012 Jan 4.

The Boreal Herbal

Bev Gray,
 Author The Boreal Herbal

If you haven't seen Canada's Best Selling herbal book The Boreal Herbal you are missing a wonderful experience. It is beautifully written and illustrated, the author is deeply immersed in her subject matter. Her journalistic background is clearly evident drawing you in to experience the treasures of the world'ss northern forests. These forests form a circle around the northern lattitudes of the world similar to the rain forests of the tropics.
We had the pleasure of giving a great welcome to author Beverley Gray when she shared her experience with us lst Saturday (March 9th 2013) at our clinic in Health and Herbs Galway.
She talked us through beautiful slide shows of the Yukon and Norway, shared stories from First World Nations from her region.
As always it is the stories that catch our interest and engage us in another world.
However Bev brought that right back home and down to earth as she showed us how to make a soothing salve very simply, using a recipe from her book 'The Boreal Herbal'.

Order your copy from Health and Herbs. We are currently awating a new order as Bev sold us out completely. We will hold your book for you on its arrival.

Thank you to all who made the event such a success, especially to Keith Finnegan on Galway Bay FM Radio, his interview with Bev generated a great deal of interest

To order: Tel 091 583260

Chemicals are poisoning us WHO report

A recent World Health Organisation report highlights the dangers of chemicals as they act as hormone disruptors. The biggest problem is that they are cumulative and there is no international strategy to deal with the longterm health issues.
So if you think 'activists' are exaggerating read this report to check out the facts.
Detox Tea helps your body mobilize  deeply stored toxins to help elimination.
Dr Dilis