December, a week ago - 'The aspirin miracle cure for cancer' and 'Taking aspirin may cut the risk of bowel cancer by a quarter' - were just a couple of the headlines in the daily papers amid claims that we should all be taking a low dose aspirin pill every day.
March 8, months ago the same feature writers were saying that we SHOULD NOT take aspirin unnecessarily as it increased the risk of internal bleeding.
20-25 years ago the claim was - taking half an Aspirin daily would reduce the possibility of heart attack and strokes with the counter claims that we SHOULD NOT take aspirin unnecessarily as it increased the risk of internal bleeding.
Sound familiar? Different ailments - same proposed solution - same possibly dangerous side effects.
About 35 million tonnes of Aspirin is produced and used annually worldwide - that's a lot of potential risk.
Anyway, as this old chestnut has reared its head again, I thought it might be interesting to bring to your attention one of Aspirins, safer, natural forerunners - the wildflower - Meadowsweet.
Meadowsweet is a widespread wildflower found in a great many regions of the world and its medicinal properties have been known since the time of Pedanius Dioscorides (circa 40-90 AD) - author of a 5-volume encyclopaedia about herbal medicine and related medicinal substances, i.
e.
a pharmacopeia that was widely read for more than 1000 years, and is of great historical value today.
Meadowsweet (Spiraea Ulmaria) is actually among the most widely known digestive system cures out there.
Its' function is to safeguard as well as calm the mucous casing of the digestive system, lowering excess stomach acid along with relieving queasiness.
It's also effective in treating symptoms of heartburn, hyperacidity, and gastritis as well as peptic ulceration.
Meadowsweet is an astringent - (a substance or preparation that draws together or constricts body tissues and is effective in stopping the flow of blood or other secretions) - and this mild astringency is a beneficial curative with regard to diarrhoea, especially in children, delivering a modest supplemental amount of nourishing substances to the innards, so as a digestive tonic, or stomachic, it carries a warranted eminence as an alterative (a treatment or medication that restores health).
The existence of aspirin-like chemical compounds and anti-inflammatory phytochemicals account for Meadowsweets ability to break a fever in addition to alleviating the specific discomfort connected with rheumatic pain in both muscle tissue and joints.
Meadowsweets major therapeutic capabilities are generally accepted as being: - anti-rheumatic - anti-inflammatory - carminative - antacid - anti-emetic - astringent - diuretic As an herb, Meadowsweet possesses a fascinating historical past due to the fact that Salicin was first isolated from the fragrant, almond scented, creamy white blossoms of the species Meadowsweet (Filipendula Ulmaria) in 1829.
Salicin (a bitter alcoholic glycoside and anti-inflammatory agent formerly used as an analgesic) when consumed is metabolized to Salicylic Acid in the gut.
Salicylic Acid was first synthesized in 1859 and provided the basis for the commercial synthesis of Acetyl Salicylic Acid (ASA), commonly known as 'Aspirin', which gave rise to the class of drugs known as Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs).
The name 'Aspirin' is derived from the original genus name of Meadowsweet, Spiraea, having been coined from "A" (for Acetyl, a chemical group) and "spirin" (from Spiraea).
Herbalists have long held that natural aspirin-like compounds acting together have a gentler, more long-lasting pharmacological effect than the synthetic Aspirin.
March 8, months ago the same feature writers were saying that we SHOULD NOT take aspirin unnecessarily as it increased the risk of internal bleeding.
20-25 years ago the claim was - taking half an Aspirin daily would reduce the possibility of heart attack and strokes with the counter claims that we SHOULD NOT take aspirin unnecessarily as it increased the risk of internal bleeding.
Sound familiar? Different ailments - same proposed solution - same possibly dangerous side effects.
About 35 million tonnes of Aspirin is produced and used annually worldwide - that's a lot of potential risk.
Anyway, as this old chestnut has reared its head again, I thought it might be interesting to bring to your attention one of Aspirins, safer, natural forerunners - the wildflower - Meadowsweet.
Meadowsweet is a widespread wildflower found in a great many regions of the world and its medicinal properties have been known since the time of Pedanius Dioscorides (circa 40-90 AD) - author of a 5-volume encyclopaedia about herbal medicine and related medicinal substances, i.
e.
a pharmacopeia that was widely read for more than 1000 years, and is of great historical value today.
Meadowsweet (Spiraea Ulmaria) is actually among the most widely known digestive system cures out there.
Its' function is to safeguard as well as calm the mucous casing of the digestive system, lowering excess stomach acid along with relieving queasiness.
It's also effective in treating symptoms of heartburn, hyperacidity, and gastritis as well as peptic ulceration.
Meadowsweet is an astringent - (a substance or preparation that draws together or constricts body tissues and is effective in stopping the flow of blood or other secretions) - and this mild astringency is a beneficial curative with regard to diarrhoea, especially in children, delivering a modest supplemental amount of nourishing substances to the innards, so as a digestive tonic, or stomachic, it carries a warranted eminence as an alterative (a treatment or medication that restores health).
The existence of aspirin-like chemical compounds and anti-inflammatory phytochemicals account for Meadowsweets ability to break a fever in addition to alleviating the specific discomfort connected with rheumatic pain in both muscle tissue and joints.
Meadowsweets major therapeutic capabilities are generally accepted as being: - anti-rheumatic - anti-inflammatory - carminative - antacid - anti-emetic - astringent - diuretic As an herb, Meadowsweet possesses a fascinating historical past due to the fact that Salicin was first isolated from the fragrant, almond scented, creamy white blossoms of the species Meadowsweet (Filipendula Ulmaria) in 1829.
Salicin (a bitter alcoholic glycoside and anti-inflammatory agent formerly used as an analgesic) when consumed is metabolized to Salicylic Acid in the gut.
Salicylic Acid was first synthesized in 1859 and provided the basis for the commercial synthesis of Acetyl Salicylic Acid (ASA), commonly known as 'Aspirin', which gave rise to the class of drugs known as Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs).
The name 'Aspirin' is derived from the original genus name of Meadowsweet, Spiraea, having been coined from "A" (for Acetyl, a chemical group) and "spirin" (from Spiraea).
Herbalists have long held that natural aspirin-like compounds acting together have a gentler, more long-lasting pharmacological effect than the synthetic Aspirin.
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