New Blog but the Same Purpose: So It's Not Really Good Bye to PhilAsian Herbs

Image from Around the Cabin

Those of you who have been following PhilAsian Herbs for so many years will probably be surprised to find it no longer exists. It was a hard decision to replace that blog with this blog. I have learned to love PhilAsian Herbs on plants and herbs in the Philippines and Asia, but lately I and my wife revived our interest on organic home vegetable gardens.

So, this new blog is no longer about Asian and Philippine plants and herbs but on how to start an organic vegetable garden right in one;s home, no matter if there is limited space only. That's what's really in our hearts.

What I had in mind with PhilAsian Herbs was to promote Philippine plants and herbs, with some coming from Asia. Second, I also wanted to promote gardening and eating more vegetables among Filipinos.

But I want all this to be hinged on organic gardening. It's useless to eat vegetables which are not organic. Inorganic vegetables are often riddled with chemical pesticides and fertilizers. That negates all the health benefits you can attribute to eating vegetables. if it isn't organic, then it promotes acidity which is unhealthy, no matter what you do.

I hope all PhilAsian Herbs followers will discover this blog and continue following our posts. And one more thing---I and my wife are seriously doing a business out of organic gardening at home. I'd like to keep a blog about it for future generations to see.

We hope to grow a healthy organic vegetable garden right in our home and what small spaces we have left, and then sell the excess and make money. We also plan to sell the organic liquid fertilizer we are using and the compost. Our target are people in the city who realize that urgent need to plant vegetables in their homes, no matter how small their home is.

Even vegetables from provinces are inorganic. And organic vegetable farms are far from Metro Manila. So, it's high time to start your own organic vegetable now.

I think PhilAsian Herbs just got promoted to a better calling.

Now we have two specific goals in mind---go start your own vegetable garden at home, and go all-out organic with your vegetable garden!

The battle cry---"Nothing but organic!"

Gulasiman: Boholano Superb Herb

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea

The Tagalogs call it Golasiman, the Bikolanos Alusiman, and in Pangasinan Kantataba. In English it's Purslane. But I'd rather use its Boholano name now, which is Gulasiman, simply because I haven't featured an herb from Bohol. It has a lot of uses, from medicinal, to herbal, to culinary. That's why I call it a super herb.

It has flesh green and oblong leaves, about 1 to 2 centimeters long, and yellow flowers. Overall, the herb is purplish, which hints of anthocyanin content, which is a powerful antioxidant that makes plants purple and powerfully nutritious. That is true with Gulasiman.

Look how nutritious it is: it is reportedly rich in Vitamins A, B, B2 and C. It has a-tocopherol (a type of Vitamin E), nicotinic acid (Vitamin B3 or Niacin), and B-carotene (a precursor to Vitamin A and believed by some to be anti-cancer and promotes eye health). It is also rich in minerals like calcium and iron, glutathione, fatty acids (like omega-3), aspartic and glutamic acids, flavonoids, alkaloids (remember the term "alkaline"?), saponins (foamy), and urea (essential for metabolizing compounds with nitrogen content).

As a healing herb, the leaves are said to be effective against tumors, bruises, swellings, erysipelas, and gout. They are also used for washing or cleaning skin diseases like eczema, burns, cuts, and other wounds for an anti-hemorrhagic effect. The juice is reportedly good for dysmenorrhea, dysentery, dysuria, and expelling worms as vermifuge, with anthelmintic benefits. Seeds may be used as a diuretic.

Gulasiman is also said to be effective for treating poisonous snake bites, whooping cough and even tubercolosis. It has anti-ulcer, anti-diabetes, and anti-tumor properties.

Some folks mix it raw with vegetable salads.

Anyone Remembers Sabila?

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My grandma made sure she had a lot of it on her doorsteps. They were usually in small clay pots--about 6 inches in diameter--and she religiously watered it daily until it grew more stems. She called it Sabila. Later, after college, I learned that it was aloe vera. Much later, I learned that it has anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, and regenerative properties--definitely among herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia that captured my attention!

No wonder my grandma always picked a stem, squeezed the thick sap out, and applied that on my head daily. I used to have a lot of bald spots on my head due to scars from boil wounds. The boils would pop up and create wounds that would result to scars where hair refused to grow. But with my grandma's persistence and patience, the scar marks gradually grew hair so that eventually, my head had no more bald spots. In fact, healthy hair started growing on it.

Lots of men my age have balding heads but mine has full hair. It's probably still a result of my grandma's years of applying sabila on my head. My mom later picked up where my grandma left of. She grew sabila or aloe vera, too, on clay pots and empty cans and we continued applying it on our heads to grow hair better. It is also said to be a good remedy for skin burns, dandruff and falling hair. Gently massage the scalp (or affected skin part) with it regularly and see results after some weeks. In some parts of the Middle East, it is said to be used for diabetes.

My grandma and mom (and now my sister-in-law) also used it as ornamental plants. They look like green tentacles jutting out of the clay pot, like an octopus trapped in a clay pot. You can easily pick a tentacle or stem and use that on your skin. Just make sure the plant is safe from cat urine, or else you might suffer infection rather than cure. The sabila sap feels extra cool and soothing, though sticky. Let it stay there overnight and then wash it off the next day. The plant will keep on growing new stems if watered right. It doesn't need  a lot of water--just enough per day. Don't drown it.

Well, some people mix it with their drinks for cleansing, but I don't know how they do it. Sabila is said to have digestive, immune, and some heart health benefits, but beware of its diarrhea side effect. It can make your stool too soft or even watery if taken in the wrong measure. I'd rather just apply it topically.

Dissecting Pito-Pito Contents: What's In It That Makes It Potent?

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Pito-Pito herbal teas have been in the Philippine market and stayed popular there through the years. That should tell us something about its effectiveness. When I go to popular drug stores I always see them in shelves in the herbal department and customers are often found in that area surveying them. If you ask them about taking herbals, they'd say they're looking for something that would augment or be a good substitute for their maintenance medicines.

If you were to ask me, never get rid of your regular medical check ups and maintenance medicines. Herbals are good but they often work better with medicines and vice versa. And do consult with your medical doctor about the herbal drinks you take.

Anyway, let's see what's inside Pito-Pito--whatever herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia found in it--that make people positively claim it's effectiveness.

Alagao Leaves

These leaves are said to be ideal for getting rid of phlegm during cough and colds. They are also used for relieving fever, bronchitis, and stomach aches like gas pains. The crushed leaves together with coconut oil can be applied on the abdomen for added relief. The fresh leaves is said to be also applied for treating vaginal irrigation. Having cardiac troubles? Chewing its roots is said to offer remedy.

Anis Seeds

The seeds have a lot of alternative medicinal applications. Often, they are used as a emmenagogue (encouraging menstruation) and a diuretic. They are also applied to relieve fevers and intestinal deworming. (With deworming, it's easy to see why health is improved with Pito-Pito. If you get rid fo parasites like worms, your body absorbs more nutrients from food. See?) It can also be used for increasing milk in mothers and libido health in adults.

Banaba Leaves

Some medical doctors believe the banaba fruit is a better option, but the leaves may do. It is popular in the Philippines as a diuretic. If you want toxins out of your system, try banaba tea. Moreover, some herbalists say it is also good as a purgative, good for stomach ailments, and even good for diabetes. Experts say a boiled concoction of old leaves and the dried fruit, taken 4 to 6 cups a day, is perfect for diabetes. The old leaves and old fruits are said to have effective glucose lowering results. The tea is said to also help alleviate loose bowel movement, constipation, and fevers. Best of all, it is said to help treat kidney problems and get rid of bladder or kidney stones.

Guava (Bayabas) Leaves

For topical applications, the boiled leaves are perfect for healing and drying up wounds. As tea component, the leaves, together with the tree bark, is good for treating diarrhea. Also said to be good for prolapsus ani in kids. The rootbark can alleviate swollen gums if the water used for boiling it is cooled and gargled. The leaves helps treat jaundice and guava extract is said to be good for epilepsy and chorea.

Mango Leaves 

Boiling the young mango leaves are said to be ideal for treating cough, asthma loss of voice, aphonia, dysentery, and even diabetes. The dried flowers made into tea are good for diarrhea and urethritis.

Pandan Leaves

The leaves are supposed to be ideal for stimulating urination (and thus detoxification and cleansing), treat headache, and lessen arthritis pain and stomach spasms.

Now, more or less we see why Pito-Pito has healing effects and seems to be an all-cure.

Pito-Pito Herbal Tea: Local Tonic Cure-All?

livestrong.com

I've been hearing of the effectiveness of concocting 7 herbal ingredients to treat ailments with since I was a kid. As far as I can remember, it was popularized by Ernie Baron, then among the renown herbalists promoting herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia, and also a popular radio health commentator for the masses.

Pito-Pito, or Seven-Seven literally, is a blend of any seven herbal ingredients and may vary from seeds, leaves, roots, to tree barks or any plant or tree part. It is often used as a poultice or decoction plus other folkloric alternative applications for fever, cough, colds, headache, asthma, migraine, stomach pains and troubles, diarrhea, and others.

Different herbal contents are used, usually those easily available in a locality and the nature by which it is used. Seven this and seven that. For instance, 7 leaves of alagaw, 7 leaves of native guava (bayabas), 7 leaves of banaba, 7 leaves of pandan, and 7 of mangga. These are boiled together in water for 30 minutes, with perhaps a teaspoon or half of silantro and anis. The brew is strained and used as a herbal tea treatment.

Other concocters smoke the leaves and dry them (others just plain dry them) and later pound them to tiny bits, making them fit for tea bags and applied as that--commercial tea drink.

Why Seven?

Why 7 leaves of this and that? Well, accordingly, the number 7 being widely believed as a perfect number, is said to be just the right amount of anything in local herbal tradition. Some say it is God's number. Seven measures are supposed to make a herbal concoction effective and balance the formulation, making it applicable to various ailments.

Commercially, some manufacturers substitute some native ingredients with herbal medicinal contents like Gotu-Kola or Centella Asiatica. Others use pineapple and kaimito (star apple) leaves for wild-crafted usage. Other producers, wanting to be unique for better marketing purposes, add more ingredients for a Siyam-Siyam (Nine-Nine) herbal tea, making the stronger potency more appealing to people who want to get well sooner and for those who have more serious diseases.

How effective are these concocted teas? No formal clinical studies are yet available, but it is a popular notion among herbalists how leaves, seeds, roots and stems of certain plants, when boiled together, produce reactions that form herbal tonics ideal for cures. And a lot of testimonies on their healing effects abound locally.

Balbas ni Hudas [Judas' Beard]

My youngest looking sad amid hanging
tentacles of Balbas ni Hudas.

Did you know there's a spreading vine named after the traitor, Judas Iscariot? Balbas ni Hudas  or Judas' Beard is an ornamental plant that more and more folks in Agbanawag, Nueva Ecija are getting fond of. It's a hanging plant with long, thin tentacles looking like string beans as its "fruit." I asked folks in Agbanawag what special use the "fruit" has and they just looked at me blankly and agape, then finally saying it's just for a yard decor.

Balbas ni Hudas--definitely among the unique plants and herbs in the Philippines and Asia--well, perhaps not an herb--yet. Who knows, there may be healing benefits discovered from the vine in the future!

They like having the plant hanging on rooftops or above swimming pools as a shed against sunlight and to produce a jungle or wild life effect. It can be ideal for your greenhouse or backyard garden to act like sun screen or perhaps in your veranda or terrace.

I'm surprise that nothing is said or displayed on Google about Balbas ni Hudas and this is probably the first time this ornamental plant is featured online.

During another visit to Agbanawag, I asked folks there why the name "Balbas ni Hudas"? Even the old folks there weren't sure why the plant was named thus. They just grew up in the place knowing it to be called that. But one ventured further. He said it's been called that since old folks there started associating the verse, "Judas hanged himself," with the hanging plant and mentioned something about the plant figuring in one Lenten community play.

Whatever.

I always see it as a perfect natural curtain for partitioning gardens or yards.

Abutra: Yellow Seed Moonseed

Whenever I ventured into the woods as a boy scout I always saw this vine-like plant with scary-looking stems (like a giant octopus tentacle) and which often crawled up big trees. Today, in one of researches on herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia, I came across it and found that is named Abutra.

Accordingly, it is often used in this country as a germicide but actually, folks acquainted with it use it in the following ways.

Abutra Extract: the wine or essence resulting from boiling the wood is used for cleaning wounds, skin itches, and even for tropical ulcers. The extract is also for getting a febrifuge (or anti-fever) and stomachic (pro-appetite and digestion) effects. Abutra essence coming from the stems and roots can also be an anti-fever tonic and can increase menstrual flow.

A caution though, because this extract is also used by some for abortion. Tonics in bottles with the abutra stems and roots displayed in them used to be sold in sidewalks along a popular church in Manila. It's been banned today, but accordingly, dried abutra stems are still sold there in secret.

In some portions of Zambales, abutra is used as an expectorant, especially in bronchial illnesses. In Malaya, the extract is said to be ingested to remedy jaundice and indigestion and as an anthelmintic medicine for deworming, particularly parasite worms.

When burned, the smoke is used as an inhalant for problems in the nose and mouth. Abutra is allegedly even used as an anti-diabetes remedy in Indo-China. Somewhere in East Asia, it is among traditional alternative medicines taken as a tonic for skin abscesses and jaundice. Some other folks use it as a tonic for dysentery and malaria.

Of course, PhilAsian Herbs blog doesn't recommend you take the abutra tonic or extract for the above mentioned ailments at once. Consult with a competent alternative medicine practitioner first, or better yet, with a licensed medical doctor adept in alternative medicine.

Wild Betel Leaf for Energy, Relieving Asthma, Plus More

Interesting how you can cook beef langonisa-style using plant leaf for wrapping the meat. In Vietnam they do this with the Wild Betel Leaf or what they call lalot. For a different kind of "sausage" try this herb leaf with your meat. I would like to taste this one of these days.

The leaf is ordinary looking, but once used in wrapping meat and cooked, the piper sarmentosum aroma can wake up the appetite and make your mouth clamoring to eat. The cooked "sausage" looks very much like fried langonisa.

Health Benefits of Betel Leaf

First, betel leaf is aromatic, increasing your appetite for food. That's healthy, especially if the food recipe you use it with is a healthy vegan recipe. The leaf has a clove-like aroma that makes it ideal for cooking. Cloves are derived from an Indonesian tree.

Second, betel leaves have anti-bacterial properties and mild stimulant effect. They can induce euphoria or a feeling of well being. They are also said to be anti-fungal and ideal for good digestion. The leaves can also be used as an expectorant and an aphrodisiac.

Thus, betel leaf can be chewed and the juice is good to relieve asthma and cold. They reportedly do this in Indonesia. Warming it with some mustard oil and applied topically on the chest can relieve folks having breathing difficulties.

It's a pain reliever as well. Mix the juice with hot oil and apply topically to the pain area. Betel leaf extract can also be used for getting extra energy and relieve nervous exhaustion. In animals, the herb was found to up T3 levels and lower T4 levels in thyroid patients.

If you have unpleasant body odor you want to get rid of, try betel leaf.

But the betel nut shouldn't be eaten because studies have shown it to be cancerous. So, just to play it safe, consult a herbal nutrition expert about using betel leaf for health and cooking, as well as other herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia.

Oregano Phlegm Expectorant

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They easily grow on pots and gardens. They spread as shrubs but if you help them stand up with stick supports they can also stand erect. I thought they were just ornamental plants my grandma and sister-in-law grew in cans and plastic vessels in our backyard. Oregano is among common herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia. But at the time, when I was in grade school, I didn't know it was an herbal tea for getting rid of phlegm. Until one day when I was pestered by a stubborn cough.

Synthetic cough medicines didn't work and my terrible cough was already punishing me, causing me sleepless nights. Have you ever had such cough, the kind that kept you growling like a dog every few seconds that you almost couldn't breathe? It was like that. And I was desperately looking for a remedy. So I tried what my grandma and in-law suggested--oregano tea. They almost forced their oregano phlegm expectorant formula to me.

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What they did was to simply pick oregano leaves, wash them clean, and boil them. Then they made me drink the tea. And it worked. A few days after my cough subsided. It was a miracle! And I felt strong after. My strength recovered.

With infants, what my in-law does is wash the leaves clean and ground them using a pestle and a mortar. Then she squeezed the juice and made babies and kids drink it pure. That made them throw up phlegm. Amazing. She does it with babies 1 or 2 years and older. She claims it was even what cured her grand kids' asthma. Once the kids showed signs of an asthma attack, she prepared the concoction, that made the kids throw up, and the attack was gone.

But before you try this, get the approval of your doctor.

Aratilis Health Benefits

I had my first taste of the small cherry-like, red Aratilis fruit in grade 4. We were new in Project 8, Quezon City and I was making new friends with the kids in the neighborhood. One of them, Efren, had a big Aratilis tree in front of their house where big humming bees frequented, sucking the nectar of Aratilis flower. It was my first time to see bees and the Aratilis fruit.

The soft red ripe fruit is the size of a small marble and oozed with sweet syrupy sap. We discovered that it was more delicious eaten after being cooled in the fridge or after being soaked in ice. I wonder why no one juiced it or made it into ice cream. Anyway, when I spent vacation in La Loma, Quezon City, I saw more Aratilis trees inside the cemetery where the fruit seemed more glowing red than anywhere.

Later, an Aratilis tree grew up in our backyard. It's like a weed that easily thrives anywhere. Birds love eating the fruit which has some soft tiny seeds in them, and that makes the tree grow up almost everywhere. Thus, I was enjoying plenty of ripe Aratilis fruits in no time--and bees also began lurking in our backyard.

And do you know what health benefits Aratilis carried?

1. Fights bacteria. It has anti-bacterial properties that can be compared to standard antibiotics, according to one study. It also seems to have a stronger polar antibacterial compound.

2. It has flavonone contents.

3. It has anti-inflammatory properties.

4. It has cytotoxic flavonoids for anti-cancer properties, including the leaves and stems.

5. The leaf extract has heart protective properties.

6. The fruit has antioxidants, like flavonoids.

In addition, the Aratilis tree bark can be made into a rope and the trunk provides durable lumber. It's definitely among herbs and plants in the Philippine and Asia that give lots of benefits.

I believe Aratilis has more health benefits than what's already known about it. I specifically refer to the deep red or purple color of the fruit's skin, which probably is rich in powerful antioxidants, even anthocyanin. And why don't they explore the possibilities of making healthy drinks out of Aritilis, even health supplements and dessert recipes?

Kick Out Ailments with These Ordinary Herbs

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Believe it or not, most times you don't need to go to a doctor or take medicines to get rid of common ailments. All you need is an ordinary herb often found in gardens to kick out ailments like the common cold, cough, fever, tooth aches, headaches, stomach aches, sprains, stiff muscles, joint pains, itches, skin allergies and irritations, cuts, pimples and acne, and the like. And here are some examples:

Boiled Guava Leaves

Did you know that so many skin problems can be remedied by simply washing them with the warm broth from boiled guava leaves? Problems like wounds, boils, and open sores, especially those irritated by germs. When I was small, I often got open sores from ruptured boils infected by germs because I played a lot on the ground. All we did was boil newly sprouted guava leaves and wash the wound with it. The sore healed after a few days.

Pressed Garlic

Pressed garlic was a good remedy for toothaches when I was a kid, especially those caused by cavities. We pressed it and chose a small chunk just enough to fit the cavity. In seconds, the pain was gone. The hot sensation deadened the pain and later acted like an anesthesia, numbing the gums and affected tooth. Well, you just have to stand the smell that sticks in your mouth a long time.

Pressed garlic also worked well to lower blood pressure. If your BP shoots up and you run out of maintenance or remedy medicine, try swallowing pieces of garlic while waiting for someone to buy your meds or while on your way to your doctor.

Spring Onions and Kinchay

Spring onions and kinchay, when boiled and eaten, quickly lower blood pressure. If you can eat them raw, then so much the better. If regularly mixed with your food, they can normalize blood pressure. They're also good for detoxification.

Ginger

Crush ginger and place in clean cloth to wrap around stiff muscles. I used to have stiff neck which made me skip school for days. What we did was to wrap it around my neck using clean cloths. The cool sensation quickly relieved the pain. Boiled ginger tea is also an effective first aid for coughs and sore throats. Or, if you can, eat slices of it raw for a quick sore throat relief. A lot of herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia are practical for quick and cheap remedies.

More simple herbal cures for common ailments are found in the book displayed above. It will be worth keeping handy in your home near the medicine cabinet for quick pain or sickness reliefs and first aid measures. But then, always see your doctor for ailments, especially if they persist a few days after applying the herbal first aid. Herbal first aids are good while medicine or medical help is still on the way.

Breast Cancer Herb Remedy

It's called Abaniko in Filipino. Abaniko is a traditional manual fan you hold with your hand and sway to stir air and beat a hot day. But this Abaniko herb, named after the fan, is said to beat breast cancer, among other ailments. It is cultivated in warm countries like the Philippines as an ornamental plant and is said to be a native of Southeastern Asia.

The leaves are erect, long and pointed but the flower petals look like small abanikos. However, I can imagine how the leaves can be made into native abaniko fans as shown in the picture on the left.

The Rhizome in the plant is said to be a good expectorant and powerful for blood and liver detox and remedying pulmonary problems, though acrid and bitter in taste. Aside from this, Abaniko is also found to have isolates that promote stimulatory activity to fight breast cancer in humans. Thus, it is said to be anti-proliferative adn anti-cancer.

It is also said to prevent prostate cancer by inhibiting its proliferation. Moreover, it has antioxidative and hepatoprotective or liver protection properties. Plus, it was found to possess anti-diabetic and anti-tumor benefits.

My grandma once told me that vegetables or tea from leaves that tasted bitter meant they had potent curing benefits, like amplaya leaves. Abaniko has a stronger bitter taste, and it comes to no surprise that it has powerful healing properties. But do ask your doctor before taking Abaniko tea, or at least verify with your nutritionist.

Cilantro: For Toxic Metal Detox

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I love that subtle flavor cilantro lends food dishes that gives them a unique taste your tongue pursues after, pretty much like how kinchay--another favorite herb of mine--affects food. But cilantro or kulantro [in Tagalog] does more than just improve food flavor--it's a powerful toxic metal detox herb.

It is said to be a Mexican herb, but through centuries of being a regular feature of vegetable markets in the Philippines, it has become among herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia used in some household kitchens in the country--and restaurants and eateries, as well. When I see chopped cilantro in pancit, for instance, I feel my appetite go up higher levels.

Super Detox

And as I've said, it's good for detoxifying heavy metals from your system. With the kind of food preparation popular today, we often get heavy metals from our food, especially those cooked in aluminum or those with some lead or mercury contents. If you're cooking food with aluminum utensils, you better take more cilantro into your system. Heavy metal particles go straight to the brain and may cause dementia, among other diseases, say experts.

But cilantro has plant chemical compounds that bind to metal toxins and cause them to loosen from tissues they have affected. Then they get flushed out of the system for good, says Dr Edward Group, Global Healing Center CEO. Again, if you need to detox heavy metals from your body, consult with a medical doctor about it, along with eating cilantro or taking cilantro juice.

To juice it, simply blend to gather at least six cups consumed evenly during a week's period. Do it every week. At first, mix the fresh cilantro puree to your other fresh, blended fruit or vegetable juices. Then gradually try taking pure cilantro juice.

Now, some folks can't take cilantro smell or taste. Remedy that by mixing in ripe banana or papaya [which are good and healthy smell or taste neutralizers] or a green leafy veggie that agrees with your taste buds. As for me, I just love cilantro. In fact, I often look for it in pancit, chopped suey, and other sauteed vegetable dishes. I love the crunch and oozing-juice sensation when my teeth chew them. If no cilantro is present, celery is a good substitute.

Other Health Benefits

Cilantro is also said to help calm down anxiety, detox and cleanse the small intestine, promote eye health [especially help in alleviating macular degeneration], detox infections like UTI, rich in Vitamin K for bone health, help remedy anemia, and contain antioxidants kaempferol, epigenin, rhamnetin, and quercetin for an overall immune system boost.

Zero Caffeine Talbos-ng-Kamote Tea

You want a zero caffeine healthy tea from a deep green leafy tropical vegetable? Then try my talbos-ng-kamote tea. It's cheap here in Manila and so easy to prepare. A bundle of talbos ng kamote is only about $0.01 or P5.00. Thoroughly wash the leaves and stems and boil in very small amount of water--just enough to cook the veggies on steam.

As soon as the pot or kettle emits steam, turn off the fire and pour the remaining broth in a cup and drink when warm. You may use the leaves and tender stems as salad with chopped fresh onions, tomatoes, and a sprinkling of organic vinegar. I take the tea for a wonderful detox and refreshing warm tea beverage. It tastes better when mixed with broth from boiled okra. You should try it!

We all know of the health benefits of camote tops or talbos ng kamote. In summary, it is rich in antioxidants like polyphenolics that fight oxidative stress that causes cardiovascular diseases and cancer. It's also rich in micro nutrients like calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium, to name some. Well, to simplify, all the health benefits of green leafy vegetables are present in camote tops.

But how about the broth or tea?  There are people who claim that talbos-ng-kamote tea can cure dengue or very high fever caused by a virus from mosquitos that carry it. I haven't tried it with dengue patients--and I always say people sick with anything should first consult their medical doctors before taking alternative medicine--but I won't be surprised if indeed it cured the viral disease.

However, also remember that certain plant nutrients like antioxidants and vitamins are affected negatively when boiled. I recommend that you boil camote leaves with as little water as possible (and for shorter periods as possible--like 1 minute or less), just enough to create steam for cooking the leaves and for leaving enough broth for your talbos-ng-kamote tea for a zero-caffeine refreshing beverage.

In my case, I find the tea helpful in improving my blood chemistry results, particularly my uric acid test and cholesterol.

Anti-Hypertensive Medicinal Leaves

This tree is commonly found in the Philippines, especially where there are thickets and patches of forests found in low hills or even on plains. Abang-Abang, the anti-hypertensive medicinal leaves, is considered a wild tree that easily proliferates in the tropics, so it's reportedly also available in Taiwan and Thailand. But it's more abundant in the Philippines.

Its leaves are reported to powerfully help alleviate hypertension which is said to be the number one cause of death in the world. So, if you're hypertensive and you want an effective herbal medicine, try taking organic Abang-Abang tea. Organic because this tree grows anywhere in this country without any need for chemical fertilization pest control.

And you might want to go visit the Philippines for an Abang-Abang tea spree for a hypertension and other ailment relief, or else perhaps plan to live there for good? If this PhilAsian herb gets commercialized and packed in tea bags or sachets and exported to your country, it may cost you some. But as among ordinary herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia, you get it for free!

But Abang-Abang is not just anti-hypertensive. It does a lot more medicinally. Some folks even use it as an anti-epilepsy herb through its anti-convulsant properties and so-called neuro-behavioral effects. It also has anti-tumor and anti-inflammation benefits, which makes it also applicable as an anti-cancer herb. Cancers have to do with tumor growths and inflammation.

Antioxidant and Flavonoid Rich

These anti-hypertensive medicinal leaves are found to be rich in antioxidants and flavonoids. Abang-Abang is said to have three hydrophylic flavonoids that has tremendous free-radical scavenging benefits that make Abang-Abang tea a powerful concoction for fighting free-radical and oxidative damage. This damage is what wreaks havoc on the immune system, making your body susceptible to deadly diseases like cancer. But with this anti-hypertensive medicinal leaves, you get an immune system boost to fight said diseases!

Neem or Nim, It's a Wonder Herb

My officemate, Tony, brought this cluster of strange looking leaves that looked like Marijuana. He said it was from the Neem tree that had grown tall in his backyard at his place in San Miguel, Bulcan. He brought it because another officemate, Inna, told us it had powerful health and healing effects! It was supposed to be a wonder herb.

So we tried it out. Inna had 3 stems with leaves boiled in 6 cups of water. She said per stem means boiling it in 2 cups of water for better, more powerful results. After some minutes, she was back with the Neem tea and we started sipping from our cups. How did it taste?

I Thought There was an Earthquake!

At first [the first split-second], I thought it tasted just like any tea. Well, it kinda tasted like that the first 1/16th second. But the aftertaste was awful! BAM! I thought there was an earthquake or something. It was terribly bitter! My goodness! It almost rocked me off my chair! But there was something in the bitterness that I thought I should feature it on PhilAsian Herbs at once!

The split-second taste of bitterness was quickly gone, but it told you that something good was on its way to your overall health. It told you of powerfully good things to come! I looked it up in Google and a site told me Neem or Nim leaves made into tea was very good for almost all kind of ailments, mild and deadly. In India, it is a cure-all plant that remedied ailments from ordinary cold and cough and flu to cancers, diabetes, heart diseases and the like. It even solved hair lice problems.

The only problem was its biting bitter taste.

I remember my dad telling us that any food naturally bitter in taste like bitter melon or ampalaya was ideal for stomach health. Today, they're saying that bitter veggies are good for treating diabetes. I guess the same goes for the Neem or Nim leaves made into tea.

Neem is said to be originally from India but somehow several trees found its way to other tropical countries like the Philippines. Tess, also my officemate, said it became part of the government's tree-planting project back in the Martial Law years when tree planting became a big hit especially with government employees. Now, it's abundantly growing near government buildings especially those along the Elliptical Road in Quezon City, she said.

How Did It Work for Us?

How did the Neem or Nim tea work for us? Well, the wonder herb made Tony's farting prowess more pronounced when he got home that night. He said his fart started firing out like machine gun fire.And we all know how regular farting is the start of good digestive health. Later, he claimed it gave him smooth and quite productive bowel movement [not LBM though]that he emerged out of the toilet a different man! Meaning, his belly really felt lighter as if he could fly.

Inna said she felt lots better and more energized. Her daughter used it for her head lice and saw them drop dead like they had an epidemic. Neem or Nim tea is also said to be ideal for deworming, repelling mosquitoes and other insects, a natural pesticide in agriculture, and also for weight loss! You can also use it for getting rid of acne and pimples.

Me? I felt so energized!

I ordered more of the leaves so I can drink the tea now and then at home. A word of precaution though: researchers say don't drink too much of it because it may have adverse effects to your liver. So just drink once or twice a week, just a half cup each time; just enough to give your health a good boost. It's definitely among herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia that should continue to proliferate.

Herbal Immune Booster: It's Cheap and Commonly Found in the Philippines!

People all over the world have been searching for the ideal herbal immune booster, something that's cheap and commonly found around them. Of course, there are a lot of herbs, plants, and fruits reported to be powerful herbal immune boosters, but they are hard to find (sometimes, you have to scour the farthest places in the world like Indiana Jones or a Tomb Raider did to get to them) and cost too much for ordinary people like me.

So where can we find a powerful herbal immune booster we can afford and take daily? Well, one day as I and my wife were busy sorting out things at home and cleaning old stuffs, we heard a herbal nutrition and wellness expert being interviewed on the radio (DZAS). She was a certified organic and herbal enthusiast operating a clinic called Tree of Life somewhere in Manila (you can also check their Facebook page).

You Won't Believe What It Is!

You know what she said? The ideal and affordable herbal immune booster is--Kalamansi! It's been around us since time immemorial, it's cheap and always available in wet markets, supermarkets, and even street corner stores (sari-sari stores) here in the Philippines! Yeah, I knew that kalamansi or Calamondin (Science calls it Citrofortunella microcarpa) was good for health and body resistance, but she said amazing things about the small but terrible citrus fruit. It does not only boost the immune system, it cleanses and empowers the colon so that it stays in tiptop shape to help the body absorb vital food nutrients! And, of course, prevent cancer. And because it deals with colon cleansing, it's a super weight loss citrus fruit!

The Power of Kalamansi

The power of kalamansi is in its rich Vitamin C content. And this vitamin is known to be a potent immune system booster, aside from a known cancer fighter. Simply put, if you are sickly, take lots of Vitamin C daily from fresh fruits. And aside from Vitamin C, some experts say Kalamansi also has other vitamins and minerals. Kalamansi is really among small but powerful herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia.

Dosage

No, you don't take kalamansi with sugar and water to be a herbal immune booster. A kalamansi drink like that is refreshing, but if you want a power-packed herbal immune booster and colon cleaner, take it this way: 30 minutes before breakfast, take 15 to 28 freshly squeezed kalamansi fruits, drinking them in a glass as soonas they're squeezed. Acidic? Nope. Freshly squeezed kalamansi is alkaline. Just make sure you drink it as soon as the kalamansi is squeezed.

Safe, all-natural and
organic weight loss product.

Why 15 to 28 pieces? Well, that's what the experts say. My guess is that, the number is necessary for an immune boost. I take 15 each morning about 30 minutes after my water therapy and 30 minutes before taking fruits like bananas. I used to easily catch cold and cough, but not anymore since I've been doing this herbal immune booster morning health ritual. I thank God for that!

How Did Man Start Discovering Safe Herbs?

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They say some plants and herbs started becoming unsafe or poisonous since the fall of man in Eden. Before that, they were all edible, they add, and that includes herbs and plants in the Philippines and Asia. Others say, poisonous plants have always been that way and a lot of unfortunate deaths happened just to discover what is and what is not poisonous. So, how did man start discovering safe herbs?

I can imagine it must have taken lots of painful hardship. You had to try this and that, and they probably tried it first on animals. And imagine the pain of seeing your pet animal suffer death through poisoning. Well, of course, there were a lot more triumphs, seeing your sick pet get well through your experimented herbals and seeing the same effect on humans. There must have been celebrations and toasts to that effect. 

Ancient Wellness

The real wonder is how ancient men first came to the conclusion that plants and herbs could help in healing? Why not try stones or rocks or the soil or urine? Why herbs and plants?  Probably, they must have tried these stuff too, and they didn't work--even ended up in disaster (although I heard of one herbalist in Deep Asia who makes her patients drink their urine to cure ailments, even cancer. The idea, she said, was that urine has super healing enzymes). They tried everything and narrowed down their search to plants.

Now, they probably connected the good feeling they had each time they ate herbs and plants and fruits and crops with the possibility that they could heal. It was the first experience of wellness, I guess. They felt well and stronger eating plant produce so they must have concluded that it could also heal and tried them. But how did they end up making herbal medicines with them, and not simply become content at eating herbs and plants? That's part of how did man start discovering safe herbs. 

They must have realized that their intake of plants and herbs was limited--they could only eat so much--and getting healing benefits from them meant eating much more than enough of them, especially during sickness. And sickness time is when you tend to eat little, if any. So they thought of juicing or squeezing out extracts by pounding them, boiling, or steaming. That way, you won't have to eat a lot but get more nutrients by merely drinking the extract from loads and loads of the plants. That's probably also when they tried topical uses of their newly discovered herbal medicine.

Up to this day, that's how we do herbal medicine--somewhat the same with the answer to how did man start discovering safe herbs. We continue to try and experiment with animals and then try it with humans. But the availability of the microscope gives nutritionists, pharmacists, and chemists a full advantage over their ancient counterparts. They can identify ahead what is and is not safe before they try it on anyone.

Rat's Ear Mushroom

Sometimes it does look like it, sometimes it doesn't. Locally in Deep Asia we fondly call "Tenga ng Daga" or rat's ear. Internationally they call it Cloud Ear Fungus. It's a delicious jelly fungus (delicious when cooked with thin noodles (sotanghon) spiced with rich and natural chicken broth or when used in Chinese mixed vegetable dishes). But of itself in dried form, it tastes bland. 

Rat's ears love popping up in dump dead wood, it seems, and I remember seeing them as a kid in our backyard where we piled up old planks of wood exposed to rain and the sun. I didn't touch them because dad said a lot of wild mushrooms were poisonous. I tried to cut pieces with my sharp stick (which I fancied to be a sword) and give to my cats (because they're rat's ears, you see) but for some reasons they wouldn't touch them. That proved once and for all to me they weren't really rat's ears. So why did they call them tenga ng daga?

Features and Health Uses

Anyway you cook them, they're crunchy (but not really crackling) and slippery to the tongue. It's a pleasure to munch them gently and roll them round the tongue. Oh, and they turn from brown to deep black, looking like shiny black jelly. In my favorite Chinese restaurant at SM North, I love ordering mixed vegetables and go for the glistening black mushrooms like crazy. They go well with the crunchy asparagus strips and the super tender steamed tofu that melts in your mouth. Oh my! Anyway..

Recently, they found out about its powerful anticoagulant prowess. If you have problems with excessive blood clots, then rat's ear or tenga ng daga may be your key to freedom. 

It is also said to lower LDL levels in the blood (bad cholesterol is bad), and that's definitely good news for those with atherosclerosis or the building up of fat and calcium deposits on the arterial walls. So that's good heart health for you. The clinical study was done on rabbits, but a lot of us are like rabbits anyway. Kidding aside, they aver rat's ear has the same heart benefits for humans. 

Just wondering--why would they test it on rabbits when rabbits love carrots and vegetables? Do they get LDL deposits on their blood vessels nonetheless? 

Generally, mushrooms give you more protein than green veggies would. You also get lots of vitamins (even D Vitamin) plus iron, calcium, potassium, and phosphorus. Some even give off Vitamins B1 and B2. And that's not to mention their dietary fibers good for the colon. 

How do you cook it? Cook it anyway you want--sauteed, boiled, steamed. Just make sure you soak it in water when raw.

Dextrosing Herbs and Plants

Have you tried dextrosing your herbs and plants? I've seen growing herbs and plants with hydroponics but dextrosing is different. We did it with our vegetable gardens when we were in grade school, grade 4 to 6 to be exact. And it was fun watching your herbs and plants grow without daily watering them.

Dextrosing is easy. Just fill up with water a bottle with a narrow and long, funnel-type neck and simply thrust it into the soil near the herb or plant. Watch the water decrease daily until it's gone. Then refill. You may put in your organic liquid fertilizer if you want. This is useful for folks who want to keep a garden but could not supervise them daily.

The water lasts for 3 days, depending on the type of soil. If the water is released too fast, make the bottle slant a bit. Or, choose soil that is a bit clay. Or choose a bottle with a narrow opening. You can have 500 ml bottles thrust near each herb or plant, or use smaller bottles that are good for 2 days.

As kids we loved dextrosing herbs and plants in our school garden plots. We loved doing it with pechay (bok choy) or mustard. But some kids didn't have as much success. We didn't know why. I tried it at home with my lone pechay plant and I harvested a healthy, leafy pechay. My friends did it with their peanut and monggo plants, aside from their pechay.

A Bit on Hydroponics

Now, about hydroponics, It amazes me how plants can be grown without soil. And how mineral nutrients in liquid form and organic liquid fertilizers can better be absorbed by plants through hydroponics. I especially love how herbs and plants can be grown on mere coconut husks! They're cute!

You see, soil is only necessary to keep mineral nutrients under normal conditions, but they're not a must for plant survival. When you water your herbs and plants, that's the time the mineral nutrients are absorbed by them, with help from microorganisms. With hydroponics, you introduce the nutrients directly. 

So, if you have not enough time to care for your garden, try hydroponics. Put your plants on coconut husks and place them on top of shallow water filled with mineral nutrients. Or, hang them so that only their roots touch the nutrition-packed water. That's good for plants and herbs in the Philippines and Asia.