GUAIACUM OFFICINALE - PRODUCER OF LIGNUM VITAE: HISTORY, USES AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF GUAIACUM OFFICINALE

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GUAIACUM OFFICINALE, LIGNUM VITAE  

The flower of this tree is the national flower of Jamaica, as it is a native tree of the West Indies and the North coast of South America. Its range stretches from the Florida Keys through to Venezuela, Honduras and Panama. The Spanish explorers came across this tree in the 16^th century in the Bahamas and adopted its name from one of the indigenous languages. It is an evergreen member of the Zygophyllaceae family and grows to around 60 feet tall. It was valued for its wood which is extremely hard and durable; it is so heavy that it sinks if put in water. It has been used for construction and to make small intricate parts of grandfather clocks and precision instruments, because of its longevity.

  Lignum vitae means living wood and it is known in the West Indies as the Tree of Life. Unfortunately it was the victim of deforestation as land was cleared for sugar cane plantations; it was placed on the IUCN red list of endangered species in 1998 and despite planting new trees, it has not been removed from the list.

  Its resin, which exudes in tear-shaped is valued in traditional medicine rather like myrrh and other tree resins. This resin contains vanillin, the polytriterpenoids guaiaguttin, and the resin acids, guaiaconic, guaianetic and guacic acids along with saponins. It has been used as a laxative, diuretic and to promote sweat in fevers.

  It has been traded as a commodity since 1508 and it was much used in Europe by medical practitioners who used it to treat syphilis along with the sassafras tree and sarsaparilla. It was introduced from the West Indies into the Asian subcontinent.

  Whether or not the tree can help cure syphilis and other STDs was not questioned until the 18^th century, and it is still open to some doubt. The wood used to be used for such ailments, even sawdust and shavings were incorporated into remedies. Now however, only the resin is used.

  This resin is believed to have anti-inflammatory properties and is used for rheumatism, arthritis and gout. When this comes from the tree it is a red-brown whi9ch changes to a blue-green hue when it is exposed to oxygen, and this is used for staining and if applied to a sore tooth is said to relieve toothache. If applied externally it is used for the pains of rheumatism and so on. Taken internally it is said to lower blood pressure and to relieve gout and arteriosclerosis. It is also valued when it is made into a wash or lotion for skin diseases.

  It is an endangered species, and there are many other plants that can be used to treat skin diseases and other ailments, so its best to avoid using this tree until, at least, it is off the endangered species list.

APPLES - ONE A DAY MAY REALLY KEEP THE DOCTOR AWAY: HISTORY AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF APPLES

APPLES

Apple trees are members of the Rosaceae family of plants so are related to the rose, apricots, plums, peaches, almonds and so on. They can be green, yellow, red and brown, with the tartest ones having green skin. I remember the cooking apples that grew in our garden and the taste of homemade apple pies. They were a definite green, and not like that of Granny Smith’s. I particularly like the brown russet apples that my great aunt always seemed to have a supply of, but I haven’t seen any of these for years. They were a chestnut brown and slightly rough resembling a kiwi a little.

  Apples have a very long history and it is believed that dessert apples began to spread from the forests of eastern Kazakhstan around 8,000 BC as our hunter-gathering ancestors moved around the globe. Apples are mentioned in ancient mythology, and there was a magic apple in Norse myths which gave eternal youth to the person who ate it. The Gardens of the Hesperides contained apple trees and although it is not specifically stated we have believed for centuries that it was the apple which led to our fall from Paradise when Eve tempted Adam, having herself been the victim of the serpent. For centuries apples have been associated with seduction and the fall from grace.

  Dried apples were found in Queen Pu-Abi’s tomb at Ur (near modern Basra in southern Iraq), and dated to around 2,500 BC. A Chinese diplomat, Feng Li gave up his prestigious position in order to graft fruit trees, peaches, almonds, persimmons, pears and apples, to trade them much to the horror of his royal colleagues, so great was his passion for fruit; this was in 5,000BC. Later Homer mentions orchards of apples and pears in his “Odyssey” (C.800 BC) and describes King Tantalus, being tantalized by sweet figs, pomegranates, pears, apples and juicy olives which were just out of his reach. In 332 BC Theophrastus states that there were 6 varieties of apple trees, and in 100 BC the Roman poet Horace said that Italy was almost one big orchard, claiming that the perfect meal began with eggs and ended with apples. In 50 BC the Roman orator and statesman, Cicero urged Romans to save the seeds from their apples so that new cultivars could be developed. Presumably they did this as in 79 AD or thereabouts, Pliny the Elder wrote in his Natural History that there were 20 varieties of apple. In 200 AD Galen the physician, was singing the praises of the sweet apple as an aid to digestion and the sour one for fainting and constipation. It was in 1904 that J. T. Stinson proclaimed to a Saint Louis Symposium that “an apple a day keep the doctor away.” However it took researchers until 2000 to discover powerful new antioxidants in apples when the University of California announced the results of research undertaken there.

  Apples contain phytonutrients which combined with the relatively small amount of fibre they contain work to help prevent spikes in blood sugar levels. The polyphenols in apples help to promote the secretion of insulin in the pancreas and increase the absorption of glucose from the blood. The constituents in apples lower blood fats when the apple is eaten whole that means including the skin. The apple’s skin contains most of the phytonutrients with red apple skin having anthocyanins and yellow ones carotene. Apples work to balance the bacteria in the digestive tract and research is ongoing into this activity.

  Research has shown that eating whole apples can help prevent or delay age-related macular degeneration (eye disease) as well as help to prevent lung cancer and asthma, although research is ongoing into the effects apples have on asthma symptoms. It is believed that the bioflavonoid phloridizin in apples may prevent bone loss and so help with osteoporosis. Apples can also help prevent neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, so perhaps an apple a day may really keep the doctor at bay, if not away.

  One bad apple really can damage the whole lot, as when an apple is bruised it releases relatively high amounts of the gas, ethylene which contaminates all the other apples, so remove any decaying apples from storage.

  Apples contain some vitamin C, some of the B-complex vitamins including B1, 2 and 3 as well as B6, vitamins E and K and folate. As for minerals they include calcium, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorous, potassium and a little sodium. They also have Omega-3 and -5 fatty acids along with amino acids and lutein, zeaxanthin and choline.

  Apples have found a place in Cockney rhyming slang, with “apples and pears” meaning “stairs”, which illustrates how common apples are. There other expressions which show the value we have placed on apples, with one being “the apple of one’s eye” meaning something or someone who is thought very dear and valuable perhaps someone who can do no wrong.

   Apples have captured the imagination of poets since Homer’s time and Robert Frost wrote several poems about apple orchards and apple picking which are very vivid and illustrative.

  You can cook apples, as in apple pie, which is a favourite dish on both sides of the Atlantic. Apples can be made into jam and preserves, pickled and made into cider. They can be served with meat (apple sauce with goose or pork) and can be put into fruit salads and on breakfast cereals as well as being good with natural yoghurt and honey along with other fresh fruit and nuts such as walnuts. Personally I like to eat whole apples and these are much better both nutritionally and health-wise for you than having applesauce or apple juice. This is mainly because most of the health-giving properties of an apple are contained in their skins.

SASSAFRAS TREE - COMES WITH A HEALTH WARNING: HISTORY AND USES OF SASSAFRAS

SASSAFRAS TREE, SASSAFRAS OFFICINALE OR S. ALBIDUM 

The sassafras tree can be a bush-sized plant or a sixty foot tree and is native to North America. It has a long history of use by Native Americans who passed on its uses to the early colonists. It may have been discovered by the Spanish explorers in Florida in the 1560s. They took it back to Spain and used it as a remedy for syphilis and rheumatism among other ailments, but its use has been disputed for centuries.

  Its root was official in the British Pharmacopoeia and in the German one, but in 1960 its oil was banned as a food additive by the USFDA because it contains safrol which caused liver cancer in rats in laboratory experiments. Later sassafras root bark and leaves were banned but now commercially produced sassafras tea has the safrol removed, but it is not possible to do this at home. The oil is also thought by some to have abortifacient properties.

  In the past a tonic was made from the root and it was used along with the young shoots, to flavour root beer in the States. The root and berries, which are a lot like those from the cinnamon tree, were used as flavouring in soups and stews, and the winter buds and young leaves were also eaten raw.

  Sassafras trees have been cultivated in Britain at least since the early 17^th century valued as an ornamental in some gardens for their autumn foliage. It is a member of the Lauraceae family, making it a relative of the bay tree. Its root bark oil was used to make cheap soap and perfume, while the superior oil from the fruit was used for the more expensive perfumes. A yellow dye is obtained from the bark and wood of the tree.

  In the late 19^th century sassafras tea, with milk and sugar was sold in the early mornings on the streets of London, and was called ‘saloop,’ which is a far cry from salep made from saffron and still drunk in Turkey in the early morning.

  The twigs and branches contain mucilage which used to be used as a poultice for eye problems or as a wash for sore eyes, and was also used for chest, liver and kidney problems.

  Traditionally the oil was used for menstrual problems, to relieve the pains following childbirth and as a remedy for gonorrhoea. Combined with Guaiacum officinale and sarsaparilla it was used as a cure for gout, rheumatism and a number of other ailments, externally to relieve the pain of these inflammatory diseases. The oil is a narcotic and can cause liver failure and death.

  The tisane or tea is supposed to be good for menstrual problems and as a general tonic, blood purifier and many other properties have been ascribed to it, but there is no clinical evidence to support its traditional uses.

GREATER BURNET SAXIFRAGE: LITTLE USED NOW: HEALTH BENEFITS AND HISTORY OF USES OF GREATER BURNET SAXIFRAGE

GREATER BURNET SAXIFRAGE, PIMPINELLA MAJOR (OR MAGNA) 

This plant is in the same genus as its smaller relative, lesser burnet saxifrage and like it, is no relation to either burnet or saxifrage. They are both members of the Apiaceae or Umbelliferae family of plants and so are related to carrots,dill, fennel, cow parsley, angelica and anise which is in the same genus of Pimpinella. It is similar in most respects to its smaller namesake and used for much the same purposes, with the seeds mainly being used in powder form for flatulence and to calm colicky pains.

  It is native to the Balkans parts of Europe including Britain and to Scandinavia and the Caucasus region. This burnet saxifrage grows to heights of around three feet and spreads up to two feet. Its leaves are larger than those of its lesser relative and the flower heads are bigger.

  Wtriting in his herbal in the 17^th century Nicholas Culpepper says that the herb was used as a wound healer as in this passage from his Complete Herbal:-

“Government and virtues. It is under the Moon. The roots of Burnet Saxifrage are hot and dry, carminative expelling wind, and are good for the colic, and weakness of the stomach; they are likewise diuretic, and useful aginst the stone and gravel, as also for the scurvy. They possess the same properties of the parsleys, but in provoking urine and easing the pains thereof, are much more effectual. The roots or seed used either in powder or decoction, help the mother, procure the courses, remove tough phlegm, and cure venom, &c. The distilled water thereof, boiled with castoreum, is good for cramps and convulsions, and the seed used in comfits (like carroway seeds) will answer the same purposes. The juice of the herb dropped into grievous wounds of the head, dries up their moistures, and heals them.”

  Nowhere did I find the lesser burnet saxifrage mentioned as being used as a wound healer.

  However it would seem that this pant, like the lesser one, can be used in a tisane made from the chopped root, dried or fresh, which can also be used to clear the skin of blemishes and rejuvenate older skin. This one is not seemingly used for culinary purposes, the lesser one being the herb of choice in the past. However in most ways it can be used as its smaller relative if you can’t find that one.