Air-purifying Houseplants eBook

Contents:
Aloe vera, Spider plant, Gerbera, Snake plant, Golden pothos, Chrysanthemum, Red-edged dracaena, Warneck dracaena, Weeping fig, Azalea, Ivy, Chinese evergreen, Bamboo palm, Heart leaf philodendron, Peace lily, Areca palm, Rubber plant… and more.

Grow Your Own Health Garden

Contents

Vegetables, herbs, edible flowers and fruits with their health benefits and key nutritional ingredients as well as companion plants that are beneficial to wildlife and food-crop growing when left to flower: Borage, Buddleia, Caraway, Carrots, Celery, Coriander, Cow parsley, Dandelion, Dill, Fennel, Golden marguerite, Lovage, Mint, Parsnips, Parsley, Scented stocks, Sweet peas, Yarrow. Plus how to deter garden pests by attracting their natural predators and plants that are harmful to children and pets.

Grow Your Own Health Garden eBook

Contents

Vegetables, herbs, edible flowers and fruits with their health benefits and key nutritional ingredients as well as companion plants that are beneficial to wildlife and food-crop growing when left to flower: Borage, Buddleia, Caraway, Carrots, Celery, Coriander, Cow parsley, Dandelion, Dill, Fennel, Golden marguerite, Lovage, Mint, Parsnips, Parsley, Scented stocks, Sweet peas, Yarrow. Plus how to deter garden pests by attracting their natural predators and plants that are harmful to children and pets.

Air-purifying Houseplants Paperback

Contents:
Aloe vera, Spider plant, Gerbera, Snake plant, Golden pothos, Chrysanthemum, Red-edged dracaena, Warneck dracaena, Weeping fig, Azalea, Ivy, Chinese evergreen, Bamboo palm, Heart leaf philodendron, Peace lily, Areca palm, Rubber plant… and more.

Grow Your Own Health Garden Paperback

Contents

Vegetables, herbs, edible flowers and fruits with their health benefits and key nutritional ingredients as well as companion plants that are beneficial to wildlife and food-crop growing when left to flower: Borage, Buddleia, Caraway, Carrots, Celery, Coriander, Cow parsley, Dandelion, Dill, Fennel, Golden marguerite, Lovage, Mint, Parsnips, Parsley, Scented stocks, Sweet peas, Yarrow. Plus how to deter garden pests by attracting their natural predators and plants that are harmful to children and pets.

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Corneal Grafts and Vaccinations

Blog post written by Nat Hawes, author of the Nature Cures series of books.

Nat Hawes shares important information for anyone having the COVID-19 vaccine who has had a corneal graft. There is a risk of graft rejection if ameliorating action is not taken. This means you can have the vaccine but must take special care of your eyes at the same time.

Corneal grafts are also referred to as corneal transplants or keratoplasty. They are used to correct problems caused by medical conditions or injury e.g. from infection.

Nat tells us:

‘Anybody who has had a corneal graft should be aware of the possible risk of rejection of the transplanted cornea following vaccination because vaccinations enhance the immune system. They should contact their eye consultant to be prescribed steroid eye drops to administer four times a day, or they may be advised to increase steroid drops if they are already using them. They will also need to have their eyes checked two weeks after they have had the vaccine. This is appropriate for both the influenza and the COVID-19 vaccines.

‘Although, as yet, there have been no confirmed cases of rejection due to the COVID-19 vaccine, there has been some documented from flu vaccinations.[1] It is still early days though and most people have only had the one dose of the COVID-19 vaccination so far in the UK. Rejection can take place up to 2 months after the influenza vaccination and is potentially reversible.[1]

‘Corneal rejection is caused by CD8 and CD4 T cells (defensive white blood cells) fighting to eradicate the foreign body (transplanted cornea) from the body and it is these very same T cells which are boosted by the COVID-19 vaccines so it is a distinct possibility that corneal rejection might occur.[2]

‘This may be much more of a risk after the second dose of the vaccine so it is important that corneal graft patients are made aware of this so that they can take the appropriate steroid drops to counteract it, and have their eyes checked. They should still go ahead with having the vaccine, but cautiously.’

 

  1. Wertheim MS, Keel M, et al. Corneal transplant rejection following influenza vaccination. Br J Ophthalmol 2006; 90(7): 925-926. doi: 
  2. Pluddemann A, Aronson JK. What is the role of T cells in COVID-19 infection? Why immunity is about more than antibodies. The Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine. 19 October 2020. 

 

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It’s National Read-a-Book Day!

In honour of National Read-a-Book Day this Sunday 6th September, we asked our authors to recommend the best books they’d read during lockdown. This is what they told us:

 

Dr Sarah Myhill, independent GP and author most recently of Ecological Medicine, says: ‘The Shardlake series by CJ Samson – brilliant!  Also the Cicero trilogy by Robert Harris.’

 

Craig Robinson, mathematician and co-author with Dr Myhill, most recently of Ecological Medicine, says: ‘For me it would be The Diamond as Big as the Ritz by F Scott Fitzgerald.’

 

Sue Koten, herbalist and author of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Giardia, says: ‘Company of Liars by Karen Maitland was very interesting as it was about a group of people travelling through the time of the plague.’

 

Julie Sullivan, author of The Gallstone-friendly Diet, says: ‘The best book I read in lockdown was Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig.’

 

Frances Ive, health journalist and author of One Step Ahead of Osteoarthritis says: ‘I’d like to recommend two because they were so good: The acclaimed Normal People, by Sally Rooney, which I read in three days before watching the TV series which was equally good.

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens – brilliantly written with outstanding description of the wildlife and swamps in N. Carolina (and has sold 5 million copies).’

 

Barry Sears PhD, research scientist specialising in inflammation and author most recently of The Resolution Zone says: ‘I read a lot of history and philosophy during these times to put things in perspective. History doesn’t necessarily repeat itself, but it usually rhymes. Ancient Roman history especially provides a sense of balance. That’s why I am rereading Gibbon’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I recommend co-reading a more recent book, Twilight of Democracy by Anne Applebaum, as a companion book.

‘Philosophy (especially Roman Stoic philosophy) lets you make better choices with the current fate you are dealing with. A book that I can recommend is Philosophy for Life and Other Dangerous Situations by Jules Evans.’

 

Erica Crompton, independent journalist and author of The Beginner’s Guide to Sanity says: ‘My mood has been low during lockdown which means concentration is poor. So I read Paragon art books as they’re succinct and easy to read. The last one in the third week of lockdown was called The Life and Works of Constable. It made me notice and appreciate the trees on walks after reading. Next up, Dear Life – short stories by Alice Munro, brought for me as a birthday gift.

 

Professor Stephen Lawrie, Erica’s co-author, says: ‘I would say Fiction: Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo.

 

Associate Professor Antonina Mikocka-Walus, health psychologist and author of IBD and the Gut-Brain Connection, says: ‘Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton and The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E Harrow are my latest favourites.’

 

Jo Waters, health writer and author of What’s Up with Your Gut? says: ‘I read all 880 pages of Hilary Mantel’s The Mirror and the Light  during lockdown – it seemed topical too as there was talk of plagues and tyrannical leaders and civil unrest. It was a great book to hunker down with in dark days, but it reminded me that dark days pass – although not alas for Thomas Cromwell. I read it in eight weeks and can’t wait to reread it.’

 

Nat Hawes, health researcher and author of the Nature Cures books and website says ‘The last intriguing book I read was Glittering Images by Susan Howatch.’

 

Dr Raymond Perrin, osteopath, specialist in neuro-lymphatics and author of The Perrin Technique, about to be published in a greatly enlarged second edition says: ‘I managed to dab onto a wonderful collection of short stories by Stephen King, Bazaar of Bad Dreams, which has the usual Stephen King twists from the master story teller.’

‘And a sort of health book I enjoyed during the past few months was The Reality Slap by Dr Russ Harris to understand how ACT Acceptance and Commitment Therapy helps people through life’s stresses and as a useful aid to helping some of my CFS/ME patients cope better with their illness.’

 

Hanna Purdy, nurse practitioner and author of Could it be Insulin Resistance? says: ‘I am hoping to read Dr Sarah Myhill’s Ecological Medicine next, about PK diet, sleep, exercise etc. It sounds similar to what I think about these things, so I am always very keen to learn more. I haven’t had time to read anything whilst finishing my own book, so I am only planning, but would like to name this book.’

 

Bridget Sheeran, independent midwife, homeopath, women’s health activist and author of colouring book Preparing for Birth, says: ‘I’ve been reading books that tell me how to do things and think A Taste of the Unexpected by Mark Diacono is brilliant – it tells one everything one would want in a holistic garden. And I’ve been revisiting Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions to make fermented foods. Otherwise the only reading I’ve been doing is for a course but I’ve found Interpersonal Psychotherapy  by Scott Stuart and Michael Robertson fascinating and highly readable.’

 

Mary Jordan, author most recently of The ‘D’ Word, says: ‘I did enjoy The Infection Game by Sarah Myhill – everything she says is so sensible. I also really enjoyed Pale Rider  by Laura Spinney about the Spanish Flu of 1918. I read it to convince myself that this would all pass as it did 100 years ago and was amazed to learn that the effect of hysteria caused by the media is unchanged.’

‘For escapism you cannot beat Jane Austen and I reread her novels and then enjoyed reading Jane and Me by her great niece, Caroline Jane Knight, about the last days of Chawton House (JA’s brother’s house) as a private residence.’

 

Sara Challice, teacher, motivational speaker and author of Who Cares? says: ‘I read two great books this summer for my Mindfulness Teacher Training course, both on health and wellbeing. They are Ageless Body, Timeless Mind by Deepak Chopra, which shows we have more freedom and power than we realise, and Essential Spirituality by Roger Walsh, which will have something to offer you wherever you are on your spiritual journey.

‘I’ve also listened to Michael A. Singer’s The Surrender Experiment as an audiobook, about the author living a quiet life of meditation and solitude but agreeing to do what he was asked by others and how this helped him to evolve and grow… and turned into a huge business.’

 

Fleur Brown, author of Beat Chronic Disease, says: ‘The books I have most enjoyed reading during lockdown are: A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo, Circe by Madeline Miller, Love is Blind by William Boyd and The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. If you want my favourite three, these are A Gentleman in Moscow, The Remains of the Day and Circe.

 

Caroline Freedman, specialist personal trainer and author of The Scoliosis Handbook of Safe and Effective Exercises Pre and Post Surgery, says: ‘I love reading and have always devoured books and any I have read during ‘Lockdown’ have had to really hold my attention. For a quick-dip-in-and-out book I’ve found Dr Sarah Myhill & Craig Robinson’s The Infection Game fascinating and has made me re-think about how I approach infections.

At The Pond is a bunch of essays by writers including Margaret Drabble and Deborah Moggach, describing their experiences of Hampstead Ladies’ Pond.  I walk on The Heath most weekends with my two dogs Tillie and Oscar and have never dreamt of swimming in the freezing cold outside. The trauma of having to emerge myself in my school outdoor unheated pool at the start of every Summer Term in April probably has something to do with this. Nevertheless after reading these memoirs I am really tempted to have a dip ‘At The Pond’… once ‘Lockdown’ is truly over.

The book I loved reading during ‘Lockdown’ and was really quite upset when I finished it was The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid.  Every page was a pleasure to read. The story unfolded beautifully and the Hollywood glamour painted so well, I could see the words in colour.  Each chapter was a surprise and I could not guess where the ending was going.  I can usually work out how a novel will finish… not this one.

 

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Vitamin D and Covid-19

Blog post written by NH Hawes, author of Nature Cures: Recovery from Injury, Surgery and Infection

Many studies have concluded that low levels of the ‘sunshine vitamin’, vitamin D, in the body could play a part in reducing the immune system’s ability to fight off the Covid-19 virus. Vitamin D is manufactured in the skin from the sun’s rays and then stored in the liver for up to 60 days. It only takes 15 minutes of sunshine on the skin, a few days a week, to produce the vitamin D the body requires. Low levels will affect the immune system and can be caused by various factors, as follows:• Working or staying inside buildings during daylight hours.
• Covering the skin when going outside.
• Using sunscreen on all exposed skin before venturing outside.
• Being over the age of 60 as the body’s ability to manufacture and store vitamin D begins to deplete.
• Consuming too much alcohol.
• Having a compromised or damaged liver.
• Kidney disease.
• Gastrointestinal conditions such as Crohn’s, coeliac and non-coeliac gluten sensitivity or IBS.
• Skin disorders.
• Some medications.

Also, in the northern hemisphere of planet Earth, where most human beings reside, the sun’s rays are too weak to allow this process to take place from 1st October until 1st April every year. As the body’s stores of this vitamin become depleted, after 30-60 days, humans become prone to infections in the winter, especially viral and bacterial infections of the respiratory and sinus tracts. Therefore, there are far more outbreaks of viral colds, influenzas and pneumonia from November until April.

Vitamin D deficiency is on the rise because people have become aware of the risks of skin cancer caused by exposure to the sun’s harmful rays and either use sunscreens or cover up or avoid the sun completely. Sunscreens with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 8 or more appear to block vitamin D-producing UV rays, although, in practice, people do not apply sufficient amounts, cover all sun-exposed skin or reapply sunscreen regularly. Therefore, skin likely synthesises some vitamin D even when it is protected by sunscreen as typically applied.

Those with dark skin have less ability to produce vitamin D as over 90% of the sun’s rays cannot penetrate the skin This is also applicable to those who maintain a deep suntan over a period of time. This may explain why BAME people have been hardest hit by the Covid-19 virus.

Fifteen minutes of midday sunshine on bare skin can provide all the body needs. It is not the same as sunbathing; the skin simply needs to be exposed to sunlight a few days a week. UVB radiation does not penetrate glass, so exposure to sunshine indoors through a closed window does not produce vitamin D. Over-exposure to the sun’s rays can be dangerous for the skin but no exposure at all can be equally detrimental to our health. Complete cloud cover reduces UV energy by 50%; shade (including that produced by severe pollution) reduces it by 60%. This may also explain why the Covid-19 virus seemed to be especially prevalent and dangerous in polluted areas.

Vitamin D also protects against vascular disease via several different mechanisms, including reducing chronic inflammatory reactions that contribute to the pathology of the disease. Vitamin D also improves blood circulation throughout the body, which is essential for the heart to function properly. This helps reduce the risk of blood clots causing heart attacks, heart failure, strokes and other problems. Therefore, deficiency of vitamin D may also be the cause of these outcomes in the more serious Covid-19 cases.

Levels of vitamin D can be replenished marginally by consumption of vitamin D-rich foods such as:
o Krill oil
o Eel
o Maitake mushrooms
o Rainbow trout
o Cod liver oil
o Mackerel
o Salmon
o Halibut
o Tuna
o Sardines
o Chanterelle mushrooms
o Raw milk
o Egg yolk
o Caviar
o Hemp seeds
o Portabella mushrooms

However, often vitamin D levels drop too low and enough of these foods cannot be consumed to correct it. It is then that vitamin D supplements are required. It must be vitamin D3 that is consumed as the body cannot absorb vitamin D2. Plus, as it is a fat-soluble nutrient, it can only be absorbed into the body with some oil; consequently, vitamin D3 in oil capsules is the best way to ensure absorption.

The optimum level of vitamin D in the blood should be 50-70 ng/ml and up to 100 ng/ml to treat cancer and heart disease.

It is particularly important to have a blood test to determine vitamin D levels, especially if any of the following health issues are present:
• Abdominal pain
• Age-related macular degeneration
• Anorexia
• Autoimmune disease
• Bacterial infections
• Bone disorders
• Burning sensation in the mouth and throat
• Cancer
• Chronic fatigue
• Colds and coughs
• Confusion
• Constipation and diarrhoea
• Dehydration
• Dementia
• Depression
• Diabetes mellitus
• Dry eye syndrome
• Fibromyalgia
• Fungal infections
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Influenza
• Irritable bowel syndrome • Insomnia
• Kidney disorders
• Liver disorders
• Loss of appetite
• Lower back pain
• Multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Muscle weakness or pain
• Nausea and vomiting
• Obesity
• Osteoarthritis
• Osteomalacia
• Parasite infections
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Polyuria (producing large amounts of diluted urine)
• Polydipsia (abnormally high thirst)
• Poor appetite or loss of appetite
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Seizures – can be fatal
• Skin disorders (eczema and psoriasis)
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Tetanus
• Viral infections including Covid-19
• Visual problems
• Weakened immune system

In conclusion, the evidence that vitamin D may have an influence on the Covid-19 pandemic and should be tested for is as follows:
• Covid-19 became prevalent from November 2019 to April 2020, peaking in March 2019 when levels would be particularly low.
• Became more prevalent in polluted areas.
• Higher numbers of the BAME community had serious, and often fatal, outcomes.
• Persons over 60 were hardest hit.
• Persons with underlying health issues, often made worse by vitamin D deficiency, were hit harder.

If you feel you may have low levels of vitamin D, get a blood test done by your doctor as soon as possible. Also make sure that in November 2020 you get your levels checked again. This is important to help you fight off all viral infections, including colds and influenzas and especially the Covid-19 virus.

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How to Boost Your Body’s Ability to Heal Itself

Coconut

We have all had too struggle with recovery from an injury, surgery or an infection at some time in our lives. To do so requires extra energy and the best raw materials, and these raw materials – along with the microbe-fighting properties of many plant components – need to come from what we eat and drink.

The following excerpts come from Recovery from Injury, Surgery and Infection, the latest book in the Nature Cures series from Nat Hawes.

Coconut (Cocos nucifera)

Coconut, in all its forms (flesh, oil and water), can eliminate infectious illnesses including those caused by viruses due to its components capric acid, caprylic acid and lauric acid.

Breast-feeding mothers who consume pure virgin coconut oil have high levels of these healthy fatty acids in their milk, which is of great benefit to the infant because it protects them from infections and toxins.

Lauric acid

Lauric acid is a type of medium-chain fatty acid found in only a handful of foods but especially in coconut; it is converted into monolaurin, in the body, which has antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties.

Lauric acid is useful for treating viral infections, including colds (caused by a coronavirus) and influenza, cold sores and other herpes infections.

In addition to coconut, which is by far the richest source, sources include cow’s milk, curry leaf, goat’s milk and palm kernel oil

Capric acid

Capric acid, together with lauric acid and caprylic acid, helps to increase levels of ‘good’ high-density lipoproteins (HDL cholesterol) relative to ‘bad’ low-density lipoproteins (LDL cholesterol).

Capric acid is also very useful for treating viral infections.

Additional sources include: aubergine; cow’s milk (full cream); goat’s milk (full cream) and palm kernel oil.

Caprylic acid

Caprylic acid can help counter many types of infection.

Research has revealed that it can activate a hormone called ghrelin, which in turn stimulates the hunger centre in the brain and increases appetite. This may prove to be particularly useful for patients with poor appetites following illness.

Because of its unique chemical structure, caprylic acid is able to seep through the outside shell of the mitochondria (the energy-making micro-structures in all our cells) where it can then be broken down to release energy. In this way, overall energy levels are increased, which helps aid recovery.

Consuming natural foods containing caprylic acid may also curb a deficiency in vitamin A. Sources other than coconut include cow’s milk, goat’s milk, palm oil and pomegranate seed oil.

You can find out more about Nat Hawes book here, or follow Nature Cures on Twitter or Facebook

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Celebrating the Healing Power of Garlic

The healing power of garlic

19th April marks National Garlic Day. To celebrate, we thought we would take some time to acknowledge the healing power of this versatile plant. Below is an excerpt from Nature Cures, a book by NH Hawes.

Garlic (Allium Sativa)

Native to central Asia, garlic is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world and has been grown for over 5000 years. Ancient Egyptians appear to have been the first to cultivate this plant and it had an important role in their culture. It was revered and placed in the tombs of Pharoahs and also given to the slaves that built the Pyramids too enhance their endurance and strength.

The garlic bulb is a natural antibiotic, antimicrobial, antifungal, cleanser and antioxidant and aids the body’s natural ability to resist disease. Garlic has been used for expelling intestinal worms and parasites from ancient times by the Chinese, Greeks, Romans, Hindus and Babylonians. It is a natural anthelmintic and is especially useful against giardia, leishmania, plasmodium roundworms and trypanosomes.

Tips on Using Garlic

  • Always add crushed or chopped garlic at the end of cooking a meal to retain the powerful properties that prolonged heat can destroy
  • Never store garlic in oil at room temperature as this provides the perfect conditions for producing botulism, regardless of whether the garlic is fresh or has been roasted.
  • Garlic should be avoided by persons diagnosed with lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus)

Ailments Garlic Can Help to Treat and Protect Against

  • Anaemia
  • Arthritis
  • Asthma
  • Bacterial infections
  • Bronchitis
  • Cancer
  • Colds
  • Colitis
  • Colon Cancer
  • Diarrhea
  • Digestive disorders
  • Fever
  • Food poisoning
  • Herpes
  • High Blood Pressure
  • Influenza
  • Liver disorders
  • Nasal and sinus congestion
  • Parasites and worms
  • Poor circulation
  • Prostate disorders
  • Renal cancer
  • Toothache
  • Tumours
  • Whooping cough
  • And many more…

To learn more about garlic and other natural food remedies, check out Nature Cures by NH Hawes.