Category Archives: Hormones
Iodine deficiency is the most common cause of hypothyroidism. Iodine is essential for the healthy function of the thyroid gland and adequate amounts must be obtained from the diet or its function is inhibited. A chronic deficiency of iodine may produce goitre.1
(more…)Vitex (Vitex agnus-castus) is a common shrub in the Mediterranean region which occupies rough ground around roads and gullies, recognisable by its strong scent, leaf stem carrying several leaflets resembling hemp, and spikes of lavender coloured flowers. Dioscorides mentions that it was used to encourage chastity, and we still know it as chaste-tree or monk’s pepper because it can be used by both men and women to suppress libido.1
(more…)Whether eaten as a vegetable or taken in the form of a herbal tincture, kelp is nourishing to the body. Kelp is rich in many minerals particularly iodine, magnesium, potassium, calcium, sulphur, iron, zinc and copper because these minerals are available to the growing weed from the sea, just like other nutritious sea vegetables (nori, kombu, dulse, wakame). While low in protein and fats, kelp has plenty of fibre and good levels of important vitamins (A, B2, B12, C, D, E, K).1
(more…)The symptoms associated with prostate problems are urging, pain on urination (dysuria), urinary frequency, incomplete emptying of the bladder, hesitancy and dribbling. This may be caused by an acute or chronic infection (prostatitis), or be the result of chronic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Urinalysis, a test for prostate specific antigen (PSA), and a physical exam (DRE) will help differentiate prostatitis, BPH, kidney disease, diabetes and prostate cancer.
(more…)The soybean (Glycine max) provides a cheap and nutritious alternative to animal protein in populous countries such as China, Korea and Japan. There are many cultivars available and a crop of soy is highly productive, producing large amounts of beans. The beans are usually pressed for their oil and the remaining meal used for animal feed, or included as an ingredient in vegetarian meals and baked goods. Traditional methods of preparation of soybean included boiling to make soymilk and tofu, roasting the beans, and fermentation to make tempeh.
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