News from Oregon's Wild Harvest

OWH Herbs in the News

May 2011

Stay up to date with the latest information, research and scientific studies being done worldwide on herbal solutions and herbal remedies. Compliments of Oregon's Wild Harvest, and sent monthly.

Herbal Business

This interesting study determines how consumers perceive price and provides insight into how we shop!

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100720123706.htm

Click on the link below to find out which foods promote a healthy inflammation response, promote heart health and promote cellular health and strong immune systems. Hint! They are all antioxidants. The article also describes how organic ketchup has 50 percent higher levels of antioxidants than a group of major national brands.

http://www.organic-center.org/reportfiles/AntioxFinal.pdf

Herb of the Month

A Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Investigation of the Effects of Passiflora incarnata (Passionflower) Herbal Tea on Subjective Sleep Quality.

Phytother Res. 2011 Feb 3. [Epub ahead of print] Ngan A, Conduit R.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of Passiflora incarnata herbal tea on human sleep, as measured using sleep diaries....(more)

Sustainable Planet

Celebrating Mother's Day in a manner that is mindful of our Mother Earth. Some great ideas and resources which promote eco-business and earth-conscious gifts. Merely passing them along by sharing this email is one way of protecting our precious planet.

Send organic flowers instead of pesticide-laden flowers. http://www.organicbouquet.com/
Buy a membership to a local arbor, garden or even a national organization such as http://www.organicconsumers.org/donations.cfm
How about a box of organic produce? http://www.diamondorganics.com/inthenews
Pamper your mom with natural, organic perfume http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/health_and_beauty/843750/top_10ecofriendly_perfumes.html

Notable Herbal Studies

Effects of cranberry juice consumption on vascular function in patients with coronary artery disease.

Dohadwala MM et al, Am J Clin Nutr, 2011 March 16

The objective was to examine the effects of cranberry juice on vascular function in subjects with coronary artery disease......(more)

Green tea polyphenol EGCG blunts androgen receptor function in prostate cancer.

Imtiaz A. et al. The FASEB Journal; vol. 25 no. 4 1198-1207 April 2011 (more)

Bioactive components from the tea polyphenols influence on endogenous antioxidant defense system and modulate inflammatory cytokines after total-body irradiation in mice.

Hu Y et al. Phytomedicine. 2011 Apr 15. [Epub ahead of print]

The present study aimed to evaluate the radioprotective efficacy of green tea polyphenols and the component ingredients against irradiated-induced damage in mice and elucidate the underlying mechanisms......(more)

NIH Launches Web Resource on Complementary and Alternative Medicine

National Institutes of Health. 2011 Apr 26. [Epub ahead of print]

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) of the National Institutes of Health launched a website which provides information on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), including herbs.... (more)

Notable Studies for Women

The Effect of Galactagogue Herbal Tea on Breast Milk Production and Short-Term Catch-Up of Birth Weight in the First Week of Life.

Canan Turkyılmaz et al. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. February 2011, 17(2): 139-142

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether consumption of maternal herbal tea containing fenugreek had any effects on breast milk production and infants' weight gain pattern in the early postnatal period.....(more)

Hormonal and metabolic effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids in young women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS): results from a cross-sectional analysis and a randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial.

Phelan N, O'Connor A, et al, Am J Clin Nutr, 2011 March; 93(3): 652-62

This study aimed to determine the associations between plasma PUFAs and metabolic and hormonal aspects of PCOS to investigate the efficacy of LC n-3 PUFA supplementation and to support the findings with mechanistic cellular studies.....(more)

Green Tea and Bone Health: Evidence from Laboratory Studies.

Shen CL et al. Pharmacol Res. 2011 Apr 4. [Epub ahead of print]

This review describes the effect of green tea with its bioactive components on bone health....(more)

Effects of a safflower tea supplement on antioxidative status and bone markers in postmenopausal women.

Cho SH et al. Nutr Res Pract, 2011 Feb; 5(1): 20-7.

This study was conducted to examine the effects of safflower seed granular tea containing physiologically active polyphenols on antioxidative activities and bone metabolism....(more)

Herbalism-Lite

Weed It and Reap: Making a Meal with Nature's Outcasts

By T. Susan Chang, NPR

This interesting article has some wonderful gourmet recipes using common wild weeds. We cultivate several in our own organic garden! They are quite delicious and a wonderful source of the bitter greens which are so healthy for our bodies, especially this time of year when our livers tend to be sluggish. (more)

The fastest growing sector in the natural marketplace?

By Rajiv Leventhal, Nutrition Industry Executive

Digestive health! According to a new report released in 2010 by MarketsandMarkets the total U.S. market for digestive health was valued at $265.9 million. The market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.2 percent from 2010-15. This article discusses the key ingredients being used for digestive health. (more)