Super food

Super food that can potentially improve your health, wellness, mental health and strengthen your immune system. Super food can be full of antioxidants, power food. The above and following statements have not being evaluated by FDA. These are for entertainment, personal usage only. Please consult your Primary Care Physician and do your research. This is a personal blog, we do not have a physician on call. 

Super food is all the hype but scientific evidence is rare. It's hard to do double blind clinical research on food, herbs. There are many confounding factors. Sometimes, lack of purity, and contamination even causes harm. 

One narrow, imperfect definition of super food is food that contains certain ingredient that greatly exceeds the upper DV of nutrients in quite a few categories. Watch out, high concentration does not mean high potency, high absorption, and sometimes over consuming is downright dangerous! Again please always consult your PCP. Never take any supplements with alcohol, never take any supplements with prescription drugs, and never take any supplements without consulting your PCP.

Many consider fruits to be anti-aging, full of antioxidants, age fighting features.

Cordycept: scary looking mushroom with a sinister backstory. 

Ginseng

Mushroom, mushroom coffee, turkey tail mushroom coffee

Pears: pears are super nutritious. Warning pears and fruits in general have high sugar contents. 

Eating well and nourishing the body is very important. Did you know that "Being hungry causes serotonin levels to drop, causing a whirlwind of uncontrollable emotions such as anxiety, stress, anger and sadness."? While fasting can help us with our health, excessive hunger will negatively affect our zen level. 

One thought provoking question is : is there such a thing as mindful supplements? Is there food or nutrients that can calm our minds and bring inner peace? What do you think? 

Is there any super food or herb infused food that you have encountered?

Warning : in the time of covid, it is important to seek proper medical treatment instead of focusing on supplements or super food. Infectious Diseases require proper medical treatment fast!

Licorice herb page

Licorice flavored coffee is common in France, and countries and locations influenced by France

In some countries, licorice root is used to treat cancers, according to the Herb Growing & Marketing Network. Licorice root extract produces steroid-like effects in the body, helping lymphoma patients to gain weight, says the A.P. John Institute for Cancer Research. Licorice also helps to "inhibit the growth of lymphomas and leukemias," the Institute notes.

Disclaimer, WARNING : Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. You will need to do your own research and consult your physician before using any herbs. Herbs can have herb-drug interaction, herb-herb interaction and allergic reactions. Some cancer centers offer herbal approach to treating cancer such as the cleveland center, which requires cancer doctors and chinese medicine professionals to work together and collaborate in professional settings. All contents on this blog is for entertainment purpose only, CANNOT be used to handle health, health care, or treat any disease, or solve any problems. Research  and trials on herbs around the world is extremely limited.

Home Remedies for Headaches

In this blog post, we will discuss home remedies for headaches. Please note these are anecdotal stories, they are not cures or fixes for actual health concerns / problems. These are for entertainment purpose only. See the disclaimer below. 

Disclaimer, WARNING : Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. Disclaimer, WARNING : Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. 

• Non-invasive:
• Head scratcher, scalp massager. There are traditional metallic ones from Chinatown, Kikkerland, and there are some really fancy modern, spa ones, made of soft silicone tips, which I prefer, because I got scratched a couple of times by the metal ones. 
• Drinking water. My personal experience is that over consumption of salt, and dehydration - lack of proper water consumption can cause severe headache for me. I drink water to get better. If it is after a big meal, I drink water with electrolytes so I can get the work done with less water.
• Oxygen canister. It could be a complete placebo effect, but I personally tried those hotel room mini hangover one-use canisters filled with pure oxygen and found those to alleviate headaches.
• Opening the window and let air in. Personally, when I cook things that generate a lot of steam and not opening the window, I get a headache. My oxygen saturation will be below 98% too. I am sensitive. 
• Massaging Hu Kou (Tiger Mouth) pressure point is believed in TCM to relieve headache. Aculief clip seems to be a clever modern device for "clipping" applying pressure on the pressure point. I haven't tried it, but I thought it was a clever design. 
• Massing Feng Chi (Wind Pool) pressure point, where the head and neck is connected, seems to be useful for temp headache relief. I personally like using it when my headache is stress related. 

Thai Green Balm Ointment 泰国青草薄荷膏

We were gifted a bottle of Thai Green Balm by our Thai friend. It has a distinct, intense smell which made the entire night stand smelled a bit. Highly recommend storing it in a container. We had two suspicious looking bug bites that were itchy, so we remembered this bottle suddenly and applied it on our skin. There was no allergic reaction (we were nervous because it was unclear what are its ingredients. We cannot read the labels. You should do your own research and not use it unless consulted with your physician), and the itchiness stopped.

Despite the concern, I am personally very curious about remedies from around the world. For example, some herbs are unknown to the west, yet commonly used in the east, and sometimes the other way around : gooseberry is not well known at all in Asia, yet it's often served on fancy dinner tables in Europe.  It made me curious about this "miracle" ointment and did some research on its ingredients. 

"The active ingredients of this balm are Barleria, lemongrass, mint and menthol." https://doctorthailand.net/product/green-herb-balm-hop-headed-barleria

It can also contain these active ingredients Menthol, Methyl Salicylate and inactive ingredients such as camphor! Peppermint Oil, Camphor And Paraffin Petrolatum.

In fact, Asian anti-bug, ant-mosquito ointments often contain Camphor. While Camphor does have some usage, it can be poisonous in high dosage, and if used by children. Best to keep away. https://www.rxlist.com/consumer_camphor/drugs-condition.htm 

I have a few Thai friends swear by this, and it helped me this time, I would still use it with caution and avoid using it all together during pregnancy. Might get one if I travel in Thailand during the summer. I personally hate mosquitos. 

Herbal supplements in Germany

It may be surprising that in the ultra modern, engineering obsessed country of Germany, there are many great herbal supplements offerings.  

You might have seen the quite famous Floradix, liquid iron supplements. It's a heavy bottle, a nice alternative for those don't like big pills. 

Weleda is a popular brand available in Whole Foods, natural grocery stores and Pharmaca. It's a popular brand among Waldorf education community as well. It offers : body wash, massage oil and more. I was really excited to see Weleda offering a line of oil for reducing postpartum stretch marks. Will definitely check it out. (Natural way to reduce postpartum pregnancy stretch marks) 

Personally, I love natural products. There's one minor drawback, my friend did have a minor allergy reaction towards herbal based wash products. It's hard to make a mixture of herbs hypoallergenic. 

Meditations for those who fall asleep when sitting

 Sitting meditation is a must for becoming a monk, but it is not for every one. It can result in back pain, stiffness and falling asleep. I have some alternatives for you. 

• Walking meditation. This one is easy. Practice mindful meditation by walking around a zen place such as a garden. This garden can be really small. Look down at every step, take small, mindful, conscious steps, eyes half closed, take in the zen in nature - fallen leaves, rocks, snails, become hyper aware of your surroundings.
• Buddhist sutra calligraphy. Did you know that many Japanese temples offer visitors an opportunity to copy sutras - buddhist scriptures in silence in special rooms. This is a way for you to make an offering to the Buddha, also gather a moment of peace, and meditate via writing. Many temples offer this for free, or with a small donation for incense / offering money. 
• Meditation using bells, chimes, instruments and or deep trance meditation music. Not everyone can concentrate in this busy world, it is okay to utilize music, chime, and ring bells (keep a finger on the rim to create variations) to achieve better zen. There are apps that create ambience music, sounds, compilation of sounds, sleep music, raindrops.
•  Programmer Software Engineer? Trying building a meditation, breathing app using HTML CSS and JavaScript. Create calm and intriguing animations. 
• Buddhist painting. High monks practice buddhist color paintings and mandala as a part of their monk life and practice. You can create your own colorful religious painting 
• Meditate with tea. Tea ceremony as a part of meditation. 

Truffle | Herb Page

Truffle is surprisingly nutritious according to at least one source. Before you read, check out our warning below. 

Disclaimer, WARNING : Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. 

Nutrition 

According to webMD, Truffle is a rich source of amino acids and minerals, including: Phosphorus.Copper.Manganese.Selenium.Zinc.Vitamins A, B, C, D, and K. (Health Benefits of Truffles -WebMD). (This is a summary not the actual nutritional facts):

Truffle products

Honestly truffles are delicious. They are an Italian delicacy. Eat it if you can afford it. Personally I found Oregon, USA small black truffle to be affordable. It's possible to get quite a few chunky bites for under $30. Much cheaper that the shaved ones at restaurants. Truffle salt is delicious and can be under $15. Recipe: Sprinkle on buttered popcorns. One caveat, the actual portion of truffle is small. Likely not enough as a nutrient. There's also truffle honey, extremely delicious but probably not exactly loaded with nutrients - the truffle chunk is too small and the flavor could be artificial or enhanced. Truffle oil sometimes can be made entirely of generic oil with truffle fragrance. Personally, I think Truffle oil smells more like white truffle than black truffle. Personally, I think truffle oil is trying to mimic the flavor of white truffles. 

Variations

There are white truffles, and black truffles, truffles in Italy even truffles from the Himalayas. 

Truffle recipes

Truffle honey caramelized chex mix is one of my personal favorite served at SF bars. 

Zinc Rich Food | Food that naturally contains zinc

Food that naturally contains zinc. It is believed that zinc has some ability to break virus membrane but like all nutritional supplement, more data, more demographics studies, and better clinical studies is needed. 

Disclaimer, WARNING : Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. 

• Almonds
• Seafood often contains zinc. Anchovy also contains zinc. Oysters are delicious and comes with zinc. 
• Mushroom. Crimini mushroom is delicious and contains zinc. Truffle is luxurious and contains zinc.

Surprisingly Airborne - a popular vitamin C supplement in the US often comes bundled with zinc. Check the labels. Do your own research. Generally multi-vitamins bundled with mineral supplements also come with zinc. Random trivia : when Donald Trump got covid, he was prescribed medicine and he was also taking zinc supplements. https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/health/2020/10/06/donald-trump-covid-treatment-drugs-monoclonal-antibodies/3630609001/ I personally have been a bit "religious" in taking airborne with zinc whenever I feel like I am about to get a cold. I use it personally to avoid covid. But in the end, there's no evidence. I guess I am just trying for a stronger immune system.

 

Iron Rich Food | Food that naturally contains iron

Food that naturally contains iron. Food great for iron deficiency. Personally, I take iron supplements before my period to get ready and feel better. So far I would say I have less pain during that time of month than my peers.

Before you read, please know that no statements on this site has been evaluated by FDA. Please do your own research, always consult a physician, consult a nutritionist. Food, supplements, herbs may contain dangerous allergens. This lifestyle site is for entertainment purpose only. It is not medical advice. 

• Anchovy. A delicious, French way to get a lot of iron. Recipe : Top traditional romaine lettuce caesar salad with French anchovy bits. 
• Beef. Red meat generally contains iron.
• Black beans
• Wine. Wine contains iron!

Potential issues with the food that contains iron: 

Red meat generally contains iron, but remember over consumption of red meat has been shown to lead to forms of cancer. It may be consumed in moderation.

Beans may cause bloating. Pressure and gas.

Wine contains iron! But due to its alcoholic nature, in traditional Chinese medicine, wine to be avoided during periods and pregnancy.