Kale and Kant

Healthy Body. Healthy Mind

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Astragalus

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Several years ago, I became aware of the supplement Astragalus while reading one of Andrew Weil‘s newsletters.  It is a traditional Chinese herb derived from the root of a plant in the pea family, and it’s been used for centuries for immune support (particularly against colds and upper respiratory infections), as well as to help treat chronic hepatitis and even cancer and heart disease.  There have not been many exhaustive studies of the herb, but I will share my own personal experience.  I have a long history of serious upper respiratory infections, including 3 bouts of pneumonia, one of which required hospitalization.  I have always suffered 2-3 serious annual upper respiratory infections, requiring antibiotics, inhalers, and even steroids.  Well, since I started using astragalus daily about 3-4 years ago, I have only had 1 serious infection, and that occurred when I stopped taking astragalus for a couple of months (for no good reason, and I’ve learned my lesson!).   [Read more…]

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I’m Sick: Do I Need an Antibiotic?

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While reading one of my favorite columns in The New York Times—Tara Parker Pope’s invaluable “Well Blog”—I came across some important information on fighting germs, always useful during cold and flu season. It turns out that we don’t have to worry about using hot water when we wash our hands. I had always turned the water to just below scalding, thinking I was wiping out more germs that way. But the high water temp that would be needed to kill the germs would also burn our skin. Best to use tepid water—though not cold water since it fails to remove bacteria-harboring oils. What matters most is time spent actually washing. They say a good rule of thumb is to wash for the time it takes to sing the Happy Birthday song. Also, be careful to wash the entire hand–between the fingers, on top, and so on. Those pesky germs can travel around. [Read more…]