For a few days I was getting some bites on me, which isn’t all that unusual with keeping windows and such open in the summer time and the bugs etc….. I was starting to get a few more than what I would consider normal and I got the bug spray out and sprayed my perimeter to keep the bugs from entering the house and keeping them outside where they should be. Sitting next to my dog on the couch watching Discovery Channel I’m sure, a little bug jumped on me. This repeated itself and then I put 2 and 2 together and figured out my dog, Chester, has fleas!

Herbally, we can deal this. Lets start with your pet and the fleas. Cedar should be no secret to most people. Its used to keep moths out and boxes to keep bugs out in general. However, it kinda is a secret and I don’t know why. Cedar is great and you can buy Cedar Oil. Cedar Oil is great because it kills almost every bug and it is safe. You can coat your dog in it and your entire house.

Fleas feed on blood like mosquitoes and ticks, but they need to live in the environment like your dogs coat. Adult fleas will live on your dog, but many will venture off here and there to hang out on you and bite you, or they jump onto carpet thinking its another dog and hang out there until your dog comes by and they jump back on. Flea eggs don’t stay in your dog’s coat and fall out. This creates a large amount of flea infestations anywhere your dog goes. This means that not only does your dog need to be cleansed of the Adult fleas, you have to kill the fleas all over your house so they don’t just hop back on your dog after you cleaned him. This is what happens to many people who simply clean their dog with a flea shampoo and then their dog just gets re-infested.

I took Chester into the bathroom and cleaned him up really good in the shower. I left him in the bathroom to dry off and hang out. My infestation wasn’t really bad and I knew the bad spots were the bedroom and front room. I took the cedar oil and covered the carpet in the those areas really well and also the couch in the front room. I then removed the sheets and blankets and put them directly into the wash machine. Now that a good bit of Cedar oil has neutralized all my bugs in the house including the fleas, its time to finish with the dog. I have a clean dog so now its time to coat him with the cedar oil too. If your house was stinky before it smells awesome now! Now about me.

When I get bug bites I use Dimmak Herbs Echinacea Blend. Echinacea plus the Chapparal and Hong Hua in the bottle as a tincture do an excellent job in drawing the poison out and astringing the bite which makes it itch free as well. This time around the tincture wasn’t working. I was applying it over and over and over daily with only brief relief. After the time I realized that the problem was flea related and the Echinacea Blend tincture wasn’t working it came to me that I was having a REACTION to the bites. So I changed up products. I started taking DM Assist internally and switched between Itch/Rash Salve (for anti-histamine) and Aloe Salve (for spreading rashes and skin irritations) all from Dimmak Herbs. I was able to settle my reactions and the fleas went away. Another Natural Victory!

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The logic has truth to it. By eating 3oz or so of natural food and a large glass of water and wait some time before you eat, you will eat less. Not only have you given your body a chance to take in a semi-filling meal, but you could also work to speed up metabolism. This isn’t really anything new, but some guy is now advertising a way to do it. I was thrilled at first, then I went to the web site. The bars are all natural, but really not full of much! There is soy protein added for protein, not a lot of fiber, a small anount of a few vitamins, and they are being sold for like $3 a peice! Are you serious?

The theory here does work, and I would advise people to try it but forget blowin $3 on that guys lame bar. Instead take a look a Clif Bar
http://www.clifbar.com/food/products_clif_bar/
When you are taking in less food you still need the same amount of Vitamins, Minerals, and everything else. Just from looking at the Clif Bar you can see all of the good stuff they have in there.

I even have a better idea. Why don’t you try this tactic with a peice of bread that is very high in Fiber. Find the loaf of bread with the most amount of Fiber and some vitamins and such, eat a slice 30 minutes before you eat and see how you do.

Asian culture has been doing similar things in their daily diet for years. For example, the Japanese traditionally have Miso Soup and some type of salad like Sea Weed salad about 10-15 minutes before the meal comes out. In this case you are taking in some Fiber, warm liquid to warm the digestion, minerals in the soup and allows you to not start eating on a totally empty stomach.

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http://www.dimmakherbs.com/wounddemo.html

Want to get some pills and powder for your First Aid needs? Visit Dimmak Herbs and look for their Dimmak Clot at www.dimmakherbs.com
San Qi should not be taken internally in pregnant women.

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Familiar with the famous stomach ache and pain after your 3rd trip through the Chinese Buffet line? Did your last trip to Las Vegas leave you in a ‘Carb Comatose’ from all the Buffets?

Regardless your eating style you may have experienced the same symptoms from weak GI tract or many other reasons. In Chinese Medicine this is known as Food Stagnation. The intestines are very durable but have their limit. When more food is taken in than your body can keep up with then food isn’t moving. The food movement is supposed to be a slow process of churning and decomposition so your body can take in the good, clean and clear and discard the turbid. This process is strained and overworked and cannot perform its functions and intended. We literally end up with non movement of food or Food Stagnation. Signs and Symptoms of Food Stagnation include abdominal distension, abdominal pain, acid regurgitation and brief relief is found from flatulation, vomiting, and burping.

There is no secret that most herbs don’t taste all that well, but of course things that taste terrible usually seem to be great for you. In this case Shan Zha is a berry, more specifically Hawthorn berry. I wouldn’t recommend running out and buying these to eat like some strawberries or anything, they are quite sour, I am saying they are definitely on the tastier end of herbs. Shan Zha tastes pretty sour and has an unusual taste to your palate at first (some describe it like meat) but it is sweet and easily eaten straight up by itself.

Now that early ‘meat taste’ has a bit of importance. Shan Zha has a specific affinity for certain stagnation of foods- meat and greasy foods. What a perfect choice for a Buffet? This herb also has some other great features that make it a great herb. Shan Zha has been clinically shown to be a cardio-tonic- more specifically lowers cholesterol, lowers blood pressure, widens the coronary arteries, etc… What a perfect choice for a Buffet herb?

As usual Shan Zha is best in specific formulas and dried out, but Hawthorn is available in raw berry form and in drinks found at your local Asian Food Stores.

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Let’s talk about home dieting. An easy and efficient way to help with weight loss and living healthy is to buy the right food. The good news here is that in many cases you can just modify the items you buy rather than buying something completely different. Some of this information may not be completely new to you, but I hope to get some awareness out there.

Fiber- This is the key to dieting and let me tell you why.
Fiber content is mostly indigestible fully in the body because we don’t contain the enzymes to do so. What Fiber does is compact our food and moisture and clear out our intestines on the way down. The regularity that Fiber gives to the bowel movement has many benefits. First, I would like to define regular- I mean have a bowel movement AT LEAST 1 time daily. What doctors consider normal is the national average, that’s why blood pressure normality seems to raise every couple years. So if you were told that going every 3 days is okay, its not. Regular bowel movements keep your intestinal muscles healthy, toxins out of your body; regulate proper water weight, and nutrition absorption (all of these can also help with your complexion).

Secondly Fiber just so happens to be in foods that are all good for you! Fiber is found in Whole Wheat, Brown Rice, Seeds, Whole Grains, etc… When you are eating ‘Whole’ foods you get the benefit of the Fiber and many B-Vitamins (energy), protein, and iron.

Fiber and ‘whole’ foods are denser. You just can’t simply eat as much as you would. This helps you on your goal of losing weight as one of the things you need to do is learn portion control. Fiber is a great snack before meals as well. A slice of whole wheat bread in your system some time before meals will greatly reduce your appetite. The whole wheat portion is a natural part of food. It is processed off of the grain when you it is purchased in a non-whole wheat fashion. When you take in the whole grain your body must use more energy (work off calories) to break off this ‘capsule’ of the wheat.

Lets recap-

Healthy intake

Less appetite

Bowel regulation

Here’s a secret of diet pills- help regulate appetite, regulate bowels, and make you lose water weight. Sound familiar?

Now I would like to talk about what I think as the greatest of all fiber foods- Flax Seed. Flax Seed, like many other seeds, are an excellent source of oils along with protein and iron and such. The oils of nuts and seeds are quite healthy and Flax Seed is not only no exception but the king of all oils. Flax Seed is high in Omega 3 fatty acids; an essential fatty acid that our body cannot produce on its own it must be outsourced. Flax Seed has a high content of fiber and it’s a ‘moist laxative’. Flax seed needs to be ground up prior to use for full effect, but I like to buy it pre ground from say Uncle Bob’s. What is the usage you say? It can be used at every meal if you wanted to, but specifically- Sprinkle on your cereal, cook in with hot cereal, goes great on peanut butter sandwiches, add to soups, add to crock pot meals, add to chili, wok it in to meals early when you are sautéing just to name a few. Flax Seed has a very subtle taste and usually won’t be tasted. Its taste is sorta nutty when you can taste it so it’s especially great with anything that would have peanut butter or where that taste would compliment the dish.

Here’s a little sample shopping list to give you some ideas:

Flax Seed

Multi Grain Hot Cereal

Whole Wheat Bread (Double fiber or Whole Grain)

Whole Grain Pastas

Whole Wheat crackers

Fiber One Cereal

Whole Wheat Waffles (Eggo’s Cinnamon Whole Grain Waffles are great!)

Brown Rice

Buy Wheat Flower and use instead of White

There are many whole wheat pasta sides available

Eat the fruit, not the fruit juice

Buy fresh vegetables

Have side salads at as many meals as possible (easy and light dressings!!)

When you’re out getting a salad load up on the green vegetables

Whole Wheat tortilla chips

And much more!

Keep an open mind about it and look for a whole wheat alternative to what you normally buy.

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Dear Sean- Can you advise an herb for really really really bad menstrual cramps?

Yes I can.
In the herbal world cramping is considered spasms. What you want to control cramping is naturally an anti-spasmodic. This would be similar to formulas that one would use for nervousness, shock, as well as cramping.

To name 1 herb for this condition I would definitely go with one that is anti-spasmodic and has affinity for the Female Reproductive System.
Black Haw is the most powerful single herb for this. A possible substitution is Cramp Bark (for cost, availability, etc…)
A tincture would work best here. Take about 20 drops 2-3 times daily or as needed.

General herbs many may have around or easier availability would be Skullcap, Lobelia, and Valerian.

Jamika, hope things go well for you. Should you get me more info we can come up with a bit better of a formula for you next time.

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