James A. Duke - The Green Pharmacy Guide to Healing Foods: Proven Natural Remedies to Treat and Prevent More Than 80 Common Health Concerns

Food for Thought on Food

I TS BEEN MORE THAN 10 YEARS since I wrote my book The Green Pharmacy. A lot has changed since then, especially as far as public perception of medicinal plants. Back then, they were something of a novelty, still on the fringes of legitimate medicine and science. Today, theyre just short of mainstream. You can find their therapeutic compounds in products from cough drops to energy drinks.

Surely one of the reasons for the growing popularity of medicinal plants is the increase in legitimate research to support them. One of the most pervasive complaints about medicinal plants generally is that theyre scientifically unproven, even though many of them have been in use for hundreds if not thousands of years. Both the government and private institutions have been funding the investigation plants and their healing properties. The outcomes have been mixed for some, but others are faring quite welleven holding their own against prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals.

Personally, Ill choose a plant over a pill any day. In fact, Ive got dozens of these natural healers growing right behind my house, in my Green Farmacy Garden. Theyre laid out in plots by condition; from spring through summer and on into fall, I can harvest the plants as I need themwhether to treat an insect bite or to keep my gout from flaring up, which happens if I get careless.

So it shouldnt be a surprise that for my new book, The Green Pharmacy Guideto Healing Foods, I continue to favor the use of medicinal plants for minor complaints as well as for more serious chronic conditions, for which conventional treatments often are appropriate or necessary. In cases like these, medicinal plants may enhance the healing process and perhaps even reduce the need for medication. (Though I cant stress enough that you should never change any prescribed treatment plan without first consulting your doctor.)

For this book, Ive expanded my usual definition of medicinal plants as herbs to include all plant-based foodsnamely fruits, vegetables, beans, grains, and nuts and seeds. For the most part, theyre remedies that you would easily find at your supermarket or farmers market, or that youd have other reason to keep on hand in your kitchen. I will admit to throwing in the occasional exotic, such as camu-camu, a fruit that I encountered on one of my numerous exploratory excursions to the Amazon. It is unmatched as a source of vitamin C. Right now its available in only powdered form in the US. For my money, the actual fruit is a much better choice, because of all the other therapeutic compounds it contains.

This brings me to an important point: Though the conventional wisdom is to single out a particular nutrient in a particular food for its healing properties, Im not entirely sold on this approach. Yes, our bodies require sufficient amounts of certain vitamins and mineralsthe so-called essential nutrientsto carry out their basic biochemical functions. And nutritional deficiencies may contribute to the onset of certain diseases. That said, Im convinced that no nutrient works in isolation. Its the synergistic effects of the nutrients and other compoundsespecially phytochemicalsthat give foods their healing potential. Thats why foods are almost always a better choice than supplements, and whole, fresh foods are more beneficial than processed.

As you read this book, youre going to see an occasional reference to multiple activity menus, or MAMs. Theyre a product of the USDA Phytochemical Database, which I developed during my tenure with the USDA. Simply, a MAM identifies the phytochemicals in a particular medicinal plant, along with their respective therapeutic activities. Using this information, the MAM generates a synergy score that suggests how a plant might contribute to the prevention or treatment of a condition, relative to other plants. The MAMs arent gold-standard research in and of themselves, but they can direct us to plants and plant-based foods that we may not have considered because they dont contain significant amounts of the essential vitamins and minerals.

Though this book is heavy on plant-based food remedies, you are also going to come across some animal productsmostly fish and dairy. Plant foods will always be my first choice, mainly because only they contain those all-important phytochemicals. Animal foods do not. Still, my editor and researchers persuaded me to include some animal products because they are they best available sources of certain nutrients. Calcium is a good example. You can get it in decent amounts from dark leafy greens, among other plant foods, but they rarely come close to dairy. Generally, Ive tried to give plant-based alternatives to the animal-based remedies, so you can decide whats best for you.

I imagine that youre eager to jump to Part II of this book, where youll find the remedies organized by condition. Youre more than welcome to do so, but I would encourage you to sometime read through Part I. There youll find helpful information on the science behind eating for good health, along with some suggestions for maximizing the nutritional punch of your own diet. Youll also find Dukes Dozen, the 12 foods that I consider most beneficial for fighting disease, based on the nutrients and phytochemicals they contain.

In the condition chapters themselves, youll notice that each remedy carries a rating of 1 to 3 stars. The ratings reflect a combination of scientific research, anecdotal evidence, and my own experience with particular remedies. Theyre entirely subjective, but Im hoping that they may help prioritize your choices, as most conditions have a number of healing foods from which to choose.

A few other caveats to keep in mind:

1. If youre trying a food for the first time, proceed with cautionparticularly if you have other known food allergies or sensitivities. Yes, foods are natural, an d generally, theyre safe. But even they can cause trouble for some people. If you notice any sign of an adverse reaction, stop eating the food and see your doctor as soon as possible.
2. I mentioned this earlier, but its important enough that Ill reiterate here: Please dont make changes to any prescribed treatment plan that you may be following without first consulting your doctor. Reducing the dosage of a medication without proper guidance can have serious consequences. Better to be safe than sorry, as the saying goes.
3. Whichever remedies you choose, be sure to give them adequate time to work. Some may produce results quickly, while others may take weeks to show their effects. Further, everyone responds differently to individual remedies. If one isnt doing the job for youeven after, say, 6 or so weeksby all means try another one. You may need to do some experimenting to find whats right for you.

So are you ready to begin? Good. Lets explore together all of the amazing healing bounty that nature has to offer.