Food Cures From the Garden

I picked up a wonderful book at the library the other day called Rx from the Garden: 101 Food Cures You can Easily Grow Now written by Kathleen Barnes. Though the only gardening space I have right now is on my small deck (using containers), I still want to get an idea of what I would try to grow if I had a yard. I also would like to learn more about which foods can be used to treat--or at least alleviate the symptoms of--certain common health issues. The first half of the book outlines the different foods and herbs you can use to treat ailments such as arthritis, high/low blood sugar, headaches, stress, depression, hair problems, eyesight deterioration, and more. The second half of the book provides instructions on how to grow the corresponding vegetables and herbs in your own garden.

Garlic and onions are two of the most prominent players in this book, which is no surprise since they are so loaded with many health-giving nutrients. Garlic is a powerful antibiotic and both garlic and onions have been shown to stop or slow the growth of a variety different cancerous cells.

I was also glad to see chili peppers listed as valuable vegetables in treating a variety of health problems because I love cooking with them! Chili peppers contain capsaicin, "...a powerful painkiller that is relatively unique in the plant world because it provides quick relief. In many ways, it works like aspirin without the potentially harmful side effects and it temporarily blocks a compound called 'substance P' that transmits pain signals along the nerves to the brain" (p. 24). Some of the ailments it is supposed to help with include: osteoarthritis, back pain, bronchitis, and colds/flu.

I recommend this book for anyone who would like to learn more about how certain foods can serve as medicine. Why not first resort to natural cures before loading ourselves up with the potentially harmful toxins and side effects found in most conventional Western medicine?

 "One of the biggest tragedies of human civilization is the precedent of chemical therapy over nutrition. It's a substitution of artificial therapy over nature, of poisons over food, in which we are feeding people poisons trying to correct the reactions of starvation."  
 -Dr. Royal Lee, January 12, 1951