NEEM
NEEM In its native India it’s known as “the village pharmacy”. The ability of neem to treat many illnesses is described in the earliest Sanskrit writings. For more than 4,500 years, Ayurvedic healers have used the bark, seeds, leaves, fruit, gum and oils of the neem tree (Azadirachta indica) for dozens of internal and external medical treatments. Historically its uses have included a wide variety of diseases and disorders including malaria, dental health problems, diabetes, heart disease, pain jaundice, leprosy, stomach ulcers, chicken pox, heat-rash and many other skin disorders including cuts, bruises, acne, boils and wounds. Modern researchers have isolated more than 140 compounds from different parts of the tree; these compounds have been shown, mostly in animal and laboratory studies exert anticancer, antioxidant, wound-healing and antimicrobial properties. Neem is also a powerful insecticide that has become a staple of many natural head lice treatments and mosquito repellants. As far as human health is concerned, modern research suggests that eczema and psoriasis may also respond to treatment with neem, due to the presence of two anti-inflammatory compounds, nimbi-din and nimbin. In one early study these chemicals were found to be at least as affective as both steroidal and non-steroidal creams in the treatment of inflammatory skin conditions, but without the side effects. Many practitioners report good results using neem as it moisturises and protects the skin while helping to heal the lesions, scaling and irritation. It relieves the itching and pain while reducing the scale and redness of the patchy lesions. Neem also contains a number of constituents that may be helpful in the fight against cancer. One study reported how five of those active constituents showed an significant inhibitory effect on the development of melanoma skin cancer. Another study on the antioxidant properties of neem found that the extract induced apoptosis (cell death) of cervical cancer cells. Tests in the US have shown that neem is toxic to the herpes virus and can heal cold sores. Neem’s ability to surround viruses and prevent them from entering and infecting cells makes it one of the few agents capable of relieving shingles.