Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Natural Food and Pharmaceutical Colors Given below are the list of the plant derived colors used in food and medicines(even the capsule colors).  Most of these are well known herbal medicines.  They impart a number of other benefits also.  Most of the colors like saffron, turmeric that are used in food, are good preservatives (antioxidants).  I would suggest utilizing a large number of colors from sources such as tree barks in food.  Most of these colors are proanthocyanidins so are very effective antioxidants.  So are the flavonoids abundant in leaves.  A culinary preparation colored by natural colors will effectively protect the body of the consumer from oxidative damage.  Since the free radicals are now believed to be responsible for diabetes, cardiac failure, brain damage, many types of cancer etc. the antioxidants added to food will definitely be protective in nature and will add years to the life of a consumer.  These antioxidants will...

Amphivasal vascular bundles and other unique  anatomical features of Desmodium (now  Pleurolobus gangeticus) leaf. During a pharmacognostic study of Desmodium gangeticum (now Pleurolobus gangeticus),  it is found that the leaves possess some unusual features like amphivasal vascular bundles in mid-rib, a colorless region of large rectangular cells between palisade and spongy layers, two types of trichomes and one type of gland. 1. Amphivasal vascular bundles Amphivasal or 'leptocentric vascular bundles  are characterised by  xylem surrounding the phloem tissue on all sides.  In Desmodium, the leaf mid-rib is found to possess  five large vascular bundles forming a semi-circle on the lower side and, just below the ridge, three small bundles forming a triangle with two large towards the lower side and one small on the upper side (Fig A).  All these three vascular bundles,  seen on upper side, are amphivasal in nature where phloem enc...

Tetracarpellary ovary in Raphanus as against the two carpels in other Cruciferae (Brassicaceae) We were taught that the Cruciferae is bicarpellary with a replum separating the 2 placenta.  But the fruits of Rat –tailed raddish (Mougri- Raphanus sativus var. caudatus) are found to contain , two (1D) or four placenta (1F &G) in two (1D) or three (1E 1H) chambered fruits. One with 4 placenta are found to produce 2 seeds arising from opposing placenta (1I).  This data indicates that the gynoecium is composed of 2 or 4 carpels.  In addition, there appeared purplish oval/orbicular bract like appendages (BLAs) merged within the fruit wall at the base, appearing as an oval bulging/projection of the fruit, which appeared sterile carpels. The number of the BLAs varied from 2 (Fig. 1A) to 3 (Fig.1B) or 4 (Fig. 1C) in different fruits and corresponded to the carpel number of gynoecium.  In fruits having two BLAs, seen on the opposite sides, inner cavity is 2-cham...

Useful plants of Heteromerae (B.&H.) 1. Family Ericaceae 1. Wintergreen(Gaultheria procumbens Linn.-Ericaceae) This plant is an evergreen shrub, a native of North America.  The leaves contain gaultherin, a phenolic glycoside that, in the presence of water, is acted upon by an enzyme gaultherase to produce a volatile oil consisting of methyl salicylate (98%), and a sugar, primeverose.  The other constituent of the oil is an ester of enanthic alcohol. Wintergreen oil is used in medicine and flavoring. 2. Bilberry, Huckleberry, (Vaccinium myrtillus Linn. .-Ericaceae) Bilberry is a small branched shrub with black globular (having a flat top) berries containing many small red seeds of a sharp sweet taste.  It is a native of Northern Europe and North America. Bilberry contains at least 15 anthocyanins based on malvidin, cyanidin and delphinidin, flavonoids such as quercitrin, isoquercitrin, hyperoside and astragalin, catechol tannins, glycoquinic acid, ursolic acid, phenoli...

Weekly Knowledge 60 Bad Antogast 31 Jul 1996  Germany Today is a gift from God -- that is why it is called "present!" DON'T BE GRATEFUL!  Warning! Watch out! This Knowledge Sheet contains explosives! It can explode your head or your heart. If it explodes your heart -- nothing is left! If it explodes your head -- everything is attained!  Guruji: How many of you are grateful here? (Everybody raises their hand.) If you are grateful, you don't belong to Me! (Everyone is shocked.) You are not part of the Master. When someone gives you something, you are grateful. That means you feel separate. You are not grateful to yourself.  Gratefulness is inevitable. When you go beyond gratefulness, then union happens. No "I," no "you" remains. You are part of the Master. You are just One Being with a thousand heads and a thousand arms, but with one heart. You have got to be grateful on the path, but you have to transcend gratefulness. Better stop being grateful....