henna

29th JUNE 09: HENNA LEAVES
When pitta predominates in the body, palms will be itchy and soles will have a burning sensation. To cure the itchiness and burning sensation, pound henna leaves with either slaked lime (sunambu) or lime juice. Apply on your finger tips, palms and soles.
The root of henna tree are said to have properties to cure cancer. Pound the roots, boil and consume the concoction. It helps to clear/clean dirty blood. The roots have antiseptic properties whereby it kills and clears free radicals in the blood.
If your throat is painful, swollen or have developed a wound in the mouth, boil the leaves and gargle the concoction. You can also consume the boiled concoction. Since it has antiseptic properties, it cures mouth wounds very easily.
Damaged nails are difficult to be healed or cured. New nails will never grow until the damaged nails are healed. Henna leaves are the only cure to heal damaged nails Grind the leaves into a paste and apply on the damaged nails until you see noticeable effect.

basil holy basil

26th JUNE 09: HOLY BASIL (Tulasi)
Holy basil is regarded as a holy plant and plants which come under the holy plant category are said to have properties to cure any types of sickness or disease.
Take 10 holy basil leaves and soak in a glass of water. You can eithera) soak the leaves in the morning and consume the water in the evening ORb) soak the leaves at night and consume the water in the morning.Dried holy basil leaves are good to be burnt together with incense powder. Combine dried henna seeds and dried holy basil leaves with the incense powder. According to Indian tradition, smoke from the incense powder mix will ward off bad spirits and negative vibrations and bring prosperity to the house.
Dried holy basil leaves can also be consumed as tea. Boil the leaves and add rock sugar for extra taste. Individuals from all ages can consume this hot beverage.Holy basil tea is very effective and provides temporary relief to patients who are suffering from high fever and cold.
Holy basil leaves also has the properties to remove toxins through urination. The leaves also serve as an antiseptic. Blend the leaves into a paste and apply the paste on external wounds. The paste will dry and heal the wound.

white lotus

25th JUNE 09: WHITE LOTUS FLOWER
Lotus plant grows in water and produces flowers of 4 different colours, i.e. red, yellow, blue and white.
If you intend to grow lotus in your home, all you need to do is make a shallow pond and place a plant in the water. Soon you will notice new growth will begin to sprout out. The flowers, roots, seeds, young flower stalk and young leaves are all edible. Compared to all parts of the lotus, the seeds has the most nutritional and medicinal value (see artcile 12th March 09: Lotus Flower for more details)
a) Break the flower petals and boil them in water. Consume the boiled water. b) Dry the petals and grind into powder form. Add one tablespoon of the lotus powder when consuming any type of beverage.
By consuming the petals either in dried or liquid form will help improve and increase brain functionality. According to Indian Medicine, white lotus flowers are effective in improving brain functionality while red lotus flower are effective in healing heart related problems.

Potatoes

24th JUNE 09: POTATOES
Potatoes have high content of starch and are grown extensively in China. It is used widely in Indian cooking and we should try to avoid eating potatoes as much as possible.
Most of us normally boil or cook potatoes with its skin removed. This cooking method is wrong and we must boil or cook potatoes with its skin intact. This is because when you peel of the skin after cooking, you will notice a yellow layer on the outer flesh. This yellow layer is said to have protein in it. Many of us are unaware of this and tend to peel and throw the skins away when cleaning the potatoes and end up consuming the starch only.
Eating a potato is equivalent to eating a plate of rice. For westerners, potatoes are regarded as their staple food. However for Indians, potatoes are eaten together with their staple food, i.e. rice. By eating this way, you not only consume a high content of carbohydrate but also have a high tendency to gain weight.
Individuals who are fat or obese should forbid themselves from eating potatoes. Potato is not only starchy but also is a gassy food which makes one to bloat. Therefore try to avoid potatoes as much as possible.

Sweet flag

23rd JUNE 09: SWEET FLAG ( vasambu)
Sweet Flag plant requires wet soil to grow. Sweet Flag is effective to treat gassiness and stomach aches in infants. Burn the root until it blackens. Crush or pound the burnt root into powder form and mix with castor or coconut oil. Apply on infant's stomach.
If your child is suffering from diarrhoea, prescribe them a small amount of burnt sweet flag. It provides a temporary relief before consulting a doctor. As for adults, mix 1 tablespoon of honey with the burnt sweet flag. Purging will also stop.
Pound sweet flag into powder form and boil with milk and consume. Sweet flag is effective in improving memory power. In Indian Tradition, Sweet flag is tied around an infant's wrist on the 16th day as it is believed that the smell will help build good memory power. By giving a minute paste of sweet flag to the infant will also help build good digestion system

snake plant marul

22nd JUNE 09: SNAKE PLANT
Snake plants grow in dry areas and do not need much water to grow. This plant only requires sun light and moisture from the wind to live. The leaves are generally used for medicinal purposes.
In Indian Traditional Medicine,the juice is normally squeezed out by heating the leaves under a flame. The extracted juice is poured into the ears to treat ear related problems.The juice has the properties to flush out dirty water and excess phlegm from the ears.Do this continuously for 3 days, at least 2to 3 times a day to notice the amazing results.
For children who are suffering from cough and cold, heat the juice before consuming.It works wonderfully in curing cough and cold. This plant also bears fruit and is used to prepare leyham to treat piles patients. Individuals who are suffering from piles due to excess heat in the body are advised to eat leyham made by snake plant fruit.This is because the fruit is a cooling food and piles patients are required to eat cooling food

cloves

19th JUNE 09: CLOVES
Cloves are one of the many spices used in Indian Cooking. Cloves not only give taste and fragrance to the food but also aids in digestion.
Grind 5-6 cloves with luke warm water and apply the paste on your forehead, nose and below the eyes, around your cheekbone area. The grinded cloves will help remove and heal sinus pain around the face area.
For temporary relief of tooth pain, bite the clove with your problem tooth. Cloves are known for its antiseptic and anesthetic properties. The juice from the clove will help kill bacteria and create numbness to the problem area. You can also apply clove oil on your cheeks to help release the pain. Just like the clove, the oil will help create numbness and remove the tooth pain temporarily.
Pregnant women tend to have vomiting problems due to indigestion and increase of pitta in the body. To stop the vomiting, boil 2-3 cloves and drink 2 ounces of the boiled herbal water as the clove helps digest food faster.

Red amranth

17th JUNE 09: RED AMARANTH (Sigappu Tandu Keerai)
Green leaf vegetables are good for our body as it has many nutritional and medicinal values. Besides green leaves, leaves which are red in colour are good to be consumed as it has high level of carotene and helps produce red blood cells.

There are many types of green leaf vegetables, i.e. tandu keerai, manali keerai, parathai keerai, kuppa keerai, manathakali keerai, agathi keerai and many more. Tandu keerai or amaranth leaf comes in various types.

On of the many types are the red amaranth leaves. Red amaranth leaves helps in producing red blood cells. Before cooking, wash the leaves at least three times to remove any dirt or stones. Add a pinch of black pepper powder, salt, 2-3 cloves of garlic and 1 green chilli or dried chilli (optional) when boiling the leaves. Make sure the pan is covered with a lid when boiling the vegetable. Smash the boiled leaves and serve.

Red amaranth leaves also aids digestion and ease bowel motion. Children or adults who consume red amaranth leaves continuously for 48days will experience an increase in memory power!

COMMON RUE (Aravatham Pacchai)

16th JUNE 09: COMMON RUE (Aravatham Pacchai)
The leaves have strong fragrance and in Tamil tradition, the leaves are used to tie around infant's wrist. The strong fragrance, when inhaled by the infant, will increase and helps build good digestion system.

Boil two leaves with water and consume the herbal drink. The herbal drink will cure constipation and aids in removing bad bacteria and dirt from the body. You can even dry the leaves and smoke it to prevent small insects, like ants, flies and flees from infesting your home. The leaves are also good to be eaten raw. Serve the leaves as garnish when preparing salads of your choice.

Pound the leaves and extract the juice. By giving one teaspoon of the extracted juice to your baby, it will help control kappa in their body. Therefore to treat infants and small children, you should have 3 types of plants, i.e. Holy Basil (Thulasi), Coleus aromaticus (Karpooravalli) and Common rue (Aravatham Pacchai). These plants are regarded as holy plants (thevigai muhligai) and considered pure. If you were to grow these plants in a pot, make sure you have them placed in a special and clean place. It is said that when woman with menstruation were to touch common rue (aravatham pacchai leaves, the plant will become dull.

The leaves can also prevent excess phlegm from developing and also kills bacteria and small tiny insects. Common rue leaves can also be grinded and used as a body scrub while bathing

Sunflower

15th JUNE 09: SUNFLOWER
Sunflower plant is native to Mexico and during the 14th century, the sunflower production was brought out of Mexico and became famous in many countries due to its usage.The roots of the plants to its flower are used for various purposes. The head of the sunflower tend to follow the predominate direction of the sun. The head normally faces to the east when the sun rises and changes it position to the west in the evening when the sun sets.
In Russia, oil is extracted from the sunflower seeds and exports more than 180, 000 tons of sun flower oil. In China, fibres from the plant's stem are used to produce china silk. The leaves are used to feed farm animals and the roots are used for medicinal purposes whereby it is boiled and consumed. The roots are used to treat malaria patients

Banana flower

11th JUNE: BANANA FLOWER ( Jantung Pisang)
Banana Flower has many medicinal values and rich in astringent properties. Foods which are rich in astringent properties are good in producing blood and works as a blood thickening agent.The astringent taste can be reduced significantly by adding the flower in "sambar".The over powering taste can also be reduced by making "kootu". Try to eat the flower once a week as the properties from the flower helpsa) Prevent urinary track problems and ease urinationb) Helps prevent kidney problemsc) Avoids failure or malfunction of prostrate veins andd) Increases appetite.Like banana, the flower is also rich in potassium.

Red sorrel

10th JUNE: RED SORREL ( Pulicha Keerai)Red Sorrel leaves are very sour. We should eat this vegetable as sourness is one of the six types of nutrients we need to consume to maintain a healthy body.Some cook the vegetable by boiling the leaves and throwing the excess water away. This is a wrong way of cooking as all the nutritional values in the water will be lost. . Before cooking the leaves, remove the core vein from the leaves and cut the cleaned leaves into small pieces. Add garlic, onion, 1 small brinjal, 1 tomato, 2-3 chillies and boil all the ingredients and mash the leaves. If you are suffering from piles, omit chillies with black pepper.The sourness property promotes salivation and effective in removing stones from the body. Stones are formed in kidneys, throat, mouth and gall bladder. The more saliver the body produces, the easier it will be for the saliver to flush out the remaining small tiny stones out from the system. Even specialist prescribes this vegetable to patients suffering from various types of stone problems.Therefore try to eat red sorrel once a week. This vegetable is not only tasty but also aids digestion

Ubi kayu tapioca

9th JUNE 09:TAPIOCA (Ubi Kayu)
Tapioca is rich in carbohydrate. During the Japanese occupation in our country, tapioca became the staple food. This was because rice was very expensive during the time. Tapioca was suitable as it was a cheap alternative and grown very easily in gardens.

Do not boil tapioca with its skin intact as boiling with its skin will cause the flesh to taste bitter. To consume tapioca the healthy way, you can either

a) boil the root and eat it with sugar and grated coconut OR
b) boil the tapioca and mix with chilli paste.
To prepare the chilli paste or "sambal", pound together 1 onion, 1 garlic clove, 2
dried chillies, and a small piece of ginger. Add salt and tamarind juice and mix well
with the boiled tapioca.

Do not fry the tapioca as it is oily and has no nutritional value. Try to add tapioca in your daily diet once a week as it helps provide energy.

Jambu air

8th JUNE 09:WATER APPLE ( Jambu Air)
Water Apple not only tastes good but also has high water content and a great source of vitamin C. 70 % of our body consists of water and due to its high percentage of water content, water apple has the capability of quenching your thirst if you are not in favour of drinking plain water or any other types of quench thirsting drinks.Water apple is good in curing mouth blisters. By eating and chewing the fruit slowly, the blister/s can be cured within 2 days. Children from the age of two can be given water apple juice to cure mouth blisters.Water apple juice is very effective in diluting the thickness of carrot juice. The mixture is a good nutritional food and provides a marvellous flavour combination. Water apple can also be added in salads. Try to consume water apple once a week as this fruit has high content of vitamin C.

Raja ulam

5th JUNE 09: RAJA ULAM
Ulam Raja leaves are eaten raw and are used in Malay cuisine. The leaves are used for ulam, a type of Malay salad.

The leaves have properties in
a) increasing digestion
b) removing excess gas from the body and
c) help increase body strength

The leaves cannot be cooked or juiced up. It has to be eaten raw. Our body is dominated by vata, pitta and kappa.
a) If pitta predominates, consume boiled cumin and coriander leaves water to stabilize the condition.
b) If vata predominates, consume raja ulam leaves to release the excess gas.
c) If kappa predominates, consume "thuthuvalai" leaves or "karpooravalli" leaves to remove the excess phlegm from the body

To have a healthy body and free of any sickness and diseases, we need to keep the three dosa's in balance

4th JUNE 09: BEETROOT
Blood is very important for our body. Individuals who have less blood count will tend to put on weight. To prevent this problem and to produce more blood, we normally opt to taking pills.

Instead of consuming pills, it is better to consume fresh food which can act as a medicine. This method is much safer and healthier. Beet Root is one type of vegetable that helps in blood production. It also helps to support proper spleen and liver function.

You can consume beet root by cooking or by juicing it. Make sure when juicing beet root, only a small piece of the vegetable is used. Blend the fruit together with a small piece of carrot as it helps provide a sweet taste. Drink the juice daily.

You can even grate the root vegetable and serve it raw as a salad. Add chopped onions, chilies and a pinch of sugar for extra taste

thuthuvalai

1st JUNE 09: PURPLE FRUITED PEA EGGPLANT (Thuthuvalai)
This plant is a thorny creeper that bears small sized fruits and effective in balancing the function of tridosha i.e. vata, pitta and kappa. The leaves are also effective in neutralizing the excess heat and gas trapped or formed in the womb.

Take 7 leaves and 7 black peppers. Pound or grind the leaves and peppers together into a thick paste. Shape the paste into small round balls and consume daily for 3 days. Stomach pain caused by extreme heat and excessive gas will disappear.

The leaves are best to be used to prepare "rasam". Pound the leaves and other dried spices in mortar and boil. "Thuthuvalai Rasam" is good in balancing the body tridosha system.

Siddha's of yore have declared Thuthuvalai leaves as a kaya kalpam (long life elixir). The leaves have the medicinal values of
a) producing blood,
b) increasing blood flow and
c) prevent blood thickening which causes many types of sickness

foot yam,சேம கிழங்கு

29th MAY 09: ELEPHANT FOOT YAM To consume the yam, remove the skin and wash the peeled yam. Cut the yam into small pieces and boil with a pinch of salt. Throw the boiled water away as the water cannot be consumed. Treat the cooked yam as potato.The difference between potatoes and yam is potatoes have high content of carbohydrate and yam has only 0.01 mg of fat in it.Benefits of consuming elephant foot yam are:
a) cleans urinary bladder
b) strengthen urinary bladder linings
c) ease bowel motion
d) cures all types of piles problemElephant Foot Yam relieves constipation problem and is rich in potassium, nitrogen and amino acid. Since the yam has many medicinal values, try to consume this vegetable at least once a week to gain the nutrients and help treat your body to prevent any major sickness or diseases

karisalangkani,karisalai

27th MAY 09: FALSE DAISY (Karsilangkani)
Pound and extract the juice from the leaves. Add this juice while preparing hair oilment. The juice has the properties to blacken grey or white hair effectively.

In siddha medicine, false daisy leaves are used to treat damaged spleen.Some individuals may suffer from wounds or damage due to

a) excessive alcohol consumption
b) excessive smoking
c) virus infection
d) a fall or an accident
e) or any other serious problems that has affected the spleen.

There are many plants that look similar to False Daisy. To determine whether the leaves are false daisy leaves, rub the leaves on your palm. If your palm blackens, the leaves are indeed false daisy leaves.

The blackening effect helps to treat graying problems and when consumed internally, it becomes a long life elixir (kaya kalpa).

Benefits of false daisy leaves
a) Helps cure all types of spleen problems
b) Helps spleen function efficiently
c) Helps spleen produce more blood which leads to a good body system.
d) Helps cure anemic patients by producing blood.

You can consume the leaves by juicing it or by eating it raw or cooked together with other green vegetables, Indian style.

செலரி,celery

26th MAY 09: CELERYCeleries are rich in nutrients and it has soluble salt properties which includes sodium, needed by our body. You can either stir fry or eat it raw as a salad. Blend 2 celery sticks and consume the juice. This will help reduce high blood pressure. If you feel your pressure is going up, feeling dizzy or heavy headed, blend star fruit and celery together and consume half glass of the juice. You will notice a big difference after 1 week or 10 days. Consuming celery regularly can help control your blood pressure. Make sure you also apply oil on your head to reduce heatiness which can be one of the causes of hypertension. Celeries are good in controlling body weight, removing excess water and ease bowel movement. When you are eating meat, chicken or any types of seafood, make sure you add celery in your meal as it provides a good combination and balances the body's yin and yang. When consuming celery, try not to cook it as it will lead to nutrition loss. Celery has great nutritional values, therefore try to add this vegetable in your diet. Celery is best to be consumed once in every fortnight and should be consumed raw. To live a healthy live and maintain a healthy body, eat more vegetables in raw form.

drumstick flower

25th MAY 09:DRUMSTICK FLOWER
Flowers and fruits that bear from trees with deep long roots have many medicinal values. This is because the long roots are able to absorb the nutrients and minerals stored deep down the earth.

Do not throw away the flowers which have fallen from the tree. Dry these flowers and grind or pound them into powder form. Store in a bottle and use the powder when necessary. Add one tablespoon of the powdered drumstick flower in milk and consume.

The flower is good in increasing men virility and women fertility level. Try to consume drumstick flower once or twice a week if you want to improve, increase or maintain your fertility or virility level

Misai kucing

22nd MAY 09: CAT WHISKERS ( Misai Kucing)Cat's Whiskers are widely found throughout South East Asia region, especially in Malaysia and Indonesia. It is called "Misai Kucing" in Malay as the flower resembles the shape of a cat's whiskers. Cat's Whiskers leaves are very effective in cleaning urine and helps cure kidney problems. The leaves have the function in increasing the excretion of creatinine in the urine. This plant has great medicinal values and everyone should grow this plant in their home. In siddha medicine, cat's whiskers leaves are added with other herbal ingredients to treat high fever. The mixture of herbs are boiled and consumed as tea. You can even eat the flowers raw. When boiling the dried cat whiskers leaves, add dried avaram senna flowers (avaram poo) and other dried flowers. Consume the boiled water as tea. By prescribing this tea, it will not only help reduce kidney malfunction but also prevents kidney patients from dialysis treatment. Puncture vines (Nirenjal) and cat's whiskers leaves are effective in removing excess water from the body through urination. The leaves also helps avoid body swelling which is caused by excessive water held in the body. If the excess water is not removed, it will lead to various kinds of diseases. Therefore to avoid sickness and promote good health, consume cat whiskers leaves as tea.

Misai

lotus flower

21st MAY 09: LOTUS FLOWERLotus flower is good in treating patients and elderly persons who have a weak heart. Boil the petals and consume one glass of the boiled juice everyday. The lotus flower has its root deep in the soil and grows under water. This root is edible and should be treated as a vegetable. It can either be stir fried or added in "Sambar". The seeds obtained from the flower pods can also be consumed. The seeds are good and effective in increasing male virility. The seeds are very tasty if it is stir fried. If you have the seeds in dried form, powder the seeds and prescribe one tablespoon of the lotus seed powder to your husband or male counterparts. It not only provides virility to men but also gives good strength to the body.

kadukkai,

19th MAY 09: CURRY LEAVES
Curry leave is a vegetable and is used in our daily cooking for taste and fragrance. In indian cooking, curry leaves are used for tempering and while eating, the whole leaves are taken out and thrown away. We should not throw away the leaves as it has many medicinal values. You should train your children to eat curry leaves and the leaves should be slowly chewed and swallowed in.Curry leaves are very effective in blackening white hairs which are very common in children today. You will not notice the effect by eating 1-2 curry leaves. One should eat at least one handful of curry leaves daily to notice the blackening effect.You should not throw the stems away. Dry the stems and boil and consume the boiled stem juice when your child is suffering from indigestion or fever. By consuming the water, your child will be prevented from fever as the water helps build your child's immune system.Curry leaves aids in reducing excess pitta, helps strengthen womb and removes ovarian related problems.HOW TO MAKE CURRY LEAVES CHUTNEY?A handful of curry leaves, a small piece of ginger, 1-2 cloves of garlic, 1 onion, salt and dry fried grated coconut. Hand grind or blend into a thick paste.This chutney is very effective to cure morning sickness among pregnant women. Morning sickness, i.e. frequent vomiting is caused due to excess pita in the body. Hence to cure and prevent morning sickness, it is best to consume a little rice with the curry leave chutney before adding other dishes in your meal.

19th MAY 09: CURRY LEAVES
Curry leave is a vegetable and is used in our daily cooking for taste and fragrance. In indian cooking, curry leaves are used for tempering and while eating, the whole leaves are taken out and thrown away. We should not throw away the leaves as it has many medicinal values. You should train your children to eat curry leaves and the leaves should be slowly chewed and swallowed in.Curry leaves are very effective in blackening white hairs which are very common in children today. You will not notice the effect by eating 1-2 curry leaves. One should eat at least one handful of curry leaves daily to notice the blackening effect.You should not throw the stems away. Dry the stems and boil and consume the boiled stem juice when your child is suffering from indigestion or fever. By consuming the water, your child will be prevented from fever as the water helps build your child's immune system.Curry leaves aids in reducing excess pitta, helps strengthen womb and removes ovarian related problems.HOW TO MAKE CURRY LEAVES CHUTNEY?A handful of curry leaves, a small piece of ginger, 1-2 cloves of garlic, 1 onion, salt and dry fried grated coconut. Hand grind or blend into a thick paste.This chutney is very effective to cure morning sickness among pregnant women. Morning sickness, i.e. frequent vomiting is caused due to excess pita in the body. Hence to cure and prevent morning sickness, it is best to consume a little rice with the curry leave chutney before adding other dishes in your meal.

mangoosteen ,manggis

18th MAY 09: MANGOSTEENMangosteen is a seasonal fruit and its fruit bearing coincides with durian. Both fruits are god's gift to mankind as mangosteen is created to balance the heat from the durian. Mangosteen is a cooling food and it has many medicinal values. Therefore try to eat the fruit whenever the fruit is in season.Do not throw the skins away. Cut the skin in small pieces and dry the skin until it hardens. Store the dried mangosteen skins in a bottle/jar as it will be useful for home remedies. Eating too much seafood, chicken or red meat will cause excessive heat in the body. Even vegetarians' will experience excessive heat in the body. Excessive body heat mainly depends on their body type, i.e. tridosha. When there is excessive heat in the body, it will lead to dehydration which causes stool to be hardened and dry and require great pressure for bowel movement. When this happens, the tissues in the anus area will swell up. The symptoms of having this condition are: a) Short temper and b) Constipation. Home remedies to solve the swelling: a) Pound dried mangosteen skin into powder form b) Consume one teaspoon of the powder. The astringent properties in the skin will cool the interior and reduces the size of the swelling. Pound raw mangosteen skin and extract the juice. The juice is best to be consumed by anaemic patients as the juice helps produce blood. The juice also helps reduce excessive blood overflow during menstrual period. In previous episode, 21st Jan 09, it has been mentioned that coconut flower also helps to cure excessive blood flow. Try to combine ingredients, coconut flower and mangosteen skin when you are treating menstrual problems. If you can't find coconut flowers, consume mangosteen skin extract alone as it produces the same effect. Western medicines are currently using mangosteen skin to produce expensive facial creams. For home treatment, a) Blend the mangosteen skin b) Add turmeric c) And apply as a facial mask. Leave to dry and wash with fresh water.The properties in the mangosteen skin and turmeric will bring glow to your skin. Try it as it really works!

AMARANTH LEAVES(Mulai Keerai)

15th MAY 09:AMARANTH LEAVES(Mulai Keerai)Mulai keerai's root, stem, leaves, fruit and flowers has its own nutritional value.If the vegetable's stem is big, throw away the root and utilize the stems to prepare soups. If the stem is thin and small, utilize the roots, stems and leaves when preparing a dish for your family. How to prepare a tasty dish with Mulai Keerai? Clean the leaves, boil and cook the leaves with garlic, onion, cumin seeds and a chili. Mash the leaves and once the leaves are cooked, add coconut milk. The dish is good to be eaten by children from the tender of two as it is not hot and spicy. This vegetable cannot be eaten raw and has to be cooked before eating it. Make sure you do not overcook the leaves. Mulai Keerai is rich in calcium and can be consumed 2 to 3 times a week. However those who have chronic arthritis are not advised to eat this vegetable as the leaves has the properties to retain water in the knee cap. Patients with knee pains, swollen knees or excess water in the knees are forbidden to eat Mulai Keerai.

CREPE JASMIN (Nandiavatta Poo)

14th MAY: CREPE JASMIN (Nandiavatta Poo)
Our forefathers used to have this plant grown in temples as the fresh flowers are used as an offering to the Lords. The flowers are also used to treat eye problems or eye heatiness. The juice of the flower is used to treat 99 types of eye problems.When your eyes turn red due to extreme heat, crush the flower and pour two drops into each eye. Make sure you do not use the milk. The juice will cool the eyes and eye redness will disappear.

Benefits of grapes

13th MAY 09: GRAPES
In Malaysia grapes are grown in Cameron Highlands. There are around 8,000 types of grapes available in this world. Even though there are many varieties of grapes, the most common types of grapes we encounter are black, purple and green grapes.
Black grapes have more medicinal values compared to purple and green grapes. In western countries black grapes are used to prepare wine.If you, siblings or your life partner is weak, tired or stressed up, instead of consuming alcohol drinks, it is best to consume black grape juice.Take 1 handful of black grapes.
Blend the fruit with water (optional)
Make sure you blend the seeds also.
Strain and leave for 4- 6 hours.Serve to your husband or siblings. This juice is good as
a) it aids and increase digestion. Make sure you take one glass of black grape juice after your meal
b) ease bowel motion
c) gives strength to small intestines
d) provides strength to childrenGrape seeds have many medicinal values. The seeds are used to produce oil and have the healing nutrients to prevent cancer. When serving grapes to your kids, make sure you remove the skin as their body system will not be able to digest the skins properly. As for adults, they should consume the skin, flesh and seeds. This is the right way of eating grapes and the way to gain the fruits full nutritional values.Black grape juice will not cause dizziness. Instead it will calm the mind, promotes good sleep and gives vigorousness to men when they wake up in the morning.Hence try to consume black grapes at least once in every fortnight

Gastric Pain

12th MAY 09: GASTRIC
Gastric problems can be caused by
a) Improper food intake
b) Too much hot and spicy food.
Acid from spicy food stimulates the increase of stomach juice.
c) Intake of various types of medicines.

When gastric attacks, the patient normally suffers from stomach pain and excess gas will start accumulating in the stomach. The stomach gas will then lead to headaches. When this situation happens, one will not be able to identify the root cause of the problem and end up taking pain killers which will aggravate the gastric problem.

Make sure you take precautions to heal gastric at early stages as chronic gastric problems leads to stomach wounds or ulcers. You should take precautions by avoiding sour food and forbid yourself from eating bird's eye chilies. The acid from the sour food will stimulate the gastric glands to increase the secretion of stomach juice. Therefore to heal gastric problems, make sure you eat various types of alkaline food as it has the properties to stabilize the stomach acid's pH level.

If you are suffering from gastric pain:
a) Beat and drink white egg only or
b) Drink watermelon juice as the juice helps cool the stomach and cures gastric pain or
c) Try prescribing siddha medicine as there is medicine to cure gastric problem permanently

bawang,வெங்காயம்

11th MAY 09: Onions
Onions are used in various dishes for thousands of years by many cultures around the world. There are many different varieties of onions, i.e. small onions, big red onions, white onions and yellow onions.All varieties of onions have the same nutritional and medicinal values. In India, poor families usually pour water in left over rice and eat it the next day. They usually eat raw onions with the old rice as the raw onions have the properties to kill insects and germs which can be formed or found in the old rice.If you have boils on your skin, take two onions, dry fry the onions, grind and add a little turmeric. Apply on the boils. The boils will ripe and fall off after 2 days. You do not need to go for an operation to remove the boils. Onions will do the trick!Make sure you teach or train your children to eat raw onions as they will gain the full medicinal and nutritional values. Cut onions in small tiny pieces and add together with other raw vegetables i.e. cucumber, celery, salad leaves, tomatoes. Add fresh herbs like mint, coriander and asiatic pennyworth (vallarai) leaves into the vegetables. Mix all the ingredients together with thick yogurt and salt.Eating raw vegetables is the right way of eating as it will provide you the full nutritional value your body needs

dragon fruit

8th MAY 09:DRAGON FRUIT
The flesh of the dragon fruit comes in two colors, red and white. Dragon fruit which has red flesh in it has more nutritional value as it aids in increasing blood production.

Generally fruits which have many seeds have the properties to increase the production of sperms. By consuming this fruit does not mean that it can cure virility problems. The fruit has to be eaten from young age and is a gift from god to help build and maintain a good and healthy body system.

The fruit is very fleshy and thick and it has the properties to cut fat. Women who are above 25 years who have menstruation problems often put on weight. These individuals and individuals who are in the obese stage are advised to live on fruits and avoid rice and high carbohydrate foods. Chocolates, yellow wheat noodles and cheese are also to be avoided as much as possible as it has high fat content. Therefore to achieve noticeable and effective results in losing weight, it is best to avoid and control the types of food which can cause you to put on weight.

முருங்கைகாய்,drumstick

7th MAY 09: DRUMSTICK FRUIT
Make sure you use young tender drumsticks pods for cooking as old matured drumsticks pulp are hard and not suitable for cooking. However in Siddha Medicine, the seeds from matured drumstick pods are used for medicinal purposes Drumstick tree is very useful as the gum, bark, root, flower, leaves and fruit pods are used as medicine to treat many types of sickness and diseases.

Drumstick fruit is good in improving men virility and women fertility level. Husband and wife should consume drumstick fruit at least once a week. This is because lack of sufficient and relevant hormones for progenating can lead to marital problems.

To have more nutritional value, add aubergines, drumstick fruit and sword beans (avarakai) or drumstick, sword beans (avarakai) and raw young banana (valakai) when cooking. It is not only nutritious but also produces good aroma if these 3 vegetables are added and cooked as "avial"

Bitter gourd,பாகற்காய்

Symptoms of diabetes are:
a) Feeling weak
b) Feeling tired
c) Poor virility
d) Low sexual desire

If you are suffering form diabetes and your sugar level has increased, extract the juice from two small bitter gourds and consume the juice. Do not drink the juice everyday and only consume when necessary. Also make sure you consult a physician immediately to check your health conditions.

Cut bitter gourd in round pieces and remove the seeds. Add corn flour and salt and deep fry them if you want to serve to your children. To serve for adults, cut the bitter gourd into small pieces and cook it with tomatoes, tamarind juice and curry powder.

Try to add this vegetable in your diet as least once a week as the bitterness from the bitter gourd prevents stomach and intestines worms and reduces sugar level for diabetic patients. Therefore try to eat food which has 6 types of tastes i.e. bitter, sweet, sour, spicy, salty and astringent as the nutrients from these foods are needed to maintain a good health.

நீரழிவு,இனிப்பு நீர் வியாதி,diabetic

5th MAY 09: DIABETES
Diabetes in very common disease today and the number of individuals suffering from this disease is increasing. Diabetes among children is also rising significantly.The disease is prone to attack adults who are above 35 years old who has been practicing an unhealthy diet and unhealthy way of leaving for many years.It is believed that wrong eating habits practiced from tender age are one of the causes to develop diabetes at a young age. The disease is also caused by genetic reasons which are unavoidable.If you were to drink too much of carbonated drinks from your childhood days, the carbon dioxide from the carbonated drinks will increase the sedimentation rate in the nerves and blood capillaries. This causes the lungs and nerves to be blocked which leads to poor blood circulation and results in poor health conditions. Therefore you need to prevent this condition by stopping yourself and your family members especially children the habit of drinking carbonated drinks.Try to avoid giving any types of high sugar content food to children as much as possible. Also forbid from giving foods which has any sugar content to toddlers who are below the age of two. Make sure you do not add sugar when giving them milk.Symptoms of diabetes are:a) Feeling thirsty frequently
b) Ants will start to gather on your urine
c) Feeling hungry very fast
d) Lost of weight.Make sure you consult a doctor when you are experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned above as soon as possible. This is because the disease can be rectified and cured before it proceeds to an advanced stage

HOARY BASILl (Thirunetri Pachalai)

4th MAY 09: HOARY BASILl (Thirunetri Pachalai)
In Siddha Medicine, hoary basil leaves are used to cure young children who are suffering from excess phlegm. Take 2 to 3 leaves, each from hoary basil, holy basil (tulasi) and Coleus aromaticus (Karpooravalli). Pound the 3 types of leaves and extract the juice. Prescribe a teaspoon of the extracted herbal juice to your toddler if he or she is suffering from excess phlegm in the chest area. The herbal juice has the power to dissolve and remove the phlegm.

The leaves are fragrant and are used by Thailanese for bathing. Tamils normally boil the leaves and are prescribed to newly delivered women for bathing purposes.

If you are suffering from hand, leg, joint pains or suffering from rheumatism or arthritis, boil the leaves with other herbal leaves and pour on the affected areas. Also make sure you drink a glass of the boiled herbal water to get the full effect.

If you have a normal headache, head heaviness or sinus headaches, pound the leaves into a paste and apply on your forehead. Headaches will be cured.

சுண்டக்காய் PEA AUBERGINE (Sundakkai)

1st MAY 09: PEA AUBERGINE (Sundakkai)
Pea aubergine plant is bushy and spiny and plants that have torns and spines are said to have many medicinal values.

Pea aubergines are eaten by cutting the fruit in half or slightly pounded and added in 'sambal' or "sambar". Pea aubergines can also be added in "ulam".

Pea aubergines should be eaten by young children, adults who have weak bones, broken bones or brittle bones. This is because pea aubergines are effective in
a) strengthening bones
b) activates the growth of bones and
c) cures broken bones.

The vegetable also has astringent properties which are good in producing new blood cells.

headaches,தலைவலி

30th APRIL 09:HEADACHES
In western medicine, x-rays are taken to find the root cause of migraine and headaches. However even after various kinds of scans, there are some patients who are not able to permanently cure their head related problems.

There are patients who tie or wrap small towel around their head very tightly to stop their throbbing head aching problem. However this is not a permanent solution to stop headaches from attacking again.

There are many types of headaches with different degrees of pain. All these types of headaches have to be cured as headaches are a symptom or the beginning of a major and serious disease. Therefore make sure you permanently cure head related problems to prevent yourself from major health problems.

joyweed ponnanganni,பொன்னாங்கன்னி

29th APRIL 09:JOYWEED (Ponnanganni)
Joyweed leaves are rich in iron and if eaten frequently, the leaves will help
a) produce new blood cells
b) act as blood purifying agent
c) improve eye sight
d) and cools the eyes.

Joyweed is a cooling food and siddha of yester years used these leaves to treat eye related problems. If your eye sight is reducing, or feeling irritation or sensitive when there is sun light, shallow fry the leaves with a little ghee. Place the leaves on your eye lids and secure the leaves by tying a cloth around the eyes. You will notice a big difference within a day.

Joyweed leaves have a distinct smell and children will not be able to eat this vegetable due to the smell. Therefore to avoid the smell, add grated coconut when cooking the leaves as it will give sweetness and good taste to the dish.

Joyweed leaves are also effective in reducing heat in the anus area. To reduce and remove excess heat from the anus:
a) fry the leaves with ghee
b) consume with rice and ghee as your first course during your meal.

How to grow joyweed plant?
Take a small stem and plant in a pot. Water the stem everyday and within a few days the plant will start growing.

tension,டென்ஷன்,மன கலக்கம்

28th APRIL 09:TENSION
High blood pressure is normally experienced by people who work long hours and undergo lots of tension and stress causing lack of sleep and improper food intake. To avoid high blood pressure, you need to solve and avoid situations which can cause tension and stress.

To avoid tension, you need to make a schedule or time table and follow accordingly. Make sure you eat, sleep and wake up at the right time and stop worrying unnecessarily.

Also make sure your head is not too heaty. This is because when your head becomes too heaty, excessive pitta will start to rise to the head causing one
a) to have various kinds of negative thoughts leading to no peace of mind,
b) problem in sleeping, disturbing dreams and hallucinations
c) headaches and neck pain
d) bad and short temper and
e) fast heart beat

All these conditions are symptoms of high blood pressure. Low blood pressure patients will also experience short and bad temper, tension, body and neck pain.

If you are suffering from tension problems, the best home remedy is to relax and sleep as much as possible. You should and must apply oil on your head and body. Make sure the oil is soaked into your scalp and your body is massaged properly with oil. Soaking and massaging oil on your head and body will help reduce and remove the excessive heat.

Besides applying oil, you should also eat various kinds of vegetables and fruits. Lime juice is very good in reducing high blood pressure and pitta. Besides lime, there are many kinds of herbs and vegetables that can reduce excess heat from the body. Make sure you find out and consume more of the types of food which can reduce heatiness and avoid food which creates pitta.

கிவீ பழம்,kiwi fruit.

27th APRIL 09:KIWIFRUIT
The nutritional values in kiwifruit provides strength and helps restore weak immune system The fruit should be given to ailing elderly patients and also patients who have been sick for a long time. Kiwi is also good for heart patients who has undergone an operation or just recovered from a mild or severe heart attack.

Kiwi fruit is best eaten raw or added in salads. It can also be blended with apples and carrots to give extra taste and nutritional value. Try to eat this fruit at least once a month

aruvatha pachai,அறுவதா பச்சை

24th APRIL 09:COMMON RUE (Aravatham Pacchai)
The leaves have strong fragrance and in Tamil tradition, the leaves are used to tie around infant's wrist. The strong fragrance, when inhaled by the infant, will increase and helps build good digestion system.

Boil two leaves with water and consume the herbal drink. The herbal drink will cure constipation and aids in removing bad bacteria and dirt from the body. You can even dry the leaves and smoke it to prevent small insects, like ants, flies and flees from infesting your home. The leaves are also good to be eaten raw. Serve the leaves as garnish when preparing salads of your choice.

Pound the leaves and extract the juice. By giving one teaspoon of the extracted juice to your baby, it will help control kappa in their body. Therefore to treat infants and small children, you should have 3 types of plants, i.e. Holy Basil (Thulasi), Coleus aromaticus (Karpooravalli) and Common rue (Aravatham Pacchai). These plants are regarded as holy plants (thevigai muhligai) and considered pure. If you were to grow these plants in a pot, make sure you have them placed in a special and clean place. It is said that when woman with menstruation were to touch common rue (aravatham pacchai leaves, the plant will become dull.

The leaves can also prevent excess phlegm from developing and also kills bacteria and small tiny insects. Common rue leaves can also be grinded and used as a body scrub while bathing.

வாழைப்பூ,banana flower

23rd APRIL 09: BANANA FLOWER (Jantung Pisang)
Banana Flower has many medicinal values and rich in astringent properties. Foods which are rich in astringent properties are good in producing blood and works as a blood thickening agent.

The astringent taste can be reduced significantly by adding the flower in "sambar".
The over powering taste can also be reduced by making "kootu". Try to eat the flower once a week as the properties from the flower helps

a) Prevent urinary track problems and ease urination
b) Helps prevent kidney problems
c) Avoids failure or malfunction of prostrate veins and
c) Increases appetite.

Like banana, the flower is also rich in potassium

pulicha keerai,புளிச்ச கீரை

22nd APRIL 09: RED SORREL (Pulicha keerai)
Red Sorrel leaves are very sour. We should eat this vegetable as sourness is one of the six types of nutrients we need to consume to maintain a healthy body.

Some people cook the vegetable by boiling the leaves and throwing the excess water away. This is a wrong way of cooking as all the nutritional values in the water will be lost. . Before cooking the leaves, remove the core vein from the leaves and cut the cleaned leaves into small pieces. Add garlic, onion, 1 small brinjal, 1 tomato, 2-3 chillies and boil all the ingredients and mash the leaves. If you are suffering from piles, omit chillies with black pepper.

The sourness property promotes salivation and effective in removing stones from the body. Stones are formed in kidneys, throat, mouth and gall bladder. The more saliver the body produces, the easier it will be for the saliver to flush out the remaining small tiny stones out from the system. Even specialist prescribes this vegetable to patients suffering from various types of stone problems.

Therefore try to eat red sorrel once a week. This vegetable is not only tasty but also aid digestion.

womb,கர்ப்பப்பை

21st APRIL 09: WEAK WOMB
Women who are 40 years and above are very common to have womb related diseases. This is due to improper care after child birth, miscarriage or abortion which cause the womb to become weak.

Women of yester years had more than 10 children and they were able to live a healthy and long life. They took good care of themselves by removing excess dirt from their womb, produced new blood and prescribed the right medicine required to be consumed during confinement period.

Today, women do not take proper care of themselves after delivery, miscarriage or abortion. Women who are in confinement period should not bath in cold water. They should only bathe in hot water as bathing in cold water will cause the veins to shrink, causing varicose veins and severe body pain.

To prevent from internal damage, siddha of yester years have prescribed various herbs to be boiled for external and internal use. If you have a weak womb and have developed lots of phlegm, you must remove the phlegm by inhaling the steam of boiled herbs and roots. By removing the excess phlegm, you will have good blood circulation. Excessive phlegm can also cause blockage around your collar bones and neck area. When this happens, you will experience nerve pain around your neck area and develop hypertension.

Therefore it is extremely important for you to remove the excessive phlegm and blocks by consulting a physician or siddha practitioner to check your health and remove unwanted phlegm and toxins to prevent from any major sickness or diseases

ஜம்பு ,jambu air

20th APRIL 09: WATER APPLE (Jambu Air)
Water Apple not only tastes good but also has high water content and a great source of vitamin C. 70 % of our body consists of water and due to its high percentage of water content, water apple has the capability of quenching your thirst if you are not in favour of drinking plain water or any other types of quench thirsting drinks.

Water apple is good in curing mouth blisters. By eating and chewing the fruit slowly, the blister/s can be cured within 2 days. Children from the age of two can be given water apple juice to cure mouth blisters.

Water apple juice is very effective in diluting the thickness of carrot juice. The mixture is a good nutritional food and provides a marvellous flavour combination. Water apple can also be added in salads. Try to consume water apple once a week as this fruit has high content of vitamin C.

curry leaves,கறி வேப்பிலை

17th April 09:CURRY LEAVES
Curry leaves is a vegetable and is used in our daily cooking for taste and fragrance. In indian cooking, curry leaves are used for tempering and while eating, the whole leaves are taken out and thrown away. We should not throw away the leaves as it has many medicinal values. You should train your children to eat curry leaves and the leaves should be slowly chewed and swallowed in.

Curry leaves are very effective in blackening white hairs which are very common in children today. You will not notice the effect by eating 1-2 curry leaves. One should eat at least one handful of curry leaves daily to notice the blackening effect.

You should not throw the stems away. Dry the stems and boil and consume the boiled stem juice when your child is suffering from indigestion or fever. By consuming the water, your child will be prevented from fever as the water helps build your child's immune system.

Curry leaves aids in reducing excess pitta, helps strengthen womb and removes ovarian related problems.

HOW TO MAKE CURRY LEAVES CHUTNEY?

A handful of curry leaves, a small piece of ginger, 1-2 cloves of garlic, 1 onion, salt and dry fried grated coconut. Hand grind or blend into a thick paste.

This chutney is very effective to cure morning sickness among pregnant women. Morning sickness, i.e. frequent vomiting is caused due to excess pita in the body. Hence to cure and prevent morning sickness, it is best to consume a little rice with the curry leave chutney before adding other dishes in your meal

health,ஆரோக்கியம்

16th APRIL 09:HEALTH
In today busy life, we fail to practise our forefather's tradition of proper eating and way of living. If we were to practise their teachings, we will be free from major sickness and diseases and will lead a happy, healthy and long life.

Siddha of yester years and our forefathers have taught us

a) To have oil bath once a week. Men should have their oil bath every Saturday or Wednesday. Women should have their oil bath every Friday or Tuesday. By having oil bath, it will not only remove hair dirt but also helps maintain our beauty, internally and externally and also promotes good health.

b) To consume 1 tablespoon of castor oil every month. Children who drink castor oil at their young age are normally healthy when they enter adulthood. However they are not able to practise this habit on their children due to lack of time and unawareness of the importance of our forefathers way of live.

Parents should teach their children to eat dried ginger, cumin, coriander and fenugreek seeds as these herbs help build immune system and produces good digestion system. When children starts to age, their stomach will start to bloat up and develop tummy. When this happens, internal body organs will start to fail. Therefore if you are suffering from stomach bloatness, you should immediately seek treatment to cure the problem. It is best to take holistic treatment, i.e. ayurvedic, siddha or unani as it will treat both your mind and body at the same time.

அன்னாசி பழம்,pineapple

15th April 09: PINEAPPLE
When removing the skins of a pineapple, also remove the brown spots and the stem as it will irritate the tongue if the brown spots and stem are eaten together with the fruit.Those who have menstrual problems, it is advised to eat one whole pineapple. Pineapple fruit is a heaty fruit and women are advised to consume pineapple during their monthly menstrual period to

a) regulate proper blood flow
b) easy release of dirty blood
c) to avoid and prevent cyst, fibroids and other menstrual related problems

By drinking pineapple juice every month during menstruation, it will help heal and cure cyst, fibroid and menstrual problems. However if your problems are in advance stage, you should consult a specialist as drinking pineapple juice will not heal your ovarian related problems.

Extract the juice and add honey and drink half glass during your monthly menstrual cycle. You can also consume pineapple as a salad. Cut pineapple into small pieces and add onions, green chilli and sugar. Try to eat pineapple fruit once a week

வேப்பிலை பூ,neem puu

13th APRIL 09: NEEM FLOWERS

Neem flowers have the properties to kill germs and bacteria in the body. Boil the flowers and give a tablespoon of the boiled water to your children once a month. Your child will have an easy and healthy bowel motion and helps fight intestinal worms. Intestinal or stomach worms can be detected by the size of your naval. If your naval is bloated, there is a high possibility of worms residing in your stomach or intestines.

Neem flowers are used by our forefathers to make chutney and it is usually made during festive and special occasion days. Dry fry the flowers and add grated coconut to remove bitterness of the flower, 1 dried chilli, 1 onion, 1-2 cloves of garlic, small piece of ginger, salt to taste and a little tamarind juice. Grind all the ingredients together into a thick paste or chutney. The flower and other ingredients in the chutney will kill and remove dirt from the body through bowel motion.