NATURAL MEDICINE HEPATITIS
Hepatitis is a very serious liver disease. It is estimated that in Indonesia there are currently 20 million people who suffer from hepatitis B and C. The majority of hepatitis have no symptoms until the disease course of 20-30 years. During that time, the infection is slowly eroding a person's heart so that it can cause liver cancer. Until now there is no natural remedy that is scientifically proven to cure hepatitis. However, some of the following herbs according to the research is promising as a cure hepatitis:
1. Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum)Studies show that milk thistle does not cure hepatitis, but it can prevent liver damage and improve function in patients with cirrhosis. In Germany, where herbal medicines are regulated as medical drugs, health authorities have approved milk thistle as a complementary treatment for cirrhosis, hepatitis and other liver disorders.Milk thistle come from Europe, but now also grown in many other regions of similar climate. The fruit of this plant is believed to experts contains a substance called silymarin. Studies in animals indicate that silymarin efficacious:• promote the growth of several types of liver cells.• as an antioxidant that helps fight the oxidation process. In oxidation, harmful substances called free radicals can damage cells act. Several studies have shown silymarin to prevent damage to liver cells by free radicals.• blocking various types of toxins from entering and damaging the liver cells.• prevent liver inflammation (anti-inflammatory).In 1989, the first study conducted on 170 patients with cirrhosis of various causes, including alcoholism. About half (87) of patients receiving silymarin three times a day for 2 years. The others (83 patients) received only placebo. Because the 24 patients dropped out of the study, a total of 146 patients (73 in each group) completed the 2 year study. The researchers noted that the number of patients who died within 4 years after the study was 31 percent lower in the group that received silymarin than in the group of patients who received placebo. The beneficial effects of silymarin, especially seen in patients with cirrhosis due to alcohol abuse. The doctors did not report any patients who experience side effects from treatment of silymarin.
2. Licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra)Licorice root can be used to manage the effects of hepatitis on the liver. Active component is called glycyrrhizin acid exhibits anti-inflammatory and antiviral. This acid causes sweetness in licorice (50 times sweeter than sugar) and works similar to the body's natural hormone, aldosterone, which regulates salt and water in the body.Glycyrrhizin has been used in Japan for over 20 years as a drug for chronic hepatitis. In a study in 1998, researchers reported that treatment with glycyrrhizin promote liver tissue repair that have been damaged by hepatitis. Some of the research subjects also showed improved liver function in doing its job. A 1997 experiment also showed that glycyrrhizin helps prevent the development of liver cancer in patients with chronic hepatitis C.Unfortunately, licorice root has the potential side effects. If taken regularly (more than 3 grams of licorice root per day for more than 6 weeks or more than 100 milligrams of glycyrrhizin daily), this herb has the potential to cause high blood pressure, sodium and water retention, low sodium levels in the bloodstream, calcium depletion, and electrolyte balance disorders in the body. Signs and symptoms of excessive consumption of licorice root include headache, lethargy, swollen ankles, and even heart failure or heart attack (heart suddenly stops beating). People who have glaucoma, heart disease, high blood pressure and haemochromatosis should avoid licorice.
3. Ginseng (Panax quinquefolius / Panax ginseng)There are two types of ginseng are American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) and Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng), which comes from China, Japan, and Korea.Tes in animals and humans suggest ginseng may help the immune system. Tests on animals also show ginseng may help improve the workings of the heart and reduce heart tissue damage caused by hepatitis. However, research on the benefits of ginseng for hepatitis is still limited.
4. Ginger (Zingiber officinale)Over the past 2,500 years, the Chinese have used ginger to treat nausea. Several studies have confirmed the benefits of ginger to reduce nausea. This plant can relieve nausea and vomiting caused by drug therapy in patients with hepatitis. In addition to inexpensive and widely available, ginger known to be safe and not cause serious side effects.
5. Green tea (Camellia sinensis)Green tea contains catechins high dose. Black tea, which has undergone a process of fermentation, containing a lower concentration of catechins. Catechin is a flavonoid with anti-oxidant properties are capable of stabilizing cell membranes. Properties of catechins protect against heart similar to milk thistle.Experiments on mice have demonstrated liver cell damage the liver protective effect provided by the catechins. However, most studies in humans failed to show similar results. Doses used in humans is 20-40 mg per kg body weight / day compared with 200 mg per kg / day used in mice. This indicates that the higher dose should be used in humans in order to reap the benefits of green tea for heart protection. However, side effects that accompany high doses of making such an approach impractical. Side effects of high doses of green tea are fever, hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells), and urticaria (allergic rash).
6. Turmeric (Curcuma domestica)Turmeric is a spice kitchen is quite a lot of use. For thousands of years, turmeric has been used by practitioners of Ayurveda medicine as a cure for liver disease. The active component of turmeric is curcumin, a potent antioxidant. In experimental animal studies, turmeric seen inhibit liver damage from aflatoxin and other liver toxins. Since turmeric is the main spice in Indian curries, maybe that's why the population of India has the lowest incidence of heart disease in the world. But this needs further verification.
7. Black pepper (Piper nigrum)Black pepper contains the active substance called piperine. In studies on rats, piperine looks can reduce the damaging effects of toxins in the liver. This is mainly due to the antioxidant properties of piperine. There are no studies that compare the differences of liver disease in people who ate pepper with those who do not.
