Saturday, February 15

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How much do you know about GMOs?
Genetically Modified Foods

How much do you know about GMOs?

Many people are concerned about consuming genetically engineered (GE) foods, more commonly known as GMOs (genetically modified organisms). While GM/GE technology is well understood by science, misinformation and a lack of public understanding can leave consumers feeling skeptical. What is GM/GE foods? Humans have been modifying the genetics of crops and livestock through selective breeding since the dawn of agriculture. Recent scientific advances have allowed modern agriculturalists to target more precise genetic changes than is possible through selective breeding. Using GE technology, scientists can insert genetic sequences from one organism into another or alter existing DNA by deleting or silencing genes. A genetically engineered (or genetically modified) organism is defined as an...
5 Easy Natural Remedies for Bloating
Remedies

5 Easy Natural Remedies for Bloating

While bloating may be common, it is never enjoyable. Bloating happens when your gastrointestinal tract is filled with air or gas, and can make you feel overly stuffed. Not only can it be uncomfortable, but you may notice physical signs as well, including a swollen or misshapen belly. The good news? According to Abby Langer, a registered dietitian in Toronto, not all bloating is bad. Often, she explains, bloating simply means your gut and intestinal bacteria are feasting. Your stomach should not feel hard, and you should not be experiencing severe pain (if you’re experiencing those symptoms, see a doctor—it could be a warning sign). “Bloating itself is normal after eating,” she says. “But if it’s accompanied by gas, cramps or gastrointestinal symptoms, then it becomes problematic.” Here a...
Botanicals

Learn More About Green Malay Benefits, Facts & Side Effects

Green Malay Kratom is one of the most potent Kratom strains. It is indigenous to Malaysia, and the locals there have used it for medicinal purposes for many centuries. The leaves of this Kratom strain are usually oval and have a recognizable dark green tone. The veins which run along the leaves are generally green in color, but at times, they have a white tone or are red- colored. The leaves with the white-green combination are often said to be the most potent. Below are the Green Malay benefits, facts & side effects you need to know. Let’s begin with the advantages. Green Malay Kratom Benefits Pain relief If you have a condition that causes chronic pain, you can take Green Malay Kratom to relieve it. As the body ages, pains that you may or may not explain settle in. The p...
Penang farmers want to cash in on ‘miracle drug’ kratom as Putrajaya mulls blanket ban
Botanicals

Penang farmers want to cash in on ‘miracle drug’ kratom as Putrajaya mulls blanket ban

Kratom is hailed by some as a cure for opioid addiction and illness but authorities are clamping down amid reports of abuse. Mohd Saad Che May has spent most of his life being addicted to heroin. The Bukit Mertajam resident was incarcerated 15 times in 40 years and admitted to stealing money to fuel his addiction. “It was a living hell. I was in constant anxiety, thinking about how to get RM 50 (US$11.99) to buy the next tube to get high,” he said. Mr Saad claimed he tackled his addiction when he started taking kratom, known locally as ketum. Kratom is a leaf hailed by locals for its pain-relieving and mildly stimulating effects. He would pluck kratom leaves in his village, boil them for 4 to 5 hours, and drink the dark green fluid three times a day. “It has a bitter tast...
Kratom: The leafy green plant that could help with opiate withdrawals
Botanicals

Kratom: The leafy green plant that could help with opiate withdrawals

There has recently been plenty of buzz over a plant-based drug that users take for recreational and medicinal reasons and it’s not marijuana - it’s Kratom. Kratom is a leafy green plant that grows in Southeast Asia. Users grind it into a fine powder and then mix it into liquids to drink or sometimes capsules for convenience. It has received notoriety because of its reported aid for those suffering from opiate withdrawals. According to the American Kratom Association, the herbal supplement can also be used to treat pain and depression. It is sold in parts of the United States and parts of San Diego County, but it remains illegal in the City of San Diego. One of the many individuals using Kratom is Barbara Rago. Before she was constrained to hospitalization, Barbara was a nurse who...
Botanicals

Southeast Asia’s Kratom Leaf Draws Controversy

Throughout the course of botanical history, there have been two distinct types of people: those who want to ingest plants for their medicinal and psychoactive properties, and those who want to make those plants illegal. Most recently, the debate has centered on the Southeast Asian leaf kratom, a natural painkiller ingested to treat chronic illness. But the plant, which comes from a tropical evergreen tree, also has several recreational benefits. In low doses Kratom can act as a stimulant. At high doses it can act as a sedative, similar to a narcotic. The substance, which many say is more “subtle” than marijuana, is banned by the military and is illegal in six states. In 2014, the FDA began seizing Kratom coming into the U.S., and in 2016 the DEA announced its intentions to regulate the ...
Botanicals

Could Oregon ban the herbal supplement Kratom?

More than a dozen bills have already been proposed in the upcoming Oregon Legislature dealing with marijuana, but there is also one bill about a lesser-known herb unheard of by many, fiercely adored by some and almost banned by the DEA. For millennia, people in Southeast Asia used the leaves from the tree Mitragyna speciosa — more commonly known as kratom — to combat fatigue and as a traditional medicine. This herb is often sold as a kratom powder or extract. The herb's modern proponents claim it can help with opioid withdrawal, pain, fatigue, anxiety and depression. Its detractors decry it as an "imminent hazard to public safety," citing 15 kratom-related deaths in the United States during a two-year period. Read the full story on Statesman Journal
What happens if kratom becomes illegal?
Botanicals

What happens if kratom becomes illegal?

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has received thousands of comments on whether it should make a psychoactive painkiller called kratom illegal because some say it could be key to battling the country’s opioid epidemic. The DEA announced in August that it would list kratom, which is typically sold as a powder in capsules or for tea and can produce both a narcotic and a stimulant effect, as a Schedule 1 drug — along with heroin, LSD and ecstasy. Schedule 1 drugs are illegal because they have a “high potential for abuse” and there is no existing research that would make it acceptable for medical use. Read the full story here.
Botanicals

What the Reversed Kratom Ban Teaches Us About Drug Advocacy in America

You may not be familiar with the drug kratom, but many Americans are. Kratom is known to relieve pain and anxiety, and has often been used to ease the challenges of getting off of more harmful drugs, namely opioids. The DEA was slated to ban kratom until late September, when an outpouring of public activism by kratom users led to an indefinite delay on such a ban. Earlier this year, the DEA announced its intent to place kratom on the list of Schedule I drugs. This is the most restrictive category of banned substances that includes drugs like heroin and LSD. The DEA describes a Schedule I like so: “Schedule I drugs have a high potential for abuse and the potential to create severe psychological and/or physical dependence.” Kratom users have used the drug to help them kick their OxyContin...