Content area
Full text
Tonic plants have truly amazing effects on brain function. Among these properties are the abilities to: increase the flow of blood to the brain; improve the brain utilization of oxygen and glucose; improve neurotransmitter metabolism; help repair damaged tissues; and improve cognitive function.
As is the case with all tonic herbs, cerebral tonics work bv balancing processes. not bv iust stimulating, or just depressing. Additionally, tonic herbs are free from serious side effects, contraindications and concerns about dosage, complicated usage schedules, or adverse interactions with other herbs. They are simple to use, combine synergistically with one another, are easily obtained, and require no training before using.
Tonics give up nothing by way of impact, yet are known for their gentle influence on health. They are the foundation of herbomedicinal systems throughout the world.
It is preferable that tonic herbs be combined with other tonic herbs rather than with nontonic herbs; this is because the gentle, balancing actions of the tonic herbs can be compromised by the more powerful actions of nontonic herbs (tonic and nontonic being the only two categories here).
How many tonic herbs are there? Not many. Probably greater than 95 percent of all medicinal plants are nontonics.
Hence, you can see just how special the tonics are. Only a handful of tonics are used primarily for the balancing of brain function. Combined into one product, these can dramatically affect cognitive and emotional health and make a significant contribution to the longevity of the brain.
Let's look at five brain-function-friendly tonic herbs
1. Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba). Perhaps the nremier tonic herb for the brain is standardized ginkgo biloba extract (GBE). Research on GBE fills books and file cabinets. In fact, this research is so extensive that American researchers are no longer able to ignore...