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Stress lowers your resistance to disease by suppressing your
immune system. The following list provides an overview of
some of the best-known immune boosters, which stimulate
your immune system or strengthen it to help fight diseases,
including cancer:
• Echinacea. A f lower belonging to the sunf lower
family, echinacea is believed to increase the number
of disease-fighting cells in your immune system.
• Essiac. This mixture of four herbs (Indian rhubarb,
sheepshead sorrel, slippery elm, and burdock root)
is believed to strengthen the immune system,
improve appetite, supply essential nutrients to the
body, possibly relieve pain, and ultimately, prolong
life.
• Ginseng. A root used in Chinese medicine, ginseng is
believed to enhance your immune system and boost
the activity of white blood cells.
• Green tea. This is a popular Asian tea made from a
plant called Camellia sinensis. The active chemical in
green tea, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), is believed
to neutralize free radicals, which are carcinogenic.
Green tea is thus considered an anticancer agent,
particularly for stomach, lung, and skin cancers.
• Iscador (mistletoe). Iscador is made through a
fermentation process, using different kinds of
mistletoe, a plant known for its white berries. More
popular as an antitumor treatment in Europe,
iscador is believed to work by enhancing your
immune system and inhibiting tumor growth.
• Paul d’Arco (Taheebo). This usually comes in the form
of a tea made from the inner bark of a tree called
tabebuia. It’s believed to act as a cleansing agent and
can be used as an antimicrobial agent. This tea is
also said to stop tumor growth.
• Wheatgrass. This grass, grown from wheatberry
seeds, is rich in chlorophyll. Its juice contains over
one hundred vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients
and is believed to contain a number of cancerfighting
agents and immune-boosting properties.
The following herbs and spices also are said to be tumor
busters: garlic, turmeric, onions, black pepper, asafetida,
pippali, cumin, poppy seeds, kandathiipile, neem f lowers,
mananthakkali, drumstick, basil leaves, ponnakanni, and
parsley.
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