Have you heard of Galangal?
This is a pungent/spicy herb that gives a similar kick as ginger but can save you in a heart attack or stroke!
Because of this, many of our clients carry around a bottle of these tablets whenever they travel.
My own dad is fond of taking these tablets whenever he gets a headache.
Interestingly, even though it’s not a Western herb, St Hildegard of Bingen was the one who popularized it for use in cardiovascular conditions! This knowledge was revealed to her through her visions – as was most of her medicinal and herbal knowledge.
“Whoever is suffering from heart pain or is threatened by a cardiovascular weakness (fainting) should immediately eat a sufficient amount of Galangal, and he will feel better.”
St Hildegard of Bingen
In our clinic, we have used Galangal to successfully treat and prevent all manner or cardiovascular issues, motion sickness, nausea and minor digestive ailments and infections.
Contact us if you’d like to purchase the tablets to try for yourself.
The following monograph is from my own compiled notes (references from my mentor Dr Sebastian Liew and his Herbalist Course)
Botanical name: Alpinia officinarum (lesser galangal), Alpinia galanga (greater galanga)
Pharmacological actions: analgesic, anti-nauseous, carminative, digestive tonic, circulatory stimulant, cardioprotective, anti-candida, bacteria and virus
Part used: root.
Galangal thrives in humid tropical regions with shade and rich soil. It is grown in China, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, India, and Vietnam, where galangal medicinal use is widespread.
It is highly recommended for medicinal use because of its balanced nature – energy somewhat between pepper and ginger. St Hildegard, the Benedictine abbess, herbalist of monastic medicine of the 12th century, is the first person in the world to teach that galangal is for heart pain and heart-related diseases. This application for heart pain is confirmed in Germany and has proven a safer alternative to nitro-glycerine, the standard drug for heart attack.
It is better to chew the galangal root or a tablet to stimulate the tongue-heart reflex. The tongue-heart reflex enables more oxygen to the heart, better circulation, and dilution of blood vessels resulting in heart attack prevention and normalization of blood pressure caused by stress. The latter implies a role for anxiety management.
Stagnation of blood is the mother of all diseases. It is a warming herb, yet not as irritating as ginger or pepper. Together with the herb Bertram or pellitory, it treats and prevents cold hands and feet. Chronic cold hands may indicate a periphery circulation issue and a weak, depressed body (sluggish thyroid?). Rosemary is specific for poor circulation to the head area.
Galangal should be your daily protection from heart pain, mental distress, fatigue, stroke, weak heart, nausea, and dizziness. Always carry around with you.
Greater Galangal versus Lesser Galangal: Two types of galangals are the most used greater galangal (Alpinia galanga) lesser galangal (Alpinia officinarum).
The greater galangal stands over 6 feet in height, and the lesser galangal generally grows to just over 3 feet.
Lesser galangal is found to be more therapeutic than greater galangal due to its essential oil content. It is also the one used in St Hildegard medicine for heart disease. Greater galangal root is more commonly used in Southeast Asian dishes such as Tom Yum Soup or Laksa!
Specific indications
- Anti-candida, anti-bacteria, anti-viral (essential oil content)
- Anti-fungal (topical)
- Anti-cancer
- Asthma
- Bad breath (Hildegard)
- Breathlessness due to a weak heart or anxiety (Sebastian)
- Common cold
- Fever (Hildegard)
- Menstrual pain (tea)
- Reduces platelet aggregation (natural blood thinner)
- Rheumatism
- Improves circulation to abdominal and reproductive organs
- Prevent or treat CVD
- onset of heart pain or dizziness from stroke
- Heart pain or heart attack (St Hildegard)
- Blood pressure normalizer
- Arrhythmia; Ventricular Ectopic beats
- Sudden hearing loss
- Digestive disorders
- Nausea, any form
- Lack of appetite
- Dyspepsia where there is vomiting or sickness at stomach
- Indigestion: stomach upset
- Motion sickness / dizziness
- Extreme fatigue / Mental fatigue / Prevent Alzheimer’s
- Headaches from tension or poor circulation; congestive headache
- Elderly effective for rheumatism, sciatic pains and boosts energy
- Fertility – boosts sperm count
- Psychological-emotional: Mild depression, lack of motivation; mental confusion
Dose & Recipes:
- Dissolve 1-4 tablets under tongue – up to 1200mg per day or 6 tablets a day
- ¼ or ½ teaspoon of the powder on the tongue. 5minutes later, a shot glass of parsley wine. Repeat if necessary.
- 1 tablespoon of the powder boil in 1 cup of red wine for 3 minutes. Great to heal rheumatism.
- Mix into face mask with honey
- To treat skin parasites 1 part galangal, 3 parts alcohol: Let mixture sit overnight, apply solution to affected area
- To treat 1st sign of cold with fever: Boil ½ tsp of galangal powder in 500mL distilled water. Strain & add juice of ½ lemon and 1 tsp of honey
- To promote heart function & digestion: Mix equal parts galangal powder & honey. Spread over pastries, bread or cereal (e.g., 1 tablespoon of galangal powder mixed in ½ cup of honey)
- To treat headache (due to poor circulation) and poor circulation in general: Boil 1 tbsp of galangal powder with a glass of red wine. Add honey to serve.
- Young leaves may be chopped and eaten raw
Caution:
- Not recommended in high doses during pregnancy
- Low dose for morning sickness is great
- Do not take in high doses with blood thinners
Toxicity: Very low.
Notes:
- Improves blood supply to heart & circulatory system
- Drink with warm water to promote circulation (heart attack)
- Stimulates digestion
- Relieves lack of appetite and gas
- Prevents colds, flus, asthmatic attacks, food poisoning
- Lower cholesterol, triglycerides; increase HDL (Achuthan and Padikkala, 1997)
- Prevents atherosclerosis & CVD
- Can also protect the liver from paracetamol-induced toxicity in rats (Hemabarathy, Budin and Feizal, 2009)
- Enhance cognitive function (Singh et al, 2011)
References:
Sebastian Liew – Contact us to sign up for our Herbalist Course!
Past posts:
Galangal is a southeast asian herb that spread throughout Europe during the spice trade. St Hildegard called it “the spice of life” or “miracle root”.
Galangal is used for heart pain, stroke, circulation (blood stagnation), fatigue, nausea, motion-sickness, dizziness and mild digestive issues (food poisoning).
Modern research shows it has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-cancer, anti-hypertensive and even pro-fertility (sperm count) properties!
There are 2 types of Galangal – lesser and greater Galangal. The more medicinal lesser Galangal is found in our clinic (Virita Galangal Tablets). The greater ones are used commonly in SEA cuisines.
We like to carry some Galangal tablets around in our bags as they are an excellent “herbal first-aid” for cardiovascular or digestive issues!
“Whoever is suffering from heart pain or is threatened by a cardiovascular weakness (fainting) should immediately eat a sufficient amount of Galangal, and he will feel better.” – St Hildegard of Bingen
高良姜是一种东南亚草本植物，在香料贸易期间传播到整个欧洲。圣希尔德加德称它为“生命的香料”或“奇迹之根”。
高良姜用于心脏疼痛、中风、循环（血液停滞）、疲劳、恶心、晕车、头晕和轻度消化问题（食物中毒）。
现代研究表明，它具有抗病毒、抗菌、抗真菌、抗癌、抗高血压甚至促进生育（精子计数）的特性！
有 2 种类型的高良姜 – 小高良姜和大高良姜。 在我们的诊所（Virita Galangal Tablets）中发现了更多的药用小高良姜。 较大的通常用于东南亚美食。
我们喜欢在包里随身携带一些高良姜片，因为它们是治疗心血管或消化问题的绝佳“草药急救”！
“任何患有心脏疼痛或受到心血管虚弱（昏厥）威胁的人都应该立即吃足够量的高良姜，他会感觉更好。” – 宾根的圣希尔德加德
Our Galangal products are only available online for members. To order, pls drop a WhatsApp msg to +65 8860 7661
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#Galangal #AlpiniaOfficinarum #AlpiniaGalanga #cardiovascularherbs
JT 