QandA

Manage Macular Degeneration

Are there any herbs, foods or supplements that can help with macular degeneration? Thank you.
H.Z.
Los Angeles

Keville responds: A number of herbs can help delay the progression of macular degeneration. Several formulas incorporating these herbs are available in health-food stores. One of the foremost herbs to consider is bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus). Its use for macular degeneration and other eye disorders is backed by excellent research. It contains flavonoids called anthocyanosides that strengthen blood vessels and connective tissue and improve circulation in the eye. Bilberry is most available in capsules.

Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) stimulates blood flow not only to the brain to help you think better, but also to the eyes, making it a good herb to try for macular degeneration.

Chinese medicine practitioners connect good eye health with the liver. They recommend taking liver-en- hancing herbs, such as bupleurum (Bupleurum chinense).

It’s important to eat a low-fat diet and avoid eating fried foods. Fish oil seems to help a number of eye problems and is especially important to the eye’s retina. You can take it as a supplement — many varieties are available.

Although it isn’t known exactly what brings on macular degeneration, the disease is associated with aging. Most holistic practitioners believe that anything you can do to reverse the aging process is beneficial. This means getting plenty of exercise and consuming a healthy diet with as few refined foods, including sugar, as possible. Relaxing your eyes with eye exercises also may be helpful. In fact, so is relaxation in general.

A particularly important nutrient for eye health is beta-carotene, which converts into vitamin A in the body. Some good sources are carrots, kale, collard greens, spinach, broccoli, pumpkin, peas and raw tomatoes.

Harvard Medical School researchers found that people who eat foods high in two other carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, were less likely to have eye problems. These nutrients also are found in dark, leafy vegetables, especially collard greens and spinach. They are best absorbed when eaten with fatty foods. Lutein and zeaxanthin also are available as supplements.

The natural red pigment called lycopene — what makes tomatoes red — is related to beta-carotene, but is an even stronger antioxidant. It’s also found in watermelon and pink grapefruit. People who don’t eat much lycopene have twice the risk of developing macular degeneration. It is thought that, even if you have already developed the condition, lycopene will slow its development.

Lutein significantly lowers the risk of advanced macular degeneration.

Khalsa responds: The retina, located on the rear surface of the eyeball, is about the size of a dime. The macula, a yellow spot in the visual center, provides the clear, sharp, central vision that you use for focusing on what is in front of you.

In macular degeneration, a disease of the elderly, retinal function declines, destroying central vision. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe visual loss in the United States and Europe in people 55 and older. The retina is rich in blood supply and exceptionally fragile. This microvasculature requires adequate nutrients to perform normally.

AMD is either dry (inadequate blood supply) or wet (leakage from “rickety” blood vessels). AMD can be halted, and in some cases, the damage reversed to a certain extent.

Ayurvedic herbs used for this condition include triphala (a popular combination of herbs) and the tonic ashwaganda (Withania somnifera). An Ayurvedic formula containing triphala was assessed in a clinical trial of 48 retinopathic eyes. The formula rapidly cleared retinal hemorrhaging and reduced recurrences.

In a study of 40 patients, published in Phytotherapy Research in 2001, pycnogenol extract (Pinus pinaster) helped slow the progression of retinopathy by sealing the leaky capillaries. The group taking 50 mg of pycnogenol three times daily showed no decline in retinal function, and some improved.

The macula is rich in the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin. A 1994 report from the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that 6 mg of lutein a day, included in a vegetable-rich diet, significantly lowers the risk of advanced macular degeneration.

Bilberry has become especially associated with vision benefits. It may assist in reducing AMD risk. The extract prevents free radical damage to cells and capillaries that can weaken their membranes. The result is stronger, more flexible capillaries and cell walls. Capillaries that can stretch without breaking or leaking allow blood to flow better to feed the retina, which strengthens retinal connective tissue, making it an all-around ideal remedy for macular degeneration.

Bilberry extract, standardized to contain 25 percent anthocyanosides, is generally taken in doses of up to 240 to 480 mg daily. Because bilberry is a species of European blueberry, it is thought that the entire blueberry family, which includes huckleberry and cranberry, probably would work just as well and be more available and less expensive than high-tech European standardized extracts.

Also, consumption of fruits and vegetables, especially spinach and collard greens, is associated with a lower risk of AMD.

Hay Fever Fix-ups

I have hay fever and a problem with a lot of phlegm in my throat. The phlegm is a year-round thing, but is worst in the winter. I sometimes have trouble breathing and have to use an inhaler. I have had X-rays and they say I don’t have asthma, but pills for asthma seem to give me some relief. Can you help?
C.R.
Pine River, Minnesota

Keville responds: Pills for asthma are designed to help open the airways and clear away congestion, so it makes sense that they would help you, as will the inhaler. Although you may not have asthma, chances are that you are reacting to something airborne in your environment. You likely have either an allergy, which sets off an immune reaction, or a sensitivity, which causes local irritation in your sinuses or throat. The fact that it gets worse in winter when your house is probably more closed is a clue that it is something indoors.

I suggest you not only work on eliminating the phlegm with herbs, but also look around for possible causes. Start with common allergy-causing substances, such as pet dander, dust mites, mold, synthetically perfumed products and cleaning solutions, including fabric detergents. Consider having your house heating ducts cleaned. Keep in mind that it may be more than one thing. Experiment with eliminating what you can to see if it makes a difference. If that doesn’t help, you also can try eliminating for a couple of weeks, one at a time, the foods you commonly eat to see if that makes any difference.

No matter what we call your condition, the herbs we choose will be a similar formula. Phlegm in the throat usually is a result of postnasal drip. If that’s your case, then use one of my favorite combinations to treat the sinuses — yarrow (Achillea millefolium), elderflower (Sambucus nigra) and peppermint (Mentha ¥piperita). Herbs that help alleviate sensitivities and allergies include chamomile (Matricaria recutita) and echinacea (Echinacea spp.). If your throat is irritated, use marshmallow root (Althaea officinalis) to soothe it. These herbs are tasty enough to make into a tea. Buy them dried in bulk and blend them in equal parts. Using 1 teaspoon of herb per cup of water, bring the water to a boil, add the herbs, cover and let steep for 15 minutes. You’ll also find similar formulas available as tinctures or pills.

Sometimes sinus congestion stems from an infection. A lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) steam will address either a fungal or bacterial infection. Simply add a few drops of lavender essential oil to a simmering pot of water, lean your face over it and inhale. Place a towel over your head for a stronger dose. See if gargling with a strong cup of mint tea with 1/8 teaspoon of salt relieves the phlegm. This also can be used in a neti pot, which is a technique used in Ayurvedic medicine to clear the sinuses. You should start noticing a difference in a couple of weeks.

Herbs that dry your sinuses, such as goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), also may be helpful. (Just be sure to purchase cultivated rather than wildcrafted goldenseal.) Goldenseal isn’t tasty, so take it in tincture or capsules.

Schisandra helps relieve coughs and other respiratory ailments.

Khalsa responds: You don’t specify the type of asthma medication you’re using, but presumably it helps because it is a bronchodilator, which increases airway diameter, reducing blockage from phlegm, or a decongestant, such as ephedrine, which dries mucous secretions.

Schisandra (Schisandra chinensis) berry is outstanding for this condition. Traditional Russian and Chinese medicines have long used schisandra for a wide variety of conditions, including coughs and other respiratory ailments, insomnia and kidney problems. Chinese medicine practitioners consider it specific for asthma.

The seeds contain lignans, which are believed to be active constituents. Modern Chinese research suggests that these lignans stimulate the immune system, protect the liver, increase stress coping and may produce a mild sedative effect.

The astringent qualities of the berry make it ideal for what the Chinese call “preserving the essence”— keeping leaking fluids retained where they belong. Used largely for the lungs (to arrest mucous discharges), this quality also marks schisandra for postnasal drip. In my experience as a clinical herbalist, this remedy is especially effective for excess respiratory phlegm of the type you describe.

By the way, in Asian medicine, this berry is essentially a general tonic, used to “prolong the years of life without aging” — a sort of “poor-man’s ginseng.”

Dried schisandra berries actually taste pretty good, so they can be taken as a tea, or even cooked into food, such as soup broth. You can find schisandra berries at Chinese herb shops and in bulk at some health-food stores. This herb is quite mild, so feel free to use as much as you care to. Use a high dose acutely, then a small daily dose for maintenance. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the dose is 10 grams a day in food or tea.

Kathi Keville is the director of the American Herb Association (www.Aha Herb.com) and author of 11 herb and aromatherapy books, including Herbs for Health and Healing (Rodale, 1996). She teaches seminars throughout the United States.

Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa has more than 25 years of experience with medicinal herbs. A licensed dietitian/nutritionist, massage therapist and board member of the American Herbalists Guild, he specializes in Ayurvedic, Chinese and North American healing traditions.