Herbal USA

The fermented juice of grapes. When other fruit juices are fermented, the name of the fruit is given, as in blackberry wine or plum wine. Archaeological evidence indicates that wine was prepared between 6000 and 5000 B.C. in the Middle East. Wine making was described in Egypt by 2500 B.C. American grapes, Vitus labrusca, are pest-resistant, and European varieties, V. vinifera, are grafted onto American root stocks. The Concord grape, Read the rest of this post >>>

The degree to which a substance can cause injury. In toxicology, toxicity refers to doses at which a large fraction of the exposed population would be expected to die. For example, LD50 is the dose of a substance that is lethal to 50 percent of a population of experimental animals. Toxicity can be distinguished from side effects. Side effects refer to the action or effect of a substance beyond that which is desired. Undesirable Read the rest of this post >>>

The adjustment of the body’s mechanisms to adverse conditions or changes in the environment. Stimuli (“stressors”) run the gamut of disturbances from heat, cold, injury, and environmental pollutants, to glare from video screens and bacterial toxins. Psychological stress relates to coping with demands of work, relationships, and the demands of life in general. Coping with stress relies on the nervous system and the Read the rest of this post >>>

A condition due to chronic food deprivation characterized by tissue wasting. Starvation can occur due to unavailability of food; self-denial of food (fasting); institutional restriction of food intake; or anorexia. Protein-calorie malnutrition ranges from marasmus, in which people do not get adequate calories, to kwashiorkor, in which they lack adequate protein although their diet supplies adequate calories. Anorexia may be caused by Read the rest of this post >>>

Substances used to control or destroy undesirable organisms, especially rodents, insects, weeds, and molds. Pesticides may be synthetic chemicals or they may be made of natural materials. Rodenticides are used to control mice and rats; insecticides control insects, mites, spiders, and ticks. Other classes of pesticides control slugs, snails, and nematodes that attack root vegetables in particular. Herbicides control weeds; these may Read the rest of this post >>>

An excessive accumulation of body fat for a given body size based on muscle and bone (frame size). In 1998 the federal government adopted new standards for determining whether a person is overweight or obese. Before then, people were considered overweight if their weight was at least 10 percent to 20 percent over optimal body weight. Obesity was defined as being more than 25 percent over the optimal body weight for men and 30 percent Read the rest of this post >>>

A seed typically enclosed by a tough woody shell. Nuts are products of trees; almonds, chestnuts, and hazelnuts are typical examples. The peanut is an example of a nut that is usually the pod of a legume (member of the pea family). Certain varieties of almonds and pecans may have soft as well as hard shells. The coconut is the leading nut crop worldwide, followed by peanuts; together they account for 94 percent of the world nut Read the rest of this post >>>

The state of being marginally nourished. In contrast with overt malnutrition, which causes identifiable diseases, mild or moderate nutrient deficiencies need not reveal obvious signs of illness. Nonetheless, subclinical deficiencies lead to lowered immunity and decreased resistance to viral, bacterial, and fungal infections; difficult pregnancies, low birth-weight infants, and delayed growth and development; learning problems; short-term Read the rest of this post >>>

(B vitamins)

A group of eight water-soluble vitamins, required in very small amounts to convert fat, protein and carbohydrate to energy. The B complex is not stored in the body, unlike fat-soluble vitamins, and adequate amounts must be supplied daily.

The name originated from early nutritional research, when growth factors for organisms were designated as B1, B2, etc. As they were isolated and characterized chemically, Read the rest of this post >>>

(food dyes, certified food colors, synthetic food dyes, FD&C colors, coal tar dyes)

Synthetic colors account for 80 percent of food coloring agents used in the food industry, and these synthetic additives pose a greater potential health risk than any other class of food additive. Because manufactured and processed foods often lack the fresh colors of whole foods, synthetic dyes have been used for years to make such foods Read the rest of this post >>>