Marjoram can prevent gastric ulcers while showing promise in fighting breast cancer

Monday, April 21, 2014 by: P. Simard
Tags: marjoram, breast cancer, gastric ulcers

(NaturalNews) Marjoram is a member of the mint species and it was originally found in the Mediterranean. This sweet-flavored and mildly spicy herb is often mistaken to be oregano. Apparently in ancient Greece people would use this plant to make wreaths and garlands as it was used to basically express peace, harmony and happiness.

As with most other herbs marjoram contains a wide variety of essential vitamins and minerals, but it's most notably a remarkable source of vitamins C and K. For every 100 gram of fresh marjoram leaves, you can get approximately 86 percent of the recommended daily intake. As for vitamin K, it will provide up 518 percent of the recommended daily intake. Although vitamin K often goes unnoticed, it does encourage osteotrophic activity in the bones and can play a vital role in the brain by diminishing possible neuronal damages suffered through afflictions such as Alzheimer's disease.

Many of its chemical compounds are also known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. Marjoram not only works wonders for the digestive system but it can also help with the cardiovascular system and as the latest research shows, possibly even get rid of breast cancer.

Marjoram extracts seem to protect the intestinal walls

In 2009 the American Journal of Chinese Medicine reported the results of a study in which the effects of marjoram extracts were analyzed after being administered to rats displaying gastric ulcers. It's at doses ranging between 250 and 500mg per kilogram of body weight that the marjoram extracts were guaranteeing the best possible effects. Not only were they capable of reducing the number of ulcers but they also helped nourish the depleted intestinal walls, while also diminishing the concentration of malondialdehyde. Researchers also believed it had the innate ability to prevent ulcers from occurring in the first place without producing any toxicity by the same token.

A study originating from the Middle East certainly has scientists intrigued after noticing marjoram's ability to stop tumors from growing and expanding. Researchers from the United Arab Emirates University tested marjoram extracts on breast cancer cells in mice. It seems that by even using minimal amounts of the extracts, they were able stop cancer cells from dividing and therefore spreading. The moment that they increased the doses, practically all the cancerous cells were seen dying repeatedly. As usual more research will be done in order to further validate these findings but the early results are incredible as millions of women are anxiously waiting for safer and non invasive treatments.

On a lesser level but nonetheless worthy of mention, marjoram may also be beneficial for the cardiovascular system. Some health practitioners say it has the potential to lower blood pressure and also reduce the possibility of a cholesterol build up or to end up with hardened arteries.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-marjoram.html

http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/sweet-marjoram.html

http://science.naturalnews.com

About the author:
After spending several years working in property management, P. Simard is now focusing on being a naturopath in Quebec.