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Cat’s Claw Spagyric
$44
Ingredients:
Organic Cat’s Claw Spagyric, Organic Cane Alcohol
Cat’s Claw benefits: immune-stimulating, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anti-fungal, antiviral, anti-mutagenic, cytostatic (inhibits tumor cell formation); relieves symptoms of digestive disorders like Crohn’s; combats disease and infections ranging from Lyme’s disease to candida, Epstein Barr, Herpes, chronic fatigue syndrome, and more.
(If you’re wondering what a spagyric is, click here).
Cat’s Claw is one of the most potent herbs from the Amazon to gain attention in the western scientific community, though of course the people who live in the Amazon have known about its healing abilities for centuries. A vine that grows in the rainforest in Central and South America, its root and bark contains chemicals known to stimulate the immune system, treat osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, kill cancer cells, and fight viruses.
Cat’s Claw is one of the most widely-exported herbs from the Amazon to the west, where it is used for a wide range of chronic conditions, from stomach ulcers and Crohn’s disease to genital herpes, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, cancer and even HIV. It has been used in many cases where other herbs have failed to break the patterns of digestive disorders, especially ones involving cramps or convulsions, as Cat’s Claw has a relaxant effect on the smooth muscles of the digestive tract. And while it does not necessarily reduce the swelling of arthritic joints, it is said to reduce their painfulness. The four oxindole alkaloids found in Cat’s Claw extend the half-life of lymphocytes, the white blood cells responsible for fighting off infections, rather than having a direct effect on their proliferation.
But where in US and Europe Cat’s Claw is known for its medicinal properties, in the Amazon its used as much for its spiritual properties — though of course many would not consider these two things to be separate. Its spiritual properties are said to be protective and balancing, an herb that can bring equilibrium to a system that has become unhinged, one that can clear not just physical obstructions but spiritual blocks as well. It helps to restore spiritual balance and release old ties, protect one from and remove negative energy, and is also thought to enhance creativity and one’s clarity of thought. Both medicinally and spiritually, Cat’s Claw is thought to be a “gate opener,” something that has the ability to open obstructions in the body, and bring balance to an unbalanced system. It is thought to help relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression as well.
Note: Cat’s Claw should not be used with any medications that suppress the immune system, such as cyclosporine, or any other medications prescribed following an organ transplant or to treat an autoimmune disease; it should also be avoided by anyone taking blood-thinning medication from aspirin to warfarin or clopidogrel; it can also lower blood pressure, so anyone taking medication for high blood pressure should also avoid it lest it lower one’s blood pressure too much. It has also been used as a form of birth control, so anyone pregnant or looking to become pregnant should most certainly avoid it.