Using the energy of the forest to heal
by Vera Remes We are well aware that the rain forests, often referred to as Nature’s Medicine Cabinet, contain plants from which medicines are derived. Some 120 prescription drugs sold worldwide today are known to contain ingredients derived directly from rain forest plants. According to the U.S. National Cancer Institute, more than two-thirds of all medicines found to have cancer-fighting properties come from rain forest plants. Examples abound. Ingredients obtained and synthesized from a now-extinct periwinkle plant found only in Madagascar (until deforestation wiped it out) have increased the chances of survival for children with leukemia from 20 percent to 80 percent. Even the air and smells of the forest have been known to have healing properties, as proven by the popularity and efficacy of a Japanese...
