“Living pharmacies” are a natural source of nutrition and health

When most people hear the word “pharmacy” they don’t envision beautiful, lush gardens.

Malaysian villages are home to medicinal gardens that act as natural living pharmacies full of plants they use as a source of nutrition and health.

One of the components of these living pharmacies is the mangosteen fruit, which is valued for more than its exotic flavor, which mimics a fusion of a passion fruit and a peach. Malays believe mangosteens to contain powerful antioxidants known as xanthones, which may provide an immune boost while also standing up to bacterial and viral infections.

In the Malay world, male sexual prowess and stamina are closely related to man’s spirit.

The herb tongkat ali has traditionally been consumed by Malay men to increase overall energy, support sexual potency, boost metabolism and improve fertility. Luckily, tongkat ali is available to us in supplement form: Physta™ is a patented freeze-dried water extract form of Tongkat Ali. It was developed in collaboration with the MIT Research Center, and is the primary active ingredient in Tenaga.

Five ancient energy boosters revealed

Are you throwing back highly-caffeinated energy drinks or spending a huge portion of your paycheck on the Starbucks drive-through every morning just to get through the Monday-to-Friday work week grind? If so, you may want to consider a more natural approach to boosting your energy.

Malaysians have been practicing health and beauty traditions for centuries. These traditions are known as ramuan and are all about synergy, balance and moderation, a holistic approach for attuning the body’s energies with nature’s rhythms. Here are five natural ramuan secrets for boosting energy:

Exercise—Regular exercise may play a significant role in a number of different health aspects, such as increasing energy, decreasing fatigue and even boosting sexual desire. Malays have long practiced senaman asak badan, a traditional form of exercise that consists of a combination of body movements and breathing techniques. Many of the movements include yoga-like postures (think bending tree, tiger, snake, warrior and blowing-flute poses). Benefits of senaman asak badan include improved flexibility, agility, endurance and strength.

Detox—Part of the ramuan regimen includes herbal cleansing to help purify and rejuvenate the body, promote a youthful complexion, improve digestion and optimize liver health.

Massage—Even though it’s ultra-relaxing, massage has been known to improve energy levels as well. Malays practice a traditional form of massage known as urut melayu, a deep-tissue massage with long, kneading strokes that focuses on blood flow in the urat, or veins and arteries. This traditional massage stimulates energy points while loosening and warming up muscles. 

Herbal supplements—There are a couple great supplements that make it easy to reap the benefits of rare, potent Malaysian herbs. Tenaga may support energy, overall well-being and sexual vitality in men, and Asmara may support energy, vitality, and postpartum firming and toning as well as overall emotional well-being in women.

Foods—Greens already pack a potent punch, so how about turning it up a notch? For lunch or dinner Malays eat ulam, a fresh, leafy herbal salad that they believe to have anti-aging properties and significant antioxidant activity. If you’re feeling adventurous, try this traditional ulam recipe.

Try this sweet recipe for increasing your vitality

Honey is more than just a natural sweetener. In many parts of the world, it is more prized for its health benefits than its use as a culinary ingredient. Malaysian men have been using honey to increase their physical strength and liven up low libido for centuries.

In Malaysian tradition, medicine and food are interchangeable and intertwined; both are part of the daily process for seeking and maintaining balance, a concept the Malays consider essential for overall wellness.

Malay knowledge refers to honey as the “enemy of diseases” and is considered an especially powerful anti-aging tool, especially for those who have passed middle age. Men are encouraged to consume it whenever possible. This natural pick-me-up is best straight from the honeycomb, but commercial honey works as well. There’s even a special recipe Malays use to enhance physical strength: a mixture of honey, egg and saffron. This formula is recommended as a pick-me-up for newlyweds and those with low libido.

Other foods that are encouraged in Malay culture include dates, garlic, ginger, milk, beef, rice, eggs and salt.

Give your performance a boost the all-natural way

Who says you need a prescription to spice up your private life? Eurycoma longifolia (Tongkat Ali) is an herb native to the Malaysian jungles used to promote overall energy and increase sexual vitality. Malaysian men have been using this natural aphrodisiac to boost their sexual desire for centuries, and its popularity is growing rapidly in the United States. This special herb helps the body maintain healthy levels of testosterone, thus increasing sexual energy and vigor while improving overall well-being.

Thankfully you don’t have to visit the Malaysian rainforests to get your hands on this natural way to address lackluster libido; it’s available in supplement form. Physta™ is a patented freeze-dried water extract form of Tongkat Ali. It was developed in collaboration with the MIT Research Center, and is the primary active ingredient in Tenaga. Having Physta™ in our formulation helps to ensure (among other things) purity and ingredient consistency.

Besides amplifying your desire in the bedroom, Physta™ may offer many other benefits as well:

• Increases energy and fights fatigue
• Helps burn fat and increases metabolism
• Increases muscle mass and  boosts athletic performance
• Lowers blood pressure and reduces other factors for heart disease

Health and Beauty from the Rainforest: Malaysian Traditions of Ramuan

Health and Beauty from the Rainforest: Malaysian Traditions of Ramuan, the highly anticipated book by Professor Gerard Bodeker debuted at a well-attended seminar and book signing event held at Natural Products ExpoWest. Professor Bodeker, a faculty member in Public Health at Oxford University and Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University, has written the first comprehensive study of Ramuan, examining the mingling of Chinese, Indian and Malay natural health and beauty practices. “Early response to Health and Beauty from the Rainforest has been very encouraging,” said Professor Bodeker. “I expect that there will be more than academic interest in the book; it was written for people who would love to know how health, wellness, and beauty is practiced by a culture of rich traditions that many Western health professionals consider to be at the center of new discoveries in this area.” Comprehensive, with a wealth of information about how Malaysia’s most notable herbal practices have developed over thousands of years, Health and Beauty from the Rainforest was developed by a team of Malaysian and international scholars, scientists, physicians, and traditional practitioner led by Professor Bodeker. The beautifully illustrated book provides never-before-revealed insights into unique Malaysian herbal traditions that promote healthy living, including hormonal balance, sexual fitness, beauty, and healthy aging; a particular emphasis is placed on women’s health concerns. “Professor Bodeker’s book is the first full compendium of information on the Malaysian tradition and practice of Ramuan,” said Dr. Joerg Gruenwald, a leading European expert in the field of botanicals and natural products. “Health and beauty professionals will be talking about this book for a long time to come.”

About Health and Beauty from the Rainforest
The first book of its kind, Health and Beauty from the Rainforest: Malaysian Traditions of Ramuan, is a must-have guide on Malaysia’s age-old wisdom in promoting health and enhancing beauty & vigor. Written by a team of Malaysian and international scholars, scientists, physicians and traditional practitioners, it contains a wealth of encyclopedic information about herbal practices from Malaysia’s confluence of Asian cultures, which have developed over thousands of years. Hundreds of lavish color photos highlight the chapters, illustrating a wide range of topics. 256 pages, hardcover. The book is available at, Barnes & Noble bookstores nationwide, online at Amazon.com, and via the book’s web site RamuanMalaysian.com, $29.50 plus shipping and tax.

About Professor Gerard Bodeker
Professor Gerard Bodeker, author and editor-in-chief of Health and Beauty from the Rainforest: Malaysian Traditions of Ramuan, is a senior faculty member in Public Health at Oxford University and Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University, New York. Bodeker's doctoral studies were at Harvard University. He researches and advises on international public policy on traditional, complementary & alternative medicine. He has been Chair of the Commonwealth Working Group on Traditional & Complementary Medicine and done work on medicinal plant conservation for the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility and the UN Food & Agriculture Organization, for which he produced with colleagues a book on Medicinal Plants for Forest Conservation and Healthcare. Bodeker has written extensively on traditional medicine and is the author of six books in this field. He is editor-in-chief of the World Health Organization Global Atlas of Traditional, Complementary & Alternative Medicine (2005). He published the first on policy and public health aspects of the complementary medicine field in 2007 and, in 2008, co-edited the first book on understanding the global spa industry. He has published numerous scientific articles, including in The Lancet and The British Medical Journal and is founding editor of the Journal of Alternative & Complementary Medicine and an editor of the Oxford University Press journal e-CAM. Professor Bodeker chaired the International Advisory Panel to the Government of Malaysia for the development of the herbal sector, has advised the Malaysian Ministry of Health on research into herbal and complementary medicine, and is international editor of the Malaysian-based publication, the Journal of Tropical Medicinal Plants.