Chamomile, is known to be one of the most used medicinal herbs, with many known health benefits and properties to treat some of the most common affections. The two main types of chamomile, the German Chamomile (Matricaria recutita), and the Roman Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile), are certainly the most well known herbs from this herb family, the Asteraceae/Compositae family.

Among the most important active constituents of chamomile we can mention several types of terpenoids and flavonoids, both of them big contributors of the medicinal properties chamomile holds. Image: German chamomile - קמומיל כחול by Eran Finkle under CC license (CC by 2.0).

MATRICARIA RECUTITA

Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Matricaria
Common name: Chamomile

Since the first snows reached the ground until the moment one of the most famous mineral waters is bottled, 15 years elapsed. During this time the melted snow went through the heart of the mountains acquiring its most valued content, minerals and other pure elements from the mountains that give mineral water its characteristic properties and health benefits.

The same way, centuries ago, the firsts flowers of Styrax officinalis, an shrub that grows in the Himalayas, but also in some other parts of Asia and South America, died and dried with the first signs of fall, becoming over hundreds of years a sticky dark substance known as Shilajit, a Sanskrit word meaing "rock invincible" [5]. Image left: Styrax officinalis by Tanaka Juuyoh (田中十洋) under Creative Commons license (CC BY 2.0).

STYRAX OFFICINALIS

Family: Styraceae
Genus: Styrax
Common name: Styrax.

Boerhaavia diffusa, a plant endemic from India, has been used since ancient times in Ayurvedic treatments, mainly for its laxative, purgative (mainly its root), diuretic and expectorant properties and as a natural ayurvedic medicine against gastrointestinal disorders such as colorectal cancer, gastric ulcer, and inflammatory bowel disease.