Christopher Lepisto: Hi, I'm Doctor Christopher Lepisto, a practicing naturopathic physician in Colorado and graduate of Bastyr University in Kenmore, Washington. Before coming to Colorado, I lived and worked in New Zealand, where I became interested in the amazing healing potential of indigenous herbal medicines.
New Zealand is home to more than 2000 plants that are unique to the islands. The herb that I am especially interested in is horopito, botanical name: Pseudowintera colorata. The shrub has tiny flowers, which are overshadowed by beautiful rust-colored leaves.
What are the properties of horopito? The leaves contain substance called polygodial, it's a spice that's hotter than peppers or chilies. Horopito also has the antioxidant flavonoids quercetin and taxifolin.
Originally, horopito survived the last 65 million years without much change because its leaves defend against fungi and attacks from predators. If you were to plant a perfectly healthy citrus tree in a New Zealand rain forest, it would be dead in two weeks from fungus. However, the happy horopito has survived for quite a long time. Now the indigenous Maori tribe, indigenous to the islands of New Zealand were the first to recognize horopito's astringent and antiseptic properties.
They used it to treat stomach pains and diarrhea. It was also used by pregnant women to help their babies wean off the breast because of its spicy properties. The early Caucasian settlers to New Zealand also used it as an external and internal remedy. They made leaves into teas and also used it as a paste.
Now the research that we have on horopito has shown it to inhibit the growth of Candida albicans as effectively as Amphotericin B, one of the major pharmaceutical drugs. It's also more effective than oregano oil or olive leaf extract in keeping the yeast under control. In fact, it's about twice as effective. This means, you only have to take half as much. Horopito also maintains the balance of microflora in the digestive tract. The effects are demonstrated without any harmful side effects, especially to the beneficial bacteria that grow naturally in our intestines.
Forest Herbs Research has proudly been the company to provide horopito to the planet. It's the only farm in the entire world to grow an organic horopito crop. It has the exclusive patent to produce horopito for commercial use. Now, each batch of horopito is tested to measure the amount of polygodial, which is the main active ingredient to make sure that each leaf is active against Candida albicans.
Because of my research on horopito and its effects, I often prescribe the herb to patients who are suffering from Candida infections. I have found that horopito, as found in the product Kolorex, has demonstrated the ability to eliminate Candida, without the harmful side effects found with the major pharmaceutical drugs. Thanks for listening to the information today on horopito and Kolorex. I'm Dr. Christopher Lepisto.
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