It does my head and heart good to be with trees. Whenever I walk in woodland I feel at home; my heart expands, my mind lights up and my whole body relaxes. Trees are my temple, and the forest is my church. These gentle, generous giants have been way more fruitful than merely providing the fruit, nuts, berries and sap we harvest from them.
From apples and pears to actual stairs, in patiently feeding, fuelling, medicating, housing and supporting us, trees have helped shape our species, illuminating the way forward, enabling us to climb the heady heights of progress. Trees help heal our bodies with the remedies that come from their roots, bark, leaves and essential oils, and can help heal our minds with the calming and uplifting effects that come from spending time in their presence.
Trees as medicine
Seventy per cent of cancer-fighting plants reside only in rainforests and 25 per cent of all the medicines we use today come from the mere 1 per cent of rainforest plant species that have been tested for their medicinal properties. Willow bark gives us aspirin, cacao trees provide theophylline for asthma drugs, bark from the Pacific yew helps treat cancer, pine needles can be used as an anti-inflammatory and analgesic, essential oils from trees can be used to soothe various ailments, and tree shade can help lower the risk of skin cancer.
Heart health
Denne historien er fra July 2023-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra July 2023-utgaven av The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
