Research from China has determined that cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) inhibit the growth of several cancers. Researchers tested an extract of whole cloves against several types of human cancer cells, including those of ovarian, cervical, liver, colon, breast and pancreatic cancers.
Published in the journal Oncology Research, the test used an incubation system that simulated the ability of these cancer cells to grow within the body. The researchers found that the clove extract stopped such development. The active constituents they identified within the clove extracts include oleanolic acid and eugenol. “Clove extract may represent a novel therapeutic herb for cancer treatment, and oleanolic acid is one of the components responsible for part of its antitumor activity,” the researchers commented.
Cloves, one of the oldest medicinal spices, have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for many centuries.

Leading neurology journal shows homeopathy as most popular CAM (complementary & alternative medicine) treatment, with 48% say it reduces seizures and 58% experienced improvement in overall health and 95% want to continue to use CAM treatment!
Use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) by parents in their children and adolescents with epilepsy – Prevelance, predictors and parents’ assessment.
Hartmann N1, Neininger MP2, Bernhard MK1, Syrbe S1, Nickel P1, Merkenschlager A1, Kiess W1, Bertsche T2, Bertsche A3.
BACKGROUND:
The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is popular. Parents of children suffering from epilepsy may also consider administering CAM to their children. Systematic data about frequency of and motivations for CAM use, however, are scarce.
METHODS:
In a university hospital’s neuropaediatric department parents of patients aged 0-18 years suffering from epilepsy were consecutively invited to take part in a structured interview during 4 months in 2014.
RESULTS:
Of the invited parents, 164/165 (99%) agreed to participate. From those, 21/164 (13%) stated that they used CAM in their child. The highest independent predictive value of CAM use was the occurrence of adverse drug events (ADE) of anticonvulsants as judged by parents. Patients affected by ADE had a 5.6 higher chance of receiving CAM compared to patients without ADE. Most commonly used were homeopathy (14/21, 67%) and osteopathy (12/21, 57%). The internet was the most frequently used source of information (14/21, 67%). Of the parents, 10/21 (48%) described positive effects of CAM on seizure frequency, 12/21 (57%) on general condition of their child, and 20/21 (95%) wished to continue CAM for epilepsy therapy. From the non-users of CAM, 91/143 (66%) expressed the desire to learn more about CAM for epilepsy therapy.
LIMITATIONS:
Our study was performed in a university hospital in a large urban city in Eastern Germany. CAM user rates can differ in other parts of Germany and Europe, in other institutions and for chronic diseases other than epilepsy.
CONCLUSION:
The main reason for CAM use was the occurrence of ADE of anticonvulsants. More than half of the parents saw a benefit of CAM for their children. Almost all parents wished to continue CAM use, even those who did not see concrete positive effects.
Source : http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26614551