Chrysanthemum Vulgare is a common perennial in British Isles and name Tansy is said to be derived from Greek 'athansia', meaning 'immortal'. Reasons suggested for this include fact that dried flower lasts forever or that it has a medicinal quality contributing to long life. Looking back to Greek literature, Tansy was given by Gods to Ganymede to make him immortal. In language of flowers gift of Tansy means 'Rejected address' - " I am not interested in you". Its strange taste, not unlike smell of 'mothballs' might have something to do with this.

Tansy certainly had a reputation as a vermicide and vermifuge (killing and dispelling intestinal worms) in middle ages. John Gerard wrote in his 17th century Herball:

"In Spring time are made with leaves here of newly sprung up, and with eggs, cakes of Tansies, which be pleasant to taste, and good for stomacke. For if any bad humours cleave there unto, it doth perfectly concoct them and scoure them downewards".

Tansy was a common kitchen garden herb for medicinal and culinary use, in place of expensive foreign spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon. It was used to flavour custard, cakes, milk puddings, omlettes and freshwater fish. In Ireland it was included in sausages called 'Drisheens'. Its use as a springtime 'cleanser' became ritualised into a part of Christian religious Easter traditions; "On Easter Sunday be pudding seen, To which Tansy lends her sober green."

The consensus on this much written about herb is that it was used at Easter to purify blood after lent. This consensus shows a problem though, in that in England plant does not show leaves until end of May - well after Easter. This is evidence of assimilation of natural 'self-medicating' herbalism into a controlling religious patriarchy.

Observation of wild and domesticated animals shows that they regularly self-medicate with wild plants. Sick chimpanzees chew bitter leaves from a bush not normally part of their diet, and then recover. Research by Michael Hoffman shows that a particular nematode worm is common in monkey's gut during rainy season and that their chewing of leaves coincided with prevalence of this parasite, which it destroyed. This was same bush that local tribes use to get rid of stomach parasites.

One of oldest debates in oncology is whether cancer is one disease - or many. It is quite easy to see who benefits from cancer being about 200 separate diseases - with many complex and expensive drug, radiation and surgery regimens. Many advocates of a 'unitarian' theory of cancer have literally been put out of business as their theories oppose interests of 'big pharma'. One famous example is that of Royal Rife - who used an energy device to emit vibration at mortal oscillation rate (MOR) of bacteria to great effect in 1950's. His laboratory mysteriously burnt down and he was dragged through courts for rest of his stressful life.

Recent research at University of Michigan (Michael F. Clarke MD) suggests that a unitarian theory of cancer based on actions of malignant stem cells may not be far away. For much too long only refuge of a bacterial etiology for cancer has been complementary and alternative medicine movement, which still suffers ridicule from orthodox practitioners for even asserting possibility of such theories. Yet World Health Organisation now recognise H. Pylori as a carcinogen that may be as dangerous as tobacco and other pollutants. There are a range of gastric dis-eases that have H.Pylori implicated:

"It has been found that at least 90% of those with duodenal ulcers, 70% with gastric ulcers and 50% of those over age of 50 test positive for presence of H. Pylori. Indeed about 30% of all people in UK are probably infected with bacteria". (healthforyouonline)

H. Pylori is a 'new strain' bacteria that has adapted itself to harsh environment of human gut. Until 20 years ago it was undiscovered. This clever little critter protects itself from digestive acids with an antacid barrier, and protects itself from human immune system by burying itself in gut lining, causing inflammation. It also produces an enzyme called catalase that protects it. All in all it plays havoc with digestive processes of about two-thirds of people on this planet with a knock-on effect to a whole panoply of human discomforts and dis-eases.

Its still not known for sure how people pick up this bug but researchers think it may be found in water supplies, infected people's saliva, flies on food or contact with infected fecal matter.