介紹：A corm-producing plant (Crocus sativus) native to the Old World, having purple or white flowers with orange stigmas. 藏紅花：原產於東半球的產球莖的壹種植物（番紅花 番紅花屬） ，有桔黃色的花柱，柱頭上有紫色或白色的花。
The dried aromatic stigmas of this plant are used to color foods and as a cooking spice and dyestuff.幹藏紅花柱頭用作給食物添色、烹調香料和染料.
更多英文介紹：
Saffron
Description
Saffron is a herbal preparation harvested from the stigma of the Crocus sativus flower. It is dark orange and threadlike in appearance, with a spicy flavor and pungent odor. The plant is grown in India, Spain, France, Italy, the Middle East, and the eastern Mediterranean region.
General Use
In addition to its culinary uses, saffron is prescribed as a herbal remedy to stimulate the digestive system, ease colic and stomach discomfort, and minimize gas. It is also used as an emmenagogue, to stimulate and promote menstrual flow in women.
Preliminary studies have shown that saffron may also be a useful tool in fighting cancer. According to a 1999 study, use of the herb slowed tumor growth and extended lifespan in female rats. A 2002 study done at Indiana University indicates that saffron may not only be effective in treating certain types of cancer, but significantly less likely to cause birth defects if given to pregnant women than all-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA), the compound most often given to treat these cancers. Saffron may thus be a preferable alternative to treating ATRA-sensitive cancers in women of childbearing age.
Additional human studies have indicated that saffron has powerful antioxidant properties; that is, it helps to protect living tissues from free radicals and other harmful effects of oxidation.
Two chemical components of saffron extract, crocetin and crocin, reportedly improved memory and learning skills in learning-impaired rats in a Japanese study published in early 2000. These properties indicate that saffron extract may be a useful treatment for neurodegenerative disorders and related memory impairment.
2.關於薰衣草：英文名字lavender
Any of various aromatic Old World plants of the genus Lavandula, especially L. angustifolia, having clusters of small purplish flowers that yield an oil used in perfumery. 熏衣草：任壹種產於歐洲的熏衣草 屬芳香植物，尤指 狹葉熏衣草 ，開成串的紫色小花，其香精油可用於制香水。
更多英文介紹：
Lavender
Description
Lavender is a hardy perennial in the Lamiaciae, or mint, family. The herb is a Mediterranean native. There are many species of lavendula which vary somewhat in appearance and aromatic quality. English lavender, L. augustifolia, also known as true lavender, is commercially valuable in the perfume industry and is a mainstay of English country gardens. French lavender, L.stoechas, is the species most probably used in Roman times as a scenting agent in washing water. The species L. officinalis is the official species used in medicinal preparations, though all lavenders have medicinal properties in varying degrees.
This fragrant, bushy shrub has been widely cultivated for its essential oil. The tiny, tubular, mauve-blue blossoms grow in whorls of six to ten flowers along square, angular stems and form a terminal spike. These flower spikes stretch upward beyond the 12-18 inch (3.6-5.4 m) height of the shrub, blooming from June to August. The blossoms are well liked by bees and a good source of honey. The needle-like, evergreen, downy leaves are a light, silver-gray. They are lanceolate, opposite, and sessile, and grow from a branched stem. The bark is gray and flaky. The herb thrives in full sun and poor soil. Ancient Greeks and Romans used lavender blossoms to scent bath water, a common use that gave the herb its name, derived from the Latin lavare, meaning to wash.
General Use
Lavender is best known and loved for its fragrance. The herb has been used since ancient times in perfumery. As an aromatic plant, lavender lifts the spirits and chases melancholy. Taking just a few whiffs of this sweet-smelling herb is said to dispel dizziness. Traditionally, women in labor clutched sprigs of lavender to bring added courage and strength to the task of childbearing. A decoction of the flower may be used as a feminine douche for leucorrhoea. The dried blossoms, sewn into sachets, may be used to repel moths and to scent clothing, or may be lit like incense to scent a room. Because of its fumigant properties, the herb was hung in the home to repel flies and mosquitoes, and strewn about to sanitize the floors. Lavender essential oil was a component of smelling salts in Victorian times.
The essential oil of certain lavender species has a sedative, antispasmodic, and tranquilizing effect. Lavender has been long valued as a headache remedy. It can be taken in a mild infusion, or can be rubbed on the temples, or sniffed like smelling salts to provide relief from headaches caused by stress. Lavender oil is antiseptic, and has been used as a topical disinfectant for wounds. In high doses, it can kill many common bacteria such as typhoid, diphtheria, streptococcus, and pneumococcus, according to some research. The essential oil has also been used as a folk treatment for the bite of some venomous snakes. When used in hydrotherapy as part of an aromatic, Epsom salt bath, the essential oils of some species will soothe tired nerves and relieve the pain of neuralgia. They are also used topically on burns and have been shown to speed healing. It is also a fine addition to a foot bath for sore feet. Lavender essence makes a pleasant massage oil for kneading sore muscles and joints. Acting internally, lavender's chemical properties increase the flow of bile into the intestines, relieving indigestion. Its carminative properties help expel intestinal gas. Lavender is an adjuvant and may be used in combination with other herbs to make a tonic cordial to strengthen the nervous system.
A 2002 report from Korea showed that aromatherapy massage with lavender oil and tea tree oil on patients undergoing hemodialysis for kidney failure received relief from the itching the treatment often causes.
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以上資料來源於美國傳統詞典以及Alternative Medicine Encyclopedia （醫藥百科詞典）。
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