Schizandra Berry powder (100g)

Schizandra berry is a natural plant food, one that you can use as a culinary ingredient in a variety of ways, so that you can enjoy the health benefits that Schizandra berry offers.

At Raw Living, we have been using Schizandra in this way for many years and we are passionate about bringing this new class of foods to you, and showing you how you can introduce them into your kitchen. When we consume these foods on a regular basis, we learn to be more aware of our body's needs, and more conscious that the very best way of keeping healthy is to watch what we eat. On this site and in Kate's books, we offer information on the most easy and accessible ways to take in these foods that can help keep us balanced and well.

Many of these foods are relatively new to us in the West, and to the majority of people they are still unheard of. In actual fact, they have been used in the countries they originate from for hundreds and often thousands of years, and are still in common use today. It is our wish to introduce to you a whole world of plants that feed the body in the truest sense. It is only in recent times that we consume food that does not have the minerals and nutritional content that nature intended. On our site, you can find many ways to add these foods into existing recipes, and also find many more exciting new recipes, making your entire culinary experience so much more interesting, and most importantly, helping you stay fully energised, and ever so slightly superhuman.

Please see the 'further info' tab, for further information.

Check out our blog post on schizandra here.

Schizandra belongs to the family of the Magnoliaceae family. Schizandra is a creeping woody vine that is native to China and Japan. The schizandra fruit has a sweet, salty, bitter, hot and sour taste. This explains the Chinese name wu wei zi meaning five taste fruit. The Schizandra seeds are bitter and pungent. As well as being rich in phytochemicals, schizandra is also rich in minerals, vitamins and essential oils.

In traditional Chinese medicine it is used as a remedy for many ailments: to resist infections, increase skin health, and combat insomnia, coughing, and thirst. Schizandra was mentioned in early medical texts of China as one of the Superior herbs, (like Reishi and He Shou Wu), capable of promoting overall well-being and enhancing bodily vitality. One of its most common uses is a herb which boost mental function. It is also known to boost the immune system, and protect the liver.

Some hunting tribes of Northern China would take supplies of the dried berries whenever they went on long hunting trips during cold weather. Eating the schizandra berries helped them to stoke their internal fires and renew flagging strength. The Chinese have long considered schizandra ideal for lack of energy and for nervous exhaustion from stress. Modern Chinese research suggests that schizandra and other lignans have a protective effect on the liver and an immunomodulating effect. In Russia, schizandra is a registered medicine for vision problems.

Schizandra is gaining in popularity as a tonic or adaptogen that can balance bodily functions and improve the body's response to stress. It is taken to nourish the liver and kidneys, prevent the adverse side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatments, and promote recovery after surgery. Among schizandra's main chemical constituents are compounds known as lignans, which are concentrated in the berries' seeds. More than two dozen lignans have been identified with the prominent ones being schizandrin, gomisins such as gomisin A, and wuweizisu C. Lignans stimulate the immune system, protect and regenerate the liver, and increase the body's ability to handle stress. They may also have mild sedative effects. Other chemical constituents in schizandra, such as an essential oil, acids, vitamins, and minerals, may contribute to the herb's tonic effects by increasing cells' ability to create and use energy and to process wastes or by delivering more oxygen to the body's cells. They may also help to detoxify blood and tissues and provide nutrients crucial to bodily processes.

Schizandra, like many of our favourite medicinal herbs, is an adaptogen. An adaptogen is a plant (such as Aloe vera, maca, suma and ashwaganda) which has a normalizing effect on the body. If you are too hyper, it will calm you down; if you are feeling a bit lethargic, it will wake you up. Adaptogens don't have a specific effect on the body, what they do is rebalance the body and restore homeostasis. The more centred we are, the easier it is to deal with life's ups and downs, and keep up with the 21st century pace of life.

* Free delivery to most of the UK for all orders over £150 (net of vat) *

* Please note: While the vast majority of orders placed before midday are dispatched the same day, this is not guaranteed. Next day delivery is the service we have with the courier once we've dispatched your order, it does not guarantee that your order arrives the day after you place your order. *

Postage rates

All orders up to 2kg (1.8kg plus packaging*) will normally be sent via Royal Mail. The prices are:

Europe £3 / 500g (with mainland UK capped at £6)

Rest of the world £6 / 500g
Except orders up to 200g: £3.00

Courier rates

Orders over 2kg & under 25kg (including all packaging*) will be sent by courier

Mainland UK £6 (*free over £150 - and up to 25kg)
(excluding Islands & Highlands)

For UK Highlands & Islands of Scotland, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man & Isle of Scilly - please select EU 'Zone B'

(ie. if your postcode begins with AB, BT, DD, DG, EH, FK, G, HS, IM, IV, KA 27-28, KW, KY, ML, PA 20-49, PA 60-78, PH 17-26, PH 30-44, PH 49-50, TD, TR 21-25, ZE)

Jersey & Guernsey have a separate category for 2kg-10kg, most orders under 2kg will be posted.

For most other countries within the EU, the rates are as follows:

£13.50: Benelux, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland (Republic of), N. Ireland

£23.50: Austria, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain

£32.50: Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland

£40: United states, Canada - £40 for 2kg-5kg, then £50 for 5kg-10kg

For orders over 25kg, please call +44 (0)1243 523335, or email melissa@rawliving.co.uk for discounted prices and for carriage rates.

If you do not see your destination country listed, please email melissa@rawliving.co.uk , or call +44 (0)1243 523335 and we will look at the best rate for the weight and value of your order.

IMPORTANT!
Some countries will not allow the import of certain products. It is the responsibility of the customer to establish what their country rules and regulations are. Raw Living cannot be held responsible for orders delayed or returned by customs. If a package is returned by customs we will be charged, and this cost, together with the original carriage cost and a 10% handling fee will be deducted from any refund requested.

_{Please note that we periodically review carriage rates and they are subject to slight changes. We do not seek to make profit from carriage and in many cases they are heavily discounted.}

_{*packaging is approx 50g on small orders up to 200g on larger orders. so for example, if you purchased 1.81kg of goods, this would be dispatched by courier and the carriage charge would be for 2kg}

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