What is Maestro™?

Maestro™ is a 550 year old herbal recipe used by our ancestors for revitalising the fluid of life – the blood.

Maestro™ works by helping to cleanse the three filtration and repair organs – the spleen, liver and kidneys, keeping them in optimum health and assisting in the elimination of toxins that otherwise accumulate in the tissue. Maestro™ can be used on its own or taken with Natural Balance™ and Natural Cleanse™ as a complete detox for the body

What are the functions of the blood?

Our blood is a liquid tissue containing seven types of cell and cell fragments - red blood cells (RBC’s) and five kinds of white blood cells (WBC’s) in a watery plasma .

Blood performs two major functions:

• Transport through the body of
  • oxygen and carbon dioxide
  • food molecules (glucose, lipids, amino acids)
  • ions
  • wastes (e.g., urea)
  • hormones
  • heat
• Defence of the body against infections and other foreign materials. All the WBCs participate in these defences.

We all have it and most of us take our 5 litres worth for granted until we start to lose it or it becomes toxic or damaged in some way, so taking good care of it is as important to the human body as good oil quality is to the motor car. We can change the oil in our car and renew the filters but of course we cannot do this to the blood and filters in our body.

The human body is a much more sophisticated machine than a car and it has it’s own means of producing, filtering and cleaning it’s life-fluid. It has its own self-contained ‘workshops’ called the Liver, the Kidneys and the Spleen.

• Every person tested was contaminated with a cocktail of bio-accumulative, toxic chemicals;
• 76 chemicals from the 101 looked for were found in the blood of those tested;
• the highest number of chemicals found in any one person was 54, while the median number of chemicals detected was 41;
• 13 chemicals were found in every single person tested. These include chemicals banned in Europe over twenty years ago, as well as chemicals in widespread use today such as phthalates and perfluorinated compounds;
• HBCD, another flame retardant used in expanded polystyrene foam, textiles and upholstery, was found in one person: the first time this chemical has ever been found in human blood as far as WWF is aware.

A similar study has been carried out in the USA by the Environmental Working Group with similarly shocking conclusions (www.ewg.org)

These chemicals , such as DDT and PCBs found in pesticides and electrical products, have been banned for decades and are associated with a range of health problems including cancers and nervous and immune system disorders. They continue to contaminate people today and our filtration and elimination organs are just not designed to cope with these man-made toxins.

Why are these organs becoming toxic?

Our liver spleen and kidneys are under increasing strain due to the enormous number of toxins we are wittingly and unwittingly poisoning ourselves with. The obvious ones include alcohol and tobacco but perhaps the most insidious are the cocktails of toxic chemicals and growth hormones that are entering our food chain and environment.

In 2004 the WWF commissioned a European-wide blood survey and released a report, ‘ Chemical Check Up’, (www.wwf.org.uk) which revealed that:

Why should I use Maestro™?

Without doubt, if our liver, kidneys and spleen could talk to us their words would not be suitable for a family audience – they need help fast!

Maestro™ works by helping to cleanse these three filtration and repair organs keeping them in optimum health and assisting in the elimination of toxins that otherwise accumulate in the tissue. Maestro™ can be used on its own or taken with Natural Balance™ and Natural Cleanse™ as a complete detox for the body.

Maestro™ is our Master Herbalist’s own favourite product and has benefited many generations of people through the ages. Its nurturing action on the spleen is particularly important in Unani Tibb medicine (the school of ancient herbalism our products come from) as it is considered to be the seat of emotions, and cleansing the spleen is also believed to cleanse the emotions.

Maestro™ is available in pots of 60 vegetarian capsules.

Ingredients

King Solomon’s Seal (Rhizome) (Polygonatum biflorum), Black Seed (Nigella sativa), Grapefruit Seed (Citrus paradise Macf.), Echinacea (rhizome) (Echinacea purpurea), Kelp (entire plant) (Ficus vesiculosis), Watercress (Nasturtium officinale), Horsetail (overground plant) (Equisetum arvense), Chicory (root) (Cichorium ontybus), Chickweed (leaves) (Stellari media), Cornsilk (stigma) (Zea mays), Fennel seed (Foeniculum vulgare), Peppermint leaf (Menthe x piperita ), Dandelion Leaf (Taraxacum officinale), Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla), Juniper berry (Juniperus communis), Sage Leaf (Salvia officinalis ), Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius), Alfalfa (leaves) (Medicago Pativa L)

System:	Digestive
Location:	Under your diaphragm, more to the right side of your body
Physical description:	Wedge-shaped, spongy organ
Function:	To get rid of toxins, to regulate your blood sugar levels and to produce bile

A Healthy Liver

The liver is the cleanser and filter of the blood stream and is of vital importance. It is the largest organ in the body and has an enormous amount of blood flowing through it every minute of our lives. It is between 21 - 22.5 cm in its greatest diameter, 15 - 17.5cm in its greatest height and 10 - 12.5 cm in its depth, weighing around 1200 - 1600 gms

What are the functions of the liver?

• It is responsible for the production of bile which is stored in the gallbladder and released when required for the digestion of fats. 
•  The liver stores glucose in the form of glycogen which is converted back to glucose again when needed for energy.
• It also plays an important role in the metabolism of protein and fats. It stores the vitamins A, D, K, B12 and folate and synthesizes blood clotting factors.
• Another important role is as a detoxifier, breaking down or transforming substances like ammonia, metabolic waste, drugs, alcohol and chemicals, so that they can be excreted. These may also be referred to as "xenobiotic" chemicals. If we examine the liver under a microscope, we will see rows of liver cells separated by spaces which act like a filter or sieve, through which the blood stream flows. The liver filter is designed to remove toxic matter such as dead cells, micro-organisms, chemicals, drugs and particulate debris from the blood stream. The liver filter is called the sinusoidal system, and contains specialized cells known as Kupffer cells which ingest and breakdown toxic matter.

The liver filter can remove a wide range of micro-organisms such as bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites from the blood stream, which is highly desirable, as we certainly do not want these dangerous things building up in the blood stream and invading the deeper parts of the body. Infections with parasites often come from the contaminated water supplies found in large cities, and indeed other dangerous organisms may find their way into your gut and blood stream from these sources. This can cause chronic infections and poor health, so it is important to protect your liver from overload with these micro-organisms. The safest thing to do is boil your water for at least 5 minutes, or drink only bottled water that has been filtered and sterilized. High loads of unhealthy micro-organisms can also come from eating foods that are prepared in conditions of poor hygiene by persons who are carrying bacteria, viruses or parasites on their skin. Foods, especially meats that are not fresh or are preserved, also contain a higher bacterial load, which will overwork the liver filter if they are eaten regularly.

The liver filter, like any filter, needs to be cleansed regularly, and it is much easier and safer to do it everyday than through radical diets or fasting

System: Urinary

Location: At the bottom of your ribcage and towards the back of your body

Physical description: Fist sized, dark red and kidney bean-shaped

Function: To make urine from waste products and excess water found in your blood.

A Healthy Kidney

Balancing your blood

For your body to work properly, the conditions inside it, such as water, pH and salt levels, need to be kept constant. Your kidneys play a vital role in keeping your blood composition constant. They filter your blood to remove excess water and waste products, which are secreted from your kidneys as urine.

One quarter of your blood supply passes through your kidneys every minute. It enters your kidney and is distributed to minute filtration units known as nephrons. Each of your kidneys contains more than one million nephrons. The main substances your nephrons filter out of your blood are:

• Water
• Nitrogen-containing compounds like urea that are produced when your body breaks down proteins
• Salts
• Acids
• Alkalis

Your nephrons filter these substances out of your blood and then reabsorb some of them back into your blood. This keeps your blood composition constant. Excess water and waste products are then secreted as urine. Your kidneys vary the amount of a substance that is reabsorbed into the blood or secreted as urine. This determines the volume and composition of your urine. For example, when you drink a lot of water, your kidneys produce a lot of urine to stop the water levels in your body getting too high. But, if you don't drink much, your kidneys only produce a small amount of concentrated urine, keeping as much water as possible in your body.

In 24 hours, your kidneys filter around 150 litres of blood and produce roughly 1.5 litres of urine.

Regulating blood pressure

When your kidneys detect that your blood pressure is dropping, they secrete an enzyme called renin. This enzyme triggers a chain of events that makes your kidneys reabsorb more salt and water, leading to an increase in blood pressure.

When kidneys go wrong

People can live healthily with one functioning kidney. However, when about 90% of kidney function has been lost, a person can only survive by having dialysis. Dialysis works by using a machine that replicates the blood-cleaning function of healthy kidneys. In the most extreme cases of kidney failure, survival depends on the person receiving a donor organ.

System:	Lymphatic (Infection fighting)
Location:	Left hand side of your body, between your stomach and diaphragm.
Physical description:	Fist shaped.
Function:	Cleaning your blood, destroying old red blood cells and fighting infection.

A Healthy Spleen

Filtering blood

Your spleen acts as a filter for your blood, cleansing it of bacteria, viruses and other debris. When blood flows through your spleen, white blood cells attack and remove any foreign invaders. This keeps your blood clean and helps protect you against infection.

Destroying old red-blood cells

Red blood cells have a lifespan of around 120 days, after which your spleen breaks them down. The red blood cell remains are transported elsewhere in your body where they are excreted or recycled to manufacture new red blood cells.

Making blood cells

Before birth, foetuses produce red and white blood cells in their spleens. Shortly before birth the spleen loses its ability to make red blood cells and bone marrow takes over this job. The spleen continues producing infection-fighting white blood cells throughout our lives.

Living without a spleen

It is possible to live without a spleen as most of its functions can be taken over by other organs. However, people without spleens are more vulnerable to all kinds of infections.

The Ancients view of the spleen

In Unani Tibb and many other ancient traditions, the spleen is a key organ in our spiritual connection both to our earth-mother and our human mothers. A week spleen was seen as the cause of addictions and cravings as well as numerous digestive problems. The spleens role in good emotional and mental health was also considered to be vital.