Archived Articles - October 2014


Natural means to overcome depression
    Oct-07-2014

It may seem incredible, but the most difficult part of treating depression is that the sufferer himself doesn't want to be cured. In fact, depression is a sort of release when an individual does not have any other means to unleash his emotional pain. When an individual has been enduring depression for a prolonged period, it becomes extremely hard to overturn his mental condition. The brain becomes restless to feel miserable. Nearly all prescription drugs only work to abate pain, which, in turn, dulls all other things.

Below are a few natural measures you may adopt to assuage depression.

Mindset

Start writing a diary and ensure that you write daily. Emphasize on all things that have been troubling you. When the goings are good, review some of the issues you have emphasized and think how you can resolve them.

In case, you are enduring an extremely devastating painful memory, study neuro linguistic programming (NLP), especially the Visual-Kinesthetic Dissociation Technique that addresses phobias. This is an excellent way to change perceptions. Always bear in mind, everything in life is about outlook, targets and the resultant choices made by us.

At the same time, maintain a "to do" list and keep yourself busy. Incorporate good things like meditation, exercising, reading for knowledge, reading fiction, getting grounded, preparing healthy foods, being with your family and so on. Always keep in mind the most important things in life.

Fitness

Findings of several studies as well as scientific analyses explain the positive effects of exercise, counting hormone correction, endorphin secretion, healing and detoxification. Although exercise is the most difficult thing to do when you are depressed, it is extremely beneficial.

Similarly, running, swimming in chlorine-free water, martial arts, Tai Chai, yoga and cycling are also beneficial. Doing squats with or with no weights is even better.

Health

Our brain is a vital organ and when you visualize it like other organs, such as the heart, liver and the kidneys, you will realize that when they become burdened with toxins, their functioning is impaired. The brain of a depressed person does not function properly. Reduce on alcohol consumption and use of other drugs. All drugs are toxins, especially those that alleviate pain. In the long run, these drugs only worsen depression.

The brain and gut flora have a strong connection. Killing Candida, detoxifying and taking right diets repairs the colon, enabling appropriate synthesis of important hormones and assimilating vitamins.

Diet

Everyone should consume plenty of raw and fresh vegetable, preferably organically grown. A depressed mind has a deficiency of B vitamins and the main reason for this is presence of Candida. In fact, Candida may slow down the development as well as absorption of B vitamins inside the intestinal tract.

Sleep

It will be easier to get a high quality, sound sleep when you take the correct nutriments. A sound sleep is restorative as well as healing. While this may take some time, eventually it will occur. If possible go for camping in case you are enduring insomnia. Remember to leave behind or switch off your cell phone, as this will help to avoid distractions as well as electromagnetic fields, which are responsible for upsetting hormones and also sleep patterns. In addition, camping activities will help in grounding.

Supplements

People suffering from depression should essentially consume B vitamins, healthy fats and balanced minerals. Our brain is mainly composed of fat, while the body requires healthy and balanced fats to properly absorb B vitamins.

Detoxifying your system is an excellent way to facilitate healing and restoring the body, in addition to providing you with something to concentrate on, which exhibits comparatively quicker results. Detoxification can prove to be a good spring-board to turn natural health into a hobby. Ensure that your detox program deals with Candida as well as parasites, as these have the potential to trigger grave problems related to the mental health.

Grounding

If you are enduring depression, are traveling often, become stressed very easily and often have insomnia, you will find grounding to be immensely beneficial. Even if you don't have these problems, grounding will still be beneficial for you. At the same time, try and get enough sunlight daily.


Use natural foods, vitamins, herbs, and supplements to alleviate PMS
    Oct-15-2014

There are times when you realize all of a sudden that you don't have much black cloud above your head, or perhaps there is a huge one. In fact, now your nerves are being racked by things that never bothered you otherwise. You are now confused and don't know whether to cry or get into a fight. Prior to giving your boss a piece of your mind regarding what you consider him to be, or dealing with your other half about his failings, wait for a moment and look at the calendar. Is premenstrual syndrome (PMS) bothering you? Is your day being ruined due to "estrogen poisoning"? In case this is what is troubling you, don't worry, as there are several herbs and supplements that can help you to deal with the problem.

Herbs useful for alleviating PMS symptoms

Some herbs that are known to be effective in alleviating PMS symptoms include:

Vitamins, supplements, minerals for alleviating PMS symptoms

Right now your hormones are unbalanced and neurotransmitters performing lower than usual. Therefore, avoid chocolate candy, which will only make the condition worse by making your blood sugar levels unstable. Nevertheless, if you desire chocolates, remember your body requires magnesium. You also require other supplements and you need to supplement your diet with vitamin D, B vitamin complex, chromium, calcium and magnesium. In addition, you need to take supplements containing omega 3 fatty acids. You may take it in the form of a supplement or directly as a tablespoon of fish oil, flaxseed oil or blended omega 3.6.9 oil.

Provided you are taking a very good multi-vitamin containing all the nutrients mentioned above, it will be better if you add some B complex vitamin. However, you need not add it if the supplement already contains enough of it. In fact, B vitamins serve as nature's Valium. It has been found that several women suffering from PMS symptoms get relief within 15 minutes of taking a B vitamin dose.

When you are enduring PMS, your behaviour needs to be at its best. While you need to keep your peace, also watch what you eat. In fact, on such occasions it is good to have snacks of fresh organic fruits and vegetables throughout the day. And how should you hold your tongue? When your mood is not very intense make a note of things you would like to say and judge if you can address those issues the following week. It is possible that you need to address those issues, but not necessarily right away.

What is actually responsible for PMS symptoms?

In fact, there are several reasons, including deficiency of vitamin D, failure of the body to process and absorb B vitamins and some hormonal imbalances. All these, in turn, can be attributed to excessive Candida. Similar to many other diseases, often Candida is the basic cause. Even if Candida is not the actual reason for PMS symptoms, its presence can definite worsen the condition. You, therefore, require finding out more about Candida to avoid PMS symptoms.

While the natural remedies can help to provide relief from PMS symptoms, they cannot cure the condition. It is only a temporary relief. To cure yourself of these symptoms, you require balancing your hormones. Hence, it is necessary to initiate some changes in your lifestyle.


Children exposed to antibiotics likely to be obese
    Oct-22-2014

If children below the age of two years are given more antibiotics, they are likely to suffer from obesity, hints a study jointly undertaken by scientists at the University of Pennsylvania's Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and carried in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

This is one of the most recent studies that suggests a possible relation between obesity as well as other chronic health issues and using too much antibiotics at a very early age. Scientists are of the view that this relation may originate from the fact that using antibiotics at an early age hinders the development of beneficial bacteria community called micro biome in our body.

Increased risks of obesity

Scientists assessed health records of about 65,000 children documented between 2001 and 2013. They discovered that nearly 70 percent of these children were give one antibiotic course before they were two years old - broadly speaking, one child was given 2.3 antibiotics courses before that age. Antibiotics were most commonly used to treat bronchitis, infections of the ear and other common childhood ailments.

About 23 percent children whose health records were examined were overweight by the time they were two years old. The number of overweight children increased to 30 and 33 percent correspondingly when they were three and four years old. It was found that 10 percent, 14 percent and 15 percent children were overweight when they were two, three and four years old respectively.

The study found that compared to children who were not given any antibiotics before they were two years old, those receiving four or additional courses of the medication faced 11 percent higher risks of becoming obese. On the other hand, children receiving just a single broad-spectrum antibiotics course were at 16 percent greater risk of becoming obese than those who did not receive any antibiotics before two years of age.

These consequences were detected when researchers examined the effect of other factors responsible for obesity, like health factors, income and race.

These findings confirm the results of earlier studies, which explained a relation between obesity and use of antibiotics. These findings hinted that apart from other issues like exercise and diet, antibiotics too may contribute to weight gain during childhood.

Commenting on the connection, scientist Charles Bailey, MD, PhD, remarked that as of now, it remains a puzzle.

Attack on body's natural micro biome

For long, scientists have been aware that excessive use of antibiotics in agriculture and for treating health conditions hastens the progression of bacteria to become drug resistant. Recently, they have started studying the influence of antibiotics on the micro biome in our body. These studies have corresponded with better understanding of the manner in which about 100 trillion beneficial bacteria in our body facilitate regulating various functions, including digestion, immune function and even mood.

Findings of some studies have revealed that bacteria in our gut may have an influence on the manner in which our body takes up calories and this may somewhat explain the relationship between antibiotics use and obesity.

Martin Blaser, director of New York University's Human Micro biome Program, says that depletion of the micro biomes in our body may be accountable for the rise in the rate of occurrence of several chronic health issues, including allergies, asthma as well as autism. In addition to antibiotics, several other factors are also responsible for degrading the micro biomes. For instance, findings of some studies show that the composition of gut bacteria in babies born through caesarean section is different from that of babies who are born in the normal way. In fact, this also causes anomalous immune function in the former.

According Blaser, who did not take part in any study related to obesity, said that this is happening from all sides, adding that we are actually attacking the natural micro biome in our body.

While an increasing number of studies are being undertaken these days to emphasize the dangers associated with excessive antibiotic use, there has hardly been any improvement in prescribing practices. Same holds true for antibiotic use for agricultural purposes.

Blaser is of the view that currently everybody is prescribing antibiotics, as if they are available free. Once people start realizing that they also cost us much, the calculations will start changing, he added.


Organic apples promote weight loss naturally
    Oct-29-2014

The old adage "An apple a day, keeps the doctor away" is become more relevant now, as numerous studies are once again examining the health benefits of the bioactive compounds present in apples. Scientists are discovering new non-bioactive compounds that work as prebiotics and aid in balancing bowel micro biota.

A study undertaken by scientists of the Department of Food Sciences at the Washington State University noted that apples enclose certain indigestible compounds that help to balance fecal microbes in overweight mice, which reproduced the equilibrium of healthier as well as thinner mice.

The indigestible compounds enclosed by all apples go through the gastrointestinal tract without being metabolized by our body. Therefore, they reach the bowel intact and are eventually fermented, which in turn aids in generating additional probiotic bacteria inside the colon. This made the apples' relation to obesity against normality clear.

Scientists fed the mice various different types of apples with a view to find out if this resulted in any disparity in the effect produced by these indigestible compounds in the rodents' colon or the balance of microbes in the bowel. The different apple varieties that were used by these scientists included Braeburn, Gala, McIntosh, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Granny Smith and Fuji.

It was found that Granny Smith apples were the best in improving the fecal microbial balance in the colon. Having been successful in dealing with the obesity problem directly, they now wish to undertake further studies on the preventive measures and possible cures for diabetes as well as inflammation, which are mainly responsible for several autoimmune diseases for therapeutic purposes.

We possibly will not require waiting for long, as we are already aware that apples may be effective in reducing inflammation. However, one caveat still exists.

Only organic apples

As too much chemical insecticides are sprayed on non-organically grown apples, once they were included in the "Dirty Dozen" list of the Environmental Working Group. You may get organic apples provided you know an apple orchard owner in your locality who doesn't use chemical insecticides on his trees or add herbicides to the soil but is not "USDA certified" organic. But the question is if the source can supply Granny Smith apples?

Perhaps you already know that antibiotics are sprayed on organic apple orchards with a view to put off an air-borne bacterium responsible for "fire blight", which not only spreads rapidly, but in just a few days makes the trees look as if they have been scorched by a fire.

Many people say that antibiotics are sprayed when the apple trees are in bloom, just before the fruits start forming. EPA says that if there is any residue of this left on the apples, it is very negligible - something similar to traces of fluoride in our drinking water.

From 2002 onwards, the USDA allowed people growing organic apples to use streptomycin and tetracycline to fight the bacterium responsible for fire blight. However, all organic apple growers don't use antibiotics. An organic consumer regulator, The Cornucopia Institute says the about 56 percent apple growers don't use antibiotics mainly because use of antibiotics is banned by countries where they export their produces.

Compared to the conventional apple growers, organic growers spray fewer antibiotics on the trees. Some organic growers assert that they will not be worried about organic certification and continue to use the standard conventional methods, provided they are stopped from employing antibiotics to shield the plants from fire blight.

Even so, the USDA has cited a number of biological controls to put off fire blight. Some growers, however, assert that they are not effective, while others that they are effective, but need diligence and are more expensive. But it seems that European and Canadian apple growers are successful in preventing fire blight even with no antibiotics.

In early 2013, The Cornucopia Institute and Organic Consumer Association sent numerous petitions to the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). Consequently, during 2013-14, the latter body failed to achieve two-third majority needed to approve use of antibiotics to fight fire blight.

However, the NOSB has been pressing on to permit use of tetracycline to combat fire blight in emergency cases after 2014. This provides an opportunity to apple and pears consumers to put forth their questions regarding the use of antibiotics.


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