Natural Health Remedies

This doesn’t really affect me as I live in the UK, however it appears that the FDA are going to be cracking down on health supplements. The problem until now is that supplements are viewed as being food which is something that some manufacturers have been abusing.

I remember seeing a TV show a few years ago about the appetite suppressing qualities of Hoodia. The presenter went to Africa to try it for himself, and sure enough he didn’t want to eat anything for 24 hours.

Unfortunately the world is full of people who would sell their Granny for a quick buck, which means many pills have appeared on the market claiming to be Hoodia when in fact it’s just caffeine.

The new rules set out by the FDA means that as of 24 August, this “will help ensure that dietary supplements are manufactured with controls that result in a consistent product free of contamination, with accurate labeling,” said Dr. Robert E. Brackett, director of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.

This surely has to be good news? The problem with many alternative therapies is that it can take some months for symptoms to improve, so you never really know if what you’re buying is the real deal.  The same thing goes with stuff like how to cleanse your liver.

Natural Health Remedies is now taking part in a Health Carnival hosted by FitBuff

So what does this mean? Well, the idea is to bring like-minded bloggers together so we can promote each others favourite posts. Well, at least that’s what I could decipher from the info on the website.

Having had a look through the other Carnival participants posts, here are the ones that stand out to me:

Warming up before running or doing exercise - Warming up has important benefits on both the physical and mental level. Your car can’t go from neutral to top gear all at once, and it’s the exact same with your body.

Weightlifting On Any Budget - We’ve all heard that walking 30 or so minutes a day can improve our health. And it can! But all that emphasis on cardio exercise causes many of us to overlook another important component of any fitness routine: strength training.

Core Abdominal Power Yoga Exercises - Free Book of Kundalini Yoga Poses & Kriyas - Ch 3 - The following set of Kundalini Yoga exercises builds the naval center and works on the 3rd Chakra (energy vortex) of the Kundalini Energy System.

Why is it that obtaining optimum health is so confusing? Everyday you’ll read conflicting information about all sorts of health products and diets. The same goes for vitamins. It’s fairly safe to say that a daily multi-vitamin will help prevent symptoms of vitamin or mineral deficiencies.

With so many tasks to fit into every day life, it can be difficult to make sure that our diet is full of all the nutrients necessary to our health. Also, the thought of preparing a meal from scratch after a hard day’s work means that many people eat out at restaurants and fast food outlets instead. While convenient, the truth is that people are losing control of what they eat. Restaurant food offers portion sizes that are often double and even triple what they should be. Preparation methods generally involve using artery-clogging oils, and other saturated fats.

But eating out isn’t the only problem. Stress wreaks havoc on the body, and often works to diminish whatever nutritional value people are getting from their food. It’s difficult to escape stress, and eating on the run, and eating at odd times during the day. Plus, be honest, just how often do you skip meals because you’re just “too busy”?

Nutritionally-void foods, stress, insufficient exercise, and generally poor eating habits spell disaster when it comes to eating a balanced diet. Yet these are the very reasons why so many people are choosing to supplement their diets with multivitamins.

If the above scenario sounds like the way you live your life, there’s a good chance you’ll benefit from a daily multivitamin supplement. It’s usually not necessary to first consult with a doctor. If your health overall is good, and you’re not taking any medication, a multivitamin that meets recommended daily allowances will be sufficient.

What Happens to Excess Vitamins?

In general, over-supplementation isn’t much of a problem with water-soluble vitamins such as B and C. If your body experiences too much of these vitamins then they will be passed via your urine. It’s still a good idea to check what the symptoms of over-supplementation are, for instance vitamin C can cause diarrhea.

Fat soluble vitamins such as Vitamin A and D, are different in that the body will store excess amounts. But still, even at levels that are slightly higher than the recommended daily allowances, there shouldn’t be any adverse effects. Excessive consumption however is not advisable and may even trigger health complications.

Vitamins Are Found in Many Foods Already

As with many things in life, when taking a multivitamin supplement, moderation is key. Please be aware that a lot of the food you are eating already is probably supplemented with vitamins, cereals and orange juice for instance. As always, contact a doctor or nutritionist if you are at all unsure.

Once you have decided that a multivitamin supplement makes sense, the only thing left to do is go out and buy some. Multivitamin supplements are available in tablet or pill form and liquid form. I’ve also bought it in powder form which you’re supposed to mix in with a drink, unfortunately it made me want to GAG! With so many brands available, you may want to take time to read the labels or look for a familiar manufacturer. Select the form you’re more likely to take on a regular basis and you’ll be one step closer to having a healthy body!

Thousands of people are awaken each night by a horrible rumbling noise. No, it’s not a train or a bear, it’s their spouse. Snoring not only affects the person doing the snoring, but also anyone sharing the room with them. Both suffer from a lack of sleep, with the snorer usually displaying a bruise on their shin from the non-snorer who spent half the time trying to get them to roll over.

Besides being loud and disruptive, snoring can also pose a serious health risk. Sleep apnea occurs when someone temporarily stops breathing.

What Causes Snoring ?

To put it simply, snoring is caused by a blocked airway. The blockage can occur when you are congested due to a cold or caused by over relaxed muscles of the throat and tongue. This relaxation can be brought on by the use of alcohol and drugs.

There are those whose soft tissue in the back of the mouth is large which helps to block the airway. Also, individuals that are overweight or have larger necks tend to snore more than others.

Sleeping on your back can also cause snoring. This is because while sleeping on your back, gravity pulls the tongue and jaw down which can cause the airway to be blocked.

Ways to Stop Snoring

First, let us start with the obvious. If you snore while sleeping on your back, try falling asleep on your side. If you have a cold or nasal congestion due to allergies, try taking a nasal decongestant.

Another way of keeping the airway open that does not involve over the counter medications is nasal strips. Nasal strips are applied to the nose and are designed to pull open the airway.

If snoring is caused by a dry nasal cavity, try a saline nasal spray.

Losing weight can also help with snoring. Individuals who are overweight tend to snore and have increased cases of sleep apnea.

Avoid drinking alcohol. Alcohol and drugs relax the muscles which can cause snoring.

Having the right pillow may also help. When the neck is at an incline, the airway becomes restricted. You want a pillow that helps keep your spine aligned and your head level with your body, not above it.

Surgery to Cure Snoring

It is said that a quarter of the population snores and that most everyone has snored at sometime. Most snoring can be remedied by a few simple things, changing your sleeping position or losing weight. However, there are individuals who may have exhausted all the simple and natural ways of curing their snoring. There is a surgery known as Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty. This surgery is done to remove excess tissue in the throat that causes snoring. Once the tissue is removed, the airway is open again which makes breathing easier. This will eliminate snoring and possibly the bruise caused by your partner.

When you go to a massage therapist, you’re not just paying for their time; you’re paying for their extensive knowledge and expertise. They’ve undergone long-term training that involves learning anatomy and physiology and they’ve practiced for a long time in order to fully understand their craft.

But sometimes dedicated amateurs can emulate their skill to a lesser degree, making those needed sessions a little fewer or farther between. Here are basic techniques on how to give a back massage.

The Fan Stroke

When using fan strokes, apply some oil to decrease friction, then kneel beside the person you’re giving a massage to. Place the palms of your hands in the mid back, fingers facing away from the spine. You’ll be asserting pressure on muscle groups called the latissiumus dorsi and the trapezius. Be sure not to press directly on the spine, but alongside it.

Move the whole hand (palm and fingers) with moderate pressure up the back, along the shoulder blades and out, away from the line of the spine. Move back to the rib cage on the back and repeat. That’s a fan stroke. Increase the pressure moderately, seeking feedback to keep it within a range that’s comfortable for the recipient.

A Good Video Showing a Simple Back Massage Technique

Petrissage

Petrissage in professional massage circles is a motion that kneads the flesh and muscle. In this technique, the idea is to move ‘clumps’, but also to smooth out ‘knots’. Working on more localized areas, with smaller surfaces (such as the thumbs, fingertips, even elbows if applied lightly), move up and down the back.

Oil will help avoid pinching and tugging. If you see the skin ripple, you need a little more. Take care over areas where the muscles are thinner, such as the rib cage.

Grab a portion of a muscle group and squeeze, then move to the next, working your way gradually around all areas of the back from low to high, left and right. Change hands and repeat.

Raking

Rest your hands on the recipients shoulders. Using the fingertips, with the fingers spread apart, move both hands down the back, ‘raking’ the flesh. Then use one hand moving up, the other moving down simultaneously. Rake alongside the spine, but not on it.

The net effect of all these is to relax the muscles, warm up the skin and improve circulation. That brings fresh oxygen and nutrients to them, removing toxins. The body is relaxed and the mind soothed.

The Circling Hands

Starting on the lower back, again with the hands flat, move at right angles to the spine. Then, right away, circle the right hand counterclockwise with gentle pressure as you move up the back. Keep the fingers pointing away from the spine as you make the circular motion.

Replace the right hand with the left hand and repeat the motion, on the right side of the recipient’s body. Then start over with the right hand on the left side of the body. Make the circles, then replace with the left hand and repeat.

As one hand trails the other, move up the body on the right, then left, then right again.