Top 5 BACK PAIN Triggers that are often Neglected!

Back pain is considered as the second commonest reasons for absence from work, after common cold or flu like symptoms. Also it is one of the commonest problems that lead to reduced work efficiency and thus reduced work-output. It is almost equally common in men as well as women. Women often have more symptoms of backache related to their menstrual cycles, menopausal symptoms, and leucorrhea.

But today we are not going into details of the pathological conditions like spondylitis or disc problems. But we are going to consider some relatively so-called harmless causes that can be quite bothersome to a back-pain-prone individual.

Neglected Back-pain Triggers--

1. Wrong Posture-

It has been observed that in most cases of backache, the fault lies in postural mal-adjustments. It might seem a casual issue without much importance. But the facts say something else. In many cases of recurrent backaches, mere postural adjustment suited to one’s sitting is enough to bring positive changes. Especially if you are a computer or laptop worker, you have more than 50% chance of developing acute back pain sometime or the other. Keeping your screen far up than your straight gaze is the culprit in most of the cases. It can be one of the potential causes to trigger the cervical spondylosis as well. Always have your screen slightly lower than your eye-sight and your chances of developing low back pain as well as neck pain reduce considerably.

2. Bad bed-

Too soft or too hard bed is another cause of back pain or stiffness in the back muscles. In many cases too soft beds are often the culprit. The hard beds (as sleeping on a hard mat on floor) can also lead to stiffening of back muscles leading to pain. Go for the bed that is firm yet yielding to spinal curvatures. This kind of mattress supports your spine better when you sleep and avoids sprains.

3. Excess of cold-

Though tolerance of heat and cold varies individually, in most cases back pain gets aggravated by excessive cold. Never lie down unknowingly on just a plastic mat on floor, especially when you are back ache prone. Instead go for hot fomentation for quick relief from pain as well as avoiding future pains.

4. Wrong exercises-

Your exercise regime has to be personalized to your needs. Never opt for the exercises of experts or regular exercisers because they are used to the bends that you aren’t. If you stretch excessively, you almost always risk spraining or twisting of your back muscles. Always go slow in your exercise regime. Most sprains or even disc injuries may occur if you are not careful while starting your regime. Do not lift too heavy weights that you can, which can prove detrimental for your back health. Never over-do any kind of exercise even after you get used to it. Always set definite time limit for any type of exercise that you undertake. Always warm up before you start your regime.

5. Diet low in calcium-

This is by far the neglected factor that contributes highly to the chronic back pain. You risk osteoporosis too if you keep having low calcium diet for long. Easy sprains and muscle catch are commoner then. Always have apt concentration of calcium in your diet and have more fruits, vegetables rich in calcium. Consult your physician to find out whether you need any dietary supplements.

Gout: Causative & Risk Factors-

Building up of uric acid crystals in the joints is the prime cause behind the development of gout. But this can be called as the exciting factor for the latent gout. Purines are the parts of various foods that we eat. Uric acid is nothing but the breakdown product of these purines.

When this crystallization of these compounds and handling of uric acid is at fault, the joints can be affected, kidney stones may be formed, or kidney filtering ducts may be blocked leading to renal failure eventually.

Risk factors for development of gout-

1. Genetics- in about 18% of people, family history of gout is found. Therefore, genetics definitely play a role in development of gout.
2. Age- the condition is commoner in male population and adult population than in women and children.
3. Obesity- as there is availability of more tissue for the breakdown in obese people; the incidence of gout is more among them.
4. Alcohol- alcohol often interferes with removal of uric acid from the body, thus leading to hyperuricemia.
5. Food- eating lot of food rich in purines (like red meat) can aggravate the existing gout in many people.
6. Sometimes, an enzyme defect can cause gout by interfering in the way of bodily breakdown of purines. In such people, often gout is genetically pre-disposed.
7. Exposure to lead- This is a frequently verified fact that if a person is exposed to lead in the atmosphere over a prolonged period, he can develop gout
8. Drugs- like diuretics, salicylates (like aspirin), excess of niacin, cyclosporins, and other immuno-suppressant drugs can lead to heightened uric acid levels in the blood leading to gout symptomatology.

Thus, we can understand that there are certain risk factors like alcohol consumption and eating too much red meat that can be avoided. Though genetic pre-dispositions are hard to tackle, with the holistic medicine like homeopathy, it is possible to enhance the person’s ability to counter the gouty symptoms and eventually cure it. Obviously lifestyle changes like exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy diet are crucial in any regime to have long term benefits and to get rid of the severe pain gout elicits!

Mesothelioma- Still a Dread to Deal With… But Easy to Prevent Cancer!

Though rare, mesothelioma has become a word to dread from. Numerous people till today are becoming victims of asbestos poisoning that leads to this cancer. Though the cancer begins with genetic mutation, in 70 to 80% of people, asbestos plays a major role in development of mesothelioma.

The purpose of this article is to spread awareness regarding the harmful use of asbestos in any type of industries.

It is a substance used in many industries without taking the actual precaution it needs while handling. People working in asbestos mill, shipyard workers, workers in heating and construction industries, are at risk. Asbestos is also used in cement, insulation, breaks, flooring, roof shingles, etc. Asbestos is a group of minerals. They are the masses of strong flexible fibers that can be divided into thin threads and woven. During manufacturing process, the tiny asbestos particles float in the air and may be inhaled or swallowed. The fibers may settle in the lungs or in the stomach, where they can cause irritation and the cancer develops, though the exact mechanism is not known. It can take 20 to 40 years or more, before the symptoms become apparent after asbestos exposure. Also, people living in the houses of asbestos workers are at risk, as the workers may carry asbestos dust on their clothes, hair, etc. Smoking does not appear to increase the risk but a combination of smoking and asbestos exposure significantly raises the chances of air passage cancers.

Are there any other factors besides asbestos?

1)     Minerals like asbestos- Zeolite, a naturally occurring asbestos like mineral is supposed to cause mesothelioma. It is used in countries like Turkey to construct homes.

2)     Family history- as with some other cancers, family history is postulated to increase the risk of mesothelioma. But more research is needed to determine its true role.

3)     Radiation- Some researchers link thorium dioxide to the cancer. It is a radioactive substance used along with the X-rays for the diagnosis of different health conditions. But it is no longer used.

4)     Virus – SV40 is a virus found in monkeys. This virus got in contact with human beings when the monkey cells were used for polio vaccine. It is also stated that this virus can have human-to-human transmission but it is not clear how.

What are the alarming findings of mesothelioma that need to be shown to physician?

(Signs and symptoms of the cancer)-

They depend on the origin of cancer.

1)     If the pleura are involved, the presenting symptoms usually are shortness of breath and chest pain while breathing. Sometimes unusual lumps of tissue can be felt under the chest cage. There can be unexplained cachexia (weight loss) and non-productive cough.

2)     Peritoneal mesothelioma may present with abdominal pain, swelling, change in the bowel habit (unusual constipation or diarrhea), lump felt in the abdomen, etc.

3)     If the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, there may be pain in the affected area, swelling of face and neck region with difficulty in swallowing.

Whatever your signs and symptoms indicate, remember that only a doctor can make a diagnosis of mesothelioma.

Treatment of Mesothelioma-

Modern medicine is still struggling to find absolute cure for mesothelioma or any cancer for that matter. Obviously the baseline therapies like surgery, radiation, chemotherapy etc are opted for depending upon the stage of the cancer. But nowadays doctors emphasize on undergoing clinical trials for patients of Mesothelioma because numerous trials are being carried out in reputed cancer institutes. However the results are uncertain and the process may be excessively expensive.

Considering all the options, many doctors nowadays suggest the alternative therapies like Homeopathy for the dread called Mesothelioma. The homeopaths all over the world are contemplating various possibilities for the treatment of Mesothelioma. Though they do not boast to cure Mesothelioma totally, they do have very good results in terms of alleviation of symptoms of Mesothelioma. The excessive cough, chest pain, and constitutional symptoms like malaise, fever or weakness can be effectively dealt with by different Homeopathic remedies.

One of the definitive treatments in Homeopathy for Mesothelioma is said to be mistletoe therapy. It is an immuno-augmentative therapy in which an herb called Iscador is extracted from mistletoe and administered to the patient in the form of injections or tablets. As the name suggests, the therapy aims at boosting the suppressed immune system and thus giving relief to the troubled patient.

Prevention of Mesothelioma-

Simple use of well-fitting facial mask is sufficient to prevent the dreaded after effects of asbestos handling. Rather, all the employers must take ample precautions to avoid such incidences with their employees. Failing to do this, the employer may have to face stringent justice elicited in the court of law by mesothelioma lawyers. The compensation may cost millions to the employers. It is better to be safe than sorry later!

Is Homeopathy Against Modern Medicine?

(Let me clarify here that the views expressed herewith are my personal opinions and should not be generalized. This purpose of this post is to answer this question that is repeatedly asked to me by my patients and students)

When it comes to therapeutic principles, those of homeopathy and modern medicine differ considerably. We (homeopaths) believe in natural mode of therapy administered while holding fast the principle, “like cures like”. Modern medicine is based more on suppressive kind of therapy that is based on physiological doses of oppositely acting medicine.

But if you ask me, do we homeopaths loathe the modern medicines altogether? My answer to this question is a plain NO.

We don’t!

It is not a battle to be won against anyone. It is not a rivalry either. Simply put, it is the understanding of each others’ plus and minus, by keeping the patient’s interest at the topmost priority. Both modes of therapies are sciences and arts of applying this science in an ailing patient.

Both sciences have their limitations and strengths. If homeopathy cannot work in extreme emergencies (or can work as supplementary in such conditions), modern medicine has no permanent answer to chronic conditions like arthritis, asthma, renal calculi, etc.

What should be our aim?

Well, our only aim is to resort to natural mode of therapy first than going for some strong medications. Instead of suppressing our immune functions by administering oppositely acting medicine, if we can stimulate our immunity by aptly selected simillimum in homeopathy, we can achieve healthier patient in the long run.

Is it wrong to take care of our patient’s long term interest?

If the smallest dose of medicine can relieve him of acute suffering and also make arrangements for his future robust immunity, why not go for the homeopathic therapy in the first place?

Also we are against the use of unnecessary antibiotic therapy. If the patient has severe septicemia or bacterimia, we can understand the use of antibiotics to curb the severe infection. Today we often see that the patient is given strong antibiotic therapy till he kills his immunity and becomes resistant to that particular antibiotic. Again the newer range of antibiotic is administered in such patients. And if all this is done when there is minor viral or similar infection, aren’t we robbing the patient of his natural right to have perfect immune powers? This is where homeopathy is against modern medicine.

Rather, I would go ahead and say, here too, homeopaths are against the physicians who administer such antibiotics at wrong times. I know many modern medicine physicians that take great care before they resort to antibiotics and they are certainly respected by all of us. There are many allopaths that trust homeopaths and refer their patients of chronic ailments for homeopathic care. Similarly we (homeopaths) seek help from our modern medicine experts when it comes to certain terminal illnesses.

In short, I would say, allpathy (modern medicine), homeopathy, ayurveda, and other branches of medicine are all designed to help ailing humanity. The practitioners of respective faculties should work together in order to attain the highest goal- freeing the sick of his suffering.

And just remember to cater utmost care while handling your patient’s immunities. They have so much trust in you that you are God for him.  And the God is always unprejudiced, right?

Top 20 Diet and Nutrition Facts-

1. Don’t get bored by healthy routine diet. Search ways to make it variable every day and stick to it.

2. Give importance to health-quotient of the food you eat than the calorie-quotient. This will take you longer in the search for nutritious food habits.

3. Diet pills are rarely the answer for your appropriate weight loss. After all, you don’t want to lose muscles but fat. Also you cannot take them life long. Improve your lifestyle and you will find better results.

4. The effective work out is must with ANY diet regime you follow. By eating less, you can never really obtain consistent weight loss that you desire.

5. Reduce total carbohydrate content but do not avoid it totally. Instead opt for healthy complex carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables.

6. Only-Protein diets are often harmful, as your kidneys may not tolerate excess proteins.

7. Fat-free diets are not only harmful but they also reduce proper absorption of important nutrients. Avoid them. Choose your fats wisely while avoiding trans-fats. Also fat-free diets will land you with shriveled and old-looking skin.

8. You must have at least 4 to 5 servings of fruits and vegetables every day to help your body gain adequate antioxidants to fight against the free radicals that can damage your system and cause various diseases, including cancers.

9. If you consume dietary supplements, remember that they are just “Supplements” and not “Substitutes”. So maintain your diet well even when on supplements!

10. Consuming fruits is good when you do it empty stomach or the first thing in the morning. Having fruits post-lunch or post-dinner is neither good nor do you gain much benefit from their amazing properties.

11. If you or your near and dear ones are suffering from depression, instead of going for anti-depressants, you need to check the faults in the diet first. Grooming the lifestyle and diet habits can prove beneficial in many cases.

12. Water and Exercise are the two groups in the diet. Any diet excluding these two vital ingredients is futile to follow through!

13. Your growing WHR (waist-hip ratio) is more important sign for starting an apt diet and exercise regimen than just your BMR (Basal Metabolic rate).

14. Worshiping your food and giving it a spiritual belief helps you gain vitality out of what you eat. It is not exaggeration but this practice even balances your attitude towards your diet and you tend to avoid indulgence.

15. Think of those less fortunate than you when you chalk out your diet plan. Think of those hungry children and reduce your portions. This is one way to reduce the indulgence and wastage of food that is so rampant in our so called civilized society.

16. ‘How and when to eat’ is a vital skill perhaps more than ‘what to eat’. This will change your perception towards healthier and smaller meals.

17. Set definite meal times. Yes you can do it and there is no excuse if you want to avoid undue flatulence, obesity, hyperacidity, and insomnia!

18. Opt for the naturally sweet vegetables like sweet potatoes, carrots, beetroots, etc that add healthy carbohydrates to your diet along with many vital minerals. Also they curb your craving for other sweets.

19. Salted nuts are the worst culprits for patients with hypertension. Opt for those without salt in moderate amount and they will help reduce your bad cholesterol levels.

20. Remember that we tend to eat more after dinner or lunch when we relax. This is the time to engage in some hobby or constructive work to avoid these munching spells!

6 Additional Benefits of Exercise!

We all know now that exercise is something that we should follow just like a healthy meal pattern. We also know that it helps us stabilize our sugar levels, control hypertension, drive away obesity, control heightened LDL cholesterol levels, and improve our overall well-being.

But apart from these basic facts, there are many other benefits of exercise that we will see in this post today. After you know these points, certainly your chances of not skipping exercise increase multifold; so stay tuned! J

1. Exercise gives you the “ME” time!

Many of us struggle to have even a few minutes just slotted for ourselves throughout the busy day. Including the work at home moms and business corporate sector, we all today want that “ME” time at least for some time in the day. Studies indicate that people who take this privilege to be completely themselves at least for a few hours a week stay healthier and stress-free than those who keep working for others or themselves without this time! Especially my “MOM” patients always tell me that since they have started exercising, they feel truly pampered, as they give at least half an hour per day totally to them; not to our spouses, not to our children, and not to our WORRIES! What a commendable achievement!

2. Lifts your mood to a great degree!

Now do this check on yourself. Start exercising for at least 15 days (at least 30 minutes walk per day). Then for the next week, do not exercise or do any physical workout at all. Now introspect! Remember the prior fortnight when you exercised every day and also consider the last week when you were off it. I am sure more than 80 to 90% of you will observe the difference in your behavioral pattern, your stress level, and your mood swings. Many mothers tell me the fact that they have started behaving more considerately with their children after they started exercising. There is not a bit of exaggeration in this fact. The steady release of anti-oxidants in your body actually improves your communication compliance and uplifts your mood. You will find yourself more smiling instead of frowning once you start working out regularly! Try it.

3. Improves your ‘couple-life’!

It is evident from the latest surveys that the couples who exercise regularly have better coordination in their thoughts and action in sex performance. And healthy sex life is one of the pillars for healthier life!

4. Prevents future illnesses-

This is one of the most crucial points about exercising. We know that many existing diseases like hypercholesterolemia can be minimized with quality exercise. But if you exercise regularly, you can actually avert many potentially life-threatening illnesses forever. You can prevent cancers, diabetes, hypertension, stroke, kidney diseases, atherosclerosis, spinal anomalies, vertebral problems, hemorrhoids, osteoporosis, so on and so forth.

5. Increases longevity-

If you are a type of person who loves life and its various expressions, you certainly want to enjoy it to the fullest possible degree. And this is possible if you live a long and healthy life. Exercises increase your life expectancy by leaps and bounds. Obviously if a machine is used regularly, it will last longer; than a machine that is kept unused for years! Of course, human body is a machine too!

6. Enhances your work efficiency-

If “No time” is your excuse for skipping exercise, think again. Instead of putting long unyielding hours at your work, try inculcating exercise to put efficient work hours. Japanese people always have a short break during their work hours that is meant for relaxation and moderate forms of floor exercises. This seems to greatly increase their work efficiency and it is evident in their unfazed attitude about work ethic. Also having good exercise time for younger kids seems to improve their concentration levels multifold.

Can you be Off-Medication when on Homeopathy?

This is perhaps one of the commonest questions people have in their mind, when they think opting for the homeopathic treatment. Many people come to homeopathy as a last resort, when nothing else seems to work for them. Have seen numerous people who do not feel all right despite long term medication, even when all the investigation reports are normal! This is when they feel homeopathic doctors promise to cure us; why not try it? Well, thankfully this trend is changing to some extent and homeopathic followers are increasing day by day. But still many people that come to homeopathy have some or the other treatment going on with modern medicine.

This is true especially in cases like arthritis, kidney disorders, hypertension, diabetes, heart problems, etc. And when they start homeopathic treatment, first thing they want is get rid of the high doses of medication they are on. But can they be off-medication immediately as they start with the homeopathic treatment? Let’s see-

• Don’t hurry up-

Firstly you need to understand the difference between modern medicine principles and homeopathic principles. They are actually contrary. Homeopathy does not believe in material doses of medication, unless there is some gross pathological abnormality. But in modern medicine, all drugs are administered in material doses to visualize the effect in the patient’s blood stream almost immediately.

Therefore, for example, if you are taking beta-blockers (like Atenolol, etc) for hypertension; you are ingesting some potent medication that actually lowers your heart rate, cardiac output is reduced too, and it acts on the adrenergic receptors for controlling the hypertension. Within one hour of ingesting beta blocker, your body responds to it and blood pressure is lowered till the next dose of beta blocker yet again (which is usually repeated the following day)!

However, if you go for homeopathic treatment, along with considering your acute totality of symptoms, the physician considers your overall “Patient-Picture” to dig deep into your emotional and mental background. Thereafter he administers you the minutest dose of homeopathic medicine that he feels will stimulate your normal cardiac rhythm and output without creating undue stress on your cardiovascular system.

Therefore, it is mandatory to give time for the homeopathic medicine to act favorably. If we withdraw the physiological dose of beta blocker immediately upon starting the homeopathic regime, we often meet with failures and the patient may experience hot flushes or even chest pain due to sudden withdrawal of a material drug dose. Don’t let this happen to you.

Along with constitutional homeopathic medicine, homeopathic physician will also give you symptomatic acute therapy or even mother tinctures if necessary to relieve the acute symptoms. But it is just not possible to completely relieve you without the constitutional dose.

Once the doctor observes positive changes upon administering the homeopathic treatment in the form of relief from existing symptoms, he will slowly taper your dose of beta blockers and eventually stop it. Yes, it is possible to stop anti-hypertensive medication altogether unless there is serious cardiovascular complication in a person. But give him time! It’s in your favor!

• End-stage Organ damage-

In cases of end stage organ damage where the gross pathological changes have already set in, homeopathy can work just as supplement, especially during emergency. But the homeopathic medicines work as powerful supplements without a doubt to help patient achieve the “feel-good” factor necessary to pull on with the harsh treatment.

For example- if a patient has chronic renal failure and his serum creatinine and urea levels are shooting up, he has to be given emergency treatment in the form of hemo-dialysis for the time being. Along with the dialysis, homeopathic medicines in low doses can be administered to help him taper his frequency of hemodialysis over the period of time. Numerous patients today are off the dialysis trouble with the help of appropriate homeopathic medication. But it takes time, as the pathological changes take time to respond positively. Thereafter the person’s overall

health is taken into consideration. But even in such pathological conditions, totality of the patients’ symptoms (physical, mental, and emotional) must be considered by the doctor, to enable speedy recovery!

Thus, remember that homeopathy can be administered not only in dormant chronic conditions but also in acute emergencies. However, in acute emergencies, we have to give homeopathic medicine along with the emergency physiological drug doses to avoid end organ damage.

But it is certainly true that homeopathic medicines are blessings for these patients too, as they can help them sustain the side effects of harsh medication with ease!

Beware of DRUGS that can Prove Fatal!

With a Note about Myth Regarding the Safety of Homeopathic Medicines!

 It is very wise to think twice before you take any drug! Here we are talking about the physiological doses of modern medicine drugs that can be harmful for the people who take them haphazardly. Herewith I would also like to mention that we, being homeopaths, have nothing against these drugs. I often believe that homeopathy is what we should opt for in the first place before going for physiological doses of drugs, as natural therapy is always better. In cases of pathological problems or end organ damage, always we have to administer homeopathy as an adjuvant to the main modern medicine therapy.

However, when we observe a person gulping Paracetamol frequently for relieving pain, we have to tell them- It is not safe to do this. You can even read the warning on the label that says, “Frequent overuse can damage the liver!” Still why so many people keep themselves addicted to such drugs? It is because they are used to its “Pain-Relieving” properties! Of course, they will have to increase the dose from 500 to 650 mg if the pain starts reappearing after 500 mg eventually!

This was just an example. There are many prescription drugs that can be really fatal if taken –

• Haphazardly
• Continuously
• Repeated in high doses
• Taken with some other drugs that are inimical
• Taken ignorantly during some clinical condition that contraindicates the use of that drug, etc (for example- during pregnancy or lactation)

There are some drugs that can literally cause acute respiratory failures if you take without knowing its side effects in a particular condition. Especially in a country like India, where many medicines are dispensed upon asking over the counter, it is scary.

You at least must know what not to opt for without going for a dual check from an expert.

Most dangerous pain relievers are those that contain Opiates, like morphine and codeine.

Symptoms that should warn you against the drugs-

• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Uncontrollable vomiting
• Apathy
• Slow breathing
• Cold and clammy skin
• Confusion
• Sudden extreme weakness
• Seizures

If anyone in your household or neighborhood suffers from the above symptoms, you must make emergency arrangements for his revival. Remember that even delay by a few minutes can prove fatal at times.

Therefore, always be warned when you opt for prescription drugs. If they can relieve you of pain or stress for a moment, they can take away your healthy life over the period of time.

A Note About Homeopathic Drugs-

It would not be apt if I don’t mention here about homeopathic medicines. You should know that even homeopathic medicines taken without expert supervision can prove dangerous. It is a myth that however and whenever you take homeopathic medicines, they will not cause harm. Well, I will not say they can kill you, as they are not fatal, being given or taken in minutest possible doses. But nonetheless they can cause certain subtle disturbances in the person acutely or in the long run.

If you take homeopathic medicine-

• With frequent repetition
• Always in higher potencies above 200 or 1M
• Take them with very short intervals between the two doses
• Take two or more medicines at a time
• Take two medicines without knowing the relationship between those two
• Take the wrongly selected constitutional medicine

Then, you may fall prey to some nasty implications over the period of time. Often these implications may take years to develop, especially if you take homeopathic medicines in high potencies and therefore may be missed as the real diseases and not the drug-induced problems. But a true homeopath often recognizes the difference between a drug disease and real disease.

Therefore, it is strongly recommended that even before opting for the homeopathic medicines, especially for the chronic, long standing cases, one must undergo the ritual of complete history and examination of the patient and then prescribe after spending enough time for the evaluation of the case!

Top 30 Keywords and Key-Phrases to Help you Live Healthily!

Here is given a list of keyword and keyphrases that WE should opt for to lead a healthy and eventually happy life! Yes, because WE BELIEVE THAT THERE CAN BE NO HAPPINESS WITHOUT HEALTH!

1. Get up early
2. Sleep early
3. Get up early even if you sleep late J
4. It is better to avoid tea/ coffee early in the morning empty stomach
5. It is good to have a  glass of lukewarm water with ¼ lemon and honey in it the first thing in the morning to boost up your metabolism
6. Do not delay your breakfast; earlier you have it, better for you
7. Have healthy breakfast containing fruits, wholegrain item, and salad
8. Home-cooked breakfast is always healthier than the instant ones
9. Do not leave a gap of more than 4 hours between your two small meals
10. Have fruits empty stomach more often to relish in the healthy ingredients
11. Drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of plain water every day
12. Keep an eye on your bowel movement; get yourself treated properly to have good evacuations as constipation is the culprit that ruins your health
13. Avoid laxatives and purgatives, as they wash off your healthy gut bacteria
14. Exercise regularly; else get ready to suffer from syndrome-X eventually (the syndrome comprises of hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, type II diabetes mellitus, and obesity
15. Keep yourself busy with routine work; routine work is the best approach to conquer depression!
16. Avoid stress at all costs! Nothing is better than a stress-less and healthy mind!
17. Once in a while forget about all the rules and have your favorite food J
18. Always exercise control over the quantity of food you eat at one time
19. Control the way you lead your life than merely controlling calories you eat
20. Stop smoking; there is no excuse to this any time!
21. Minimize alcohol consumption to bare minimum; stopping it completely is not a crime!
22. Go vegetarian; we humans are not carnivores! Respect what nature has made us for!
23. Opt for relaxation techniques as often as you can. They lower your blood pressure, improve sugar balance in the body, and make you a more balanced individual.
24. Listen to your favorite music as often as you can
25. Indulge in your favorite pastime/hobby as often as you can
26. Always help those in need. It is one of the most positively selfish acts you can do for your well-being! J
27. Get rid of procrastination. It is one of the topmost things that lead to stress.
28. Communicate well with those around. While you learn many things, you also learn to respect others’ feelings and emotions
29. Be a child whenever you can. Don’t think of the world and engage in some childish behavior with your loved one.
30. Shed that ego if you can and the world will be yours! J

Top 5 Things about Healthy Eating!

We all live in an era where newer diseases are making our life miserable. Still there are a bunch of people who live healthier life despite all odds thrown upon them! What’s the secret? Well, no prize for guessing the answer as “healthy lifestyle”! These two words have captured the attention of all health-conscious people recently. And a recent survey has a positive thing to say that number of such health-oriented people is increasing. J At least some positive vibe out there!

While searching for tips about healthy living, the topmost point comes as “healthy eating”. And when it comes to healthy eating, there are many misconceptions. Rather, many times it makes difficult for us to choose what exactly the right food to eat is.

So, let’s see the top 5 points one should remember while eating “Healthy” food!

1. GO LOCAL- Eating habits vary from place to place. Recently one of my vegan friends went to China and was left with very few choices to fill his tummy. Well, the cause might lie in his lack of knowledge about the availability of good vegan food there but in general we all experience this when we move to places. People who are omni-eaters (eating all types of cuisines) usually have no problems with having what they want in any place. Also certain places are suited for certain type of food for better digestion and absorption. You can have the example of our Southern India where people loathe the thought of paranthas and indulge in rice related items, because that’s what is digestible there. So, especially when it comes to day to day food, don’t think of some extravagant mall food but go for locally grown greens and fruits. They will give you better stability and energy. But it is imperative to know what grows locally! Go for wider options and you will multitude your chances of “Complete Meal”.

2. VARIETY- As said earlier, your meal should include variety of food stuffs having different proportions of all proteins, vitamins, carbohydrates, fats, and minerals. If you want to skip taking daily dose of a multivitamin and multi-mineral tablet, go for variety of food. Of course, naturally eaten food vitals will help you bettering your health than gulping the tablet. Try searching for different options for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner, so that you don’t get bored of the same stuff every time!

3. PREPARE YOUR FOOD- This is one point you should focus on, especially if you want to have a wholesome eating plan. Even if you are on a particular diet plan, it is always better to stick to what you prepare at home than some canned food from outside. Don’t fall prey to faulty notions that costly packed food item with list of ingredients always gives you good nutritious diet. Many such foods might have hidden artificial ingredients and preservatives. In case you have to have outside food, see the labels clearly and go for standard and natural food items only. Especially set yourself free from the so-called low-fat diets that are mostly deceiving. Never get laid in the trap- “Too Posh to Prepare”! It’s not worth it!

4. DON’T AVOID ANY FOOD INGREDIENT COMPLETELY- This is a vital point in today’s genre of low-fat fads. It is imperative to know that many times, high-carbohydrate or starch diet causes more sugar imbalances in the body than high-fat diets. Now here is a pointer- “If you want healthy skin, hair, and abdominal health, you have to have some amount of fat in your diet.” Definitely go for healthier fat options and avoid trans-fats as far as possible. It is a myth that Only-Protein or Only-Carbohydrate diets work. They don’t! Or if they do, they bring you many side effects along with in your weight loss plan. Only-protein diets are not good for your kidneys and only-carbohydrates might lead to sugar imbalances, even if the carbohydrate is from complex sugars! Therefore, the easier option is “Eat Everything in Moderation!”. Imbibe this mantra especially in your children so that they will stay away from obesity in future and would be able to avoid serious X-Syndromes!

5. EAT AT THE RIGHT TIME- This is one crucial point many of us miss while taking care of our diets and eventually health. Especially in Indian settings, I have seen people, especially women not eating anything at all till the early noon. This makes things worse for them. They eat their night meals at around 9 or 10 and have the next meal (or breakfast) at around 11 or 11.30 am the next day. Such a huge gap in your meals! Obviously if you follow such regime, you are responsible for your hyperacidity. Where should the acid go that is produced for proper digestion of the food in the body? If you don’t eat in time, this acid bothers you with heartburn, belching, indigestion, abdominal cramps, and at times vomiting. Also, having your first meal (breakfast) early in the morning helps you sail through the day more confidently and energetically. Also time eating certain food aptly. For example, it is a wasteful practice to have fruits after lunch or dinner. Have them when you have appetite or when you get up in the morning. This makes the fruit better absorbed, better assimilated, and your body gets better supply of vitamins and minerals from it. Also it avoids layering of calories and thus your weight is kept in check!

Thus, the above 5 points are the beginning pointers towards healthier eating. And healthy eating is the pioneer of healthy lifestyle! Think about it! 

Why Homeopathy is Supreme Treatment for Chronic Ailments?

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We all know that homeopathy is being increasingly administered in the patients with chronic ailments. Certainly it is equally useful for acute problems but in lay people’s mind, homeopathy many times is equated to the treatment of chronic illnesses. In certain way, they are right. Rather we can say that treating the chronic ailments is the major plus of homeopathy. In many other forms of therapies, chronic ailments are dreaded from, because they don’t really have weapons to eradicate the chronic disease from its root.

This is not the only reason, however, for popularity of homeopathy in treating the chronic diseases. Let’s see what the peculiarities of homeopathy are that makes it an ideal therapy for chronic diseases-

1. Holistic medicine-

Homeopathy is the system that is said to be holistic in its approach. This is the reason we often say that homeopathy doesn’t advocate the use of term ‘diagnosis’. Well, that doesn’t mean homeopathy doesn’t believe in diagnosing a condition. This is a myth that homeopathic doctors never utilize any investigative approaches before they proceed for treatment. If necessary, certain procedures must be done before the doctor commences homeopathic treatment.

But this “disease-name” derived after the investigation may just help the homeopaths to know few of his hierarchy weapons to select from. But his choice depends more upon the characteristic signs and symptoms of the disease per say. This is one of the reasons homeopaths never fret from taking case of any tedious chronic disease, be it an autistic trait or chronic arthritic trouble!

2. Homeopathy applied ‘homeopathically’ works without suppression-

While dealing with any chronic ailment, a homeopathic physician seeks all the important history from his patients. He seeks details right from his birth history and family history of illnesses. This is needed to proceed with the case ‘homeopathically’. Here we should again note that unless homeopathy is administered homeopathically, we might be suppressing the disease again.

For example- if a patient has skin rash and you choose Urtica urens in low potency just to annihilate his skin rash temporarily, you are not actually acting homeopathically. However, if you study in case in details and then administer a constitutional dose to eradicate his tendency to rash formation, you have applied ‘homeopathic principle’ in this patient and it will lead him on a long-lasting path of recovery and/or cure.

That does not mean homeopathy doesn’t advocate the use of acute medication. It does. But while annihilating the disease acutely for the time being, a homeopath’s eye must be on the constitutional prescription in the due course, to relieve the patient of this suppression and improve his natural immunity.

This is one of the most important reasons according to me that make homeopathy an ideal medicine for chronic ailments. No chronic ailments can be cured unless the root cause lying within the depth of man is dealt with. This is termed by Hahnemann as miasm. So, in every chronic case, miasmatic diagnosis of the patient is must. Only then the person can be set to achieve the homeostasis of his body, mind, and soul!

3. Homeopathy works like magic-

This is not exaggeration. To a lay person who doesn’t know the science and art behind homeopathy, every cure of a chronic disease resulted homeopathically is no less than a magic! Perhaps that’s one of the reasons why homeopaths are attacked by the critics (or skeptics!), who are boggled at the wonderful results! When a 40-year old eczema vanishes without leaving a trace with homeopathic medicine, people really wonder what magic has been done. But a true homeopath knows that it is not a magic but apt recognition of innate disorder that might lie in one of the three basic planes of a person- body, mind or spirit. That homeopath succeeds who possesses the ability to trace that disorder and alleviate the suffering.

4. Minimal dose and least repetition-

Classical homeopathy advocates use of minimal dose of the medicine with minimum repetition. When exact simillimum is matched of the drug picture to the patient-picture, there is little need to repeat the dose too often, especially in case of chronic ailments. This makes patients happy, as they do not need to take the medicines frequently. Also medicine form is very convenient to take, either in liquid or pill-form. Most homeopaths believe in administering the medicine through sugar of milk or plain sugar pills, which makes it even tastier and less cumbersome.

5. Attains maximum immunity and shaping of better future-

I think this is the most important reason why one should opt for homeopathy. When you seek any treatment, you aim at complete cure. Moreover, you want the medicine to help you conquer future illnesses as well. This is no exaggeration but with the aptly chosen constitutional homeopathic medicine, we help the patient gain enormous strength on all planes to fight the future diseases naturally, often without or the least aid of medicine. I would like to stress this point in case of children, because if you give minimal dose of constitutional homeopathic medicine to a chronically ill child, he will gain good resistance power to fight future illnesses. Also he will develop into a relatively better human being, as his mind and psyche is shaped well too with this dose. This is a time-tested statement and not even a bit of exaggeration.

The above five are the topmost points why one should go for a homeopathic treatment when it comes to the treatment of chronic disease. One can safely and assuredly rely upon a qualified homeopath for this!

Have a Glowing and Soft Skin with Homeopathy!

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Having a glowing complexion is everyone’s dream. And we all do so many things to achieve it. When it comes to skin nobody wants to take chance; but everyone takes chance with so many different skincare products available in the market. We are not here to judge which products and good and which are not. But I am sure most of you have fair share of negative remarks about such products, after using them.

Why do so many skincare products give us negative results?

• First of all, we do not seek professional advice before opting for the skincare products available in the market. We jump to the new bandwagon of products once they are launched on television or magazines.
• Secondly, we do not know about our own skin. I have often seen people telling me- “I have a very oily skin doctor”, when I find the skin dry and flaky on examination. Many people go on the basis of appearance after they apply make up and can’t really judge their skin types.
• But most importantly the lacuna lies somewhere in our health that depicts on our skin. And these skincare products do not annihilate the negativity lying in the body. They obviously do the superficial work that is visible on the surface. But the inner bodily disharmony doesn’t bother this superficial work and attacks the skin that is the primary and the biggest organ to get affected by internal disturbances.

So, what should we do?

Does that mean all skincare products are bad? Well, not really if you intend for temporary results. For example, if you have a marriage to attend to, you obviously will go for a product that speedily puts your acne on backburner and gives you a temporary fresh and supple look. But remember the acne that you have put on the backburner. It is going to affect you again sooner or later. And we should definitely aim at alleviating the skin problem permanently.

• Get back your body homeostasis on track. This is the first thing you should aim at before resorting to any treatment.
• For this, drink maximum quantity of water (at least 10-12 glasses/day in tropical countries). This will naturally hydrate your skin that is crying for conditioning and suppleness. No external moisturizer can do the work of plain water. Truly the best things in the world are free! J
• Another good thing you can do for your skin is get moving. More you work out regularly; more anti-oxidants will fight the free radicals that damage the skin along with the other vital organs.
• Eat right. This is a crucial step to nourish your skin with necessary vitamins and minerals. Seek expertise if you need any additional supplements to replenish the deficiencies for stipulated duration.
• And go for natural therapies like homeopathy.

Homeopathic Help for Skin is Holistic!

Homeopathy doesn’t consider skin as a separate organ but part of the whole “YOU”. Therefore, homeopathic doctors give (or should give) enormous importance to your constitution, that is, your physical, mental, and emotional built up, while dealing with your skin problem. The root cause of your skin anomaly definitely lies deep within, that need to be traced by your physician. Once this is done, you will be prescribed accordingly. Do not hurry up the things with your doctor if you want perfect cure. And do not think that your homeopathic medicines are going to act slowly. They will not, if you have given all your details to your physician properly. In many cases I often find that, even within the first dose, patient reports us with positive feedback. It may be the case of acne, dermatitis, eczema, facial discoloration, warts, or just dry skin. Even in conditions like psoriasis, lichen planus, and intractable acne rosacea, homeopathy works pretty fast if the case sought is complete and prescribed accordingly.

One thing is sure! If you seek homeopathic help for your skin condition, it rarely happens that you get the same problem again after it is completely annihilated. Moreover, we often find that the overall skin texture is improved, the dark spots are visibly reduced, and the skin glows naturally!

It’s a dream completely achievable with good lifestyle and homeopathy! Try it!

Top 6 Pointers for the Patients of Ankylosing Spondylitis!

If you are suffering from ankylosing spondylitis, you definitely know the pain and crippling feeling it brings with it. Most of the doctors tell you that now you have to live with this pain and nothing permanent solution can be achieved. Most patients that come to us (homeopaths) usually come to us as the last resort. But when we assure them about the positive outcome that can be achieved with the homeopathic medicines, they are happy. But when we tracked the records of our patients of ankylosing spondylitis, we found that there are differences in the pace of positive response from our patients. Some respond faster than others and those who take years to respond have some real flaws in their routines that need be followed by a patient of AS.

This article is to bring to your notice certain pointers that should be known by the patient of ankylosing spondylitis in order to achieve faster and desirable effects with homeopathic constitutional medicine—

1. Exercise- Firstly let me clarify that unless you make up your mind to exercise the right way, you have very little chance of rectifying your AS. Exercising is crucial. Also I said, “Exercising in the right way!” When we treat our patients at our consultancy services, we give stipulated personalized exercises for AS patients. It is important to note that the deformities or disabled body movements vary from patient to patient. A single set of exercise for all many times fails to yield beneficial results. Therefore, if a patient needs just a brisk walk to revert the AS changes along with the medicine; another patient might need some special yoga exercise along with the walk. Here I also would like to mention the fact that we have seen remarkable improvement in these patients when they follow the “Pranayama” regime inclusive of Kapalbhati and Anulom-vilom. It actually boosts the effect of homeopathic medicine on all planes- physical, mental, and emotional!

2. Avoid lifting heavy weights- This can be said as a generalized statement in all the patients of ankylosing spondylitis. Maximum cases of aggravation in pain and further deformed body movements have been observed in patients who accidentally life some heavy weights. That’s why I strongly condemn the use of heavy weight gym exercises too in these patients. However, once your AS is rectified to a certain extent with the homeopathic medicines and exercise, you can do moderate weight exercises to tone up and strengthen your muscles.

3. Turn up to one side when you get up from your bed in the morning- we have observed that in many patients of ankylosing spondylitis, morning stiffness is common. If you stretch your back muscles unduly during these wee hours, you worsen your chances of developing acute pain. This is especially true of patients with moderate to severe AS. Therefore, turn to one-side preferably left (unless your pain is aggravated by turning to left side) and then get up while avoiding any kind of jerky movement.

4. Avoid food that aggravates your flatulence- This is our personal observation while dealing with the patients of AS though there is no direct connection between the two. People, who suffer from flatulent dyspepsia more often, develop acuter pains of ankylosing spondylitis more frequently. Therefore such patients often complain of pain in their back when their tummy is full of gaseous distension.

5. Pay attention to your posture- People especially those who work on computers for long hours have to have correct postures. Also it is important to pay attention to how you bend while bending down. In patients who have pain when bending, we recommend practicing sitting down by bending knees instead of bending at the waist.

6. Bed quality- Your bed shouldn’t be too hard or too soft (fluffy) to avoid further spinal damage. Go for good quality beds that provide you apt comfort and adaptable spinal protection. This definitely lessens your chances of early morning stiffness. 

Conscious Emotional Detachment for Healthy Heart!

Emotions play a very crucial role in our lives. A person that can handle emotions better can conquer all phases of life positively. Well having said that, I would also say that unless one is equipped to deal with day to day emotions with brevity, he or she rarely has chance to look at the positive side of the story. Considering the fact that emotions play with our health, we should hereby come to the terms of a fact that to live healthily, we should be able to detach consciously from our emotional turmoil.

Not a single person on this earth lives the perfect life that he or she craves for. Everyone has dreams; they at times get fulfilled only to create new dreams. Nothing is wrong in that though. But if this is done completely involving oneself with emotional attachment, there is risk of over-indulgence in one’s own desires, thereby creating undue stress. And once there is stress, you have whole lot of chance to burden your healthy heart. Stress actually increases load on the heart and makes it to pump harder. This in turn clogs the arterioles and your heart is at risk of end-organ failure.

Does that mean we should stay away from work that stresses us? Absolutely not! Rather you should continue working just by playing some tricks that keeps your heart fooled! What does it mean?

Well, it’s not easy not to get emotionally involved for many people. It may be with people around, friends, family, society, and work! They ‘feel’ the responsibility. I know people who feel extremely burdened by some ‘stressed’ things going in today’s economic and political scenario. Certainly it’s not bad to feel the responsibility, instead of putting the blame on someone else. But do not let this responsibility get hold of you. Same goes true with family matters. You obviously cannot avoid familial responsibilities. But if these responsibilities are taking away your good night’s sleep, then say good-bye to your ‘emotionally-attached’ attitude that’s playing the culprit. You are still handling your responsibilities just with a detached attitude.

One can seriously object to this view of being emotionally detached, saying that without being involved emotionally, no work can be done with great success. But I frankly object to this view-point. I would like to go ahead and say- you can work doubly better if you keep yourself detached from the circumstances, people, and even your work!

Many times, our emotions make us weak and prevent us from doing things that need be done at that point of time. If you look at them from third man’s perspective, you realize how foolish it was to involve emotionally. The emotion should be your ally and not foe! Even our ancient scriptures like Bhagavad-Geeta says similar thing about Karma-Yog. It entails why working continuously without watching for the fruit of labor is essential. Today we can acknowledge its importance. Working in such a way doesn’t make you stressed but enables you to enjoy the work. Fulfilling familial responsibilities becomes easier and less-cumbersome then. Anyway you are working for the sake of it. You certainly have the goal in your heart but your work is what will turn it into reality and not your stress.

One might think that this point is quite philosophical and it’s difficult to implement in real life. But when you understand its importance from health-point of view, you realize how crucial it is to follow. As is wisely said, nothing is more important than your health. This is not being selfish but the fact that should be kept on your topmost agenda; whatever work you are up to. No joy, no achievement, no certificate in the world is worthy at the cost of your health.

Our heart and al other vital organs like liver, kidneys, brain, etc work efficiently when we have a stress-free mind. No exercise in the world can help you boost your good cholesterol if you are stressed because of everything and everyone.

And at the back of all this stress are present ‘emotions’! Both positive and negative emotions need to be conquered. Also don’t run away from them and try to become indifferent. That will be the worse scenario. Recognize them, look at them from third man’s point of view, live with them, but don’t let them conquer you! Laugh at them at times. It will help you realize that nothing is worth brooding for!

As said above, make ‘emotion’ your strength and not something that weakens you! Your heart will thank you for sure!