Symptoms & remedies for backache's

Pain in the middle of back or lower down

In most cases of backache, the pain is usually felt either in the middle of the back or lower down. It may spread to both sides of the waist and the hips. In a condition of acute pain, the patient is unable to move and is bedridden.

People suffer from cervical and lumbar spondylosis

About ninety per cent of backache patients suffer from what is called cervical and lumbar spondylosis. It is a degenerative disorder in which the different vertebrae adhere to each other through bony unions. As a result of this, the spine loses its flexibility.

Causes of Backache

Muscular tension, straining of the joints, poor posture

The main causes of backache and spondylosis are muscular tension, straining of the joints, poor posture, and incorrect nutrition resulting from dietetic errors and lack of exercise.

Kidney or prostate problems, female disorders, influenza

Acute or chronic illnesses like kidney or prostate problems, female disorders, Influenza, and arthritis, may also lead to backache.
Sitting for a long time, high heels

Other causes include stress and strain resulting from sitting for a long time, improper lifting of weights, high heels, and emotional problems which may cause painful muscle cramping.

Home Remedies for Backache

Backache treatment using Garlic

The most important home remedy for backache is the use of garlic. Two or three cloves should be taken every morning to get results. An oil prepared from garlic and rubbed on the back will give great relief. This oil is prepared by frying ten cloves of garlic in 60 ml of oil in a frying pan. Any of the oils which are used as rubefacients, such as mustard oil. sesame oil, and coconut oil can be used according to one's choice. They should be fried on a slow fire till they are brown. After the oil has cooled, it should be applied vigorously on the back, and allowed to remain there for three hours. The patient may, thereafter, take a warm-water bath. This treatment should be continued for at least fifteen days.

Backache treatment using Lemon

Lemon is another useful remedy for backache. The juice of one lemon should be mixed with common salt and taken by the patient twice daily. It will give relief.

Backache treatment using Chebulic Myroblan

The use of chebulic myroblan is beneficial in the treatment of backache. A small piece of this fruit should be eaten after meals. This will give quick relief.

Backache treatment using Vitamin C

Vitamin C has proved valuable in case of severe backaches. About 2,000 mg of this vitamin should be taken daily for treating this condition. Considerable improvement will be noticeable within two days.

Backache treatment using Potato

Raw potato is an ancient home remedy for backache, characterised by incapacitating pain in the lumbar region, especially in the lower part of the back. Application of raw potato in the fom of a poultice has been found very effective in this condition.

Dietaries for Backache

Salad of raw vegetables, plenty of fruits

The diet of those suffering from backache should consist of a salad of raw vegetables such as tomato, carrot, cabbage, cucumber, radish, lettuce, and, at least two steamed or lightly cooked vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, spinach, and plenty of fruits, except bananas. The patient should have four meals daily. Fruit and milk are advised for breakfast, steamed vegetables and wholewheat chapatis for lunch; fresh fruit or fruit juice in the evening; and a bowl of raw salad and sprouts during dinner.

Avoid fatty, spicy fried foods and processed foods

The patient should avoid fatty, spicy, and fried foods; curd, sweetmeats and sugar; condiments; and tea and coffee. Foods that have been processed for preservation have few nutrients and should also be eliminated from the diet.

Symptoms of Skin Boils

At first, a painful red nodule appears on the skin. This grows bigger and then breaks down in the middle where the pus collects. The patient experiences a great deal of irritation and itching. There may be a single skin boil, or several boils in the same area or in different areas at or about the same time, or they may come in successive crops. The swelling may not be limited to one hair follicle but may extend to several follicles. When the skin boils ripen, they give out a discharge. Fever may sometimes accompany the boils.

Causes of Boils

Staphylococcus germs

Boils are caused mainly by staphylococcus germs which enter the sweat glands or hair follicles. The essential cause of this disorder is thus bacterial. However, several factors predispose the growth of bacteria in hair follicles.

Toxic condition in blood stream Of these, the chief factor is a toxic condition in the blood stream, which is due to a faulty diet and a frenetic pace of living. Boils generally appear when a person is in a run-down and devitalised condition.

Home Remedies for Boils and Skin Boils

Boils treatment using Garlic and Onion

Garlic and onions have proved most effective among the several home remedies found beneficial in the treatment of boils. The juice of garlic or onion may be applied externally on boils to help ripen them, break them, and evacuate the pus. An equal quantity of the juices of these two vegetables can also be applied with beneficial results. Eating of two to three pods of garlic during meals will also bring good results.

Boils treatment using Bitter Gourd

Bitter gourd is another effective home remedy for blood-filled boils. A cupful of fresh juice of this vegetable, mixed with a teaspoon of lime juice, should be taken, sip by sip, on an empty stomach daily for a few months to treat this condition.

Boils treatment using Milk Cream

Milk cream is beneficial in the treatment of boils. One teaspoon of milk cream, mixed with half a tea spoon of vinegar, and a pinch of turmeric powder, makes an excellent poultice. It helps in ripening the blood boils and in their healing without allowing them to become septic.

Boils treatment using Betel Leaves

Betel leaves are a valuable remedy for boils. A leaf is gently warmed till it becomes soft. It is then coated with a layer of castor oil. The oiled leaf should be spread over the inflamed part. It should be replaced every few hours. After a few applications, the skin boil will rupture, draining out all the purulent matter.

Boils treatment using Cumin Seeds

Cumin seeds are beneficial in the treatment of boils. The seeds should be ground in water and made into a paste. This paste can be applied to boils with beneficial results.

Boils treatment using Margosa Leaves

The use of margosa leaves has proved effective in boils. They can be used as a poultice, decoction, or liniment with beneficial results. To make the decoction, 15 gm of margosa leaves should be boiled in 500 ml of water till it is reduced by one-third.

Boils treatment using Parsley

To treat boils, this vegetable should be steeped in boiled water till it is soft and juicy. When comfortably hot, it should be wrapped with clean muslin or linen cloth and applied to the boils as a poultice.

Boils treatment using Turmeric

Application of turmeric powder on boils speeds up the healing process. In the case of fresh boils, a few dry roots of turmeric are roasted, the ashes dissolved in a cupful of water, and then applied over the affected portion. This solution enables the boils to ripen and burst.
Diet For Patients With Skin Boils

Fast on orange juice with waterA thorough cleansing of the system is essential for the treatment of boils. To begin with, the patient may fast on orange juice diluted with water on a 50:50 basis for three to four days, or adopt an exclusive diet of fresh juicy fruits from five to seven days.
Well-balanced diet

After the short juice fast or the all-fruit diet, as the case may be, the patient should adopt a well-balanced diet, with emphasis on wholegrain cereals, raw vegetables, and fresh fruits. Further periods of a juice fast or an all-fruit diet may be necessary, depending on the general health level and bodily condition of the patient.Avoid tea/coffee, cakes, pastries, condiments and sauces

The patient should avoid tea and coffee, starchy and sugary foods, especially cakes, pastries, sweets, chocolates, white sugar, and white bread. He should also avoid all condiments, pickles, and sauces.

Other Boils treatments

A warm-water enema should be given daily during the initial juice fast or all-fruit diet. This will help to cleanse the bowels.

Warm moist compresses should be applied three or four times a day over the tender area. This will help to bring the boil to a head and encourage easy drainage.

A hot Epsom salts bath is highly beneficial and should be taken by the patient two or three times in a week until the boils persist and once a week thereafter.

Other helpful measures in the treatment of boils are daily dry massage in the morning followed by a cold sponge.

Fresh air, breathing exercises, and outdoor exercises are also essential for toning up the system.
In case constipation is habitual, all measures should be taken to overcome it.

Facts about Women's Health and Fitness

A women's metabolism is generally (not always) slower than that of a man's due to which the struggle to stay slender and fit is greater in a woman most times.

Due to a slower metabolism rate, women tend to have a poor blood circulation, which is usually manifested through cold feet and hands in all types of seasons.

A women's hormonal balance is very different to that of a man due to which they often have huge mood swings; this usually occurs during the time one expects her monthly period.

Due to the above facts women deal differently with stress than men often, developing eating disorders. Easy Steps to Improve Women's Health and FitnessExercise - highly recommended women exercises are those that increase body metabolism such as jogging and power walking. Increasing body metabolism one burns calories quicker and improves blood circulation as well.

Diet - high in fiber; this helps with digestion, a problem most women face due to slow metabolism rate. Fresh fruits and vegetables are always of great help as well.

Water and other liquids - women's health and fitness is proportional to the amount of liquids one intakes. It is advised to drink no less than 2 liters daily. Coffee and tea do not count as they contain caffeine.

Regular Check Ups - Women's health and fitness can be kept under control when regular check ups are conducted. Do not skip a check up only because you think you feel good and therefore nothing can be wrong. Many diseases only show signs and symptoms in the late stages at which time it is harder to deal with and cure it.

A Helpful Tip - Don't take advice or follow someone else's diet or exercise schedule unless that advice comes from a professional - women's health and fitness is very complex and unique to each and every individual woman.

Get to know and understand your body's functions and needs. Seek and follow only professional advice to obtain best results and maintain optimum health and fitness conditions at all times

Essential Health Tips (The Basics to Practice Every Day)

"He who has health has hope, and he who has hope has everything." -Arabian Proverb

1.Move More

Make it a daily challenge to find ways to move your body. Climb stairs if given a choice between that and escalators or elevators. Walk your dog; chase your kids; toss balls with friends, mow the lawn. Anything that moves your limbs is not only a fitness tool, it's a stress buster. Think 'move' in small increments of time. It doesn't have to be an hour in the gym or a 45-minute aerobic dance class or tai chi or kickboxing. But that's great when you're up to it. Meanwhile, move more. Thought for the day: Cha, Cha, Cha…. Then do it!

2.Cut Fat

Avoid the obvious such as fried foods, burgers and other fatty meats (i.e. pork, bacon, ham, salami, ribs and sausage). Dairy products such as cheese, cottage cheese, milk and cream should be eaten in low fat versions. Nuts and sandwich meats, mayonnaise, margarine, butter and sauces should be eaten in limited amounts. Most are available in lower fat versions such as substitute butter, fat free cheeses and mayonnaise. Thought for the day: Lean, mean, fat-burning machine…. Then be one!

3.Quit Smoking

The jury is definitely in on this verdict. Ever since 1960 when the Surgeon General announced that smoking was harmful to your health, Americans have been reducing their use of tobacco products that kill. Just recently, we've seen a surge in smoking in adolescents and teens. Could it be the Hollywood influence? It seems the stars in every movie of late smoke cigarettes. Beware. Warn your children of the false romance or 'tough guy' stance of Hollywood smokers. Thought for the day: Give up just one cigarette…. the next one.

4.Reduce Stress

Easier said than done, stress busters come in many forms. Some techniques recommended by experts are to think positive thoughts. Spend 30 minutes a day doing something you like. (i.e.,Soak in a hot tub; walk on the beach or in a park; read a good book; visit a friend; play with your dog; listen to soothing music; watch a funny movie. Get a massage, a facial or a haircut. Meditate. Count to ten before losing your temper or getting aggravated. Avoid difficult people when possible. Thought for the day: When seeing red, think pink clouds….then float on them.

5.Protect Yourself from Pollution

If you can't live in a smog-free environment, at least avoid smoke-filled rooms, high traffic areas, breathing in highway fumes and exercising near busy thoroughfares. Exercise outside when the smog rating is low. Exercise indoors in air conditioning when air quality is good. Plant lots of shrubbery in your yard. It's a good pollution and dirt from the street deterrent. Thought for the day: 'Smoke gets in your eyes'…and your mouth, and your nose and your lungs as do pollutants….hum the tune daily.

6.Wear Your Seat Belt

Statistics show that seat belts add to longevity and help alleviate potential injuries in car crashes. Thought for the day: Buckle down and buckle up.

7.Floss Your Teeth

Recent studies make a direct connection between longevity and teeth flossing. Nobody knows exactly why. Perhaps it's because people who floss tend to be more health conscious than people who don't? Thought for the day: Floss and be your body's boss.

8.Avoid Excessive

Drinking While recent studies show a glass of wine or one drink a day (two for men) can help protect against heart disease, more than that can cause other health problems such as liver and kidney disease and cancer. Thought for the day: A jug of wine should last a long time.

9.Keep a Positive Mental Outlook

There's a definitive connection between living well and healthfully and having a cheerful outlook on life. Thought for the day: You can't be unhappy when you're smiling or singing

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Health Benefits Of Aloe Vera

The aloe plant is a part of the lily family but it is Aloe barbadensis commonly called aloe Vera, which is of great significance. The health benefits of aloe Vera have been propagated throughout the world and there are very few places where it has not made a dent.

Aloe Vera is available as a gel, spray, lotion, liquid, cream and in the form of a capsule. In India, physicians have been recommending creams made from aloe Vera especially for skin eruptions and allergies. Gels and lotions have become very popular in ayurvedic pharmacies Indian cosmetologists are turning to aloe Vera more than ever before.

The gel of aloe Vera has as many as 75 nutrients, which augur good health, has also turned out to be a very popular remedy for burns and wound. One important point to note is that it must be immediately applied in order to get relief from pain. The gel of aloe Vera is potent and it is got from the leaves. In fact, minor cuts, bruises and scrapes heal quickly on application of the gel. Even shingles, which can be very painful at times, responds to Aloe Vera.

Apart from providing relief from itching, it helps to heal the blisters and sores. For people suffering from Psoriasis, aloe Vera has provided relief by reducing the pain and itching. It has been proved that the gel causes considerable improvement in the nature of the lesions.

Although the benefits of aloe Vera are very useful for skin disorders, the juice is used in cases of people suffering from heartburn, ulcers and other digestive disorders. People suffering from indigestion or the irritable bowel syndrome have claimed that the juice of aloe Vera does provide comfort. It is sometimes used as a laxative. This juice acts as an anti inflammatory agent and in some cases is known to reduce the amount of stomach juices that are secreted. Several Japanese studies and clinical trials that have been conducted have shown that aloe Vera does have an impact on digestive system disorders.

The benefits of aloe Vera extend even to stimulating production of collagen and elastin both of which are necessary to prevent aging of the skin. As a moisturizer, aloe Vera is very popular as it removes dead cells and also aids in the penetration of healthy substances. It reduces the intensity of pigmentation and lightens dark spots on the face,. The cosmetic industry is exploring its potential and the world may soon see a mini revolution.

Muscle pain and pain in the joints occurring because of arthritis can be alleviated by the application of aloe Vera gels or sprays. In fact if it is used regularly, it can actually help regress arthritis. The gel of aloe Vera is said to have a beneficial effect in the decrease of total cholesterol, triglycerides and blood fat lipid levels. As these are major factors, which cause coronary heart disease, it is worth exploring its full potential. The extract of aloe Vera is known to steady even blood sugar levels.

The full power of aloe Vera and the health benefits of aloe Vera have yet to be tapped. It contains almost 20 amino acids, vital minerals like calcium, magnesium and sodium in sufficient quantities, enzymes, vitamins, polysaccharides, nitrogen and other components which make it a miracle substance

Home remedies for lower cholesterol

Onion juice reduces cholesterol and works as a tonic for nervous system. It cleans blood, helps digestive system, cures insomnia and regulates the heart action & helps in lowering cholesterol.

Sunflower seeds contain a substantial amount of linoelic acid which is helpful in reducing cholesterol deposits on the walls of the arteries.

Substituting oil of sunflower seeds for some of the solid fats like butter & cream will, therefore lead to a great improvement in health & lower cholesterol.

Home Remedies For Drinking Problems

Drinking alcohol in excess can make you look wrinkled and haggard, can destroy vital organs and, in general, ruin your life.

For the problem drinker, we strongly recommend the leading self-help organization for combating alcoholism-Alcoholics Anonymous. Headquartered in New York City, the organization is a support group for people with drinking problems.

Home Remedies
Before you have a drink, sprinkle nutmeg into a glass of milk and sip it slowly. It may help absorb and neutralize the effects of alcoholic beverages.

The Greek philosopher and teacher Aristotle (384-322 BC) advised his followers to eat a big chunk of cabbage before imbibing. Cole slaw-which is made from cabbage and vinegar-is said to be an even more effective intoxication preventive.

The best way to hold your liquor is in the bottle it comes in! One way to help you do that is, when sober, look at a man or woman who is drunk. It's not often a pretty sight.

Sober Up
The following remedies are for people who have drunk too much alcohol-that is, they may make them more alert and communicative. However, do not trust or depend on those people's reflexes, especially behind the wheel of a car.

If a drunk person imagines that the room is spinning, have him/her lie down on a bed and put one foot on the floor to stop that feeling. Honey contains fructose, which promotes the chemical breakdown of alcohol. If you know that the drunk person is not allergic to honey and is not a diabetic, give him 1 or 2 teaspoons of honey. Follow that up with 1 teaspoon of honey every half-hour for the next couple of hours.

WARNING: Do not give honey to some­one who is diabetic or allergic to honey.

To help sober up an intoxicated person, try feeding him cucumber-as much as he is willing to eat. The cuke's enzyme, erepsin, may dramatically lessen the effect of alcohol.

Try sobering up someone who's tipsy by massaging the tip of his nose.

CAUTION: Stimulation of the tip of the nose can cause vomiting, so don't stand right in front of the person you're sobering up.

This is a Siberian method of sobering up a drunk person. Have him lie flat on his back. Place the palms of your hands on his ears. Next, rub both ears briskly and strongly in a circular motion. Within minutes, the person should start coming around.

While he may be a lot more sober than before you rubbed his ears , he should not be trusted behind the wheel of a car.

Hangover Help
In simplified terms, a hangover is the disagreeable physical effect-a headache or nausea,for example-caused by drinking too much alcohol. Hangovers can make a fun night turn into a bad morning.
Hangovers can also be caused by an allergy or sensitivity to what you drank. Using homeopathic theory (like fights like), put 1 drop of the alcohol in a glass of water. Take three sips. If the hangover symptoms do not disappear within five minutes, then drink the rest of the glass of water. If you still don't feel better in a few minutes, then your hangover is not allergy-caused.

For the morning after, take 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper in a glass of water. Evening

primrose oil (soft gels are available at health food stores) is said to help replenish the amino acids and gamma-linoleic acid that's lost when you drink alcoholic beverages. Take 1,000 milligrams (mg) with lots of water or orange juice before you go to sleep. Too late for that? Okay then, take it when you wake up and are desperate for anything that will help you feel human again.

According to the Chinese, a cup of ginger tea will help calm an unsettled stomach caused by a hangover. To relieve eye, ear, mouth, nose and brain pain from the hangover, knead the fleshy part of the hand between the thumb and the index finger on both hands. For a pounding hangover headache, massage each thumb, just below the knuckles.

Sweet Solution
Take 1 tablespoon of honey every minute for five minutes. Repeat the procedure a half hour later.

Rub ¼ lemon on each armpit. That may ease the discomfort of a hangover.

If you insist on drinking, you may be interested to know that a research team from England advises drinkers to guzzle clear alcohols-gin, vodka or white rum-to lessen the chances of that "morning after" feeling. Red wine and whiskey seem to have more hangover-promoting elements.

Morning-After Breakfast
Bananas and milk is the breakfast of choice of many hangover sufferers. It may be effective due to the fact that alcohol depletes the magnesium in one's body, and bananas and milk replenish the supply.

You may want to add tomato, carrot, celery and/or beet juice to replenish the B and C vitamins along with some trace minerals that alcohol may also deplete.

Listen to a Wise Old Owl
The famed Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder (who lived from 23-79 AD and wrote a comprehensive encyclopedia called Natural history) recommended eating the eggs of an owl.

While owl eggs may be hard to come by, all eggs are a source of cysteine, which helps the body manufacture glutathione, an antioxidant that gets depleted when alcohol is present. So an omelet could be a helpful hangover breakfast.

Pliny may have eased the symptoms of many a hangover with those eggs. Look who was the wise old owl, after all.

Have a hangover? Feel like pulling your hair out? Good idea, but don't go all the way. Just pull your hair, clump by clump, until it hurts a little (don't pull the hair out).

According to a noted reflexologist, hairpulling is stimulating to the entire body and can help lessen the symptoms of a hangover.

When you have a throbbing hangover headache, eat a raw persimmon for relief. From now on, if you insist on drinking, make sure it's persimmon season.

Hangover sufferers are sometimes advised to just "sleep it off."That's smart advice, since a contributing factor to hangovers is the lack of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep which alcohol seems to suppress. $0 go ahead and sleep it off!

A Chinese hangover remedy calls for eating 10 strawberries and drinking a glass of fresh tangerine juice. Hmmm-sounds good even if you don't have a hangover. Hungarian gypsies recommend a bowl of chicken soup with rice. What could be bad?

Another Chicken Soup Remedy

Cysteine is an amino acid that helps the body manufacture glutathione, an antioxidant that gets depleted when it has the chore of contending with alcohol. According to a study performed at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), cysteine is present in chicken. Therefore, chicken soup may help replenish the body's needed supply of cysteine, easing hangover symptoms at the same time.
A glass of sauerkraut juice is said to be effective. If the pure juice is hard for you to take, add some tomato juice to it. Or, eat lots of raw cabbage. Thats been known to work wonders.

Gimme a B!
Some of the B-complex vitamins are B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), nicotinamide and pyridoxine. They are helpful in aiding carbohydrate metabolization, nerve function, the cellular oxidation process and the dilation of blood vessels, all of which are helpful for hangovers. Impressed?

If you have overindulged and are anticipating waking up with a hangover, take a vitamin B-complex supplement with two or three glasses of water before you go to bed. If you pass out before remembering to take the B-complex, take the vitamin as soon as possible after you awaken.

There are some of you who will not be happy until you find a "hair of the dog" hangover remedy. Here's one we were told comes from a voodoo practitioner in New Orleans.

In a blender, add 1 ounce of Pernod 1 ounce of white creme de cacao and 3 ounces of milk, plus three ice cubes. Blend, drink and good luck! "

Easing the Urge to Drink
A tangy beverage can ease and erase the urge to imbibe. Have a glass of tomato juice with the juice of one lemon added. You might also want to throw in a couple of ice cubes. Stir well. Sip slowly as you would an alcoholic drink .
The supplement glutamine is helpful in easing the urge for alcohol. Take 500 mg three times a day.

Intoxication Prevention
We're reporting the remedies that supposedly prevent a person from getting drunk,but we ask that you please take full responsibility for your drinking. If you drink, do not trust or test your reflexes-especially behind the wheel of a car-no matter how sober you seem to feel, or which preventive remedies you take.

Native Americans recommend eating raw (not roasted) almonds before drinking. Consume them on an empty stomach.
Healers in West Africa suggest eating peanut butter before imbibing.
Gem therapists tell of the power of amethysts.In Greek, amethyst is ametusios and means "remedy against drunkenness." Please don't take this to mean that if you carry an amethyst and you drink, you won't get drunk. It's that carrying an amethyst should give one the strength to refuse a drink and, therefore, prevent intoxication.

Women, Take Heed
Women who drink right before menstruating-when their estrogen level is low-get drunk more easily, usually become more nauseated and experience rougher hangovers than at any other time during their cycle.