March 2011

1. Peppermint oil. Rubbed on the forehead, temples or back of the neck, peppermint essential oil has a way of dissolving headaches into nothingness.

2. Willow bark. Known as the natural alternative to aspirin, willow bark is actually what aspirin was originally made from. It contains the pain-relieving compound salicin, and is one of the most common natural remedies for headaches.

3.  Take a nap. Ever notice how the world seems renewed after a nap? Sometimes just a simple power nap is enough for your body to reboot and squash your headache.

4. Eat something! Headaches are often a sign that you've gone too long without eating a balanced meal. In fact, my last headache is a good example: I'd gotten caught up in working and hadn't eaten in a while. Next thing you know, I had a raging headache pounding my brain. Needless to say, I couldn't work much after that. An ounce of prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure in this case!

5. Acupuncture. This increases blood flow to tissues and is shown in studies to prevent migraines.

6. Water. Headaches can be a sign of dehydration. Sometimes drinking a tall glass of pure water is enough to stop a headache in its tracks. Staying hydrated is also a good way to prevent headaches from occurring in the first place.

7. Massage. A good massage improves circulation and is obviously relaxing, and it might be just what you need to melt away that headache. In any case, we all need more excuses to get a massage!

8. See a chiropractor. Being out of alignment can definitely give you head pain. Many report that regular visits to the chiropractor is highly effective for relieving headaches and migraines.

9. Feverfew. This herb has been used since ancient times to treat pain, including headaches.

10. Hot showers. As with a massage, I'm always up for an excuse to take a hot shower. I always feel more relaxed and rejuvenated afterward, which goes a long way in relieving headache pain.

11. Baltic amber necklace (milk and butter color). Amber is a powerful chakra cleanser and healer. At a physical level, is imbues the body with vitality and has the power to draw disease out of the body. By absorbing pain and negative energy, amber allows the body to rebalance and heal itself. Amber alleviates stress.

12. Acupressure. Not quite the same as acupuncture (no needles), one suggestion is to pinch the spot between your thumb and index finger. Gently increase pressure until there's a dull ache, then hold until your head pain subsides.

13. Magnesium. If you're deficient in magnesium, it could very well be the cause of your headaches and migraines. Correct the deficiency, end the migraines. And magnesium supplements can get rid of a headache that's already begun as well.

14. Cold packs. Whether an ice pack or a cool washcloth, cold can definitely ease headache pain.

15. Yoga. The benefits of yoga include improved circulation, relaxation, healthy blood pressure, and heightened neurotransmitter levels. All of these combined make for a great headache remedy.

16. Cherries. Cherries contain the active compound Quercetin, which is a powerful antioxidant and has strong anti-inflammatory properties. Users report that eating cherries or drinking cherry juice helps tremendously with headache pain.

17. Get outside. Let's face it: the air inside of our homes and other buildings isn't ideal. Fresh air is vitally important for health, as is getting adequate sunlight. A few minutes outdoors can be surprisingly refreshing, even enough to relieve your head pain.

18. DLPA. This supplement (a form of the amino acid phenylalanine), naturally increases dopamine levels, which can help ease pain of all kinds.

19. Salt loading. This one sounds interesting (haven't yet tried it myself), and has to do with detoxing bromide from the body.

20. A cup of tea. Not only is a warm cup of tea relaxing, but a tea that uses herbs like peppermint or willow bark can also directly help reduce your headache pain. Green tea is also especially helpful, as it contains a small amount of caffeine, which some people find helps with headaches and migraines.

21. Eliminate the cause. This is more of a long term approach, but it's by far the most effective. Food additives like aspartame and MSG can cause migraine headaches. So can food allergies like gluten intolerance. Find out if your diet is causing your headaches, and you'll be on the road to real recovery.

www.thenourishedlife.com

Americans grew fatter at a faster pace than residents of any other wealthy nation since 1980, during a period when obesity worldwide nearly doubled, researchers found.

Almost 10 percent of the world’s population was obese in 2008, according to studies published today by the medical journal The Lancet. The percentage of people with uncontrolled hypertension, or high blood pressure, fell, with high-income countries showing a larger drop. Cholesterol levels declined in North America, Australia and Europe, but increased in East and Southeast Asia as well as the Pacific region, researchers said.

The rise in obesity, as measured by body mass index, is worrying and may lead to an increase in diabetes, said Majid Ezzati of Imperial College London, who led the research. Ezzati suggested taxing sugary drinks and sweets as well as rethinking transportation, such as adding bike lanes.

“We are at best buying some time” Ezzati said in an interview yesterday. “We have to get very serious about BMI, beyond good intentions.” Policy changes may begin to reduce obesity in as little as five years, he said.

The findings about Americans and obesity add to evidence that the U.S. has a weight problem. About 68 percent of American adults are overweight, raising their risk of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and cancer, according to the 2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Almost 34 percent are obese.

Slim Singaporeans

Researchers from Imperial College, Harvard University’s School of Public Health and other institutions analyzed government statistics and multinational studies to track changes in body mass index, cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

Body mass index considers a person’s weight relative to their height. A reading of over 30 is considered obese, while more than 25 is overweight.

In 2008, 9.8 percent of men and 13.8 percent of women globally were obese, compared with 4.8 and 7.9 percent respectively in 1980, the researchers found. Among rich nations in 2008, the U.S. had the highest BMI at 28 on average, followed by New Zealand. Japan had the lowest index, about 22 for women and 24 for men. Singapore residents were the second slimmest.

The U.S. saw the fastest rise of body mass, about 1 point per decade during the 28 years of the study, of any wealthy nation, the researchers found.
Risk Factor

An increased body mass index is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and ailments of the muscles and the skeleton, leading to 3 million deaths worldwide annually, according to the studies. High blood pressure is the leading risk factor for cardiovascular deaths, killing 7 million each year, while high cholesterol leads to about 4.4 million deaths each year, the study said.

Controlling blood pressure, total cholesterol and smoking will cut cardiovascular disease rates, even if obesity and diabetes rise, Salim Yusuf and Sonia Anand of McMaster University in Canada, said in an accompanying editorial.

On average, Pacific Islanders have the highest body mass index in the world, reaching 34 to 35, 70 percent higher than countries in sub-Saharan Africa and countries in Southeast Asia. In Europe, Turkish and Czech women are the heftiest, while Swiss females were the slimmest.

The second study showed that blood pressure is highest in the Baltic region as well as East and West African countries. Portugal, Finland and Norway have the highest blood pressure readings of rich countries, while South Korea, Cambodia, Australia, Canada and the U.S. had some of the lowest.

Western European countries including Greenland, Iceland, Andorra, and Germany led global cholesterol levels. African countries have the lowest cholesterol.

Among high-income countries in the west, Greece has the lowest cholesterol for men and women, while the U.S., Canada, and Sweden also had low cholesterol.

The work is part of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries and Risk Factors Study, which is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The study also received funding from the World Health Organization.

Anxiety attacks can range from mild to debilitating and demonstrate themselves in numerous symptoms.

For the most part, an anxiety or panic attack brings on an intense feeling of anxiety of worry that causes feelings of fear, physical illness, and discomfort. In some cases there is an event that triggers such an attack, but it is also possible that the trigger is unknown. The episodes can be random and come on instantly.

During the attack the body produces extra hormones to prepare the body for its “fight or flight” action, which is what causes the symptoms to become more profound. A person who suffers from anxiety attacks will tell you that he/she feels like they are having a heart attack or cannot breathe, thus giving them the feeling that they are going to die. It may cause them to try to flee from the area in order to try to
escape the feelings of anxiety or panic.

The most common symptoms of such an attack include increased blood pressure and heart rate, which often causes flushing of the skin, chest tightness or pain, profuse sweating, a feeling that you are sick to your stomach or that you may throw up, and a feeling of lightheadedness. In the majority of sufferers, the feeling of chest tightness precipitates an attack, which leads them to think they need to call emergency services.

There are different triggers and causes of anxiety attacks. Heredity plays a part in this and studies have found that panic attacks tend to run in families. At the same time, people with no family history also develop such attacks, so the cause cannot be based on heredity alone. Many panic attacks have been attributed to deficiencies in the diet, such as a deficiency in Vitamin B. Phobias result from anxiety attacks when a person is exposed to a real threat over a long period of time.

The use of caffeine can lead to such attacks, especially during the withdrawal process. Doctors have also found that thyroid problems and anemia lead to feelings of anxiety that can develop into full blown attacks the longer the condition goes undiagnosed and untreated. There are many people who perceive a threat in their everyday life and can actually talk themselves into an anxiety attack when they worry excessively about what might happen if an event occurs.

Traumatic experiences in one’s life can also be a trigger for such an attack. Although those who suffer from anxiety attacks feel as if they are going to die, these feelings are the body’s ways of preventing this from happening. When a trigger occurs, the body starts producing extra adrenaline to prepare it for strenuous physical activity, such as running, which may be needed to ward off the threat. This, in turn, increases the heart rate and breathing rate and increases the amount of perspiration.

When no physical activity occurs or is needed, then these increases in the body cause hyperventilation as the levels of carbon dioxide increase in the heart and lungs. This increase in carbon dioxide is the cause of the feelings of dizziness, nausea, and sensations of numbness in the limbs. Breathing into a paper bag can help alleviate anxiety attacks, although many experts say it can be dangerous. Taking deep breaths from the abdomen helps to slow down the heart rate and bring the blood pressure back to acceptable levels, thus reducing the intensity of the attack.

Breathing exercises become essential as you get older because age does reduce the level of oxygen in your lungs. When you only take shallow breaths, as you do in normal breathing, you will eventually notice stiffness in your rib cage as the muscles surrounding the diaphragm start to lose their elasticity. This causes stale air to build up in your lungs that is composed mostly of carbon dioxide.

Rapid shallow breathing also leads to heart disease after a number of years or excessive feelings of tiredness. Breathing exercises to cleanse the stale air in your lungs should be practiced on a daily basis. You do not need to set aside a long period of time for this – five to ten minutes is sufficient. You can do the exercises when you wake in the morning or just before you go to sleep at night.

In fact, if you engage in these exercises when you go to bed, they will help your muscles relax making it a lot easier for you to fall asleep and get a good night’s rest. You should lie flat on your back to do breathing exercises. Make yourself as comfortable as possible. If you need to, place some small pillows under your neck and knees so that you spine is straight. As you breathe naturally, take notice of the rise and fall of your chest and abdomen.

Lay your hands on your stomach, just below your rib cage where your diaphragm is located. The lungs do extend down to this point. Take in a deep breath until you feel your lungs reaching down to this point. A helpful tip to let you know when the lungs extend to this point is to place your hands so that the tips of your middle fingers are slightly touching each other.

As you take a deep breath and your lungs expand, your fingers will start to move apart. In true breathing exercises let the muscles of your stomach relax and feel it filling with air. Once you feel as if your belly is full, let the air expand your chest and lungs. As you let the breath out slowly, you will feel your stomach start to pull inwards forcing out the last bit of air. You can also do humming breathing exercises in which you make a humming sound as you exhale slowly. By concentrating on your breathing and humming each time you exhale,you will experience a feeling of relaxation in all parts of your body. Chinese breathing exercises involve taking short breaths.

To do this exercise you take three short breaths in through your nose without exhaling between them. For the first inhalation, lift your arms out from your sides so that they stand out in front of you at shoulder height. On the third inhalation, open your arms out to your sides, still keeping them at the same height. When you take in the third inhalation, lift your arms up over your head. Then as you exhale, you bring your arms back to the starting position by your sides.

You should not take more than twelve breaths in this exercise because it can cause you to feel lightheaded. One caution about this form of breathing exercise is that you should only engage in this exercise when you are in a sitting position. It could cause you to hyperventilate if you are standing or lying down.