General Articles

Control Your Diabetes the Natural Way

What is diabetes? Why do we need to cut down our sugar intake?

Can you imagine your favorite chocolate, candies, cola drinks, spreads, cakes and other baked products, sweet goodies and other food stuff without the presence of one of the most important ingredients: sugar? It will be so heartbreaking if sugar is missing from our junk food. Sugar is sweet to healthy people, but when being a diabetic, sugar has a bitter taste which is the usual reaction of a person experiencing a syndrome disorder in their metabolism called diabetes mellitus or diabetes for short. Having a diabetes condition makes a persons’ sugar level rise due to an insulin deficiency or an insulin malfunction. According to the studies, there are already millions of individuals that are diabetic and might soon exceed to 350 million by year 2030 which sounds alarming, doesn’t it. We might not enjoy our favorite sweet products if this major ingredient of sugar is not found in our favorite junk food of choice.

Types of Diabetes

If not properly controlled, the type-1 diabetes condition may become persistent that could even lead to organ malfunctions and other complications. Aside from the fact that diabetes is all about high level of sugar in the body, another common thing is that this disease will last for a lifetime. The major treatment of type-1 diabetes, even in its earliest stages, is the delivery of artificial insulin by means of injection combined with careful monitoring of blood glucose levels using blood testing monitors. Nerve damage can cause your hands and feet to hurt, tingle or feel numb. Either of the 3 types of diabetes, if not properly treated and medicated and if not being implemented regularly may lead to heart attack, eye problems, nerve damage, gum disease, kidney problems and more. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes.

Diabetes Treatment

Ask for help from your friends and family if you are feeling stressed, which will help you to overcome the stress. Practice self discipline to make your diabetes care plan work. If oral medications are still an insufficient form of treatment for your type 2 diabetes then you should consider taking insulin.

Alternative Diabetes Cures Through the Herbal Way

These converted pieces of food are taken as protein, fats and carbohydrates which will be used to fuel our body for energy. To name a few herbal cures, patients who use bitter melon (ampalaya) or momordica charantia usually use these cures imported from the Orient. Once we encounter difficulty in absorbing sugar, diseases like diabetes may be at hand. When our body malfunctions or suddenly experience any abnormality, it may only conclude that there is something wrong within. In order to start an alternative regimen, the expert needs to look into your medical history and look for some factors such as, physical, mental, psychological and emotional symptoms of a person. Diabetes may be treated with medical treatments and with alternative diabetes cures. As a result of medical expenses, most people are starting to adopt alternative diabetes cure treatments to cut down on their expenses.…

There are many techniques to have a more restful sleep. You can ensure you receive a good night’s sleep regardless of whether you want to get more rest, experience less stress, or focus better. You can get there with these 6 Sleep Doctor-Recommended Secrets to a Better Night’s Sleep.

Melatonin

Melatonin might aid in sleep if you have trouble falling asleep. However, discuss the best way to utilize it with your sleep doctor Austin Tx before taking it. If you take drugs for treating epilepsy, blood thinning, or anticoagulants, you should be aware of any potential interactions between melatonin and those drugs.

If you have a health condition like dementia, you should avoid using melatonin. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine advises against melatonin use in those who have Alzheimer’s disease.

Avoiding caffeine at least five hours before bedtime

If you have insomnia, try to avoid caffeine at least five hours before bedtime to help you get a good night’s rest. Caffeine can interfere with your ability to sleep and can have severe effects on your body.

Caffeine is found in various standard drinks, including coffee, chocolate, and soda. It is also found in many over-the-counter medicines. The FDA recommends limiting your caffeine intake to 400 milligrams per day.

Depending on how much caffeine you take, it can either positively or negatively affect your sleep. Caffeine blocks the adenosine receptors, which are responsible for promoting sleep. However, caffeine can also cause unwanted wakefulness.

Keeping your sleep area as dark as possible

There is much debate about how to snag that all-important zzz at the end of the day. Whether a slumbering princess or a slumber scalawag, you’ll need to make your bed at least once a week for optimal results. One approach to achieve this is to make sure your bedroom is dark. Not only will this help reduce the amount of time you spend in your pajamas, but it will also go a long way toward warding off those pesky insomnia scroungers. A sleepy bed will also free up space for those other luxuries such as Netflix and chill.

Wearing socks to bed to warm up those “popsicle toes”

Do you know that wearing good socks can improve your sleep quality? It is especially true of women. You were keeping your feet warm while you slumber can have many health benefits, including increased sleep duration and lowered blood pressure. Using a foot warmer can also help you sleep more soundly and boost your immune system. So, do it now!

Investing in top-notch socks and wearing them with your go-to shoes is the easiest way.

Weighted blankets

Weighted blankets are designed to induce a sense of calm by using deep-pressure stimulation. It is thought to relax the nervous system and increase melatonin levels, a sleep hormone. The calming effects of these blankets can be very therapeutic for patients with various health conditions.

A weighted blanket can help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep for a more extended time. These blankets also reduce the tossing and turning that occurs in the early stages of sleep.

Studies have shown that weighted blankets can also help alleviate symptoms of anxiety. These blankets have been shown to reduce the insomnia symptoms of people with depression and other mental health disorders.

Avoiding cola

The caffeine in cola can harm your sleep patterns. You can have a more challenging time falling asleep, wake up more often at night to use the restroom, and won’t get a whole night’s sleep. Fortunately, there are a few steps you may take to avoid coke insomnia.

Reduce your consumption of cola as one of your initial actions. Substitute sparkling water with natural vitamins and electrolytes. Fizzy water will keep you hydrated, and choose flavors.…

Which Tea is Best?

Tea is a popular drink, and it has many health benefits. However, when you stand in the tea section of the supermarket, you can see a wide variety of choices. What makes them different?

True tea is from a bush that originated in China. There are several different types, depending on processing and when it is picked.

White Tea: This tea is harvested while the leaf buds are still immature. They have fine, silky hairs, unlike the other types of tea. It’s also the least processed, so it contains more nutrients.

Green Tea: The leaves are quickly dried upon harvesting to prevent oxidation. There may be many health benefits for green tea, including reducing the chance of developing hardening of the arteries, lowering cholesterol and perhaps even preventing some types of cancer.

Black Tea: Oxidation of the leaves is allowed when processing black tea, it is what gives it the full bodied flavor. It, too, has many health benefits. Like green tea, it may help lower cholesterol, reduce the likelihood of atherosclerosis, and prevent some types of cancer. It may also help decrease the dizziness some people feel when they first stand up.

Oolong Tea: The benefits are the same, though the taste is not. This is somewhere between green and black, so the leaves are partially oxidized.

Pu-erh Tea: Many people in the West are unfamiliar with this product. The tea leaves are allowed to develop a mold on the leaves. It probably doesn’t have the same health benefits of the other types.

A lot of people call herbal infusions “herbal tea.” It has become an acceptable term, though it is actually a misnomer. There are dozens of different combinations, each offering different benefits. That’s the good news. When selecting them, I do recommend some caution. Some herbs do interact with medications, and they are just as likely to have side effects as medications. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if the tea you select will cause problems if you do take prescription medicines.…

The Amazing Health Benefits Of Lemongrass Tea

We can sometimes see lemongrass in the herb section of the supermarket. It looks like a long green stalk with white colored endings. While this herb has been popular in Asia for thousands of years, it is relatively new to North America, where it has been made popular by the many Asian restaurants – particularly Thai restaurants. It is an ingredient in many curries and soups. Asian supermarkets almost always stock it but you can now find it in your local supermarket nowadays.

It is also easy to grow, especially in humid climates, if you like gardening. In fact it is so easy that you could soon have an excess. You can harvest it several times during the growing season. Just cut off the upper part of the leaf and it will grow back easily. The plant has a lovely lemony smell. When you use it in cooking, you usually crush (or bash) it with the blunt end of a knife as this releases its flavor.

It is also used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is also used in the perfume industry. It can be used externally as a poultice for arthritis or sore joints. It is also good for coughs and colds and can also help as part of a dextox program. Sometimes called fevergrass, it is no surprise that this herb can help to reduce fever.

Sometimes this herb can be found in mosquito repellants. It has also antifungal properties. Since many of us have yeast in our bodies – often from a diet of processed foods and sugary drinks, drinking this herbal tea can help us to eliminate yeast infections.

It has also been discovered in Israel that the citral, which is a main property of this lovely herb, can help to kill cancer cells without harming healthy cells. However, if you are undergoing cancer treatment, please consult your oncologist or other medical professional for his opinion about lemongrass and not simply go ahead and drink it as it may interact negatively with other medicines and only your doctor would know.

This herbal tea is not only good for many things but it tastes great. It is a most refreshing tea and is great both in the winter and summer. It does not contain caffeine. You can also drink it cold with ice and extra lemon or a hint of a mint leaf. Your guests will love it too. Remember, it is best made from the fresh stalk.…

Healing With Herbal Tea

Herbal tea, also known as an herbal infusion or tisane, is the process of selecting medicinal plants, flowers, or roots and steeping them in hot water to extract their healing properties. Teas have been used by every major culture across the world and across the span of history, and in the modern day they are making a serious comeback in the natural healing fields. Using herbs for tea is a simple way to bring the natural and gentle powers of plants in to your life without having to have tons of information or experience behind you. Many herbal tea varieties are both healthy and tasty, and the process of enjoying a hot cup of tea can be the most relaxing and enjoyable part of your day!

Selecting An Herb To Use In Your Tea

It’s a good idea to start using herbal teas one herb at a time. Check the internet or review books on herbal healing to see which specific, individual herb matches your individual healing needs best. For example, if you have a sore throat and are a fan of sweets, a nice anise seed herbal tea may be just the thing you need. If you have other health concerns, are pregnant, nursing, elderly, or are working with a child, make sure to check with an herbal professional and your doctor to ensure the herb you choose is completely safe for you.

Choosing Which Herbs To Buy

When it comes to selecting herbs to buy for tea, the options are endless. The best way to buy herbs is in bulk so that you can save money and store them for future use. If you aren’t able to get bulk organic herbs where you live, try to find pre-packaged herbs in tea bags for use at home. If you fall in love with the process of brewing and steeping tea, you may want to consider the best way of getting healing plants – growing them on your own!

What You’ll Need To Brew Herbal Tea

You’ll need to have just a few simple basic on hand to create the perfect healing drink anytime. A strong, heat proof mug, a kettle, and a spoon should do the trick! traditionally, enamel or stainless steel kettles are preferred. Choose an earthenware, porcelain, or ceramic mug for drinking your teas. The spoon can be used to mix up your tea, press excess nutrients from a tea bag, or help cool your drink off after steeping it.

How To Brew The Perfect Cup

Bring fresh spring water to the point where it is just about to boil, then remove it from the heat. This temperature is ideal for most all tea varieties – although some roots and rhizomes may need to be prepared in a different way for best results. Pour the water gently over about one measured teaspoon of your herb, or over your pre-packaged tea bag. You should be using about one cup or eight ounces of water. Immediately cover your tea mug with a lid or small plate and allow it to steep for six minutes. Once the time has passed, remove the plate, take the teabag from the cup, and give your drink some time to cool.

Remember that tea is hot! Take care in drinking, carrying, holding, and placing your tea – and avoid having small children or pets nearby if they are prone to being curious about the things you are interacting with. Also, make sure to turn off your heat source and empty out any remaining hot water from your kettle.

Enjoy The Benefits!

You’ll find that organic herbal tea is a simple and effective way to relax, rejuvenate, meditate on the day, and bring healing nutrients and essentials in to your body. There are herbal teas for just about everything you can imagine – so have fun trying them all!…

Bee Balm – A Beautiful Garden Herb Called Oswego Tea

Bee balm is a perennial herb, Monarda didyma, that is native to North America. It’s a member of the mint family, Lamiaceae. Bee balm is a plant that grows best in damp habitats, adjacent to rivers and back waters, near springs and ponds. It is naturally found in wetland areas, thickets and fields.

Stiff, square stems grow three to five feet tall. The large, opposite leaves are a few inches long and oval to lance-shaped with a long-pointed tip. The terminal flowers are arranged in a composite flower head. The tubular flowers appear to have two lips with one tube pointing upward and the other pointing down. Long stamens protrude beyond the brightly colored blossoms. The odd crimson and scarlet flowers attract butterflies and hummingbirds. The bracts that lie just beneath the flower heads are maroon or reddish.

The natural blooming period is late spring through summer. When cultivating bee balm in a garden, it can be forced to bloom twice a year. When the first leaf begins to turn yellow after the blooming is complete, cut the plants down to just a few inches tall. The plants will grow again to bloom in the fall.

Bee balm is cultivated in herb gardens for a source of herbal tea leaves and as a very attractive flowering plant. It can be a very successful garden plant when planted in full sun. It’s popularly planted to attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

Bee balm is also known as Oswego Tea. During the colonial period in early America colonists became angry at having to pay high tariffs and high taxes. The Boston Tea Party was an event where English tea was dumped overboard in the Boston harbor as colonists rebelled against excessive tariffs on imported goods. Native Americans, in the region that was to become New York State, made an herbal tea with bee balm. Although the herbal tea was used by Native Americans for treating coughs, colds, fevers, stomach-ache and other maladies, the colonists adopted it as a replacement for English tea.

Bee balm is also called ‘Sonoran oregano’ because the dried leaves can be substituted for oregano in cooking. The crushed leaves have a peppery flavor that is great for stews, bean dishes, pasta and pizza sauce. Native American tribes of the Southwest, such as the Pueblo and Zuni, use fresh leaves in salads in the spring and summer and dried leaves as a spice in the winter.…

What’s That You’re Drinking?

Choosing the right beverage to consume every day can mean the difference between health and illness. It sounds so dramatic but it’s true; healthy beverage choice is important. Put down that soda and pay pop is not good for you, for a number of reasons. First of all, anything that has either diet sweetener or high fructose corn syrup needs to go. Nobody loses weight by drinking diet sodas and yes, there have been studies done about that. Second, artificial sweeteners are bad for you, especially the top two: aspartame and sucralose. Beyond that, the other ingredients in sodas are chemicals used in floor polish (makes the bubbles pretty) and other nasty things. As if that weren’t enough to horrify most unsuspecting consumers, there is the problem of bone leaching that occurs due to the high phosphorus content.

Try something that is actually good for you, like iced green tea. No, not the sweetened, chemicalized …stuff they sell at the store. Get yourself some green tea bags and make some at home. If you must use a sweetener, use stevia or raw honey, but try to go without as soon as you can. Try iced herbal teas as well and add a sprig of peppermint to spice it up a bit. Of course, you could just buy the peppermint tea bags. Peppermint is wonderful for those who have a lax lower esophageal sphincter (the valve between stomach and esophagus). The condition known as GERD (Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease) is often helped by peppermint. No, that doesn’t mean that eating peppermint patties is a good idea. Boy, I really have to keep my eyes on you guys, don’t I?

If you have to do something to fool yourself into thinking that what you are drinking is ‘special’ then freeze some fruit into your ice cubes so you have something pretty to look at while you’re swirling the ice around in your tea. Even easier is the idea of putting some lemon or lime slices in your water glass, which is very healthy. You can also put a splash of fruit juice into your water, but that means about a tablespoon, not half the glass. The problem with fruit juice is that it too has too many additives and it is very high in sugar. One glass of orange juice has LOTS or oranges in it-way more than anyone should consume at any one time. Not only that; high fructose corn syrup has made it into juice now because it’s much cheaper than sugar. When you realize that people have turned themselves into diabetics in less than two months by swilling drinks with corn syrup in them, you might realize that this is a serious problem.

Drinking lots of coffee isn’t a good idea either. Choose something to drink that is both healthy and non-dangerous if you imbibe a whole lot of it. Of course, even water is dangerous if you drink gallons of it (it dilutes the blood) but most of us couldn’t drink that much water. Ah…I just heard my father’s voice in my head: “Water! Hell no-it pollutes the pipes!” Dad was joking of course and the joke was in reference to having a martini or water. Just find something to drink that you like, is healthy for you, and hydrates the body properly. We are, according to a Star Trek episode, “big ugly-looking bags of mostly water.”

A�2010 Dr.Valerie Olmsted All Rights Reserved…