Archive for October, 2009
Natural Insomnia Remedies
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s night time and you’re snuggled up in bed; and if you’re lucky it is dark and quiet.
So how is it that you’re still awake, listening to the seconds slowly tick by? And why is it you fall into a deep sleep minutes before your alarm us due to go off?
Although it’s common to have the occasional sleepless night, insomnia is the term for lack of sleep on a regular basis.
The (relatively) good news? It’s really not just you.
More than 12 million people (27% of the adult population) experience 3 bad nights sleep in an average week.
For 7 million (17% adult population) it’s the majority of nights; and for 3 million (7%) it’s every night.
One third of the population suffer from lack of sleep due to overactive thoughts.
While 13% find their bed partner is the main reason they don’t sleep.
And 1 adult in 10 suffers from nightmares.
Pain and physical illness such as sleep apnoea also keep us awake, along with noise and gastric reflux.
Then there are those who work nights or shifts.
Shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) is a circadian rhythm sleep disorder which affects people who change their work or sleep schedules frequently or who work longterm on other than the day shift.
Chronic insomnia can itself be a symptom of another condition, such as depression, heart disease, sleep apnea, lung disease, hot flashes, or diabetes, so it’s important to see a doctor if you are having trouble sleeping.
Although it may all seem bleak, there are many natural ways you can use that can help you to sleep.
The body’s circadian rhythm, which determines when you sleep and when you wake, is controlled by a hormone called melatonin - which is released by the pineal gland.
Researchers have found, for example, that people who find it hard to get off to sleep are usually deficient in their levels of serotonin, the synthesis of which also requires large amounts of vitamin B6 (pyridoxine.)
B6 can be found in carrots, cheese, avocado, fish, lentils, peas, potato, spinach, sunflower seeds, and wholemeal flour.
If you suffer from insomnia, you should eat more of these foods and cut out the high sugar foods such as white bread and white rice, which can cause fluctuations in blood-sugar levels.
Stick instead to a high, unrefined carbohydrate diet, which maximises the presence of L-tryptophan, a form of tryptophan, in the brain.
Nutri do a supplement called Somnalin that features a complementary blend of nutrients, including 5-HTP, theanine, and targeted B vitamins, to support restful sleep and harmony.
The list of herbal remedies that can help promote a good night’s sleep is impressive and ranges from everyday store cupboard offerings such as mint, rosemary, valerian, and the antispasmodic, muscle-relaxant, thyme, to the more exotic passionflower (for chronic insomnia) and saffron.
Chamomile is an excellent natural sedative and safe to give to children.
In the East, a hot foot bath is a traditional remedy for insomnia – the logic is that it draws the blood from the brain to calm a racing mind – and if you enjoy using essential oils when bathing, both lavender and lemon balm will help relax you.
Certain drugs, including oral contraceptives and beta-blockers, can play havoc with sleep patterns; caffeine, which stimulates the production of more adrenaline, is a major culprit in the sleep wars.
If you are drinking around 12 cups a day, you are ingesting a gram of caffeine – which is more than enough to keep you awake and counting sheep.
You also need to eliminate cola drinks, chocolate, tea, cakes, and biscuits.
It is also a mistake to use alcohol to help you get off to sleep. Although it may appear to do the trick, it actually destroys the B vitamins, which are important for maintaining normal sleep rhythms.
Flower Essences are also great for helping you to relax, switch off and drop off!
Cherry Plum for relaxing and letting go
Impatiens helps to release tension
White Chestnut is a great help for calming the mind
Additional essences
In cases which seem to require further help, a combination of Australian Bush Flower Essences Boronia (Boronia ledifolia) for persistent thoughts and mind-chat;
Crowea (Crowea saligna) for worry and anxiety;
And Black-Eyed Susan (Tetratheca ericifolia), for hyperactivity and haste, is good for releasing the particular kind of tension associated with insomnia.
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Autumn Sniffles
Posted by: | CommentsYou always know when autumn is here. The days are warmer and sunnier than they were in the summer, yet it gets light later and dark so much earlier. The wet, grey days appear a little more often.
And your nose never seems to stop running; you feel like a cold is coming but it never quite appears; and you feel tired even though you’re sleeping as much as you did during the summer.
The good news is… it’s not just you.
The better news is that you can do something about it.
There are many remedies that will help you feel better and leave you able to enjoy the beauty of the season. And the best part of all is that it is easy to make these part of your daily routine.
The best thing to do for the sniffles is to give your immune system a boost by drinking lots of pure water; getting lots of vitamin C (found in elderberries, blackcurrants & rosehips); and Zinc (found in nuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds).
Garlic is also good for the immune system—raw is best (if you’re worried about smelly breath then eating fresh parsley can neutralise the odour).
A good range of supplements are by CytoPlan particularly Vit C + Bioflavonoids, and Zinc Extra.
If you feel you’re at the start of a cold then taking an Echinacea tincture could be a good idea (Bioforce do a good one).
Depending on the type of cold you have, there are a range of tissue salts that could help: Combination H for Hayfever & allergic rhinitis; Combination J for coughs, colds & chestiness; or Combination Q for catarrh & sinus disorders (available at all good health food shops).
Home-made lemon & ginger tea can help to clear your sinuses, as can adding chilli’s to your soups or main meals.
If your sinuses are causing you trouble or your ears are blocked then you may benefit from a Hopi Ear Candle treatment.
If you are feeling tired even though you had a good nights rest, then the Flower Essence Olive can really help you find your feet.
And if you find that the dark nights and grey skies are getting you down, then the Flower Essence Mustard will really help.
As you can see, there are many little ways that can help you with your autumn sniffles.
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Heart Disease Numbers
Posted by: | CommentsHealth related statistics don’t mean much to the average person.
People are generally (understandably) concerned with their own health and that of their families to be overly worried about the health of the rest of the population.
However, occasionally some numbers do make us sit up and take notice. Hopefully! I wanted to bring one such number to your attention.
A recent report published by the American Heart Association stated that less than 8 percent of the American population are considered to be at low-risk for developing heart disease.
Let me repeat that. Less than 8 percent of the American population are considered to be at low-risk for developing heart disease.
That means 92% of the American adult population is at risk of developing some form of cardiovascular disease during their lifetimes. Worrying thought isn’t it?
This amazing number is an estimate from four national surveys of adults aged 25 to 74, compiled by Dr Earl Ford of the CDC’s Adult and Community Health Division.
The criteria they used to consider low risk was:
- Not currently smoking
- “Normal” blood pressure
- Not on medication for high blood pressure
- A healthy cholesterol level
- A BMI of less than 25
- And no diagnosis of diabetes.
Not overly hard to achieve.
You may be thinking that this is just America – that it doesn’t affect us here in the UK or Europe.
According to Guy De Backer, MD for the European Society of Cardiology “This paper should act as a wake-up call in Europe as well as the US since overall European risk factors are not so different.”
So take a moment to think about your family and friends. How many of them have high blood pressure or high cholesterol.
Do you know anyone with diabetes or someone who is overweight?
I think we all know at least one person that meets one of these criteria – perhaps even someone who meets them all.
So, the big question is “is it too late to do anything about it?”
Of course not.
By making changes to what and how we eat, moving a little more throughout the day, and just keeping an eye on our stress levels, we can have a huge impact on our health.
It won’t be quick and may not be easy (although you may be pleasantly surprised) but isn’t worth making the effort?
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How to Eat Healthily
Posted by: | CommentsOne thing that my clients often tell me is that they think they eat healthily. They then go on to tell me that they grab breakfast as they run out the door, eat lunch at their desks and eat dinner while watching the TV.
As you can imagine – our ideas of eating healthily don’t always agree.
One point that I do try to get across to them is that eating healthily is not only about the foods that you choose; how, when and why you eat can be just as important.
Here are some tips on how to eat in a healthier way.
Focus on your food and eat slowly.
Give your food your full attention when you are eating. Make the time to sit down and eat at the table rather than in front of the television. When you don’t concentrate on your food, you are more likely to miss the signals that you’re full.
The brain can take 15 minutes to get the message that your stomach has had enough, so eating too quickly can lead to you overeating without realising it.
Chew your food thoroughly.
Chewing food properly gets the digestive processes off to a good start. Food is broken down into easily swallowed pieces, mixing it with saliva to begin carbohydrate digestion.
Chew each mouthful carefully before beginning the next as indigestion and wind can be caused by not chewing properly.
Don’t skip meals.
We often think that depriving ourselves of calories is the solution to losing weight. Skipping meals can cause bad breath. The body burns up energy improperly and forms toxins that are released through the lungs. These toxins result in a recognizable smell of acetone.
Skipping meals can lead to your body’s starvation defences kicking in; hence your metabolism will be lower, and food will be atored as fat.
Fasting causes the body to use protein as an energy source even to the point of breaking down vital tissues such as organs and muscles. Excess protein is converted by the body to fat and stored.
Skipping breakfast is also not a good idea. After 10 to 12 hours without food, your blood sugar levels are low and your body and brain need a boost.
Skipping breakfast can affect your mood, concentration and eating habits for the rest of the day, leaving you more likely to snack or overeat at lunch.
Avoid drinking with meals.
It has become a habit for most of us to drink with our daily meals. Did you know that drinking freely during meal times can be harmful? Not only does it encourage hasty eating, but it also dilutes the gastric juice, thus lessening the activity.
Food should be chewed until sufficiently moistened by saliva to allow it to be swallowed. When large quantities of fluid are taken into the stomach, digestion does not begin until a considerable portion of the fluid has been absorbed.
If cold foods or drinks are taken with the meal, such as ice-cream, ice-water or cold juice, the stomach is chilled, causing a long delay in the digestive process. So take it easy with your drinks during meal times to aid healthy digestion.
Drink more water
Without water, your body would stop working properly. Water makes up more than half of your body weight and a person can’t survive for more than a few days without it. Why? Your body has lots of important jobs and it needs water to do many of them.
For instance, your blood, which contains a lot of water, carries oxygen to all the cells of your body. Without oxygen, those tiny cells would die and your body would stop working.
In addition to being an important part of the fluids in your body, each cell depends on water to function normally.
Your body doesn’t get water only from drinking water. Lots of foods contain water, too. Fruit and vegetables contain quite a bit of water.
Making these small changes to how you eat can help to make you feel healthier.
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