YOGA FOR REFRESHING YOUR HEALTH AN MIND

Nowadays, yoga is one of the popular exercises that people like to practice. Yoga helps the exercisers balance both the physical and mental system. Daily practicing yoga would not only refresh your health but also bring exercisers self-consciousness. Yoga was founded and practiced for more than 5000 years.

Firstly, yoga was originated in India. Later, it was known and accepted by millions across the globe as it is a good exercise to balance the physical and mental system. Yoga relaxes the exercisers and releases them from strain, which affects the efficiency of the nervous system. Practicing yoga on a regular basis would reduce pressures of daily life. As a result, the exercisers would learn how to master the right breathing system, which will rejuvenate their health, creative thinking, and good mind.

Advantages and disadvantages of Practicing yoga : Yoga is good for every generation worldwide. It is similar to fitness and gymnastics that its training needs a set of rules. Yoga is an applicable exercise to reduce strain and pressures. It can facilitate you to control your weight and also help you in the right breathing techniques and bring you peacefulness through meditation. The right breathing system is the key point for yoga exercisers all over. After practicing yoga, your body and mind get in touch with each other. This is what we call the body's art of balancing physical and mental health. Your consciousness would be build up little by little automatically. Then you could control and manage your emotions accordingly. Yoga gives you an elevated sense of self-esteem and be friendly to others because of a peaceful mind. Besides, yoga helps you to be able to manage your life efficiently due to a better consciousness.

But there are some dis-advantages or limitations of yoga too. Some kinds of training are not suitable for someone's health conditions. For example, the old should avoid some asanas that are too difficult to master, otherwise it will cause injury to the body. The practitioners should choose and modify the training programm which is suitable for their age, gender and physical conditions.

The right place for yoga training : When you are ready to start training, you should find a quiet and private area that makes you comfortable. It should be a place without interruptions, which would easily by available at home, where you are training.

How long could I reap my benefits from yoga training? :  Of course, it is the same as doing every other thing that it would take some time for you to practice yoga regularly before any changes appear. if you practice yoga on a regular basis, it's certain that you will see the changes in your body soon. You would realize how yoga brings you to be able to control your breathing system, emotions, mind and body on the whole. The more regularly you practice yoga, the faster benefits you would see.

Courtsy : Catherine Tyler

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Yoga can tackle psychological disorders

RESEARCHERS at the Dev Sanskriti University here say that a holistic way involving yoga and herbal medicines can combat psychological disorders. The researchers subjected 60 patients of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) to a combination of yoga, pranayam,  recitation of Gayatri Mantra and herbal medicines. The highly revered Gayatri Mantra is based on a Vedic Sanskrit verse from a hymn of the Rig Veda. The 60 participants were equally divided into males and females. They got 45 individual sessions of therapeutic interventions of holistic approach. Each session was of 60 minutes, with patients doing pranayam and Gayatri Mantra for 10 minutes each and yoga for  20 minutes.  The most widely utilized treatments now are pharmacological management and behavior modification, said an article in the first issue of the Dev Sartskriti University's Interdisciplinary International Journal. A major disadvantage of drug treatment for anxiety disorders was that the relapse rate was very high, said researchers Deepak Singh, Pranav Pandya, O.P. Mishra and Pragya S. Lodhi. Pandya is the chancellor of the university. Mishra is the Emeritus Professor of psychology while Deepak Singh and Pragya Singh are professors in the department of psychology. The "holistic approach produced significant reduction in the level of OCD". said the research paper. "The combination of these specific techniques has collective effect on the patients and causes significant reduction in the symptoms of OCD." the university said. 

"Thus, the holistic approach can provide a new strategy for management of OCD. The findings are an important exploration with wide scope for further research and applications," it said. The paper also said some of the medicines in the market "cause many side effects" and approximately 90 percent of patients suffer a relapse if they discontinue medication. 

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Stop touching your face to avoid flu

Something as innocuous as touching your face could infect you with flu, especially after your hands brush with contaminated surfaces, according to a study.  

“There are many opportunities in between hand-washing episodes for people to re-contaminate their hands. If a deadly respiratory virus is around , this is something to really take into account,” said Wladimir Alonso , from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, who led the study, according to Daily Mail. 

Alonso and colleagues picked 249 people to observe in public places on the Washington D.C. subway and in Florianopolis, Brazil, the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases reports. 

They found that people touched common objects an average of 3.3 times per hour and their faces 3.6 times per hour. “We are therefore likely to get germs on our hands far more quickly than they are washed off,” Alonso said.

Alonso said that during flu outbreaks, people should be reminded to try and avoid touching their faces as well as washing their hands regularly . But he added that while it was good to boost awareness, there was no need to be in a constant state of alert because the immune system offers good protection against disease. The advice is a timely reminder as cases of both flu and the norovirus (vomiting bug) peak over the winter months.

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Vitamin D protect women's mental health

Higher intake of vitamin D seems to protect mental health among women, besides keeping Alzheimer's at bay, say two new studies in France and US. The group led by Yelena Slinin, at the Medical Center in Minneapolis, found that low vitamin D levels among older women are tied with higher odds of global cognitive impairment and cognitive decline.

The group based its analysis on 6,257 community-dwelling older women who had vitamin D levels measured during the study of Osteopathic Fractures and whose cognitive function was tested by the Mini-Mental State Examination,the Journals of Gerontology Series A:Biological sciences and Medical Sciences reported.The team led by Cedric Annweiller, at the angers University Hospital in France,based its findings on data from 498 community-dwelling women.

Among this population, women who developed Alzheimer's disease had lower baseline vitamin D intakes (50.3 micrograms per week) than those who developed other dementia (59.0 micrograms per week).these reports follow an article publish in the Journals of Gerontology Series A earlier this year that found that both men and women who don't get enough vitamin D -either from diet,supplements, or sun exposure - may be at increased risk of developing  mobility limitation and disability.

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Dance your way to beat stress

Dancing helps girls overcome low spirits, stress, fatigues and headaches, besides contributing to their mental health and self esteem, says a study. According to the study, dancing also brings greater poise and capacity to deal with daily problems. 

Anna Duberg, physical therapist at Orebro University Hospital and a doctoral candidate at Orebro University, Sweden, conducted the study.

The study included 112 Swedish girls aged between 13 o 19 years. On multiple occasions, these girls had gone to see the school nurse for symptoms such as anxiety and depression, fatigue, headaches, and back, neck and shoulder pain, according to an Orebro statement.

In the study, 59 of the girls were randomized to a group that regularly danced together two days a week and 53 girls to control group where the girls did not change their living habits. The results indicated that the girls in the dance group, despite all the challenges entailed by being a teenage girl, increased their self-esteem compared with the control group.

The positive effect persisted at follow-ups four and eight months after the dance training ended. Ninety one percent of the girls in the dance group felt that the dance study had been a positive experience. In the long run this may also lead to a more healthy lifestyle.

Source : Hitwada (Stockholm, (IANS))

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Radish - A Cure for many ailments

Radish is a very common vegetable found abundantly in winter. Though they are available all round the year the best variety is found during the winter only. They are fresh, white, with plenty of water content and are very tasty to eat. They have a unique pungent and sweet taste. Roadside vendors sell radish by applying pepper and lemon juice to it. Variety of recipes is made by cooking radish and its leaves.

Radish is full of nutrition. They contain anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins and dietary fiber. They contain Vitamin C, Vitamin B-6, folates, thiamine, riboflavin and minerals such as iron, magnesium, calcium and copper.Vitamin C a powerful anti-oxident scavenges the harmful free radicals and protects from cancers and inflammations. They are low in cholesterol, low in saturated fats and low in calories.

Cough : Due to the change in season and the cold weather people often catch cold. Take one cup of radish juice and double the amount of sugar and bring it to boil till it comes to thick consistency. After cooling, store in a bottle. Daily one hour before meals add one spoon of it to a cup of warm water and drink. This will give relief from cough. 

Lose Weight : Radish is low in calories and high in digestive fiber. Eating radish in the form of vegetable is a good option for those who want to lose weight.

De-worming : Drink one cup to radish juice before going to bed. If giving to children it should be 1/4 of a cup for expelling worms from stomach.

Dental problems : Radish contains calcium which is good for bones as well as teeth. To stop bleeding from gums and pus secretion, cut radish into slices and sprinkle little salt and pepper and eat them. This will stop the bleeding of the guns.

Boils and bruises : Due to its anti-inflammatory properties radish can heal boils and bruises just by drinking 1/2 cup of radish juice. Make paste of the radish seeds and add little lemon juice to it and apply on the affected area three times a day to get fast relief.

Gives relief from fever : Owing to its anti-inflammatory properties radish fights against infections that cause fever. Drink a cup of radish juice by adding little black salt to get relief from fever

Kidney stones : Take off the leaves from the stem and crush it to extract juice. Add one spoon honey to a cup of juice and drink it. This will break stones and release through urine.

Scorpion bite : Crush the radish and pour the juice over the bite by adding little salt. Now  apply the crushed radish on the bite and tie the bandage. This counteracts with poison and reduces the paid.

Dog bite : For dog bite crush the leaves of radish and tie a bandage over the bite. This will stop the poison from spreading and also absorbs it from the affected area.

Jaundice : If suffering from jaundice drinking the juice of radish leaves by adding sugar helps in free bowel movement and fast recovery from jaundice. By administering three drops of the juice of leaves in both the nostrils, the yellowness of the eyes decreases gradually.

For new bald head : for those whose hair is receding and becoming bald can take a piece of radish before going to bed, rub on the affected area vigorously and wash off in the morning. If done regularly hair will start growing normally - as told by Dr. Elchuri.

Ear ache : To get relief from earache administer five drops of warm radish juice in the ear. Strain the juice in a cloth and see there are no particles in the juice.

Leucoderma : Make paste of radish seeds with radish juice and apply on the marks. Gradually the marks will disappear.

Joint pains : Make powder of radish seeds and take equal amount of misri (sugar candy) powder. Mix these two and store in a bottle. Take 1/4 spoon of this powder with water daily. This will gradually relieve you from joint pains.

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Relax to Reduce Panic at Work

Throughout ages, human body has been found susceptible to various kinds of infections and disorders. Such ailments include both physical as well as mental weakness. Since the declaration of anxiety as a serious physical disorder among humans, we have come through a series of relaxation techniques at work. These techniques consist of both medicinal and psychotherapy forms of treatment.

Anxiety can occur in various real life situations when a person goes through a very uncomfortable situation. Such uncomfortable situations create stressful moments in life. A streak of panic, sudden fear, attention, sweating profusely and a fast beating heart build in anxiety in an individual. Anxiety is commonly known as a mix of uncomfortable situations which a person would like to avoid.

As time passes by, anxiety treatments have come a long way along. Now people, who were earlier considering medication for anxiety-relate problems as the best cure, have proved themselves wrong. With the advent of new-age medication, the strategies to deal with such an ailment have also changed. Relaxation techniques at work are possibly the most efficient for the cure and prevention of anxiety disorders.

Types of treatments : The globally accepted form of treatment of anxiety is the cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and Pshychidynamic or Insight-Oriented psychotherapy. These are being followed as popular as relaxation techniques at work for people suffering and dealing with anxiety related problems. Anxiety can also be controlled and prevented with a variety of natural treatments.

Some of them are : 1) Meditation is one of the best way to keep the mind away from constant worry and reduce anxiety. Practiced since ages it has the power to give an individual a calm ans serene mindset. It helps stop the ongoing anxious clutter.

2) Get an acupunture treatment. Acupuncture reaches the tension points effectively. The needles ease the tense muscles and provide a calm feeling that controls and helps prevent anxiety.

3) Massages are a great way to beat stress. The calm feeling that massages provide relaxes the mind and body. It helps keep anxietyin control and even detoxifies the body. 

4) Some good diaphragmatic breathing can help ease anxiety anywhare. Sit in an open space or well-ventilated room and take some good, long and deep breaths. This will help control anxiety whenever you are.

5) Visualise yourself as a confident and calm person daily. IN no time you will be that person. Your anxiety will be under control by practicing visualisaion daily.

The relaxation technieues at work are different from usual medicinal treatments which comprise of anti-depresant and anti-anxiety drugs. These medicines definitely provide quick relief and certain level of pleasure. However, they have an effect on the patient for a very small period of time and come with a variety of side effects that can provide fatal at times. When a patient is undergoing a serious panic attack, these medicines are recommended under strict supervision of a medical practitioner, under such circumstances, the patient is thoroughly monitored and kep insurveillance at all times.

If an individual cannot deal with the side effects of heavy drugs, then it is a good idea to take up relaxation techniques at work. Medicines provide short term relief and cannot be administered for a lifetime. That is why relaxation techniques at work are helpful. It helps rejuvenate and recover faster. If an individual is not under a severe anxiety attachk, relaxation techniques at work must be considered.

Besides CBT, the other practice for relaxation techniques at work is Phychodynamic or Insight-Oriented psychotherapy which is actually an effective way to assess the pattern of thoughts and actions performed by the patient at different stages. According to the facts collected by the above mentioned relaxation techniques at work, the patient is diagnosed and then treated with utmost attention and care.

By : John Polish

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