Dec 282017
 

ayurvedic treatment for diabetesPrameha, according to Ayurveda is a group of urinary disorders. There are 20 types of urinary disorders (prameha) based on doshas. Among these 20 urinary disorders (prameha rogas), 4 are due to vata, 6 due to pitta and 10 due to kapha. Diabetes that is characterized by an increase in blood sugar levels and frequent micturition is a type of vataja prameha, known as “Madhumeha”. The causative factors and pathogenesis are very important to be noted in the Ayurvedic Treatment for diabetes.

Causative factors of diabetes

  • Excessive consumption of food especially: the meat of domesticated/aquatic animals, curd, milk, newly harvested grains, jaggery/molasses
  • Food and drinks that increases the kapha dosha.
  • Overindulgence in sleep
  • Living a sedentary life
  • Laziness

Knowing the causative factors are very much essential in the  Ayurvedic Treatment for diabetes. Ayurveda says that “Nidana Parivarjanam chikitsa which means that elimination of the causative factors is one the main steps in treating a disease. 

Due to the above causative factors, agni is disturbed and kapha dosha gets aggravated which vitiates the fat, muscle and watery elements (medas, mamsa and udaka) of the body and causes prameha that is predominant of various doshas.

Madhumeha

Madhumeha is a type of vataja prameha that can be co related to Diabetes. In this condition, the urine of the person becomes similar to that of honey. (“Madhusamam jayate”).  It is also said that any type of prameha that is not treated properly eventually becomes madhumeha over a period of time. Similar to the modern theory pertaining to diabetes, Ayurveda also has mentioned about congenital type of prameha known as “Sahaja prameha” and acquired type of prameha known as “doshaja prameha”.

Ayurvedic treatment for diabetes

Ayurvedic treatment for diabetes is based upon the built of the patient as sthoola pramehi (obese patient) or krisha pramehi (lean patient) based upon the dosha predominance.

Purificatory therapies like panchakarma are performed as the first stage of treatment in an obese patient and then rejuvenating herbs and formulations are prescribed. Whereas in cases of a lean patient with prameha, nourishing therapies are done in the first stage of treatment.

Herbs used in the Ayurvedic treatment for diabetes

Saptarangi – Salacia Oblonga

Haridra – Curcuma longa (turmeric)

Shilajit – Asphaltum (mineral pitch)

Haritaki – Terminalia chebula Retz.

Amalaki -Embilica officinale (Indian Gooseberry)

Jambu – Syzygium cumini

Guggulu – Commiphora mukul

Guduchi – Tinospora cordifolia (Neem giloy)

Nimba – Azadirachta indica (Neem)

Bel – Aegle Marmelos

Herbal remedies, if taken correctly, have a powerful effect on your body but should only be used under the care and guidance of an Ayurvedic practitioner. Most of these herbs target elevated blood sugar levels and balance the same.

There are several home remedies and ayurvedic medicines that you can take for lowering of your blood sugar levels.  As a precaution, you should monitor blood sugar on a regular basis.  Blood sugar level should not fall drastically with all these medicines and remedies.  Kindly speak to your allopathic doctor and reduce the dosage of the antihyperglycaemic drugs, so that you can use the Ayurvedic formulations simultaneously.

Home Remedies in the Ayurvedic treatment for Diabetes

  • Drink a glass of bitter gourd juice mixed with amla juice, added with half teaspoon of turmeric powder, daily morning on empty stomach.
  • Mix half teaspoon each of amla powder and turmeric powder in a glass of warm water and consume it n an empty stomach.
  • Include fenugreek seeds in your daily diet.
  • Consumption of Jamun seeds (dried and powdered) has proved to beneficial in case of type 2 diabetes.
  • Jamun seeds are said to be highly beneficial in treating diabetes because of its effect on the pancreas. Dried and powdered seeds should be taken in the dose of 1 tsp twice daily with warm water.
  • Water can be stored in the cups/containers made from the trunk of the jamun tree and that water can be consumed in the morning.
  • The seeds of parslane are useful in diabetes. A teaspoon of the seeds should be taken everyday with half a cup of water for 3-4 months. It will increase the body’s own insulin and will help in curing diabetes. The leves can also be cooked and taken as a vegetable.
  • Neem leaves should be ground and made into a paste and a small bolus of this should be added to water. This should be taken on empty stomach in the morning.

Ways to Reduce Insulin Resistance

  • Add 1 tsp of cinnamon powder to a glass of hot water and drink it daily for a couple of months.
  • Mix ground flax seeds to a glass of water and drink daily.
  • Consume fish oil which is rich in omega 3 fatty acids. It will improve insulin sensitivity. It will also help to reduce body fat.
  • To help balance insulin, consider a diet consisting primarily of lean meats and protein, high-fiber, whole grains, leafy greens, fresh vegetables and legumes, and fresh fruit.
  • Essential fatty acids (EFA) or healthy fats, are important to help insulin resistance. These fats include tuna, salmon, and other cold-water fish; fish oil supplements, eggs, avocado, and flaxseed, which can be taken in as a nutritional supplement.

Home Remedies for Oedema (Fluid Retention)

The main reason for oedema is improper blood circulation due to damaged blood capillaries as a result of increased pressure. Damaged capillaries cause peripheral oedema, leakage of fluids into surrounding tissues, which causes swelling.  Here are some natural remedies that you can try:

  • Elevation of feet (above the heart level) using a support or a pillow for 10-15 minutes every day can help to reduce swelling.
  • Regular exercises will improve the blood circulation to the legs.
  • Massage improves blood circulation in the entire leg and reduces pain associated with swelling.You may use Chinchadi tailam for massage. It improves the circulation.
  • Avoid wearing tight shoes. It’s better to buy shoes with one size bigger so that even if your feet are swollen, circulation won’t reduce totally.
  • Apply a paste of coriander seeds soaked in water on the affected area to relieve the water retention in your feet.
  • You can also soak your limbs in rice water for 15-20 minutes for relieving water retention and removing swelling of the leg. Rice water is also good for drinking when you have a swollen leg. This will help in microcirculation and removal of inflammation.
  • Restrict salt intake.

Healthy Diet for Diabetes

  • A diabetic patient should never skip meals.
  • Proper meals on time is a must.
  • Sprouted horse gram, green gram, barley can be taken after boiling or in a soup form.
  • oats, brown rice, flax seed, garlic, onion, cinnamon, fenugreek can be taken regularly.
  • Fruits including berries and apples, vegetables like spinach, cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, all types of gourds and squashes can be taken.
  • Tender coconut water can be taken and the whitish pulp should be avoided as it is high in sugar and fat.Taking coconut water directly improves blood circulation and helps to widen the vessels for smooth blood circulation.Therefore, coconut water provides great relief against fighting the symptoms and side effects of diabetes. It suppresses the appetite and also increases metabolism. Hence it is an ideal drink for obese diabetic patients.  Only pure and unflavoured (fresh) coconut water should be taken.
  • Raw honey can be taken that is astringent in taste and will not elevate the blood sugar levels.

A diabetic patient should avoid the following food items in their diet:

  • Fried and grilled (BBQ) food should be completely avoided.
  • Jackfruit, mango, banana, potato, fruit juices, meat should be avoided.
  • Regular consumption of curd
  • Consumption of milk and other dairy products
  • Food rich in high glycemic index like the white rice, white flour, potatoes, white bread, pasta
  • All kinds of junk food, processed and canned foods are to be avoided.

Ayurvedic treatment for diabetes includes strict diet and lifestyle changes along with the consumption of ayurvedic medicines.

Lifestyle changes:

Lifestyle changes that have to be done in the ayurvedic treatment for diabetes are :

  • Brisk walk for atleast 30 mins in a day
  • Resistance exercises like weight lifting
  • Aerobic exercises like Walking, Jogging/Running, Tennis, Basketball, Swimming, Biking
  • Yoga postures like Mandukasana, Soorya namaskara, Pawana muktasana helps a lot in controlling the blood sugar and insulin resistance. Click here to read more about yoga for diabetes.

Ayurvedic Medicines for Diabetes

If you are looking for Ayurvedic supplements to manage diabetes, Salacia-O capsule is a beneficial formulation, which should be taken in the dose of 1 capsule twice daily, 30 minutes before food.

Traditional Ayurvedic formulations beneficial in case of diabetic patients are:

Katakakhadiradi kashayam

Punarnavadi kashayam 

Chandraprabha vati

Nishamalakadi churnam

Guduchi satva

Triphala churna

Salacia oblonga

Glucobalance

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Dec 202017
 

what to do when you have a bad cough?Coughing is a protective reflex but continuous coughing can be pestering and painful. A cough is often triggered due to mucus that runs down the throat. Here are some simple home remedies for wet cough.

What to do when you have a bad cough?

  • At night, take a glass of hot milk mixed with 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder.
  • Drink warm onion soup with a pinch of pepper powder and ginger.
  • Take 1/2tsp each of tulsi juice and honey with yashtimadhu powder for an allergic cough.
  • Take 2 tsp of the juice of betel leaves with 1 tsp of honey 30 minutes after each meal.

Simple Home Remedies for wet cough

  •  Grapes tone up the lungs and act as an expectorant, a cup of grape juice mixed with a tsp of honey is advised for cough relief
  • 1 tsp of raw onion juice mixed with 1 tsp of honey, kept for a few hours, should be taken twice daily to relieve wet cough.
  • Heat karpooradi thailam, mix with salt and apply it to the chest, throat, and face. Massage for 10 minutes and then Steam should be taken with hot water. Doing this procedure regularly cures phlegm of the chest and throat.
  • A medium sized onion crushed, juice of 1 lemon added to it, and then 1 cup boiling water poured on it, along with 1 tsp of honey.This remedy should be taken twice daily.
  • Belleric myrobalan powder 2grams, mixed with 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of long pepper and 2 tsp of honey, should be taken twice daily.
  • Aniseed is another effective remedy for hard dry cough as it breaks up the mucus. A tea made from this spice should be taken regularly.
  • Take 1 tbsp of lemon juice and add half tsp of black pepper powder and salt each.Mix well and heat the mixture till it becomes lukewarm. Consume this mixture once daily.
  • In a glass of hot water, add half tsp of black pepper powder and cinnamon powder each. Add 1 tsp of salt, allow it to rest till it turns lukewarm. Gargle with this decoction for beneficial results.
  • Ginger in combination with tulsi is also an effective remedy for a cough. Crush about 10 leaves of Tulsi, mix with juice extracted from a small ginger piece.  Add an equal quantity of honey and mix.  Take 1 tsp of this twice daily for beneficial results.
  • Slightly crush about 4 cloves of peeled garlic and saute in a tsp of ghee. Consume this daily to get relief from a cough.
  • Boil a few corns of pepper in water for  20 minutes. Mix a little cumin and jaggery and drink.A quarter part of an onion mixed with jaggery can be chewed daily, to expel the sputum.
  • Chewing on licorice root and sucking on it clears the mucus off the throat.
  • Chewing basil leaves or making a tea out of basil leaves, ginger root and honey and taking it once or twice a day cures congestion from the chest.
  • Gargling with warm water mixed with salt soothes the throat and makes the mucus thin.

Click here to know more about Ayurvedic treatment for cough

All the above things are answering and addressing your main question on what to do when you have a bad cough and these home remedies for wet cough will help you get rid of them in a very effective manner . If you are looking for Ayurvedic medicines for the treatment of cough/upper respiratory tract infection, apart from the home remedies for wet cough, I would recommend the following formulations:

The first line of treatment in Ayurveda for cough when it is associated with phlegm is to remove the accumulation of phlegm. Ayurvedic medicine for cough with phlegm is Dasamoolakaduthrayam kashayam.

Ayurvedic medicines for cough and cold that is effective in all age groups are Kanakasavam, Thaleesapathradi churnam. Click here for more on remedies for a cough.

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Dec 062017
 

Unwanted facial hair is a cause of concern of about 60% of the women. It not only affects the physical appearance but in few cases leads to stress. Even though women find their own temporary solutions or try several home remedies for facial hair to have that clean look, it leaves them puzzled on how to remove the facial hair naturally!

Medically termed as Hirsutism (pronounced Hur-soot-ism) is a condition of male pattern hair growth in women. This condition is more common in teenage girls after puberty or mostly in women of reproductive age. The degree of hair growth and texture might vary from person to person. Other than on the face one may notice excessive hair growth on the chest, abdomen and back. It can be a sign of serious underlying medical condition that requires medical attention.

Hirsutism can affect any gender but is a cause of worry for a women particularly due to social concerns.

Causes of Hirsutism

  • Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome:  This is most common causative factor for hirsutism, obesity, irregular periods and acne.
  • Hormonal imbalance:  A tumour that secretes androgen in the ovaries or uterus may cause hirsutism. 
  • Medications. Some medications can cause hirsutism. These include danazol, which is used to treat women with endometriosis; systemic corticosteroids and fluoxetine (Prozac) for depression.
  • Cushing’s syndrome:  This occurs when your body is exposed to high levels of the hormone cortisol. It can develop from your adrenal glands making too much cortisol or from taking medications such as prednisone over a long period.
  • Congenital adrenal hyperplasia: This inherited condition is characterized by abnormal production of steroid hormones, including cortisol and androgen, by your adrenal glands.
  • Hereditary factors: In some cases, the problem runs in the family.

Risk factors:

There are certain factors that increases the likelihood of developing hirsutism.

Obesity: Being overweight or obese can increase the androgen levels in blood that may cause hirsutism.

Familial history : Women whose mother or grandparents affected with hirsutism are likely to develop this condition.

Endemic regions: Women of South Asian or Mediterranean regions are more likely to suffer from hirsutism than other women.

How to identify hirsutism?

  • This problem is self diagnosed from the pattern of hair growth after puberty.
  • The hair growth follows a male pattern of hair distribution, more on the upper lip, chin, neck, back, stomach and chest.
  • The hair looks more coarse and dense than the normal peach fuzz light hair that is seen on the whole body.

Although hirsutism doesn’t cause physical complications, the underlying cause of a hormonal imbalance can.

How to remove facial hair permanently in Ayurveda?

Lomasathana Thailam

Lomasathana thailam is an ayurvedic herbal oil for Removing unwanted hair from body. This oil comes from the great Ashta vaidya tradition of Kerala and is very effective in removing unwanted hair due to different aetiology like PCOS, hormone imbalance, etc.

Dosage:

Take 10 – 15ml – external application.

Mode of administration:

·          The oil is mixed with equal quantities of kasturi haldi and applied on the face.

·          Wash it off with warm water after 20 – 30 minutes.

·          Repeated use give better results.

Treatment and home remedies for facial hair:

Treatment of hirsutism includes medications and home remedies for facial hair, cosmetic procedures that gives short term and long term relief.

  • Medications that are generally prescribed are anti- androgenic medicines, oral contraceptive pills or tropical creams containing eflornithine. These drugs gives relief as long as they are taken and also comes with a wide range of side effects.
  • Treating the underlying conditions such as PCOS, hormonal imbalance helps.
  • Other procedures that may be found helpful are electrolysis or laser hair removal depending on the growth and type of the hair. These are effective after 6-8 sittings but are very costly.
  • Short term therapies include bleaching, waxing, epilator creams, shaving and threading. These are pocket friendly procedures but the results aren’t long lasting And most of these are really painful.
  • Due to the failing results from medications and cosmetic therapies, one may turn towards home remedies for facial hair which gives considerable results in most of the individuals.

You may try the following home remedies for facial hair consistently for beneficial results:

  1. Peel and grind raw papaya.  Add turmeric powder and mix well. Massage your face with this paste for fifteen minutes and wash with cool water. Repeat this once or twice weekly.
  2. Turmeric mixed with milk and made into a paste can be applied as face pack. When it is dry mildly scrub and remove.
  3. Make a paste of chickpea flour, turmeric powder and fresh cream.  Apply this paste as a face pack.
  4. Mix few drops of honey and lemon juice in egg white and apply on affected area. When it is about to dry, remove with cotton dipped in warm water.
  5. Mix sugar, lemon juice and water. Apply this to your face in the direction of hair growth and  Leave for 15-20 minutes. Wash off with water by rubbing gently. Do this twice or thrice a week. After few weeks, you will see noticeable reduction in hair growth.
  6. How to remove facial hair naturally in one day?  Mix sugar and cornflour in egg white. Beat it till you get a smooth paste. Apply this egg mask to your face and let it dry.Once it is dried, pull this egg mask along with the hair.
  7. Applying honey alone on the affected area can lighten the colour of your facial hair and make it blend in with your skin colour. This has to be done on a daily basis. You can also read about natural face packs for hair removal here.
  8. Consume foods rich in Phyto estrogens like flax seeds, fennel, liquorice, alfalfa, asparagus, soy products and aloe vera.
  9. If you are obese, losing excess weight also reduces facial hair growth.
  10. Decoction prepared of Anantmool can be consumed to regularize your hormones.
  11. Spearmint is a drug having anti-androgenic property which is one of the health benefits of spearmint that aids in the removal of unwanted hair.A study conducted by Turkish researchers indicates that spearmint tea can help women with hirsutism. The study subjects were given herbal spearmint tea twice a day for five days in the follicular phase of their menstrual cycles. The follicular phase begins on the first day of your cycle and lasts about 14 days.

Spearmint tea: 

  1. Boil a cup of water. Add one teaspoon of dried spearmint to it. If you have fresh spearmint leaves, use four or five of them.
  2. Cover the container and let it steep for about five to 10 minutes.
  3. Strain and drink the tea.
  4. Have it twice daily.

12. DIY “Lemon and honey wax” home remedies for facial hair:

Things Required:

  1. 2 tablespoons of sugar
  2. 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
  3. 1 tablespoon of organic honey
  4. 1 to 2 teaspoons of cornstarch or all-purpose flour
  5. Water, if required
  6. A waxing strip or a piece of cloth

Procedure:

  1. Mix the sugar, lemon juice, and honey.
  2. Heat the mixture for about 3 minutes, till it becomes a waxy paste.
  3. To make the paste thinner, you can add water. Ensure that the paste is smooth.
  4. Allow the mixture to cool down.
  5. Apply the cornstarch or the flour on the areas where you have unwanted hair.
  6. Next, spread the paste in the direction of the hair growth.
  7. Using a waxing strip or the piece of cloth, pull the hair out in the opposite direction.

This home wax does not cause any allergic reactions a chemical wax does.

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