Natural Healthcare Guide

In today’s world, almost everyone is on, or knows someone who is on antidepressants, but these medications only treat the symptoms of depression – not necessarily the causes. There are several ways to treat the causes of depression so that you can avoid those miserable moments altogether. First, be happy- your serotonin levels naturally increase – which is exactly what many antidepressants try to make happen. Expose yourself to the sun-  Exposure to bright sunlight for 30 minutes a day either through sunlight or a light made for this, helps keep your internal clock set. This circadian rhythm helps to regulate our sleep/wake cycle and insures a good night’s sleep which in turn, helps our physical and mental health. Don’t wear sunglasses though; the exposure must come through your eyes! Next Exercise Daily- 30 minutes at least 3 times a week. It’s also a good way to work through and release stress. You don’t have to run a marathon, just get your heart rate up to your ta...

Making hummus at home from scratch is a very simple process summarized as follows: first you soak chickpeas overnight, rinse with fresh water, boil for about an hour, then while still hot mash them in a food processor with Tahini paste, garlic, some salt and lemon juice for a few minutes and voila! Ingredients • 1 lbs dried chickpeas • 4 garlic cloves, crushed • 8 tablespoons tahini paste (pureed sesame) • Olive oil to taste • ⅔ cup of fresh lemon juice • ¼ teaspoon Paprika • ⅓ to ½ teaspoon salt Instructions 1. Rinse the dry chickpeas to get rid of any debris, then soak for 10 hours with ½ teaspoon of baking soda. If you don’t prefer to use baking soda, you’ll just have to boil them for a longer time so they get soft. Baking soda helps softening them quicker. 2. Once ready, empty the soaked chickpeas in a colander/filter to get rid of the soaking water, then rinse it with fresh co...

Sprouts always prompted us to call our mother. Why? Because when we were in kindergarten, she used yp grow and teach us how to grow our own sprouts in a jar. It seems like a good idea now to grow sprouts from organic seeds available in local organic shop. Method of sprouting is very similar. It's easy, and since the entire process only lasts a few days, you get instant gratification. All you need is a mason jar, some cheese cloth, a rubber band, and some alfalfa seeds. To get started: Put 2 tablespoons of seeds into the jar. Cover them with a few inches of cool water. Cover the top of the jar with cheese cloth and secure with a rubber band. Allow the seeds to soak overnight, then drain off the water. For the next few days, rinse the seeds in the morning and evening by filling the jar with some water, swishing the seeds around, and draining them. Store the jar in a spot away from direct sunlight. After three days, we could see white shoots coming out of the seeds. ...

Alfalfa is a perennial flowering plant and is widely known for its medicinal properties. It is widely used throughout the world and is popularly known as ‘lucerne’ in some countries like Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, etc. Different parts of the herb like leaves, seeds, sprouts, etc. are used to make medicines. Alfalfa is widely used for curing kidney ailments and increasing urine flow. It has also proved effective in controlling cholesterol, asthma and diabetes. It is also consumed as a source of Vitamins, and minerals like calcium and iron. Alfalfa is often referred as the miracle herb. Its leaves prevent the absorption in the guts and thereby, help in reducing the cholesterol level and the plaque formation inside the arteries. Hence, it reduces the chances of heart diseases and strokes. It also produces white blood cells which help in improving our body’s immune system. Alfalfa, when consumed regularly, also helps in strengthening the bones. It contains Vitamin K, ...

Before you launch into yet another slim-down plan, beware: Your workout plan may be working against you. Don't be too hard on yourself, though—it's not entirely your fault. Women's bodies are designed to stubbornly hang on to fat, possibly to maintain their ability to reproduce. For every kg of fat that women lost while dieting, their desire to eat increased about 2%. Exercise may trigger other defense mechanisms. When sedentary overweight women exercised for over an hour 4 days in a row, levels of appetite hormones changed in ways that are likely to stimulate eating (the opposite was found in men). But here's the good news if you want to learn how to eat less: You're not destined to succumb to your body's stay-fat traps. The first step is to know what you're up against—working out doesn't entitle you to eat whatever you want. Next, you need a smart exercise plan that curbs your hunger, coupled with an eating plan that fuels your workouts—not your ...

Psoriasis develops when a person's immune system has faulty signals that tell skin cells to grow too quickly. New skin cells form in days rather than weeks. The body does not shed these excess skin cells. The skin cells pile up on the surface of the skin, causing patches of psoriasis to appear. Psoriasis is a non-infectious, inflammatory disease of the skin. It is characterized by well-defined erythematous (reddish) plaques with large adherent silvery scales. The main abnormality in psoriasis is an increased proliferation of the skin layers due to excessive division of the cell in the basal layers of the skin. Severe itching may associate with the plaques. Dryness of the skin and silvery scaling are characteristics of this condition. According to Ayurveda, Psoriasis can be considered as the vitiation of Vata and Kapha. (Two of the basic energies/humors, which maintains our body equilibrium) Accumulation of low potency poisons (Dooshi vishas), are the basic pathological cha...