Potential Natural Remedies For Asthma

April 13, 2010 By Natural Health Reporter Leave a Comment

Asthma is a very serious medical condition. Difficulty breathing is not something that should be taken lightly. In fact, severe asthma attacks can lead to death. That’s why it’s so important to follow the doctor’s advice and use your designated medication if you have an attack. However, there are many natural remedies for asthma that can prevent attacks from occurring.

Of course, not all natural asthma treatment options work for all people. Finding a prevention technique that works for you could take time. Here are some possibilities to try, though.

Easy Breathing

There are actually some breathing techniques that seem to help with asthma prevention. One is the Buteyko Breathing Method. It involves shallow breathing, which improves oxygen exchange.

A study of sixty people with asthma showed that most cut down inhaler puffs by two puffs every day. However, this shallow breathing technique is not a substitute for carrying an inhaler with you at all times.

Diet Adjustments

Changes in diet can help to reduce stress on the body. Specifically, changing your diet can reduce inflammation. Since inflammation is viewed as one of the possible asthma causes, limiting it is definitely good.

One place to start is to consume less arachidonic acid in your diet. Meats, egg yolks and shellfish are especially high in it. You can also start eating more omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in oily fish. Although, it’s often easier to just take it in a supplement pill form.

Fruits and vegetables can also be very helpful. Carrots, tomatoes, apples and leafy vegetables are great. Also, bromelain, which is an extract from pineapples, can reduce inflammation associated with causing asthma attacks.

Butterbur

Butterbur is another possible asthma prevention option. It’s an extract from a plant and it’s good at reducing inflammation, too. The trouble is, it can have some side effects. Some of those include headaches and nausea.

There are also other cautions, when it comes to butterbur. For example, people with liver or kidney problems shouldn’t use it. Also, pregnant or nursing women shouldn’t use it either.

Aside from that, there’s more. All parts of the plant that butterbur comes from can’t be taken. In fact, many parts of it are toxic. So, you have to be sure to get the extract from a reliable source where only the inflammation-reducing components have been used.

Again, it’s important to remember that natural remedies for asthma are to be used for prevention only. It’s also better to talk to your doctor before trying any. If you have an actual asthma attack, there’s no substitute for your medication.

Filed Under Natural Remedies Tagged With asthma attack prevention, asthma remedies, natural remedies for asthma

Ringing Ears – Remedies For Tinnitis Do Exist!

April 12, 2010 By Natural Health Reporter Leave a Comment

Ringing in the ears is also known as tinnitis.  There are many remedies for tinnitis, so it’s not the end of the world.  Although, it can be extremely annoying!

The first thing you should know is that tinnitis doesn’t necessarily mean you’re losing your hearing.  It also doesn’t necessarily stick around for a long time. Generally, it’s a temporary condition.

Manifestation:

Tinnitis can manifest itself as a ringing sound in one ear or both ears.  It can also be more of a buzzing, hissing or otherwise fuzzy sound.  Sometimes the ear, or both ears, might be painful, but not always.  Also, the sound might occur all day or only for a few minutes here and there.

Causes:

Tinnitis can be caused by a lot of things.  Ear infection is one of the most common causes.  Another is high or low blood pressure, especially a rapid change in the blood pressure one way or the other.  Ear wax, thyroid problems or allergies are also common causes.

An inner ear problem, known as Menieres disease, a head injury or a deficiency of some sort can also cause tinnitis.  Some such issues are easier to treat than others.  For example, if you can figure out what you are deficient in, you can usually take a supplement pill to counteract the tinnitis.

Natural Tinnitis Remedies:

One of the many natural tinnitis remedies that you could try is massage.  Head and neck massage, or even massaging the ear itself, can sometimes relieve the problem. Acupuncture might also be helpful to you.

As mentioned earlier, vitamins and supplements may also help.  However, be warned that over dosing on some vitamins and minerals can cause more problems for you.  So, it’s important to figure out what you’re deficient in, if anything, before taking supplements.

Herbs, such as Gingko Biloba, can also be used to treat tinnitis.  Gingko can also help with issues associated with tinnitis, such as concentration trouble, dizziness and headaches.  So, it’s definitely worth looking into.

Talk To The Doc:

It’s important to note that some forms of tinnitis are more serious than others. So, you should identify the cause of your tinnitis early, by talking to your doctor.  He or she can let you know if natural remedies are a good idea for your specific case or not.

Retrain Your Brain:

Finally, although they aren’t remedies for tinnitis itself, some find that hypnosis or therapy can improve their situation.  The idea is to retrain your brain to not notice the buzzing or ringing as much.  That way, you can concentrate better.  The problem with such therapy is that it doesn’t actually fix the problem.  So, be sure that your tinnitis is not being caused by a serious medical issue before going that route.

Filed Under Natural Remedies Tagged With home remedies, natural tinnitis remedies, remedies for tinnitis, ringing ears, tinnitis, tinnitis remedies

A Few Examples Of Home Remedies For Boils

April 7, 2010 By Natural Health Reporter Leave a Comment

Boils are also known as furuncles or skin abscesses and they can be very painful and annoying, even though they aren’t usually dangerous. There are many home remedies for boils, but a lot depends on the type of boils you have.

Boils And Staph:

Staph, or Staphylococcus Aureus, can be a very serious illness. It can also be easily spread from one body part to another and, worse yet, from one person to another. Staph infections can sometimes cause boils and often come with fevers. If you suspect Staph, you should see your doctor right way.

Average Boils:

Of course, most average boils aren’t nearly as dangerous as Staph. They’re usually more like particularly painful and pus-filled pimples. Doctors traditionally treat boils with a process called lancing, but that’s not a good home treatment.

Here are a few things to try at home, instead:

Heat

Heat is one of the best ways to relieve the infected boil situation. If you put a sterile hot compress on the boil every 15 minutes, it will soon get the pus to the surface. Between treatments, be sure to use anti-bacterial soap to wash both the boil area and your hands. Keeping things clean is very important.

Turmeric

Turmeric is a spice found commonly in Indian curry. It has many anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. So, it can be good at curing a boil, if you catch the problem and start taking turmeric early enough.

There are many ways to take turmeric. You could try it in a tea, curry or soup, for instance. It doesn’t necessarily matter how you take it. All that matters is that you get in a teaspoon worth of turmeric at a time and take it three times each day.

A Warning About Hydration:

Staying well hydrated is always a good thing. Dehydration can cause many illnesses, after all. It can also make you generally feel tired all the time.

If you take turmeric, though, drinking water is even more important. That’s because turmeric can make you sweat. Sweating dehydrates your body. Since you lose so much water, as you sweat, that water must be replaced. If it isn’t, you could suffer from dehydration symptoms.

Cystic Acne:

Remember, not all conditions that look like standard boils are. Cystic acne, for example, is not the same as a boil. Sometimes cystic acne spots will go away with no treatment. Other times, though, it may require antibiotic treatment.

Although home remedies for boils can be great, don’t assume that they’ll fix every problem. It all depends on what sort of condition you have. So, be sure to get a diagnosis from your doctor and discuss remedy options with them. That way, you’ll get the best, fastest results.

Filed Under Natural Remedies Tagged With boils treatment, cystic acne, furuncles, home remedies for boils

Are Organic Foods Better For You?

April 5, 2010 By Natural Health Reporter Leave a Comment

If you’re reading this article, chances are that you have some interest in organic foods. That’s probably because you’ve heard all of the hype since the 1990’s or so about how chemically treated foods are bad and organics are good. How do they really stack up against each other, though?

Organics

Well, studies have indicated, for one thing, that there are many helpful components that are found in higher quantities in organic foods. For example, organics often contain more antioxidants, which fight disease-causing free radicals in the body. Organic foods also often contain more calcium, vitamin C and Magnesium, all of which help the body and build up the immune system.

As more research is done, more is being discovered about the beneficial properties of organic foods. The list keeps getting longer and longer. So, it’s clear that organics have their benefits.

Traditionally Grown Foods

On the traditionally grown foods side, what you need to understand is that there haven’t always been the strictest of rules. In fact, many chemicals started out being used in farming before anyone fully understood the effects of those chemicals on the human body, animal life or the environment, in general. These days, though, studies clearly show that many non-organics contain cancer-causing agents and chemicals that have been linked to higher risks of such things as heart disease, strokes, migraine headaches and Alzheimer’s Disease, to name a few.

Like the list for organics, the list for traditional chemically-treated foods also keeps growing. That’s because modern technology and studies keep improving. The harmful additives list is getting alarmingly long and so is the list of potential medical problems caused by those additives.

Chemical Bans

Chemical bans for food products do occur. In fact, they occur quite frequently. However, that doesn’t really help, at least not in the short-term. That’s because some chemicals can stay in the soil for several decades. So, a person who starts a farm on a certain property may not even realize that the soil on that property is contaminated.

The Problems With Organics

It may sound like organics are perfect foods, but they aren’t. One big problem is that they are a lot more expensive. Another is that they aren’t always a hundred percent organic. Labels can be very deceiving, so you really need to pay attention to what you’re buying. Also, there are still some risks of diseases, such as e coli, when you buy organic foods.

Even with all of those issues, though, it’s clear which food comes out on top. Organic farmers do their very best to put safe food on our plates. They also do their best to protect the environment and take care of natural resources so that organic, healthy living can continue for many generations to come.

Filed Under Nutrition Tagged With organic food, organic foods, organics