Massage Your Way to Health

If you love the feeling of a great massage, you’ve got the green light to indulge for your health’s sake.  Swedish massage has recently been shown to improve immunity — just minutes after the very first session.

In a study from the Cedars-Sinai Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences in Los Angeles, the lucky participants received 45 minutes of traditional Swedish massage.  Blood samples were taken both before and after the massage and demonstrated a clear improvement in several factors that measure immune response and overall health, including: boosting lymphocytes, lowering cytokine levels, and reducing hormones associated with stress.

Lymphocytes, the white blood cells that help defend your body from illness, are divided into three categories: B cells, T cells, and Natural Killer (NK) cells.  The B cells produce antibodies that fight bacteria and toxins throughout the body.  The T cells are responsible for attacking the cells of the body that have been infected by viruses or malignancies. And NK cells play a major role in the rejection of tumors and cells and cells infected by viruses. They kill invaders by releasing small cytoplasmic granules of proteins that literally reprogram the target cells to self-destruct. Quite simply, gentle massage caused a measurable increase in the number of circulating lymphocytes, thus increasing the body’s immune function. In addition, massage produced positive changes in cytokine levels — lowering those that stimulate an inflammation response.

Massage was also shown to reduce Arginine Vasopressin (AVP), a hormone that controls the retention and release of water through the kidneys.  When present in large amounts, AVP can elevate blood pressure and has been linked with aggression.

Another hormone demonstrated to be affected by massage in the study was cortisol.  Released by the adrenal gland, cortisol gives you that "adrenaline rush" you experience at stressful moments.  Useful as an occasional stimulant to provide the body with extra "resources" in times of danger or great stress, cortisol can be deadly when released into the body continuously by the day to day stresses of modern living. Excess cortisol can lead to adrenal fatigue, high blood pressure, insomnia, poor immune function, and weight gain — particularly an increase in abdominal fat. It is also implicated as a contributing factor in fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and arthritis. Since cortisol levels tend to be highest in the morning, that might be a good time of day to schedule your massage appointment.

This is hardly the first research to appear showing the beneficial aspects of massage on health.  Numerous studies through the years have determined that massage can aid in stress relief, lessen anxiety and depression, decrease pain, alleviate stiffness, manage blood pressure, improve sports-related injuries, and possibly even contribute to the effectiveness of cancer treatments, among other things.

According to studies performed at the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami, massage doesn’t even need to occur in the part of the body in which a particular pain is located.  Even concentrating the touch elsewhere will release enough powerful chemicals to reduce pain in other areas.

Although Western medicine has only recently begun to acknowledge the advantages massage can bring about, massage dates back to ancient civilizations and has been mentioned in writings by the Romans, Greeks, and many Asian cultures.  Chinese medical practitioners, for example, have been employing massage to correct imbalances and restore overall health for hundreds of years.

Let’s face it, even if massage hadn’t been proven to bestow health benefits we would all want one anyway because it just feels so good!  Taking an hour out from our busy lives to lay back in a darkened room, listen to soft music, and feel the tension literally being kneaded out of our bodies is stress relief at its finest. There is something to be said for spending a little time doing something nice just for you every now and then.  And now that research has proven the health benefits of a single 45-minute session, imagine how great and long lasting the health benefits can be if we all opted to have massages more regularly. Getting a massage should not be considered an extravagance at all.  With no downside and plenty of positive factors in its favor, massage should become another tool in our arsenal of health care.  Lie back, relax, and enjoy every minute of it!

Designed for You: The Blood Type Diet Part 1 of 5

In 1996 the Blood Type Diet made is debut in a book by Peter J. D’Adamo, ND, Eat Right 4 Your Type: The Individualized Diet Solution for Staying Healthy: Living Longer & Achieving Your Ideal Weight (Putman, 1996). Fourteen years after the fact it’s still one of the best-selling diet books on Amazon.com. But does it work?

This is the story of Mr. Khyber Oser before, and after the Blood Type Diet. Vegetarian was a way of life for him and when he got older he turned vegan in college, cutting out eggs and dairy to subsist on grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and fresh produce. Even though his heart and mind felt great, his body didn’t. There were issues like the hand rash and debilitating hip pain on top of an array of other chronic problems, like his congestion, dry skin, and dandruff. He couldn’t sleep at night because of the persistent itching of the little pimples that kept coming up between his fingers and that debilitating hip.

So he began his medical journey. There were the two dermatologist who briskly diagnosed contact dermatitis and prescribed a steroid cream. He didn’t catch all the terms or the put a band aid on it solutions; instead he wanted to find out why he was “jumping out of his skin.”

The next stop was a naturopath who hold him he had candida, an overgrowth of fungus in the intestines, and advised him to avoid sugary, yeasty, pickled, and fermented foods. He soon gave up on that regimen because after he had sensitized his body, a slice of cake made him violently ill.

At last he went to Gina T. Ogorzaly, DC, a chiropractor and co-founder of the Diamondback Wellness Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. That first visit was when she asked him his blood type and he replied “O positive, why do you ask?”

She searched through her file cabinet and handed him O specific eating charts that broke down foods into three categories: highly beneficial, neutral, and foods to avoid. She told him to restrict himself to red meat and vegetables as much as possible and stay away from grains, especially wheat. She said, “You’re Type O. You’re a hunter.” He was stunned at the fact that he was predestined to be an obligatory meat eater something that he had tried all his life to avoid but he wanted to heal his aching body. So he started working on eating like a Type O, a hunter.

How Hot Peppers Help Your Health

Capsaicin, the compound responsible for chilies’ heat and spice, has been credited with a host of health advantages, from killing cancerous cells to lowering blood pressure, preventing obesity and reducing the risk of diabetes.

When you eat capsaicin, it binds to pain receptors in the mouth, causing the brain to send endorphins to alleviate the burning. Endorphins trigger the blood vessels to dilate, that’s what causes your face to turn red after eating hot peppers and why peppers may also help reduce blood pressure, says new research from Japan. Because endorphins have a feel-good effect, people can become addicted to foods that contain capsaicin.

Capsaicin is also powerful as an anti-inflammatory agent and anticoagulant, so it may help decrease the risk of heart disease and stroke. There are cultures who have diets rich in capsaicin, like those of Thailand and India, who have a lower incidence of heart attack, stroke, and pulmonary embolisms.

Being heart-healthy, capsaicin may also help ward off cancer. There is research conducted earlier in 2010 that found that capsaicin extract killed the mitochondria in cancerous cells without hurting healthy cells. The studies showed that capsaicin inhibits the proliferation of cancerous cells in the lungs, pancreas, and prostate.

Capsaicin is believed to worsen some certain gastrointestinal ailments, such as heartburn, the ancient Mayans incorporated chilies into medicinal remedies for stomach problems.

Researchers believe capsaicin extract may impede disease-causing microbes in the gut. There is a word of caution though: While chilies don’t necessarily cause digestive disorders, researchers are still not sure whether hot peppers harm those with ulcers, heartburn, and other preexisting stomach problems.

Much of the latest research has focused on capsaicin’s ability to stimulate metabolism, prevent weight gain, and help reduce the risk of diabetes. When you eat chilies they boost the body’s heat production, therefore increasing metabolism, you may burn up to an additional 75 calories per meal when eating foods that contain hot chilies, says Yvonne Nienstadt, nutrition director at the Rancho La Puerta Fitness Report and Spa in Tecate, Mexico. In a 2007 study conducted in Taiwan, found that capsaicin also inhibits the growth of fat cells in mice; scientist are hopeful that more research will confirm the compound as a fat-fighting additive. Capsaicin may also prove beneficial to those with diabetes, suggests a study done in 2009 published in “Obesity.”

Remember: The spicier the pepper, the more capsaicin it contains, so for the biggest health kick, reach for the hottest chili you can stand.

Resources and Home Options for Hair Dye Part 3 of 3

For Henna, your at home option is: Lush Caca Hair Henna, it sells for $20 at www.lushusa.com It comes in four colors, from reddish-brown to a dark burgundy. Cocoa butter, rosemary, and clove essential oils soften henna’s earthy smell

For covering the gray that’s popped up on your head, your at home option is: Aubrey Organics Color Me Natural. You can use this product if less than 20% of your hair is gray. It cost $12 and can be found at www.aubreyorganics.com and comes in dark brown or mahogany.

For more coverage you should try Light Mountain Color the Gray at $22. It can be found at www.lotuspress.com/ltmtn.htm It uses a two-step process that coats the hair first to help color adhere to it.

Lighten Your Hair Instead of Dyeing

The old standbys like lemon juice and chamomile tea can lighten your natural color but won't turn your brown hair to blond. It takes time, but they will lighten it. You can use straight lemon juice or dilute it with one part water to three parts juice, or steep one part teat to two parts water for at least 20 minutes. You can put it in a spray bottle, and spritz it onto dry hair in the mornings and let the sunlight speed up the process. Results can take a few days or even weeks, but you have to be patient and persistent. Your lighter shad will last until your hair starts to grow out.

Lightening your hair significantly takes chemicals that strip the pigment so you may want to consider highlights instead of dyeing your hair completely. Less dye will come into contact with your scalp, besides, the chemicals can cause irritation and even leech into your bloodstream and create more complications for you.

There was a study done that found women who regularly use hair dye have twice the risk of bladder cancer.

If you like your red hair, then you’re in luck because Henna, a tropical plant and the only 100% natural hair dye available, will give you a bold auburn or reddish-brown color. But be aware that there are other products that claim to promise other hues, they’re not for real. Any other color of henna has been modified with metallic salts which coat and damage your hair. If you do use henna made from the metallic salts, then be aware that it can mix with the ammonia of of other dyes and it’ll give you an array of unwanted colors, like seaweed green. So if you want blond hair then Henna isn’t what you want, but if you want to WOW up your dark hair then it’s just what the doctor ordered.

If you’re looking for something to cover the gray that’s popped up, then you may have quite a challenge. First of all, gray hair has no natural melanin, and a heavy saturation of dye is needed to make the color look as natural as it possibly can. Second, there are some stylist who say that gray hairs’ cuticles are tougher or more “slippery” than those of brown, blond, or red hairs, so dye doesn’t stick to the shafts of gray hair as well.

If your not sure about quitting the dye and letting your roots show or your natural color is darker or grayer then what you have now, then maybe you should try getting what is called lowlight. It breaks up any harsh lines between colors by dyeing some strands of hair darker. Lowlights can also work best for pregnant women or others who don’t want to give up the coloring scene all together but want protection from the dangers of dyeing your hair. With lowlights there’s no dye chemical that comes in contact with the scalp or skin. There is help out there for those who aren’t ready to take the plunge into ammonia free hair dye, you can go to Bye Bye Hair Dye on Facebook and meet others who have gone natural and posted pictures documenting the process. That way you can see that it can be done.

Hair Dyes: Are There Safer Options That Work?

There are some experts who estimate that 75% of women over 40 color their hair, which means that they are in consistent contact with the harsh irritants and carcinogens, like ammonia, hydrogen peroxide and coal tar.

Women who want to disguise their exposed roots and cover that grey aren't the only ones who frequent salons and buy at home coloring kits.  Girls are starting to get their hair done at 10 or 11 instead of at 16 and 17.  They're being exposed to hazardous chemicals during or right before puberty, setting themselves up for a lifetime of exposure to these harmful chemicals.  There's no government mandated minimum age to keep these young consumers from getting these potentially harmful chemicals put on their hair.

Why do hair dyes still abound with toxins while safe, natural cosmetics and skincare options are now widespread?  Because the process of permanently changing your hair color requires major chemical power.  Here's an example of what happens to your hair when you want to lighten it so that the color doesn't wash out.  The outer layer of hair, the cuticle, must be opened in order to strip the current shade and let the new color set up.  This takes an alkaline chemical, usually ammonia, to open the hair shaft, and another ingredient, like hydrogen peroxide, to strip your hair's natural melanin, or pigment.  This interference breaks down the hair's structure; in fact, part of the dye's familiar smell is actually sulfur released from damaged hair.  Dye then is deposited in the hair shaft, which is often harsh as well, and is formulated with a load of chemicals to ensure the exact color desired.

The variety of super strong chemicals in hair coloring can trigger a number of negative reactions, especially for those who handle it every day.  One hair owner of a Beverly Hills salon suffered from ammonia poisoning from years of working with dye.  After she overcame rashes, eye infections, and chronic bronchitis, she developed an ammonia free dye that she now uses in her salon.

It's up to the hair dye companies to make safer alternatives and they need to be more aggressive about it.  While mainstream manufacturers may be far from developing really safe methods, healthier options do exist, and in case you are wondering, they do work.

An Alternative Way of Removing Earwax

Earwax is considered dirty, but the ugly yellowish gunk actually serves to protect your ear canal by capturing dust and other irritants that could potentially get into the eardrums. Did you know that the natural movement of your jaw moves the wax up and out before it gets excessive? So there’s no need to get out that Q-Tip and swab! Unfortunately, there are certain actions, like wearing hearing aids or earplugs or going on a liquid diet that doesn’t require chewing, and can interfere with the natural removal of wax and can cause it to go a muck and consequently making it difficult to hear. So, you may need an occasional clean-out.

• DON’T use ear candles.  These can create a vacuum that suctions out melted wax, but they can also cause wax to drop deeper into your ear.
• DON’T use cotton swabs.  They can injure your eardrum and canal and push the wax down to your eardrum.
• DO use a baking soda solution.  Mix 1/2 teaspoon baking soda and 2 oz. warm water. Lie on your side and with an ear syringe, slowly pour the solution into your ear canal until it’s full. Lie still for 30 minutes, or for as long as possible, then rinse with warm, distilled water, and gently pull your ear up and out to straighten the canal. Then tilt your head to drain any remaining fluid out of your ear. Repeat this for the other ear. If the was buildup persists do this daily for up to five days. If you have a history of ear infections or a ruptured eardrum or even earaches, you will want to discuss this procedure with your doctor

Give Your Immune System A Boost With Chinese Herbs

To enhance your immune system and to prevent illness, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners believe in strengthening the defensive qi (chee), what they call the life force that protects the body against invasive pathogens that can make you sick. They can do this through a combination of acupuncture, herbs, and dietary and lifestyle changes. You can start by consulting a trained practitioner and Chinese herbalist, who will be able to design a plan to your particular pattern of energetic disharmony.

To cultivate defensive qi, you will need to nurture and preserve the energetic health of your organ systems. According to TCM, the spleen organ system plays an especially important role in preventing illness because it transforms energy derived from food and drink into three substances: qi, blood, and body fluids, and then transports those substances to other organs so they can do their jobs. The spleen raises qi (chee) up to the lungs, which then circulates the defensive qi (chee). A weak spleen qi (chee) will make for a weak lung qi. Acupuncturists use points on the spleen, stomach, lung, and urinary bladder meridians to strengthen the qi(chee). While Chinese herbalists treat each patient individually, the formulas they use almost always combine several herbs, one of which is astragalus root. This herb helps boost your immunity by strengthening the spleen and lungs. You can boil astragalus root and drink the tea two times a day; take a tincture; or drink a mixture of warm water and a concentrated powder of the herb (12 to 24 grams of astragalus divided into doses taken two times a day).

To strengthen the spleen qi (chee) through diet, you should avoid eating too many raw fruits and vegetables or their juices. The spleen hates cold and dampness. Instead, eat steamed or sauteed vegetables, soups and whole grains. You should also avoid refined white grains and sugar as well as fried or oily foods. Be sure to limit your intake of cow’s milk (cheese and ice cream, too) and raw or cold foods. Drink beverages served at room temperature, warm, or hot. Also, eat food and drink alcohol in moderation. Avoid eating while you are upset or anxious, because strong emotions can damage the qi (chee). Don’t skip meals, remember that food gives you energy that is needed to make the qi (chee) that protects our bodies from germs.

Anxiety can also weaken your spleen qi (chee), so it is a good idea to find the time to relax: go for a walk in the park, take a long bath, or meditate; take breaks at work; create and use a support system of friends and family members to help you through stressful times.

When you add these techniques to your everyday life, you will strengthen your qi (chee) and your immune system. Exercise can keep you fit and healthy and if you have arthritis, it keeps your joints and muscles strong, your bones and joint tissues healthy, and gives you more energy to keep you active.