HOT WATER BATH DAMAGES NATURAL SOFTNESS OF SKIN

Dry skin makes an individual look dull and overall unkempt due to lack of moisture. Wrinkles are seen all over the body. Well hydrated skin gives a healthy look, person also feels confident as there is nothing to shy away. Skin is the reflection of a person’s health, balance of body, mind and soul.

According to Ayurveda, dry skin is caused due to Vata Dosha. When Vata dosha increases in the body it makes the skin dry and wrinkled.

Causes for increase of Vata dosha in the body:

• Irregular food habits.
• Controlling natural urges like urination, passing stools, hunger, thirst ,etc
• Excess physical and mental exertion.
• Insufficient sleep and varying patterns, Staying awake for longer durations at night.
• Consumption of oily foods
• Exposure to cold and dry climate.

 Natural tips to take care of your skin

• Hot  water should not be used for bathing. Warm water that transfers the water temperature from cold to room temperature is sufficient for bathing and cleaning the skin.
• Use soft towel or cotton towel to pat the skin dry. Do not rub the skin with rough cloth or towel.
• Avoid harsh chemicals and soaps. They will remove the natural oils present in the skin and make it dry.
• Apply and massage your skin with a moisturizer. Moisturizer will balance the upper layers of skin and make it look soft and smooth. Recommended to apply immediately after bath as the skin is slightly moist.
• Avoid alcohol based cleaners as the skin will become dehydrated.
• Massage your skin prior to bath with coconut oil.
• Avoid oily and junk food. Follow a balanced diet which includes fruits, vegetables, milk, cereals and carbohydrates.
• Practice yoga or meditation for having a pleasant mind and keep away from stress.
• Massage your skin with herbal oil. It softens the dry skin, provides lubrication to the skin too.

People suffering with skin ailments and diabetes should be extremely careful in checking dry skin areas for any deep cracks.  Dry and cracked skin harbors microbes which cause fungal infections. Dry skin is common for those suffering with hypothyroidism, eczema,  psoriasis etc…

Methods to prevent dryness of skin:

• Preferably drink warm water ( 7 to 9 glasses). This will decrease vata dosha problem.
• Avoid hot water for bathing. Regular usage will damage the skin and the skin will lose all moisture .
• Use face pack that improves skin softness. Mix honey, egg white, olive oil and rose water and leave it for 20 mins on face. The skin softness will improve.

• Aloe vera is a good moisturizer. Few are sensitive to natural gel from the leaf , they can go for the products that are available Over the Counter (OTC) in medical stores.
• Use pH balanced soap to avoid dryness of skin .
• Drinking water or soft water is ideal for washing the face as the skin of face is very sensitive.
• Protect your skin from extreme climatic changes like cold and heat.

As you grow old the skin looses its capacity to retain moisture. You can take a little effort and maintain your skin.

HOW TO REMOVE DANDRUFF – HOME REMEDIES

Dandruff on scalp in the form of crust or lumps is a common problem for many. Dandruffs are caused due to aggravated Vata dosha resulting in dry scalp. Dandruff occurs when dead scalp cells accumulate as shiny flakes at the hair roots. It causes severe itching and redness, leads to further damage when scratched.

Some of the factors causing dandruff are:

Excessively oily scalp,  Improper maintenance of greasy hair , unhygienic hair conditions cause accumulation of toxins on the scalp, dry weather, scalp sensitivity, poor immune system, fungal infection, stress, hormonal imbalances. poor diet leading to dandruff.

Some of the easy home remedies – natural healing are:

Coconut oil is wonderful as a hair conditioner. It conditions the dry head, and softens the hair. Take equal quantities of lemon juice and lukewarm coconut oil (or any of your favorite head massage oil) and mix them well. Gently massage this mixture on your head in circular motions with your finger tips. For better results leave it for overnight, or at least for 30 minutes before washing your hair.

Fenugreek prevents hair loss, thinning of hair and baldness. For dry dandruff: Take 2 tbsp of fenugreek seeds and soak it overnight. Separately soak shikakai-soap nuts in water . Make a fine paste of soaked Fenugreek it in the morning and apply it on your scalp. Leave it for half an hour, and then wash it off thoroughly with water and shikakai / reetha (acacia concinna ). Use this treatment twice a week.

Lime juice can prove to be an effective treatment while dealing with dandruff, especially in the oily condition. Lemon juice cleans the hair free off the stickiness, and gives shine to the hair. It has antibacterial effect too. It protects scalp and skin too. Squeeze 2 limes. The lemon peels can be massaged on the scalp for 2 to 3 minutes . Continue massaging scalp with 2 tspns of lime juice, leave it for 30 minutes. Wash hair after this duration. You can follow this schedule once a week.

Vinegar balances the pH of the hair, protects and covers the hair shaft, and imparts smoother surface. It is an excellent home made after shampoo rinse. Mix 2 tbsp of vinegar with 6 tbsp of water, and apply it on your head with a cotton ball, or finger tips, and keep it over night. Shampoo your hair the next morning using vinegar mixed water.

Eggs are proteins and proteins are the building blocks of good, shiny, healthy hair. This pack nourishes the hair, and aids in removing dandruff. Mix 2 beaten eggs with 2 tbsp of water and 2 tspns of lime juice, and apply this mixture on wet hair. Slowly, and gently massage the mixture on your scalp for some time. Leave it for 15 minutes, and then rinse your hair with lukewarm water.

Olive oil helps dislodge dandruff flakes and also nourishes your scalp. Besides that, the oil also supplements your scalp and hair with essential vitamins A, K, E, provides anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory qualities and even moisturizes. Heat 3 tspns of organic virgin olive oil until it is warm to dip your fingers and apply over your hair and scalp . Leave it for 30 minutes. Wash your head and hair using mild shampoo .

Add 2 gms of camphor in 50 ml of coconut oil and store in a glass bottle. After 3 days apply the oil onto scalp and massage well. Leave it overnight.

These are simple remedies that can be followed with items available in your kitchen. Allocate some time to yourself and you will be thrilled with the results.

Your effort has ensured the dandruff are away. Continue the scalp care as dandruff is known to resurface.

CORE PRINCIPLES OF AYURVEDA

Ayurveda is the ancient Indian system of natural and holistic medicine. In Sanskrit, Ayurveda means “the science of life” .While allopathic medicine tends to focus on the management of disease, Ayurveda bestows us with the knowledge of how to prevent disease and how to eliminate its root cause if it does occur.

  The aim of Ayurveda is to prevent illness and enhance wellness.

The knowledge of Ayurveda was passed orally through a lineage of sages in India until it was collated into text more than five thousand years ago. The oldest known texts on Ayurveda are the Charaka Samhita, Sushruta Samhita, and the Ashtanga Hrudaya. These texts detail the affect that the five elements found in the cosmic system – Space, air, earth, water and fire – have on our individual system, and expound on the importance of keeping these elements balanced for a healthy and happy life.

According to Ayurveda, each person will be influenced by certain elements more than others. This is because of their prakriti, or natural constitution. Ayurveda categorizes the different constitutions into three different doshas:

• Vata dosha, in which the air and space elements dominate
• Pitta dosha, in which the fire and water elements dominate
• Kapha dosha, in which the earth and water elements dominate

The dosha affects not just the shape of one’s body but also bodily tendencies (like food preferences and digestion), and the temperament of one’s mind and emotions. For example, the earth element in people with Kapha dosha is evident in their solid, sturdy body type, their tendency for slower digestion, their strong memory, and their emotional steadiness.

Most people’s prakriti is made up of a combination of two doshas. For example, people who are “Pitta Kapha” will have the tendencies of both Pitta dosha and Kapha dosha with Pitta dominating.

By understanding the qualities of our natural constitution we are better able to do what is needed to keep ourselves in balance.

if we are experiencing disease, it means there is an imbalance in our doshas; bringing our system back into balance is the key to the cure. Ayurveda has an effective tool for the diagnosis of disease called nadi pareeksha, or pulse diagnosis. By placing their finger on your wrist, an Ayurvedic doctor can easily detect the imbalances in the body and prescribe an effective treatment.

Treatments usually come in one of two forms:

1)      Panchakarma, a 5- pronged body purification program

If toxins in the body are abundant, then a cleansing process known as panchakarma is recommended to purge these unwanted toxins. This fivefold purification therapy is a classical form of treatment in ayurveda. These specialized procedures consist of the following:

• Therapeutic vomiting or emesis (Vaman)
• Purgation (Virechan)
• Enema (Basti)
• Elimination of toxins through the nose (Nasya)
• Bloodletting or detoxification of the blood (Rakta moksha)

2)      Herbal medicines to balance the body

Ayurveda places great importance on one’s pathya, or lifestyle (eating habits and daily routine). Ayurveda also provides guidance on how to adjust our lifestyle based on the change of seasons

Holistic Health
Ayurveda`s focus on an individual`s holistic health rather than merely the physical body, is the most beneficial aspect of ayurvedic medicine. It works on the principle that a perfect health condition is achievable through the emotional  integration in a person. Ayurveda provides us with a unique physical purification method called panchakarma and various ayurvedic herbal health remedies for mental and spiritual well-being.

A healthy person, as defined in Sushrut Samhita, one of the primary works on Ayurveda, is “he whose doshas are in balance, appetite is good, all tissues of the body and all natural urges are functioning properly, and whose mind, body and spirit are cheerful…”

The ultimate goal of ayurveda is to create a state of holistic health for the individual, to create, consequently, a healthy society and environment with its herbal health remedies. To attain this state ayurveda believes one`s life must move in harmony with nature`s rhythms and its laws. Because, ayurvedic medicine recognizes the human body is part of nature. The five great elements of the universe forms the three doshas of the human body, and a balance among the three doshas is necessary for the perfect working of the whole mechanism of body, mind and soul.

These holistic health benefits of ayurveda includes the physical, mental as well as the spiritual aspects of a person.

Physical Benefits
Noninvasive diagnostic ayurvedic treatments are beneficial for chronic patients. Ayurvedic medicine resorts to outward diagnosis of symptoms by studying a patients` habits -diet and daily life, pulse. Difficult diseases are managed effectively by these diagnostic methods.

Detoxification methods of ayurveda like panchakarma and other herbal  health remedies, when applied wholly or singly, make the body more responsive to medicines and treatment. It hastens the healing process.

Various yogasanas prescribed by ayurveda help prevent the diseases from occurring and accumulating. Yogasanas achieve the twin purpose of strengthening body-parts such as bones, muscle and vital organs like heart, liver, stomach, intestine as well as keeping our blood circulation and psychological conditions strong and flexible.

Most importantly, a correct diet according to one`s dosha type, and well-regulated life (dinacharya) helps strengthen one`s natural immune system.

Psychological Benefits
Perhaps ayurveda is the first such medical systems who recognizes that all diseases are but the direct manifestation of one`s mental conditions. It says human mind consists three states or trigunas -sattva, rajas and tamas. Any disturbances in the equilibrium of the tri-gunas, manifest in physical illness according to the intensity or nature of the disturbances. In fact, the condition of body and mind are integral to the overall health of an individual.

When the mind is stressed the stress hormone cortisone is released by adrenal glands. The level of hormone released affects the total volume of the brain that is involved in memory forming, organizing, and storing. Stress also affects all our decision-making activities in every field of life.

Ayurveda stresses on four principles to maintain the balance and equanimity of the mind .They are:

• regulation in ahara (food habit),
• vihara (activities),
• nidra (sleeping habit) and
• maithuna (sexual habit)

The guidelines for an intelligently regulated diet and daily routine are now, accepted techniques for stress management.

Ayurvedic massages, inhalation of herbal (Aromatherapy) preparations, panchakarma (nasya) besides the much-tested yogasanas and meditation leave a calming effect on the nerves.

Spiritual Benefits
The balance of tri-doshas and tri-gunas is imperative in this regard, for the individual needs to remain in balance within itself and in harmony outside with the nature. Various advanced ayurvedic treatments were born out of a necessity to keep the mind and body in perfect shapes to pursue the path of self-realization. Each individual is believed to possess undefined measures of creative capability, which, ideally, need to be realized. To achieve this, ayurveda emphasizes that the individual has to experience its oneness with the universe.

The treatment methods, diet and lifestyle regimen in ayurveda are carefully planned to heal the body as well as enrich the mind and the soul of each different individual. So that each can improve from their own levels to the higher goal of realizing the full self-potential. It was with ayurveda that the unique longevity and rejuvenating method of rasayana was born for mankind to progress in the path of spirituality.