Acne: Are Natural skin care products the answer to all problems? by NICHOLAS TAN
Health

When it comes to skin care products, you will find that a lot of people are very particular about using only natural skin care products. They treat all the synthetic products as harmful to the skin.
So, are natural skin care products the answer to all of our problems? What if a natural skin care product is not available for the treatment of a particular skin disorder? Are the synthetic skin care products so harmful that they should be banned?
Different people have different answers to these questions. However, the reality is that due to presence of synthetic preservatives, it’s really tough to find a natural skin care product that is 100% natural. There are natural skin care products that have natural preservatives, but their cost might be detrimental. Moreover, such natural skin products have a shorter shelf life and hence are not preferred by the manufacturers of natural skin care products.
Some people carry a wrong notion that since natural skin care products are natural, they cannot cause any harm to the skin. The suitability of a skin care product is not based on whether it is synthetic or natural. An unsuitable natural skin care product can harm you in almost the same way as a synthetic one. So, use natural skin care products, but be open to synthetic ones too (you might need them when a natural solution is not available)
Your selection of a natural skin care product should be based on 3 factors:
* The skin type (dry, oily, normal, sensitive) of the person who will use that natural skin care product * The climatic conditions in which it will be used e.g. hot and humid condition would warranty the use of oil-free natural skin care products. * The process for application/use of the natural skin care product. A good natural skin care product (in fact any product) can seem useless if not used in the proper way.
You can also make natural skin care products by yourself, by using the recipes that are readily available on the internet and in the books at book stores.
Use of organic fruits and vegetables is also popular as a natural skin care procedure. Some essential oils, herbal oils, are useful too and are known for their moisturising and antiseptic properties
However, using a natural skin care product does not mean that you can exercise carelessness with other aspects of skin care. Natural skin care products should be used like supplements to the following ‘essential’ recommendations: healthy eating habits (avoiding oily food), regular exercise, drinking a lot of water (8 glasses everyday), and cleanliness. This will then form a perfect and completely natural skin care routine that will help maintain a healthy beautiful skin for longer time.

A Massage Alleviates Many Ailments by FABIOLA GROSHAN

What’s the most pleasurable ways to good health and well-being? If you answered Massage, you’re right. A good massage is a very powerful relaxant, and mood-elevator. It is also your ticket to good health, and coupled with modern massagers and massage tools, it’s easier than ever to get a proper, relaxing massage.
If you thought that a massage works only as a relaxant, here’s some new information: It can also help treat many illnesses, and improves your general health. In fact there are specialized massage tools that add magnet, light, and heat-therapy to the massage to increase the positive effects. You’ll even find massagers designed specifically to address your medical problem.
Some common diseases that can be treated with massage are: carpal tunnel, migraines, sprains, back and neck pain, sports injuries, cramps, etc. There are specific massage techniques that you can learn to increase the efficiency of your massage. Using massage tools can take the grunt work out of massage, and make the massage more effective. There are a large variety of massagers available, from handheld massagers, to separate units, and even chairs that you can sit in for a full body massage.
Massages also help stimulate muscles that are not exercised in the regular course of life. So it strengthens your body and improves the all-around muscle growth in your body. If you’re a sportsman, it’s very important to get a massage regularly to prevent injuries, and improve all around muscle growth. You need a deeper massage, so you should also use massage tools like automatic massagers.
Hand massages are not just physical therapy; they are also a powerful psychological alleviator. When you give, or receive massages from your partner, it increases the love and affection you share, and brings you closer to your partner. Massages can be even more fun for you if you get massagers. Just a simple hand-massager will make the massage a much better experience. Look online for massage tools, you’ll find a great variety.
Massage helps the body in many ways. It relaxes and unwinds knotted muscles and reduces muscle cramps. It also improves the blood flow below the skin, improving the complexion and skin smoothness. Since many aches are due to muscle soreness, and misuse, the massage will remove these pains. If you use a heat based massage tools, it will also help in mending damaged muscles. That’s why heat based massagers are very popular among sportsmen.
Daily massages are really hard work, but you can schedule massages once or twice every week. The weekends have some free time for everybody, and you can enjoy a good massage every week if you decide on it. Keep your massage tools clean and handy, and get the massagers out for that nice relaxing massage every Sunday.
You can also visit a professional masseur or massage center to get specialized massages. These massages are an exotic experience and will take the stress away from your mind. One popular massage technique that you should try is rock massage. It uses large heated pebbles, a very unconventional choice of massage tools.

Detoxification With The 3-day Detox Diet
Author: Denise Duncan




Today is it hard to avoid having toxins and chemicals in our system because of our lifestyles and the environment. However, our bodies are quite remarkable and have been built in such a way as to protect itself from these harmful intruders. Although our kidneys, liver, skin, and even the lungs often need to work a little harder to separate, neutralize, and dispose of these toxins. When toxins accumulate in our body it causes a release of some form of chemical. This can gradually mutate into cancers or other degenerative diseases of the body.We need to be selective as to what we put into our bodies because we can never take it back. Sometimes changing your lifestyle is the only way you can improve the proper functioning of your body processes. A detox program can be very helpful in getting rid of body impurities. As with any detoxification program, they are designed to flush out free radicals, increase cell renewal, and strengthen your body's immune system. Ridding your body of toxins will make you feel so much better. Even the 3-day detoxification diet can help in eliminating damaging toxins. There are many detox diets our there. One must realize that not all detox diet programs are suitable for everyone. A 3-day detox diet just might be wise to start with to test the diet program and it is also a milder way of detoxifying your body. If you are interested in a longer detox program you may want to consult your doctor first before you begin. This is especially important if you are underweight, malnourished or have a chronic disease such as cancer, kidney and liver disease, ulcerative colitis, iron-deficiency, anemia, as well as others. This is always a good idea when considering any type of diet program.As mentioned above, there are various detox diets, however, the 3-day detox diet is a good quick start program toward detoxification. Each morning for the three days drink a cup of warm water and ½ lemon squeezed in it when you get up. This is to stimulate your gastric juices. Drink the lemon water instead of your usual cup of coffee or tea. When planning your meals for the day you should include one cup of whole grains like brown rice, buckwheat, amaranth, and at least three servings each of fruits and vegetables. One of the servings of vegetables, at least, should be raw vegetables such as carrots, celery, or cauliflower. Choose the vegetables you enjoy. You could also fix yourself a salad made of fruits and vegetables. However, for dressing your salad, use vinegar or any of the natural virgin oils. Natural oils can include olive, coconut virgin oils, or fish oil.In addition to the changes in your meals you will also need to take two doses of a kidney and liver tonic over the 3-day detox diet period. Not two doses a day. Just two doses over the three days you're trying to detoxify your body. You can choose from the following kidney and liver tonics: two cups of dandelion, a clove of fresh garlic, chamomile or fennel tea. Other choices include pure vegetable juice like carrot or beetroot, a medium bunch of black grapes, or two cups of parsley or yellow tea. On a daily basis you will need to drink 8 glasses or more of water as well. It's a good idea to make this a habit anyway. Fresh fruit juices such as apple and orange can be counted as part of your water intake. And lastly, before you go to bed drink a cup of herbal tea. The whole idea is to increase your fluid intake by ingesting more water, juices, fruits, and vegetables to flush out harmful toxins and waste.As part of your 3-day detox diet be sure to include a 30-minute walk within the program period. Exercise with any diet is ideal for weight loss and improved health. After the third day, you will feel rejuvenated and have more energy and should have dropped a few pounds. You may want to do the 3-day detox diet again either consecutively or the following month. To have better health for the rest of your life, a change of lifestyle is always better than a few days of dieting.

Teenage Obesity - Can We Overcome This Epidemic?
Author: Kelly Yuile



Too many of our teenagers are drastically over weight. The shocking fact is that 14% of our teenagers suffer from obesity. That number has doubled since the 1970s. The illnesses that can affect teenage obesity are vast and include high blood pressure, diabetes and, heart disease. Why has the teenager obesity rate doubled?Many experts blame the obesity effect on the technology of video games, video arcades and, too many television channels to choose from. Sadly, it's not as often anymore that we see a bunch of children playing kick-ball in the school or park. Nor do we see pick-up stickball or softball games. Can we blame this all on technology? Some, but perhaps not.Society itself has made the family unit more private these days and instead of neighbourhoods full of closeness, children, and parents who all know each other, we have developed into a society of staying in and playing in. Too many state and local governments are the first to cut park and park supervision expenses. After all, parents are so busy themselves and at the end of the day, their energy level isn't helping the teenage obesity problem or their own overweight issues.Hollywood still promotes those frail and skinny men and women that our children are supposed to emulate. Let's all get real here, most of these photos are airbrushed, and we shouldn't teach our children that their appearance is the best appearance. Further, we can't expect the everyday teenager to look at those pictures and movies and then the mirror and set a goal to look like that — that's just absurd! So how can we get our teenagers who suffer from obesity to change their lifestyle, eat healthy, and get more exercise?First, we must start at home and limit television, computer and, video time. As a parent, to encourage it is only pushing your teenager into obesity. Many parents are also guilty of over-providing snacks that are not healthy and contain too many calories for a sedentary teenager. A good place to start in your home when dealing with teenage obesity is to have an honest and open family meeting.At this meeting, discuss what things your teenagers like to do and don't like to do. Be honest and explain to them that their lifestyle is dangerous and unhealthy. Don't shade the conversation with roses, if they don't know how obesity can affect them, they'll continue on the obesity trail. Talk about eating right and what foods the family will be eating in the future and make sure you participate in the new healthy diet yourself. Finally, as tired as you might be after a long day at work, put on some sneakers and get your teenager outside. Actually, a healthy jog, walk, or basketball game can give you more energy than just sitting around.The teenage obesity problem will continue to exist in today's society if we don't join together as a family and give examples to other families with teenage obesity problems. We may lose our children long before their time—that's how important this is and that's why you need to set goals and make sure your child lives a happy, healthy life that is full of good food and exercise and fun.