Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) is very useful for weight loss…..

Losing weight is not an easy task for anyone. Whether we want to reduce two kilos or 10 kilos. What we do not do to maintain or achieve the right weight according to the height, but for many people, it does not take the name of going stubborn fat. If we too have been struggling with reducing weight for a long time, then, we may try using basil this time. 

[A twig- Basil: Ocimum sanctum plant]

Most of us have seen the holy plant of Tulsi in our countryard since childhood. This is because basil is a medicine used in traditional medicine. This plant is scientifically known as Ocimum sanctum; family-Lamiaceae. Tulsi is also considered very beneficial for health. From enhancing the taste of tea, basil is used for many health problems. Tulsi is also considered very good for the body, hence it is also considered the golden cure of Ayurveda. If it is drunk daily mixed with water, then it can have many benefits. Some of the important health benefits are as follows- 

1. Beneficial in weight loss- This easy drink helps you slim your waist while boosting your metabolism. Tulsi contains natural chemicals, which make digestion easier and also reduce obesity. 

2. Tulsi detoxifying the body- People do not know how many measures are taken to make the beginning of the morning special. Waking up in the morning, drinking Tulsi water flushes out all the toxins from your body. Tulsi leaves have medicinal properties, which naturally cleanse your stomach.

3. Helpful in relieving stress- Research has shown that regular consumption of tulsi water can serve as an antidote for stress-related disorders and improve brain function.

4. For respiratory problems- Tulsi has powerful expectorant and antitussive properties, which suppresses cough along with eliminating the root cause of phlegm, irritation. Tulsi water also has many anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties that keep colds and related infections at bay. 

How to make tulsi water? Put three or four basil leaves in a glass of water at night. Filter this water in the morning and drink it. People who are suffering from cold and flu, they can get a lot of benefits by drinking this water after boiling it. 

Disclaimer: The advice and suggestions mentioned in the article are based on our own experiences. It should not be taken as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor if you have any persisting health issues. 

Stay healthy, stay safe...

Perimenopause and its management…..

Premenopause is the stage in every adult woman before the menstrual cycle stops permanently. Symptoms can start as early as 40 but for some women, it may start late after 45 years of age. Experts say it also depends upon the genetic condition of her mother but the majority of the women will start facing irregularities of the periods from the age of 40 only. 

[Ladies are boon of God in the Universe - Respect them] 

Between the ages of 45 and 50, every woman stops having periods. This stage is called menopause. This is a naive process. However, this does not happen immediately. Shortly before menopause, a woman goes through the stage of perimenopause. Let us know what it is, its symptoms, and ways to manage it. 

What is Perimenopause? Perimenopause means the time around menopause. This stage comes when your body is moving towards the end of menstruation. Therefore, perimenopause can also be called the menopausal transition. It can be a different experience for every woman. Its symptoms also depend on the woman's body. Symptoms of Perimenopause: Symptoms of this stage start in most women after the age of 40. 

In some cases, these symptoms can be seen even after the age of 30 like -

•   Irregular periods

• Levels of the sex hormone estrogen  fluctuate   unevenly

• Eggs are not released from the ovaries even  when the period cycle starts

• Sudden feeling of heat in the body (hot flashes)·         

• Sleep disturbances

• Vaginal dryness· 

• Mood swings·

• Decreased fertility·

• Accidentally missed urine·   

• Decreased sex drive·        

• Weak bones·         

• Increase in the amount of bad cholesterol in the body. 

Serious Complications of Perimenopause: Some women may experience symptoms other than those listed above, which are considered unusual. These can be serious complications of perimenopause-

• Changing pads every 1-2 hours during periods

• Bleeding lasts more than 7 days

• Menstruation started every 21 days

• Bleeding between periods. 

These symptoms indicate that your reproductive health is not good. If you experience these symptoms, go to the doctor immediately. 

How to Manage Perimenopause? This stage can become a hindrance in your daily life, so it is important to manage it properly. Include all the nutrients in your diet. Eat a diet rich in seasonal fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. 

• Exercise daily. It will help to keep you physically and mentally healthy.

• Create a bedtime routine. 

• Get up and sleep at the same time every day. Stay away from digital gadgets before sleeping. 

• Keep stress away to avoid mood swings and irritability. You can do meditation to avoid this.

• Keep your weight under control.

• Quit alcohol and smoking. 

Stay healthy, stay safe...

Benefits of vegetarian diet….

British scientists strongly claimed about 14% less risk of cancer in vegetarians than non-vegetarian eaters… 

Now the world is returning towards vegetarian foods after observing the benefits...

Many doctors and health experts of the world support a vegetarian diet. According to them, the blood pressure and cholesterol level in the body remains normal on eating vegetarian foods. This diet keeps away many serious diseases like hypertension, obesity, and type-2 diabetes. Recently, in a study by the World Cancer Research Fund, Cancer Research UK, and Oxford Population Health, vegetarians have a lower risk of cancer than non-vegetarians. This study has been published in the journal BMC Medicine. 

Research has been done on more than 4.5 lakh people the people who eat meat and fish were divided into different categories. The diet pattern of these people was followed for 11.4 years. In the first group, there were people who ate non-veg for 5 or more days a week. These people used to eat all kinds of non-veg, from red meat to chicken. The second group consisted of people who ate meat five or fewer days a week. The third group was placed in those who were pescatarians, that is, only fish eaters. In the fourth and last group, such vegetarians were kept, who never ate meat and fish i.e. non-veg.

Harm from non-veg: Scientists found that the risk of any cancer decreases by 2% in those who eat less non-veg compared to people who eat regular non-veg. The risk is 10% lower in pescatarians and 14% lower in vegetarians. The risk of colon cancer was also found to be 9% lower in those who ate less meat. Vegetarian women were found to have an 18% lower risk of breast cancer after menopause. The reason for this can be considered normal weight. The risk of prostate cancer was found to be 20% lower in pescatarians and 31% less in vegetarians than non-vegetarians. 

What do experts say?  Experts say that the vegetarian diet reduces the risk of colorectal cancer by 22%. Also, it reduces the overall risk of getting any cancer by 10 to 12%. Therefore, a vegetarian diet is considered good for health.

FSSAI also supports a plant-based diet: The Food and Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) also supports eating vegetarian foods.

Stay healthy, stay safe...

 

 

Psoriasis and diet restrictions….

If a person has a skin rash and itching, then stop consuming these types of foods immediately as it might be Psoriasis. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease in which any part of the skin becomes red with raised rashes and itching. It mostly occurs on the knees, elbows, and back. more than 2.0 crores of people in the country are found severely affected with Psoriasis. According to experts, one-third of the patients with psoriasis have mental diseases like depression and stress. 

Usually, people ignore it as a common skin problem, but it can spread throughout the body. Therefore, by making some changes in the diet along with treatment, psoriasis may not be eliminated, but it can definitely be prevented from progressing. 

1. Whole Milk: Like cancer and heart disease, psoriasis is also an inflammatory disease. Fat is inflammatory tissue and reducing it can help with psoriasis. Whole milk i.e. fatty milk contains 3.25% fat. If you have to consume milk, then milk or skimmed milk (fatless milk) with 1-2% fat can be used.

2. Cheese: Cheese is also a dairy product containing fat. This can also increase inflammation in the body and increase the symptoms of psoriasis. If you have a habit of eating more burgers and sandwiches, try to put cheese in small quantities or even escape adding cheese into it.  

3. Processed Food: The inflammatory properties of processed foods and fast food can bother you. They are high in fat and sugar. Psoriasis patients should stay away from these things. They should consume fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

4. Red Meat: Red meat has a high amount of fat. This can worsen the condition of psoriasis patients. Lean meats, such as chicken and fish without skin, can be eaten instead of red meat, and that is also not in a frequent manner.  Some people find that omega 3 fats found in fish help to control psoriasis.

5. Gluten: Gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye, can bother some patients with psoriasis. Many people are allergic to it. If you are also allergic to it then follow the gluten-free diet. 

6. Wine: Alcohol damages many parts of our body. This leads to liver and heart diseases. Some people believe that it can also aggravate the symptoms of psoriasis. Therefore, the longer you can keep away from alcohol, the better.

7. Coffee: Things like coffee and tea contain chemicals called caffeine, which can increase inflammation in the body. Caffeine can also be found in soft drinks, energy drinks, and hot chocolate.so, avoid all these things.

8. Chocolate: Chocolate is also a source of caffeine. Therefore, it is better to stay away from protein bars, chocolate-flavored ice cream, toffee, and sweets made from chocolate. 

Disclaimer: This article is for general information only. Before making dietary changes, a consultation with a dietician should be taken.

Stay healthy, stay safe...

Easy identification of “Shalaparni” an important crude drug for many Ayurvedic formulations….

As we know that the demand for Ayush medicines is increasing day by day. Which, Ayurvedic medicines have their own major popularities due to their immediate and safe action over the patients. The therapeutic quality of medicine is totally depending upon the authentic crude drugs used in the preparation of the medicines. Though many authentic books, research publications, and Pharmacopoeial monograms are made available for ready references but still the collection is mostly made by the local people of the particular area, zone, or state based on the vernacular name. It is often seen that the language may vary from one state to another but most of the time the vernacular name is observed commonly in the neighboring state at the same time the scientific name and family of the crude drugs are entirely different. 

This type of confusion becomes more serious when both plants have similar morphological appearances. A small precaution can resolve the problems if considered in time by employing a Pharmacognosist or Taxonomist along with the plant collector’s team. This is true that the local or vernacular name gives good help to local people to collect plants but sometimes it may allow the practice of substitutions due to similar appearance but therapeutically different and thus, while enlisting the indent or demand of the crude drugs, the scientific name must be mentioned along with the species and the plant family. A binomial system of plant nomenclature should be adopted for a more authentic collection. The taxonomist may help the plant collector by identifying the similar-looking plant to avoid adulteration in the bulk collection. 

We should remember that the adulteration or substitution may alter the quality, efficacy, and therapeutic properties of the medicines. This may be minimized by adopting good collection practices. Due to inadequate knowledge of the villagers or plant collectors, if the genuine and other plant material mixed together and if it is in similar appearances, it may create more difficulties in segregation especially when it becomes dry.

There are many crude drugs found mixed with each other and treated as sub-standard quality, also getting fails in the estimation of quality with the parameters mentioned in relevant Pharmacopoeias. For instance, “Shalaparni” (Sanskrit), Sarivan (Hindi), Pulladi, Orila, moovilai (Tamil), and Pullati (Malayalam) vernacular name given for the Desmodium gangeticum; family Leguminosae- Papilionasae is found severely mixed with almost similar looking plant Pseudarthria viscida; family – Leguminosae –Papilionaceae. This plant is locally known as Sanaparni (Sanskrit), Neermalli (Tamil), and Muvila (Malayalam). Botanically, the aforesaid plants belong to the same family but both have different generic and species names and are separate plants but more or less similar looking appearances but therapeutic properties are entirely different. While collected in bulk by local people or villagers. P. viscida is unknowingly being mixed with D. gangeticum. Apart from that, the Kerala state is very close with Tamil Nadu state of the south part of India. The local names muvila (Malayalam) for P.viscida and moovilai (Tamil) for D. gangeticum have almost the same pronunciation i.e. moovilai. So, while asking for material using the local name, it creates a lot of confusion. If plant D. gangeticum requires and demand of the plant raised with local name moovilai, there is no assurance as to what material we will get whether D. gangeticum or P. viscida. The leaves of both the plant are partly deciduous in nature and easily detached from the plant on its dryness and then it is too difficult to identify the plant material in the form of dried crude drugs, especially to the new person of Pharmacognosy or Botany interest. 

In pharmaceutical industries where the Ayurvedic medicines are being prepared at the commercial level, there will always be urgent demand for crude drugs for the production of the medicines to cope with the market demand. Generally, to identify the plant material anatomically, it will take a minimum couple of days and pressure to the quality personnel to get material identified within the stipulated time and if passed in Physico-chemical parameters, then, no issue but if these consignments get failed due to adulteration or sub-standard quality, or substitutions, it may take another week of time to arrive the new material and ultimately delay in productions. 

Now, the question is what can be done to an immediate solution to identify the plant materials on spot to assure their authenticity first?  In this situation, a Botanist or Pharmacognosist should try to find out some dried and entire leaves of the plant from the bags where he or she going to collect samples and then identify the plant material based on their leaves. Here, I am going to give a leaf description of both plants only because leaves possibly be present in the material, collected in any season. If identification was done based on other parts of the aforesaid crude drugs, it will not be fruitful.

Let us give you a brief description of the D. gangeticum and P. viscida plant for easy identification-

1. D. gangeticum leaves- Leaves are unifoliate, petiolate, stipulate, linear, oblong, acute or slightly acuminate, striate at the base about 6-13 cm long and 3.5-7.0 cm broad, margin somewhat wavy, upper surface glabrous and greenish-brown on the dried sample and lower surface slight whitish and clothed with dense, soft appressed hairs.

[Desmodium gangeticum - leaf twig]

2. P.viscida leaves- Leaves are pinnately 3- foliate; leaflets rhomboid- ovate variable in sizes; the color of leaflets at the upper surface is grayish-brown to brown while on lower surface creamish or pale white. Surface glabrous and margin entire. 

[Pseudarthria viscida - a twig]

I hope, the above said description may help to easy identification of the plant material in order to avoid sub-standard quality, substituted or adulterated materials. 

I will come back soon with some more new research or technologies very soon, till then, Take care…

Stay healthy, stay safe… 

Regards, 

Dr. Prem Dutt Dwivedi, Ph.D., Pharmacognosy,

(Researcher, Innovator, Healer, and Humanist)

Be aware - stress and boredom also provoke to keep eating something, which is very harmful for our health…

Food is necessary, but when there is a desire, it is not always necessary to eat. The reason is that sometimes hunger is in the brain rather than in the stomach. You must have noticed one thing when we are under the pressure of emotions, we want to eat something or the other even though we are not hungry. This type of eating is called 'emotional eating. Stress, depression, loneliness, irritability, anxiety, and anger are the feelings that make a person want to eat something. Similarly, if you are alone and bored, there is a desire to keep eating something. In this way, we eat more and can gradually become a victim of obesity. 

[Overeating may harm health]

Actually, mood and desire to eat are linked in the brain. Certain chemicals control both our appetite and mood. For example, stress increases the number of chemicals such as galanin and neuropeptide Y in the brain, leading to a craving for a diet rich in fats and carbohydrates. Some people want to eat chocolate under stress because the amount of carbohydrates and fat in it is high. Serotonin and endorphins are released from the carbohydrates present in chocolate, which improves the mood and makes you feel better. On the other hand, the fat present in it increases the level of galanin in the body. In this way, you feel like eating chocolate again and again. 

The hormones produced in the body during stress prompt us to eat a diet high in fat and high in sugar, which can be called 'stress eating'. Because of this, people often eat more than they need. During times of stress, the adrenal gland produces more cortisol hormone, which also increases appetite. 

Apart from stress, there are many other reasons due to which people eat more-

Boredom - Often when we are bored sitting idle, we start eating something.

Habits- The behavior of eating and drinking also depends on the habits of the person, such habits are developed from childhood.

Fatigue - If you're tired, you often eat without thinking, especially when you're tired of doing something you didn't want to do. So it can be said that overeating can also be the result of unwanted activities. 

Social influence -  There are some friends who insist on having pizza, dinner, or drinks after a night out. That's why we often overeat. This situation also happens in the family's pleas. 

When you want to eat something by mind, not by hungry- It is common to eat easily available things during times of stress. That is, packaged, fried foods. This starts a vicious cycle. Constant overeating has a bad effect on your stomach and health, and it increases your stress and anxiety even more.  

Some tips to avoid frequent overeating-

1. Don't be too strict in the diet - If you feel like eating something, don't avoid it by force. An important rule of nutrition is not to deprive yourself of things that you feel like eating. Sometimes we do not consume the right amount of calories due to being too strict in food. It is not right to completely deprive yourself of something.

2. Suffering from major diseases- If you are doing this due to any disease, then consult your doctor or dietician. Studies have shown that completely giving up one thing is not effective in losing weight, on the contrary, it harms mental and physical health and increases stress.

3. Keep better options in the house- like fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts. Choose foods with a balanced amount of protein, fiber, and fat. They will get nourishment and will also fill the stomach. Instead of stuffing cookies or candy in jars, keep these healthy foods in the kitchen.  So keep sweet baked foods, candy, chips, and cookies out of your sight. Although sometimes delicious things should also be enjoyed, consuming them regularly can be harmful to your physical and mental health.

4. Make a good eating timetable- If you are not in the habit of eating three times a day, then make such a habit. Often in the rush of work, we do not keep the food schedule right. So make a regular eating pattern according to your need. If you feel like eating snacks frequently, then eat good food twice a day, so that you do not feel like eating unhealthy snacks in between.

5. Control the quantity- People tend to eat snacks in the same packing as they bring. By doing this we often end up overeating. For example, if you eat chips straight from the packet, you will eat more quantity, so eat comfortably by taking the right amount on the plate. By eating on a small plate instead of a large container, you will be able to control the quantity.

6. How to get rid of stress -  Do not allow overeating, so it is better not to let the stress increase. Learn to manage emotions. Feelings like sadness worry, disappointment will come, but how much you are affected by them is up to you. Here are some tips that you can follow to avoid negative emotions.

7. Exercise- Exercising keeps the amount of cortisol in the body under control, so that you can stay safe from the negative effects of stress. Activities like yoga involve a combination of both exercise and meditation.

8. Meditation- Studies have proved that meditation provides relief in stress. Along with this, it has also been found effective in blood pressure and heart diseases. With a calm mind, you eat consciously. You consider how you should eat a diet free of fat or sugar.

9. Social support- Support from family, friends, and other people in the society can also be effective in relieving stress. If being alone makes you bored or stressed, hang out with loved ones, play a team game.

Stay healthy, stay safe...

Cardiophobia and its symptoms and treatments…

Cardiophobia is a mental disorder, it creates the occasional fear of having a heart attack that is quite normal, but if this fear haunts any person all the time, means he or she may have cardiophobia. Cardio means related to the heart and phobia means fear. Phobia is a type of anxiety disorder. It can become a hindrance in our daily life.  

[Cardiophobia patient with fear expression]

In cardiophobia, a person is afraid of having a heart attack. Because of this, his mind is not engaged in any other work. The person suffering from this phobia becomes more afraid when the heartbeat is irregular. When there is pain in the chest or left arm, the patient with cardiophobia thinks that he has heart disease. 

People can have cardiophobia for many reasons. For example, this phobia may begin after the death of a closely known person from a heart attack. Apart from this, the fear of having a heart attack due to an accident in childhood can instill in the mind. 

Symptoms of Cardiophobia: There are some common symptoms that have been observed in cardiophobic patients like anxiety, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, high blood pressure, fainting, sudden sweating, shivering, chest pain and left arm pain, etc. 

Cardiophobia treatment - If anyone experiences any of the above symptoms, the first thing to do is to get your heart tested, as many of these symptoms could be signs of a real heart attack. Even after getting all the tests done, if you are worried about heart disease, then tell the doctor about it. You should consult a good psychologist for the treatment of cardiophobia. There your therapy or counseling will be done. Along with this, you can get a heart checkup twice a year to find out the health of the heart. Phobia patients are advised to do breathing exercises and meditation at home. This will calm your mind and reduce anxiety.

Stay healthy, stay safe...