Acne Free Skin through Ayurveda

Acne is a very common skin problem which affects young people at their puberty and few adults till they reach 45. Acne are referred as Youvana pitikas (which means the eruptions of youth) in ayurveda. This shows the prevalence of acne from ages. Ayurveda has described the causes of acne and recommends the best natural herbal acne remedies too.

What causes acne?

A large number of oil producing glands called ?sebaceous glands? are present under the skin ( see figure (http://www.ayurhelp.com/Normalskin.htm) - skin cross section) on face, back, chest and shoulders. During puberty or menopause due to the influence of the sex hormones, which are produced in male and female, these glands become more active and produce an oily secretion called ?sebum?. The sebum makes the skin more oily .The excessive sebum clogs the skin pore or the pit of the hair follicle forming acne.

The blocked pore or acne acts as an excellent habitat for bacteria. The bacterial infection causes inflammation (red, painful swelling of the infected area) of the clogged pore or hair follicle leading to eruption of pimples. Vata and Kapha are two main doshas, which are involved in eruption of acne and pimples. Rakta dhatu or blood also plays an important role in formation of acne.

Vata when gets vitiated due to unhealthy diet and lifestyles affects other two doshas (kapha and pitta) to aggravate them. Aggravated pitta affects rakta dhatu or blood. The vitiated blood affects the skin and causes excess secretion of oil from sebaceous glands. Kapha has sticky property. The aggravated kapha imparts the stickiness to the oil produced by sebaceous glands of skin. Thus the thick sebaceous plugs are formed in skin pores and hair follicles leading to eruption of acne.

Acne worsens when

1.grease, dirt or other harsh chemicals accumulate on skin.

2.you have Increased stress levels.

3.you indulge in Squeezing or pinching of acne.

4.when there are hormonal imbalances during menstrual cycle, menopause and puberty.

5.you are under medications like steroids or hormonal therapy.

Precautions to be taken to avoid exaggeration of acne eruptions:

?Avoid foods which are spicy, dry and oily. These may cause indigestion and lead to vitiation of vata.

?Keep a habit of emptying bowels regularly this always normalizes vata.

?Avoid fast foods and soft drinks.

?Wash your face twice daily with mild cleanser.

?Put a hair band to avoid falling of hair on face. The sweat and dirt accumulated on hair may fall on facial skin through hair strands

?Avoid application of scrubs.

?Wash your hair regularly with mild shampoo to keep it clean and avoid dandruff.

?Squeezing and pricking of pimples cause scaring. Hence avoid this

?Avoid exposure of skin to severe climatic conditions.

?Avoid oil based moisturizers. Water based moisturizers are always beneficial.

?Drink plenty of water.

?Practice a regular exercise regimen

Natural Herbal acne Home remedies :

?Wash your face with lukewarm water and mild soap twice a day.

?Wash fresh methi leaves (fenu greek leaves) and grind it to make a paste. Apply it on face and wash it off with lukewarm water after 10 minutes.

?Grind juicy tender neem leaves with turmeric to a consistency of paste. Apply this paste on acne and pimples. Wash this off after it dries.

?Apply a face pack of ripe tomato pulp and wash it off as soon as it dries naturally (preferably after 45 minutes) .

?Do not keep the make up while sleeping. Cleanse it with a mild herbal cleanser.

?Mix besan flour (gram flour) with rose water and apply a face pack.

?Consuming fresh vegetable salads and fresh fruits keeps the skin healthy and resistant to blemishes.

?Drink plenty of water (15 glasses a day)

Copyright Dr. Savitha Suri, Ayurvedic Physician

Dr. Savitha Suri has been an Ayurvedic Practitioner since 1989. After getting a graduation degree in ayurveda (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) in 1988 from University of Mysore, India, she started practising ayurveda and has launched http://www.ayurhelp.com Her articles about ayurveda have been published in news papers and websites. She is a regular health columnist to an international magzine ?Joyful Living? Read more about acne care at http://www.ayurhelp.com/acnepimples.htm

email doctor@ayurhelp.com

The Facts About Peritoneal Mesothelioma

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a rare form of mesothelioma that accounts for approximately 20% of all mesothelioma cases. Peritoneal mesothelioma affects the tissue lining the abdomen which is called the peritoneum hence the name of this form of the cancer. The peritoneum protects the contents of the abdomen and is therefore very important.

Currently, only one cause of peritoneal mesothelioma is known and this is exposure to asbestos dust and fibres. Only a couple of months of exposure to asbestos without sufficient protection can lead to peritoneal mesothelioma thirty to fifty years later. Those suffering from peritoneal mesothelioma are mostly elderly men who worked amongst asbestos decades ago when workers were not protected from asbestos dust. Many of these men are currently lodging multi-million dollar lawsuits against the companies who exposed them to asbestos. Asbestos fibres can get into the peritoneum in two different ways. The most common way they reach the peritoneum is by them getting trapped in the trachea (windpipe) and bronchi (inside the lungs) by mucus and end up being swallowed. From here they can pass through the intestine wall into the peritoneum. The second way in which asbestos fibres can reach the peritoneum is by them lodging inside the lungs. They then move into the lymphatic system and get transported to the peritoneum. Constant exposure to asbestos leads to a great number of fibres being built up in the peritoneum.

The symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma are generally only felt when the cancer has developed greatly. The symptoms include nausea, vomiting, weight loss, abdominal pains and loss of appetite. As the cancer matures, the symptoms will become more pronounced and severe. To learn more about the symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma go to http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk

There are several treatments for peritoneal mesothelioma although all of them have a poor success rate. The likelihood of a patient surviving depends on how early and aggressively the cancer is treated. Chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery are the most commonly used methods of treatment. Research into the treatment of peritoneal mesothelioma is being conducted in research stations in the United States and by many pharmaceutical companies.

All the detailed information you need on the symptoms, treatment, risks, science and more about mesothelioma can be found at:

http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk

Be sure to visit to learn more about this deadly cancer and how you can prevent it.

Acne Vulgaris The Whole Truth

Acne vulgaris is commonly referred to as just acne. From the start of the teenage years, almost everyone will suffer from some form of acne. It is ain inflammation of the skin that causes irritated sores, commonly on the face. This can lead to low self-esteem, embarrassment, and depression so it is important to treat it and take care of your skin.

The cause of acne vulgaris can be due to a number of different factors. Stress, hormones, and pore-blocking dead skin and oil are some of the most common reasons that people develop acne. It is also an inherited characteristic that you could get from your parents.

Stress changes the level of hormones and neuro-active substances that cause acne. A way to treat this type of break-out is to take some time to relax and de-stress your mind by exercising or writing. Find something that you enjoy doing and practice it when you are feeling particularly stressed over something

Hormone changes that occur during the teenage years can trigger acne vulgaris to flare up. This production of hormones is referred to as androgens. They stimulate oil glands to over-produce and contribute to developing blemishes.

It is a common misconception that all acne is the result of being unclean. If this was true, most people would not ever have to deal with acne. When natural skin oil is combined with normal skin bacteria and dead skin cells, the dead skin gets forced to the surface. The greater the amount of oil that is produced, the better the chance it as of clogging your pores. Clogged pores are where bacteria feed to produce inflammation, which results in pimples. Washing your face cannot treat a condition that develops primarily under the skin.

The effects of having acne vulgaris can be long-term if untreated. If the condition is severe, there is a chance for permanent scars to form. Most teenagers have trouble dealing with the way they feel when they have break-outs. Social situations are avoided at all costs to prevent the embarrassment of a flawed appearance. Some people go as far as missing school because of the appearance of acne vulgaris. Severe depression could also result from unhappiness with the appearance of their skin. Self-esteem and self-worth seem to diminish completely unless their skin is absolutely flawless. There is not a guaranteed cure for these feelings, however, getting an effective acne treatment could eliminate appearance from being the cause of it.

Treatment for acne vulgaris is as simple as finding which medicine works best for you. Severe acne is usually treated by a dermatologist who will prescribe a medication specific to your needs. If the acne is less severe or occasional, an over-the-counter solution could be best for you. There are all types of factors that contribute to the development of blemishes so when picking out the right medicine, consider the specificity of your skin. If you notice that your skin is especially oily, then be sure that you use something that will target the oil. Blackheads and whiteheads are also a target area of some treatments available. To get the best result, experiment in finding what is best for what you need.

AcneHelpZone.com provides people who are suffering from acne with quick, relevant and free acne resources that they can download and take away with them for easy reference.

The Facts About Pericardial Mesothelioma

Pericardial mesothelioma is a very rare form of mesothelioma and accounts for approximately 5% of all mesothelioma cases. This form of mesothelioma affects the lining that surrounds the heart and is a deadly cancer if not treated agressively in its early stages.

The cause of pericardial mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos dust and fibres. As little as a couple of months of exposure to asbestos fibres can lead to pericardial mesothelioma between 30-50 years later. Due to this long latency period of the disease, it is very difficult to diagnose before the cancer has developed and matured fully. Those suffering from mesothelioma are elderly men aged 60-70 because this was the generation that worked with asbestos with little protection from its dust and fibres. The symptoms of the cancer have just started to show for these men due to the long time that the effects of mesothelioma take to come out. Many of these men are now lodging multi-million dollar lawsuits against the companies who exposed them to asbestos without sufficient protection. Asbestos fibres reach the lining of the heart by being inhaled and then getting lodged in the lungs. From the lungs they can either move into the lymphatic system and get transported to the lining of the heart or they can just pass slowly to the lining of the heart over time. Over a long period of time being exposed to asbestos, these fibres build up and once enough have accumilated in the lining heart, pericardial mesothelioma is a possibility.

There are a number of symptoms assosiated with pericardial mesothelioma. However, these are only felt when the cancer has matured and is in its late stages of development. These symptoms include, persistent coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain and palpitations. Other symptoms typical of all types of mesothelioma include loss of appetite, nausea and weight loss. Anyone who recognises that they have these symptoms or know someone who does then is encouraged by all leading medical advisors to seek medical help immediately. For more information on the symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma go to http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk

There is no certain cure to pericardial mesothelioma and all of the treatment methods used have a poor success rate. The chances of survival of a patient depend strongly on how early and aggressively the cancer is treated. This is why it is important to receive a diagnosis for pericardial mesothelioma as soon as possible. Treatment methods include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. More information on these methods of treatment can be found at http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk/treatment.html

Research into cures for pericardial mesothelioma is being conducted in labs all over the United States and many pharmaceutical companies are also investigating new drugs. As yet, research has only discovered a limited amount.

All the detailed information you need on the symptoms, treatment, risks, science and more about mesothelioma can be found at:

http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk

Be sure to visit to learn more about this deadly cancer and how you can prevent it.

Cost Of Mesotherapy

The total cost of Mesotherapy depends on several factors and varies widely from one clinic to the other. Costs include consultation fees and treatment fees, which in turn depend on the level of expertise of the person providing treatment, the size and number of body areas to be treated, and the total number of treatment sessions needed.

The higher the certification of the individual providing treatment, the higher the cost usually is. A board-certified plastic surgeon will be more expensive than a nurse practitioner. Clinics with higher overhead will also be more expensive. It is best to consider at least a couple of options to determine the level of expertise and price range one is comfortable with.

In general, an initial consultation for a Mesotherapy treatment may cost between $50 and $500. During this consultation, a treatment plan is chalked out depending on whether the aim is to reduce cellulite, localized fat, or both.

Once the treatment plan is decided, a patient may undergo between four and ten treatment sessions. The total number of sessions depends on the type of treatment (cellulite reduction versus localized fat reduction), and area of the body that is being treated. For each area of the body being treated, such as the thighs or buttocks, one session may cost between $200 and $600. If the body area to be treated is the neck or eye, or face region, greater skill may be required and the cost accordingly goes up.

Because there are so many variables involved in the final bill for Mesotherapy, it is best to find out what costs are involved upfront. Mesotherapy is not covered by health insurance, and treatment costs can run into the thousands of dollars. Costs per injection session may not include drug and equipment costs. Certain treatments may also require follow-up after the initial injection treatment is completed, adding to the total cost.

Mesotherapy provides detailed information about mesotherapy, cost of mesotherapy, mesotherapy before and after, mesotherapy injections and more. Mesotherapy is the sister site of Mesothelioma Doctors Info.

Burn 340 Calories a Day with Aerobic Exercise

Strengthen your heart and lungs and give your body a wonderful shape with Aerobics.

Aerobic Exercise ? Improve your fitness the right way.

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Aerobic exercise involves the manner of muscles drawing on oxygen in the blood as well as fats and glucose that increase cardiovascular endurance. Aerobics is done in order to improve fitness, burn calories, shape the body, strengthen physical well-being, and maintaining fitness. There are different types of Aerobics, apart from a Warm up, a Cardio part, and a Cool down. There is another lesson that consists of Floor work, and Stretching.

Your body is always burning some fat but if you want to lose weight, you need to increase your activity to the point where your body starts to let go of some of its fat reserves. That means sustaining some activity. It takes about 20 minutes of aerobic activity before the body starts to burn its fat deposit. And fat-burning has an added bonus: if you can get your body into its fat-burning range, your metabolism stays elevated even after you?ve stopped exercising ?for up to six hours!

Exercising aerobically means you are basically doing two things: helping your body take in more oxygen, which strengthens your heart and lungs, and over time allows you to achieve more physical work that you could not without aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise also creates a situation in the body due to which fat that is stored somewhat out of reach, are accessed and burned in greater number than they are when you are at rest.

Copyright ? Mathew Bell 2005

Mathew Bell is the author of many articles relating to health issues to help the public to be better informed of options available to them in today's online world.

Visit this Pharmacy link for more information.

Sleep: Restorative of Tired Body and Mind

Sleep is one of nature?s greatest inventions and blessings of life. It is a periodic rest of the body which is absolutely essential for its efficient functioning. It has been called most cheering restorative of tired bodies.

Sleep is the indispensable condition to the recuperation of energy. We go to bed fatigued and get up refreshed. Sleep repairs the wear and tear of the body and mind incurred during waking hours. Nothing is so restorative to the nerves as sound and uninterrupted sleep. Sleep is thus a vital element in a total way of life. It is a basic need in man?s mental as well as physical life.

During sleep most of the functions of the body are carried on at the lowest level possible in health. Heat production is from 10 to 15 per cent below the basal level. The mechanism regulating the body temperature are less sensitive than in the waking state and are depressed by 0.5 to 1.0 degree F. The rate of the heart is reduced by 10 to 30 beats per minute and a decline in blood pressure of about 20 mm occurs in quiet restful sleep. The urine volume is considerably reduced, but its concentration in solids is increased. The tone of all the skeletal muscles is lessened. The eyes are usually rolled upward and the pupils constricted.

Loss of sleep exerts seriously detrimental effects upon the nervous system. Long periods of wakefulness may cause profound psychological changes such as loss of memory, irritability, hallucination and even schizophrenic manifestations. During the last World War, prisoners in Nazi concentration camps who kept awake for days by strong lights and blaring wireless sets, collapsed.

Sleep versus rest

For correct living, it is essential to differential between sleep and rest. At rest the body is disturbed by all exterior noises; but in sleep it is screened from them by partial loss of consciousness and also by what is called dream protection. One useful purpose of the dream is to convert outside noises that might awake the sleeping person, into fantasies that do not disturb him.

During rest the limbs are normal, but in sleep they swell. Blood flows from the brain, distends the arteries, and makes the limbs bigger. IN sleep more muscles are relaxed than in rest, though the sleeping person changes his position about 35 times in one night, without knowing it. Many organs which work during rest suspend their activities in sleep. Thus the recouping value of sleep is much more than that of rest or simple lying down.

To learn more about the energy principle in healing, please read:

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Ayurveda Diet Recommendations For Each Body Type

Ayurveda recommends foods for people according to their primary body type. The reason this is done is because it is believed foods can be both healing, and the source of imbalance and difficulties. By eating foods according to our Ayurvedic body type, the belief is that we will accumulate less Ama, or waste, in the body.

In Ayurveda, people are classified according to three principles, vata, kapha, and pitta. But it's important to understand that although we may be dominant in one principle, we actually have all three present in our body. The others are in a smaller ration. Most people will actually be a combination of two of these principles, with the third only playing a minor role. But because we all contain the three, any of them can get out of balance.

Pitta

Characteristics of Pitta dominant body types

* determination
* strong willed
* good digestion
* initiative
* energy
* passionate about many things

Ayurveda's Pitta constitution is calmed by cooling foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables. Bitter green vegetables like watercress, parsley, collards and most greens suit pitta. Fruits that suit pitta body types include sweet berries, sweet apples and apricots, coconut, figs, mango, sweet oranges and pineapples, plums, watermelon, pomegranates, and prunes.

Other cooling foods include most dairy products, though sour cream, hard cheeses, and yoghurt don't really suit pitta due to their being too high in fat, salt, or sour. But dairy that suits pitta includes milk, cottage cheese, soft cheeses, and ice cream!

Grains that suit pitta body types include barley, basmati rice, and wheat (unless you are allergic or gluten sensitive).

Pitta body types generally like a lot of protein, and they probably need a little more than the other Ayurvedic body types. Spices that are cooling in nature are also important. These include coriander, cumin, mint, parsley, dill and fennel. Garlic should be avoided though as it is too heating.

In terms of sweets, Pitta body types should use maple syrup, barley malt, brown rice syrup and honey that is 6 months or less old, preferably raw.

Things that can imbalance Pitta body types:

* excess heat, hot climates, and hot times of day
* humidity
* vacations and times when there is increased mobility
* excess oil in the diet
* too many hot foods, including spicy foods. But this can also mean too many cooked meals
* excess caffeine, salt, red meat and alcohol

Vata

Characteristics of people with a dominant Vata body type:

* flexibility
* quick mind
* creative
* always on the go - mentally and physically

Dietary choices that support vata aim at grounding this energy-in-motion. Routine is also very helpful, though not naturally something vata body type people will create! Vata people benefit from meditation, warmth, soothing music, taking breaks, and resting (again, not a natural vata inclination!).

With regards foods, vata body types should include warming spices, including ginger and cloves, anise, cayenne, cinnamon, garlic, horseradish, caraway, mint, mustard seeds, parsley, cooked onion, paprika, rose water, vanilla, tarragon, thyme and rosemary.

People with the vata body type should minimize raw food, including salad, though salads should not be eliminated completely as they provide valuable nutrients. But vata should ground the salad with a dressing made from oil and vinegar, and be aware of the weather at the time of eating it. Being more sensitive to cold, vata's should have salads on warmer days.

Icy cold drinks are not balancing for vata - in fact quite the opposite. Sugar also throws vata types off balance, though vata are lucky in that they can enjoy other sweets.

Vata generally love fruit, and it suits their ayurvedic constitution. The exceptions are apples, pears, cranberries, watermelon and dried fruit. Vata types should go for sweet and moist fruit, like mangoes, nectarines, bananas, coconut, fresh figs, peaches, and strawberries.

Cooked grains like oatmeal, basmati rice, and brown rice, are very grounding for the vata ayurvedic constitution. Beans (legumes), on the other hand, are not! Beans are cold, dry, and heavy - not the attributes that support vata.

Things that can imbalance vata dominant body types include:

* a lot of travel, especially by plane
* loud noises
* constant stimulation
* drugs, sugar and alcohol
* cold climates (especially extremely cold ones) and cold food
* frozen and dried food

Kapha

Characteristics of people with a kapha dominant body type:

* strength
* stamina
* endurance
* groundedness
* calm
* fluid

Kapha body types are not suited to a high protein diet like the Atkins diet. Not only should they avoid too much fat, but also, excessive heavy protein. The kapha quality is already heavy, and although this doesn't sound great, it is what provides Kapha body types with a wonderful stability and strength.

Kapha should have light and low fat protein. Beans, with the exception of soy and soy products, are great for kapha. Soy milk is preferable to dairy though, for kapha. Beans help move kapha's energy, and digestive system, a bit. Barley is also excellent. In terms of meat, chicken and turkey suit kapha.

Kapha body types should have plenty of vegetables, including bitter vegetables, peppers, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, eggplant, lettuce, onions, potatoes, mushrooms, corn cobs, peas, beets, and celery.

Dairy is heavy and cooling, and it does not suit the Kapha ayurvedic body type. Light and crispy food, like corn tortillas and popcorn, suit kapha. Kapha people should make sure they have variety in their diet, as kapha body types have a danger of falling into a rut more than others.

Asian and Latin American style meals are great for kapha. They are spicy and light, free of dairy, and have plenty of vegetables in them.

Things that can imbalance Kapha body types:

* inertia
* too much fat in the diet, including oil we cook with!
* dairy products
* not enough stimulation and challenge
* not enough variety
* not enough exercise
* too much bread, iced foods and drinks, and sweets

References: Amadea Morningstar and Urmila Desai, The Ayurvedic Cookbook

For some great articles on ayurveda, including home remedies, click here. For more articles on nutrition, click here. Rebecca Prescott runs the website http://www.articlehealthandfitness.com which accepts submissions of health, fitness, and beauty articles.

Origin Of Acne Is Still Unknown

The origin of pimples/acne is still unknown. There are still a few issues, which have not been brought to light. Nobody exactly knows why the pores collapse and pack the sebum content within the skin. Researchers have not been able to find as to how this process spreads from one sebaceous gland to another.

Acne is a skin disease, which is created by the clogged pores on the skin. It is a major problem for millions of teenagers, both male and female. It makes a person depressed and so proper treatment is necessary.

Though pimples are just a small bump on the skin, the effects could be traumatic on some as they lose self-esteem among peers. It is advised to get it treated with the help of a dermatologist who would recommend proper medications, which would heal and prevent acne. Proper care like cleaning the face after jogging, traveling etc are recommended. Shaving properly, avoiding sun and choosing the right cosmetics would help a lot.

Acne is a condition which 90 percent of the population goes through in their teenage years. For some this condition continues till their middle age too. Never pluck the acne as it could leave a mark on your face. The best way to counter this condition is by being health conscious and maintaining cleanliness.

Paul has been providing answers to lots of queries through his website on a wide variety of subjects ranging from satellite phones to acne. To learn more visit http://www.askaquery.com/Answers/qn1641.html

You are welcome to republish the above article only if you add our hyperlinked URL.

Breast Cancer Risk: Simple Steps to Prevent Disease

If young women take certain simple steps when they are adolescents, they may reduce risk of breast cancer later in life. A research suggests that puberty could be a crucial time for development of breast cancer.

Regular exercise is believed to delay the beginning of a girl's first menstrual period. That is when the body creates hormones that stimulate the majority of breast cancers. According to a study, just 4 hours of weekly exercise can postpone hormone surges for up to 12 months.

Four hours a week is not a large amount of activity for a girl. She can play dodge ball, play on the playground or ride her bike. Because exercise can lower hormone activity, it can reduce risk of breast cancer, even after a girl starts having periods.

One more way is cutting back on fat. Girl who cut her fat intake by only 6 percent lowered her estrogen and progesterone levels by at least 30 percent, according to a study. These theories are not really well tested and need more research.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, other than skin cancer. In the United States approximately 183,000 new cases are diagnosed and about 41,000 women die each year from cancer originating in the breast.

Alex Fir shares a wealth of information on his website http://www.informationonbreastcancer.info. To read more about risk factors for breast cancer visit Information on Breast Cancer today.

The Power of Pause

A Well Intentioned Pause

Katy was tired, her body exhausted and her mind scrambling to keep up. Refugees from Hurricane Katrina teemed through her doors like hordes at the gates. The world watched as walls of wind and water ravaged cities from New Orleans, Louisiana to Mobile, Alabama. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes and the worlds they knew. Some lost their lives. The Gulf Coast reeled from the one-two punch of the killer storm and the flooding of New Orleans. The whole country jolted as rescue efforts spiraled into mayhem and chaos. The botched response from the ill-prepared and devastated city governments and the achingly slow federal response shocked hearts across the globe.

Katy, the Director of The Montrose Clinic, was stretched thin in the best of times. Her clinic served Houston?s swelling indigent, uninsured, and gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender (GLBT) communities. For twenty-five-plus years, they?d provided sexually transmitted disease care and were at the vanguard of responding to the HIV epidemic. New Orleans?s gay, lesbian and HIV community swarmed to the clinic. Katy was in hyper-drive. Far under the radar screen of the relief efforts going on across town at the Astrodome, suddenly, patients at the Montrose Clinic, with no medical records, no homes and no funding, needed care, and more importantly, expensive medications. The clinic?s dedicated doctors and staff welcomed patients over the Labor Day holiday. Katy scrambled to find the money for their meds. Two weeks of this kind of pressure had taken its toll on Katy. She came through the door needing a spa get-a-way to unkink her body, soothe her anxious nerves, and calm her ricocheting mind. She was already looking forward to next month?s birthday gift to herself?a spa vacation to rest and relax.

These are extraordinary times. Spiritually committed people around the world are feeling the call to excellence in all avenues of life: loving and raising families, success and respect in business, human values and relationships, nurturing the natural world, and the realizing of truth in our everyday lives. We are called upon to stoke the brightest light of our selves and to shine brilliantly into the world, especially into the darkest crooks and crannies of our human condition. We are called to vision the very best that humanity has to offer and live fully into that vision. We spiritually minded, values held firmly in hand, stride into the day with our best intentions.

But the task of lifting the world from darkness can feel daunting. The specter of every ism known to society: sexism, racism, classism, poverty, hate, and greed can zap the energy, along with all the good intentions, from many a spiritual activist. The evening news is a steady stream of war, tragedy, horror, and violence. The environment and our precious resources are under siege; offered on the world market at discount prices to the highest bidder; a too high percentage of our human family scramble for enough food to eat or safe shelter to sleep the night. If life is a school than surely times like these are our mid-term exams.

Yet we are born for such times. We are called to fortify our truest selves, to marshal our physical, emotional, mental, moral and spiritual energies and direct them for all that is right and good in this world. And in the scope of all the work needing to be done, it?s easy to exhaust ourselves in the process; to run on fumes; or worse, flat out of gas. This is where practicing the simple ?Power of the Well Intentioned Pause? comes in handy.

The very nature of energy is to expand and contract. It?s one of the few constants in the universe. The stars and their moons rise and set, waves of water crest and fall, electricity pulses, hearts contract and then pulse, lungs rise and fall, orgasms come and go. Energy may be constant but it oscillates. The energy keys in our bodies are the same.

Physically we have times of effort and times of rest and sleep. Emotionally we balance our sense of individuality and our need to connect with the people around us. We can be mentally muddled and confused or focused and clear. We can pursue lives and ideals we don?t truly want for ourselves or we can live our deepest values in the world. Spiritually we can remain dormant or we can sparkle and thrive. There is a fine line between efficiency and burnout. The fulcrum that makes the difference is respecting your body?s need for pause and rest. This simple directive sounds, well too simple. But in these times of over stimulation, hyperactivity and multi-tasking, our bodies consume tremendous amounts of energy that we simply must restore. If we are to continue to thrive we must learn to balance performance with pause.

A prime example comes from the laboratory of pro sports players. For thirty years sports psychologists Jim Loeher and Tony Schwartz have helped professional athletes define what it takes to succeed at the most competitive levels under the highest pressures. Beginning their work with tennis pros, Loeher set out to determine what separated the top-ranked stars from the rest of the pack. He was frustrated during his studies. He couldn?t separate much difference between the peak performers and the other players during points: their strokes, speed and strength where often similar. He discovered the key difference when he focused on what the players did between the points, not during the points. The topped ranked players, each and everyone, had a personal ritual for calming their breath and heart rate, sharply focusing their attention, and preparing for the next point. These rituals might last only ninety seconds between points, but practiced often were highly effective. It gave the players the extra stamina and focus to leap ahead of the pack.

The importance of a ?work-rest? ratio was first introduced by Flavius Philostratus almost two-thousand years ago. Flavius, a trainer of Greek Olympic athletes, understood that after intense training, his athletes needed time to rest and recover their energy. Modern science calls this ?compensation. As Jim Loeher states in his book The Power of Full Engagement:

After a period of activity, the body must replenish fundamental biochemical sources of energy?Increase the intensity of the training or performance demand, and it is necessary to commensurately increase the amount of energy renewal. Fail to do so and the athlete will experience a measurable deterioration in performance?.Balancing stress and recovery is critical not just in competitive sports, but in managing energy in all facets of our lives.

?A well intentioned pause? is an extension of Loeher?s discovery with tennis players. A strategic pause becomes a practice for everyday life. It is simply remembering, on a regular and consistent basis throughout the day to completely unplug from the all-consuming tasks at hand: a chaotic workday fraught with calls, meetings, and deadlines; demanding children, navigating the stresses of family and relationships; driving in traffic; balancing the demands of personal life and community service, or fighting for social justice.

It is our focused intention that sets this kind of pause apart. The power of our intention is source of tremendous energy in, and of itself. When I turn my intention to rest, restore and refuel my energy; when I turn my intention to calm and soothe my feelings and mind, life naturally responds. Possible pauses can be just about anything that unplug us from the consuming thoughts of our day and refuel our energies. Anything you consciously do to disconnect from the intensity of your day and nourish your energy will make a big difference. They include:

a few minutes of breathing or meditation,
a set of stretches, sit-ups, or push-ups
going to the gym,
a dance, yoga, or aerobics class,
reading a juicy novel,
a phone call to an inspiring friend or a loving family member,
a walk outdoors in nice weather is mighty helpful,
a nap,
savoring a healthy meal.

A well intentioned pause can last ninety seconds, ten minutes, one hour, a day, or a week. Don?t underestimate the power of a deliberate ninety-second pause. Remember the tennis pro?s in Loeher?s study. Between points, they each had a ritual that rested their energy, calmed their breath and heart-rate, and then focused their attention to the next point. It was this consistent rest and recovery, brief as it was, that separated the top-ranked players from the rest of the pack. The key is to train your mind and body to relax and restore energy in concentrated pauses. Our bodies respond quickly when these ritual pauses become a well trained habit.

The ten to twenty minute pause is a good place to start for beginners. This is ample time to unplug from the demands consuming your attention, soothe frazzled nerves, and to refuel spent energy. Ten minutes of focused breathing is excellent. Train the people around you to respect your pauses. A ten minute pause interrupted by a phone call and an officemate poking their head through the door is barely a pause at all. You?d have to be as skilled as a tennis-pro to get much benefit from such a pause.

Your lunch break can be a strategic pause. Simply savor a healthy meal, sit by your self or with friends. The key is not to read or work?enjoy your food. Go to the gym, take a dance, yoga, or aerobics class that both challenges you and gives you pleasure. Take a walk outdoors in nice weather is good, reading a juicy novel, or a nap if you can (I take a ten to fifteen minute nap most every day). Find the pauses that work best for you, but take the time to stop. Do something that you enjoy. Pleasure refuels our energy tanks. Anything that feels like work or effort drains our fuel tanks.

A day long pause sounds easy enough, but how many of us really take a day off? In our hyper-drive world, it?s easy to cram two days worth of ?home? work and repairs, seeing friends and family, shopping, and errands into the weekend. There?s little left over for fun and play. I love taking a day trip to the beach or to the Texas Hill Country. We pile the dogs into the Ford and head out of town. Another great pause is a romantic weekend away. What a gift to myself and to my lover to travel away from our world and just enjoy our time together, exploring some place together.

A week long pause can be more than a vacation. How many people come home from their vacations needing a vacation? I asked Deepak Chopra what he did to sustain the momentum of his life and teaching. To my surprise, in addition to service and charity work, working in a community of like minded people, and studying the world?s scriptures, he said, ?Principally through meditative discipline? every 3 to 4 months, I go into a week of total silence where I have no communications with anyone, not even my family, not with phone or fax or a book or a magazine or a radio set or a television set; total silence for about 5 days to 7 days.?

I used to run myself ragged. My days started between 5 and 6 AM writing at the computer, shift to teaching yoga and Nia dance classes, and then I worked giving massages till 8:30 PM. I would come home exhausted with barely enough energy to eat and say hello to my husband. With my strategic pauses built into my day, I arrive home ready for dinner and a good conversation. I have the emotional energy to listen, share, and engage. And I?m happier and healthier for it (Jim likes it too).

Alan Davidson is the co-author of Healing the Heart of the World with Prince Charles, Carolyn Myss, John Gray, and Neal Donald Walsch. Alan, a Registered Massage Therapist since 1988, is the owner and director of Essential Touch Therapies in Houston, Texas. He has a B.S. from University of Houston, Downtown, with an emphasis on psychology, sociology, philosophy, and religion. Alan is fascinated with the intersection of bodywork, psychology, ritual, and spiritual practice. Having taught massage, meditation, yoga, and human transformation since 1990 he is currently on the teaching staff at NiaMoves Studio. Alan wholeheartedly believes, ?Life is for the fun of it!? Alan can be reached at http://www.throughyourbody.com

Acne Treatment Remedies for Adults and Teens

Those who have experienced pimples on their face and torso want an acne remedy that they can use and that will work. There are lots of different products you can use. Some make outrageous, miracle claims but a few of them work to reduce the symptoms and overall appearance of acne.

It can be very difficult to make the right choice of an acne product on the market today. Most people use trial and error in their choices, trying the product for a few days then giving it up and moving on to a new one when nothing happens or worse something does happen in the form of further irritation of the skin. It can be very upsetting and expensive even though this form of trial and error does occasionally give good results.

Good research can save time. Find what?s in the product and research what it does. This will help to eliminate much of the competition. There are few acne treatments with FDA approval in over-the-counter uses and they are often used in combination with other acne fighting treatments. This helps to maximize their ability to help keep acne off your face.

Many are used in different strengths or percentages in the medications. Sulfur has been used for many years as an acne treatment. It does cause drying as part of its treatment so you may need to use some skin lotion on your face. Sulfur can be combined with antibiotics and it is considered very safe and relatively inexpensive for the purchaser. However the skin can become used to the Sulfur and will no longer react to it when applied, so the treatment is ineffective.

Benzoyl peroxide common in over-the-counter treatments and is thought to be very, highly effective in the killing of the p. acnes bacteria which causes acne. It can also dry up excess oil from the pores and overuse can lead to dry and chapped skin. A mild dosage is often just as effective as the stronger one.

Lastly Salicylic acid unplugs those clogged pores by soaking into the plug and helping to loosen it up. It?s made from willow bark. Interestingly a form of it is what makes up Aspirin. Plus the acid helps to exfoliate the dead skin cells from the surface of your skin.

Mrs. Party... Gail Leino is the internet's leading authority on selecting the best possible party supplies, using proper etiquette and manners while also teaching organizational skills and fun facts. Free info. on Adult Acne and skin treatments.

Adult Acne: It's a Lot More Common Than You Think

While it is true that acne most commonly appears during the teenage years, it is just as true that a large percentage of individuals suffer from adult acne. In fact, figures show that as much as 25 percent of men and 50 percent of women in their twenties up to their fifties still experience pimple flare-ups. Adult acne can have just as much negative psychological effects as adolescent acne ? perhaps even more so. The stress of having a career or raising a family is bad enough. Having to deal with an unsightly skin problem at the same time would be even worse.

Adult acne can be caused by several things, one of which is mental stress. The body can react to stress by increasing the secretions of the skin?s sebaceous glands or by releasing more hormones from the adrenal glands. Oils from the sebaceous glands can block pores, while a greater amount of hormones in the body can cause hormonal imbalance ? both of which can give rise to acne flare-ups or exacerbate an existing acne condition.

It is not surprising that women suffer from adult acne more than men do, since women are more prone to hormonal imbalance. It is known that changes in hormone levels can occur during menstruation and pregnancy. But men, too, are subject to hormonal changes, though not to the extreme level that most women undergo. In any case, hormones play a great role in the occurrence of acne in adults.

Lifestyle and environmental factors also contribute significantly to the emergence of adult acne. A diet that is poor in the necessary vitamins and minerals can wreak havoc on how the body?s organs functions. The skin, being the largest organ in the body, needs nutrients in order to work effectively. If the skin is unable to metabolize or secrete the waste products that it needs to because of poor nutrition, acne can result. Habits such as smoking and drinking can also affect the skin?s condition and its resistance to diseases like adult acne.

What is the best way to deal with adult acne? Like many other ailments, prevention is the key. Make sure that a proper diet is being followed; get enough rest; try to find ways to alleviate stress; maintain proper hygiene to prevent dust from accumulating and blocking the pores. Washing the face once or twice a day and using hypoallergenic or noncomedogenic cosmetics and other personal care products can go a long way towards preventing adult acne.

Treatment options abound for persons with adult acne, however mild or severe their condition may be. Dermatologists may recommend anti-acne medications to be taken in conjunction with other skin care products. More severe cases ? such as those involving infection ? can be treated with antibiotics to prevent complications. Very severe cases of adult acne have several therapeutic regimes, such as microdermabrasion and laser surgery. A person suffering from adult acne, whatever the level of severity, should consult a dermatologist or other qualified professionals to get the treatment option that is the most suitable for him or her.

Patricia Tyler is the editor of http://www.acne-community.com - the web site for learning more about and discussing acne treatments and many other acne topics.

Why A Positive Attitude Helps In Coping With Arthritis Pain Part 1

Think Positive To Relieve Arthritis Pain.

My name is Cathy Posner and I live in Wauchope which is on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia. I was born in 1957 and in late 2004 was told that the aches in my joints were Rheumatoid Arthritis.

My husband, Ray has a very positive approach to everything and I guess that has rubbed off on me, so rather than sit back and let things progress I decided to see what I could do for myself.

Let me give you an example of Ray?s positive attitude. In September 2003 he had to have open heart surgery to replace his aortic valve. We live on 160 acres so before he went into hospital he slashed a walking track so that he could regularly exercise when he came out of hospital.

Not only that he left the tractor set up for slashing. Four weeks after surgery, even though he was not allowed to lift anything heavier that a 2 liter bottle of milk (about 4 pints) he got the OK to slash the paddocks as long as he did big easy turns at the end of each run. (Actually I think he secretly enjoyed having me open the car door for him and carry the groceries.)

So, as you can see, in his mind there was no way that he wasn?t going to get back to a normal life as quickly as possible, but within the guidelines of what the Doctors told him.

Now when you live with someone like that it?s hard not to take a positive approach.

How can having a positive attitude help you in your fight against the pain and difficulties arthritis can cause?

I know some of you already reading this have a positive approach so please bear with me.

As I was saying Ray?s positive attitude helped him in his recovery. I don?t know how much pain he was in but I can imagine it was considerable. After all you don?t have your sternum sawn in half and rejoined without pain.

In fact for some time he had to clutch a folded towel to his chest whenever he coughed or went to the bathroom but he never complained once.

He just got on with life within the restraints set by the Doctors and in fact even started a new business while he was recovering.

OK you might ask ?how does this relate to me?? I know pain can be an all consuming, overpowering feeling but you need to get your mind off it.

If you sit back and wallow in self-pity your days and nights will drag, you will become depressed (or even more depressed) and your pain feeds upon itself ? your mind magnifies the intensity of your pain and you feel even worse.

If this describes you and my comments offend you then I am sorry but hopefully what I am about to say will be a ?wake up? call for you.

What are the benefits of having a positive attitude? Well to start with your mind can be trained to focus on things other that your pain. When it does, your pain is shut out creating a sense of feeling better. This feeling feeds on itself in the same way that if you allow yourself to focus on your pain, it seems to get worse.

Can you learn to have a positive attitude? Of course you can. If you are still breathing you have the ability to learn. And really it is not so much ?learning? but altering the state of your mind.

All you need is the desire to help yourself, to get relief from your pain and overcome obstacles that your arthritis creates for you.

May I suggest some things you can do?

How is your lifestyle? Do you look after yourself? Your wellbeing is very important to how you feel and influences how you think.

Diet and Exercise are important to your overall health. If you are not eating correctly and doing some exercise within your limits, you are not helping yourself in your fight to get arthritis pain relief.

To read more about diet, foods that can help, foods to avoid and to get some great tips on getting started with exercise simply click on the link at the end of this article and then follow the links on the home page.

I recommend you read a book on Positive Thinking. There are some excellent publications available and most will give you the tools you need.

Sit down and relax. Think back to when you didn?t have the inconvenience and pain of arthritis. Pick a point in time when you were doing something that you enjoyed.

Now focus on that thing. Experience it again. Feel the emotion associated with it. Live it. Breathe it. Be there ? in your mind be that person that you were then.

Do this 2 or 3 times a day for 5 to 10 minutes at a time. Tip: if you sit down and find you go to sleep, try standing up.

This technique helps to reprogram your subconscious to think ?pain free? and you should find that your pain decreases or may actually ?go away?.

You can also use this anytime your pain starts to get the better of you. Just go back to that time when you were pain free and allow your mind to again experience that feeling.

This really works. But don?t just do it once ? you must do it every day, without fail and you will soon see the benefits.

Cathy Posner

Cathy Posner is an arthritis sufferer and lives in Wauchope, New South Wales, Australia. Her website is as a result of personal research and where arthritis sufferers can find up-to-date advice and information on arthritis pain relief.

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You may use this article on your WebSite, or Newsletter providing you include all links and this biography.

http://www.get-arthritis-pain-relief.com/index1

Why Don't We Breathe Properly Nowadays?

There are various reasons for this ranging from a more stressful lifestyle to habits we?ve carried through from childhood. Because most of us have more stress in our day to day living and we exercise a lot less, we?ve become a generation of upper chest breathers and only use the top portion of our lungs. The effect of this is that we breathe more rapidly to get oxygen in when we get stressed.

Because our bodies don?t know what?s going on in the outside world it assumes by this breathing and breath holding that we are in grave danger (maybe we?re being hunted down by a tiger?) it switch?s on our fight or flight reflex and our body gets pumped up with adrenaline and other hormones to get ready to flee and by the end of the day we can find ourselves totally on edge and come home and flop on the sofa exhausted.

As you know yourself the benefits of a few deep breaths to help you calm down in a stressful situation, we can now logically see that we are actually adding to the stress in our bodies by continuing to breathe this way. To start to turn your life around by proper breathing, be aware of how you breathe in your day to day living if you do find yourself in situations where you tighten up or hold your breath?.. take a few deep breaths, you?ll find yourself starting to relax and be able to think clearer and at least now you wont be adding to the stress your bodies under!

Visit http://www.scienceofbreath.be and claim your FREE 13 page report packed with all the best breathing excercises and start to improve your breathing technique today!

Breast Cancer Facts Men Get Breast Cancer Too

One of the most common cancers among Black women, as you may know, is Breast Cancer. And that, my friends, is only surpassed by the number one culprit Lung Cancer. More than 217, 000 people will be affected by Breast Cancer this year. Now tell me that this fact isn?t a good reason for us to feel some fear. Every 2 minutes, my friends, a woman is diagnosed with Breast Cancer. And every 13 minutes because of Breast Cancer, one woman?s life is over. Imagine, 20, 000 newly diagnosed cases are expected to occur among Black Women. Of that, 57 hundred Black Women, because of Breast Cancer, will leave this earth my friend. Black Women 5 year survival rate is 74%. Compared to White Women whose survival rate is 88%. Scientists still don?t know why Breast Cancer affects Black Women differently to White Women. There?s a higher incidence of Breast Cancer in Black Women as compared to White Women. Black Women are more likely to be diagnosed with much larger tumors. And they are also more likely to be diagnosed with more advanced stages of Breast Cancer. Among women under 45 Black Women have a higher incidence of this disease. And this is compared to the incidences among women, if you please. The risk of Breast Cancer for all women surely increases with age. But yearly mammograms and monthly self- exams help to discover it at an early stage. Women between the age of 20-30 should have a mammogram every 3 years. Be familiar with your breasts so you?ll notice any changes occuring there. Report any changes that you find to your doctor without delay. The best method of protection is early detection, that?s what I always say. Mammograms are avalable; they are free for everyone. But if you have no insurance you can still get yourself a free one. Ladies remind your husbands and boyfriends to check their breasts when you do; They should report any changes they see in their breasts because men can get Breast Cancer too.

I have been busy promoting my book- Smiling Thru the Tears- A Breast Cancer Survivor Odyssey, doing radio interviews, television appearances and booked solid with Motivational Speaking engagements. I publish an enewletter- Metamorphosis, for Breast Cancer survivors and I stay busy. It is my way of staving off the demon and I thrive on the challenge of staying busy. Every new pain or change could become a potential point of worry and that is no way to live and I have no time for worry. I rise every morning cognizant that I overcame breast cancer...I am a survivor. I live with chemo related vertigo and neuropathy but I try not to let it define who I am. I know I have a new reality; the things I once took for granted have now become a challenge. I can't turn my head suddenly or lay flat on my back, but I can breath, I can laugh and I can rejoice and thank God for His New Year gift to me- my blessing. I had a biopsy on my left breast and on January 5th, 2005 after a second breast cancer scare, I was told that my biopsy came back negative. Yes folks, I am cancer free...isn't God great?

AntiAging: Part 5 Allow Old Lessons Not Memories to Create the Face

Isaiah 43:18 ?Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old?. The most powerful Anti-aging instruction from Isaiah is very plain because of it?s importance. Life changing and therefore face changing experiences can happen over 5 minutes or 5 years.

The ?former? or 5 minute one is the easiest to deal with but even this will require basic awareness and a level of discipline. Evidence of its power will be in place the following morning if the mind is filled with regurgitation of the event.

Awareness of the potential manifesting danger must be known. A thought can build in strength and move through your mind numerous times during the course of the day. A simple negative thought must never be allowed to organize a life.

Once this occurs other more important, enjoyable, productive activities receive second place. Over time even this position is eliminated and the intended life style becomes a distant and foggy memory.

The ?things of old? or 5 year memory is the result of an issue that began as a small mistake, was never rectified but grew out of all proportions bringing sad and long term major challenges.

This is the hardest to forgive and forget but His strength, love and power will come in a very special way once the decision has been made to do both.

Copyright 2006 Patricia Little

Patricia Little is a writer and the editor of a re-released classic ebook- it will show you how to get the best of health and wealth out of all your future years. For more go to ==> http://www.Young-at-Sixty.com

Remarkable How I Became Young at Sixty brings renewed vigor to your body, and hope to your mind. You Can Get your Free ebook How I Became Young at Sixty by going to http://www.Young-at-Sixty.com/get-your-f-r-e-e-ebook.htm

Can Acne Scar Treatment Really Help?

The worst thing people fear about acne is the scarring that it can sometimes leave behind. After patiently using many of the medications and treatments and perhaps even getting rid of the condition many people are left with another problem to deal with - namely scars. It is not always possible to avoid scarring but, with careful attention, it can be minimised. As with many things it is usually easier to prevent scarring than to try and remedy it afterwards.

A fundamental rule is never to squeeze or pop pimples and spots, as this is one way that scarring can be caused. Most people are aware of this but many would still prefer to remove the offending sight of pus filled spots by popping them, rather than suffer the embarrassment of others staring at their faces. Sadly they can be left with a much worse problem because scarring, which is deep beneath the skin, can be very difficult to remove.

There are many and varied treatments on the market which claim to remove acne scarring including lotions, creams and face washes. But just how effective are they and, if so, to what degree? In reality, these the ingredients of these medications can only help fade the lesser surface scarring as they cannot penetrate deep enough to remove the more heavily pitted scars.

However, there is a procedure that does have a reasonable level of success with scar removal and that is acne scar laser treatment. The one drawback with this procedure is the price as it is very expensive. Even then, the successful treatments that are recorded do not include the really deeply pitted scars. These are really beyond the help of any treatment and the best that can be advised is to carefully use a makeup that will, to a certain extent, help mask the disfigurement.

Bear in mind when considering laser scar treatment that your individual success will depend upon several factors such as your skin type and typically how deep the scarring has gone. Rather than seek the advice of the practitioner who is offering the treatment (where his diagnosis make be biased upon his need for business) it would be better to consult with a dermatologist specialist who is well versed in dealing with this condition. If this specialist will not be the one to carry out the treatment you will get a much fairer diagnosis of the success rate to be expected.

Should you decide to embark upon this type of treatment it is important to bear in mind that laser scar treatment is no different to any of the other topical applications in that results are not immediate. You would require several sessions, depending upon the severity of the condition, and have to wait maybe several months to see any improvement - if any. Nobody can predict with any certainty just how successful the outcome will be with any laser scar treatments, so it should only to be considered after much deliberation and professional consultation. However, if you are able to afford it and your medical practitioner believes you could benefit from this technology then it may just be worth trying with the possibility of ridding yourself permanently of those disfiguring unsightly scars.

A. J. Hunter has been on the Internet for many years, and is currently the CEO of one of the most up to date sites on acne scar treatment available today. Find out more by visiting: http://www.acne-scar-treatment.co.uk

Adult Acne The Facts

Did you know that acne is considered to be the most widespread skin condition in the world? While its occurrence is most common amongst adolescents, men and women in their thirties and forties have also been known to suffer from acne. Adult acne then refers to acne that begins or continues in one?s adult years. It is not different from the acne of adolescence ? it can be in the form of acne vulgaris, cystic acne, acne rosacea etc.

Adult acne has become fairly common, especially in women. Acne is caused by hormonal imbalance in the body. The male hormones responsible for triggering off teen acne are also at work in adults. For instance, adult acne can be seen in women going through menopause, when hormonal changes come about. As the body limits the production of estrogen, androgens, the male hormones responsible for acne, cause an excessive production of sebum by the sebaceous glands. Acne in adults can be caused by hormonal imbalances, vitamin deficiency, stress, drugs or more probably a combination of all these factors in varying degrees.

A severe form of acne called acne conglobata may result in permanent scarring of the skin. Other forms of acne such as chloracne, which is caused by chlorinated compounds, has also been seen in adults. Adults, especially women over the age of 30 can also get acne rosacea, in which the capillaries in the cheeks, forehead, and nose are swollen with blood, and the oil glands in the skin become infected. Underlying endocrine disorder in adults can reveal itself in the form of severe acne.

Like in teenagers, the bacteria that are present in the clogged pores, causes the skin to become red and inflamed and acne becomes visible in the form of papules, pustules and cysts. Adult acne can be found in people with combination or even dry and sensitive skins, as opposed to teenage acne, in which oily skin is fairly characteristic. Thus acne medications intended to treat teenage acne may not be that effective as they contain benzoyl peroxide, salicyclic acid and other ingredients that can be drying and cause irritation.

Care of skin inflicted with adult acne is similar to treating teen acne. One should gently clean the skin once or twice a day, as well as after heavy sweating, like after a workout to keep the pores clean and bacteria free. Make sure that the moisturizers, creams, sunscreens and lotions that you use are the oil free variety, that will not clog your pores. A balanced diet, a regular exercise routine and reduced levels of stress will all add to your physical well being and positively affect your acne.

Jack Smith writes about various health and acne topics. This article is free to re-print as long as nothing is changed, all links remained intact, the bio remains in full and the rel=nofollow tag is not added to any of the links. Thank-you - Please visit http://www.acne-free.info for more information on acne.

What Your Children Don't Know Could Kill Them

The word asbestos comes from the ancient Greek meaning indestructible or inextinguishable. It is strong, flexible, water and heat resistant, cheap and easy to use. With this top qualities, asbestos was seen over 100 years ago as the exemplary building material. As a consequence, over 30 million tons of asbestos was utilized in the last century in the construction of factories, office buildings, schools, shipyards, homes. Very often asbestos was used as insulation and fireproofing on industrial equipment such as boilers and turbines, and placed on millions of miles of piping.

The real truth is asbestos was everywhere in our life. Even everyday items such as toasters, ironing boards, dryers, and low-density insulation products contained this wonder material.

After 1940 many scientific studies suggested a correlation between asbestos exposure and cancer. In 1955, scientists confirmed what had long been suspected: a direct link between inhalation or/and ingestion of asbestos fibers and the development of mesothelioma, a fatal form of lung cancer. It was the end of asbestos revolution. A very severe legislation interdicted handling and manufacturing asbestos without a special protection. Later the use and production of asbestos has been forbidden in US and old 15 members of European Union.

Why asbestos is so dangerous? Because it is indestructible. Tiny fibers inhaled are not soluble in lymph or stomach enzymes. So they cannot be eliminate by urine, sweating or so on. They remain in human body, creating accumulation of harmful particles. It is still unknown how asbestos leads in mesothelioma, but the correlation between asbestos and mesothelioma is certain.

Despite of severe law, asbestos is still part of our environment. If your home is older than 30 years you may suspect the asbestos presence. If your car is older than 25 years you may have asbestos in brake and clutch system. You must be aware and you must tell this things to children and youngs.

Just try to imagine: a few children on their way back from school watch the demolishing of a building from the 1950s-1960s. A giant bulldozer fight against the ground flour. For a short moment, huge quantities of asbestos fibers become airborne. And your child is there because nobody told him.

Valerian D is a freelance writer specialized in harmful issues affecting men and women as well such as asbestos exposure.

5 Common Myths About Acne

In spite of the fact that the scientific knowledge about acne and its causes has progressed in the last few years, there are still many myths that continue to be held as truth.

The following are five of the most common myths about acne:

1. Acne is caused by poor hygiene

Skin infections are associated with acne, and this may be what has led to this myth. The combination of sebum and dead skin cells that lead to acne actually occurs beneath the skin's surface, where is can't be washed away.

2. Acne is caused by certain foods

It has long been thought that chocolate and greasy foods cause pimples. There is no evidence to prove that this is true. These foods are not very healthy so eating to much of them can cause other health problems, which can aggravate problems with acne.

Some of the foods that do seem to aggravate acne when it is already present include milk and foods with high levels of iodine. Iodine is commonly found in seafood, so it's a good idea to limit your milk and seafood intake if you're suffering from acne.

3. Acne has to run its course

It's commonly thought that the only way to deal with acne is to let it run its course. This is no longer the case - there are many treatments available to deal with acne. If you're suffering with it, talk to a dermatologist to see if any treatments are available that could help.

4. Acne is a teenage condition

While most teenagers deal with acne to some degree, it is by no means limited to them. Most people's acne clears up by the time they reach their 20's, but there are others who continue to have problems in adulthood. Some people even experience it for the first time in their 30's and 40's.

5. Sun is good for acne

Sun exposure is not a good way to deal with acne. It can help to dry out excess oils from the skin so it does have a short-term benefit but the skin gets used to the change quickly and the benefit is lost. Plus, sun can seriously damage the skin and lead to skin cancer, so the risk is greater than the benefit.

John Lenaghan writes about natural acne treatment and other acne related topics on the Acne Squad website. For more information visit http://www.acnesquad.com.

Rolfing Description and Benefits

Rolfing was developed about 50 years ago by Ida Rolf, PhD, a biochemist who became interested in the subject of body structure and function while trying to relieve her son's pain. She originally named it structural integration and although this name is still used today, it has become more popularly known as Rolfing - a name that is now trademarked.

The theory behind Rolfing is that the body's natural state is relaxed, comfortable and aligned with the Earth's gravity. However, over time the stresses of everyday life cause people to adjust the way they hold their bodies and the way they move. An example is what happens when people spend long hours at a computer - their head drops down and forward, their shoulders hunch over and their ears end up over air instead of directly above their shoulders.

Newly-learned positions and movements become patterns and for a while may be more comfortable. But eventually, because they work against gravity, they put even more stress on the body. Muscles may become shorter on one side and longer on the other and the tissue that connects them - the fascia - may become stiff and even fused, creating adhesions. A Rolfing treatment is designed to not only release the adhesions and relax the muscles, but also teach better body mechanics so that the patterns the client has just unlearned don't return.

A Rolfing session does use massage techniques, but these are usually done more slowly and deeply; since Rolfing is intended to affect the structure of the body, the more superficial techniques of massage are not helpful. The work the Rolfer does can be intense. But the level of discomfort the client may feel will depend on how out of the balance the body is and whether the Rolfer has to do a lot of work to release the effects of old injuries. The best advice is to try to avoid tensing up by breathing through the more difficult techniques. After a treatment the client will usually feel lighter and more balanced and may even be taller.

Rolfing is usually done in a series of 10 sessions, starting with specific areas and progressing to whole-body treatments. These sessions are usually done about a week to two weeks apart. The Rolfer may also give the client exercises to do between sessions to help them move more correctly and stay aware of how they move - in other words, to keep the re-education process going. Some people would rather get only one or two treatments focusing on what they think are their problem areas, but most Rolfers discourage this. They believe that focused treatment is not helpful and does not have lasting effects, because each part of the body supports each other part.

Some of the effects of Rolfing are - increased flexibility - better posture - relief of pain, muscle tension, or headaches - smoother, more efficient body movement - emotional balancing (which results from the physical balancing and release of old injuries)

Because it works to change the structure - and therefore function - of the entire body, Rolfing may not be as relaxing as some other forms of bodywork, but for long-term effects many people prefer it to anything else.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Massage

Acne Do Miracle Cures Work?

Acne is a frustrating condition. It takes quite some time to resolve and by the time one pimple resolves, one may get another. That frustrates us more. Daily application of formulations that seem not to work makes us look for cures that may be quicker. Sunshine, application of toothpaste, essential oils etc. are al taken as quick treatments. Before you get taken in by any of such treatments, please read further.

Acne - why do many of us look for miracle cures?

The main reason that many of us look for miracle cures for acne is because we can not tolerate acne. If it is severe, we want to get rid of it immediately. It makes us feel very bad. Our confidence is affected because of acne. Modern medicine has proven acne therapy but all of them take weeks to show effect. That frustrates us and we want a quick cure. This makes us look for miracle cures. If you have an important function to attend and are affected by acne, please consult your doctor about steroid injection. A steroid injection in the acne can dry it within few days. Please talk to your doctor about that option.

Acne - is there anything wrong with modern medicine?

There is nothing wrong with modern medicine for acne except the time. We want that our acne should resolve as early as possible. All medicines take time. Benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, retinoids, etc. all take time to treat acne. Many of us have no patience and that is how we get trapped to use other methods. These methods do not work because there is no scientific finding that says that they can. But in the process we lose precious time and spoil our looks further. Please get acne treated by your doctor and have patience. Even the severest form of acne has proven treatment.

To know about acne treatments, click here =>acne treatments.

This article is only for informative purposes. This article is not intended to be a medical advise and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your doctor for your medical concerns. Please follow any tip given in this article only after consulting your doctor. The author is not liable for any outcome or damage resulting from information obtained from this article.

The author C.D. Mohatta writes articles on skin problems, skin treatments and skin care. For more information about how to have good skin that looks young and blemish free, please visit http://www.doctorgoodskin.com/ You will also find solutions to wrinkles, scars, facial rejuvenation, latest laser treatments, skin blemishes and spots, hair care and hair loss and about keeping healthy nails. This site is dedicated to make you look good. For keeping yourself looking good find out more about the acne scars and their treatment.

Acne Medication Prescription and OTC

Choosing the right acne medication is an important part of treating blemished skin. There are a number of different treatment options available, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Clearasil is the most commonly used over the counter acne medication, and is helpful in treating mild to moderate cases. This medicine contains benzoyl peroxide, which can help to dry out pimples, but may cause severe stinging, itching, peeling, and swelling on the areas that it is used on.

Proactiv is widely recognized due to its advertisements featuring celebrity endorsements. This treatment contains a three part regimen of a cleanser, toner, and lotion to heal and prevent breakouts. Proactiv also contains benzoyl peroxide, which is known for its side effects mentioned above. If you are wary of these treatments because of the side effects, perhaps you should consider a natural treatment instead of harmful prescription acne medication options.

For more severe cases, Accutane is a prescription acne medication that is considered to be a last resort treatment when your skin has not been responsive to any other product used. It is an oral medication that can be quite effective, yet can cause side effects such as dry skin, aching joints, and even severe birth defects if a female user becomes pregnant during use.

Retin A is a topical tretinoin acne medication that is used to improve the appearance and texture of the skin. Its side effects include sensitivity to light, swelling and dryness of the skin, and blistering. Results will not occur immediately and it must be used continuously, even after acne has cleared, to remain effective.

One of the newer over the counter acne medications is called Acuzine, and it is a breakthrough natural treatment that can be as effective as some of the prescription acne medications, without the potential side effects.

Acuzine contains Vitamins C and E, aloe vera leaf, hydrolyzed collagen, and other therapeutic natural ingredients. The antioxidants protect your skin's cells and tissues from the harmful effects of free radicals, which are unstable byproducts in the body that contribute to infections. Hydrolyzed collagen stimulates the natural production of collagen in the body to improve the appearance of the skin and also aids in your body's ability to retain a healthy amount of water to prevent moisture loss. This innovative acne medication is free from side effects and can benefit the overall health of your entire body.

Talk to your dermatologist to determine which treatment is right for you. Prescription acne medications are usually the strongest, but you may be able to clear up acne breakouts with an over the counter acne medication such as Clearasil. As an alternative, you may want to try a natural antioxidant supplement, as it offers the least potential for nasty side effects.

David Bloom is an avid health enthusiast and a regular contributor to a variety of health websites. He is the author of Natural Acne Medication and Treatments, a blog dedicated to the treatment of acne, covering conventional and natural remedies for clearing up blemished skin.

Adolescent Acne

Producers of acne medications oftentimes focus on teen acne more closely than any other acne; other types of acne, such as adult acne and baby acne, tend to get less attention than acne pertaining to teens. Contrary to popular knowledge, there is another type of acne as well- adolescent acne. Although most would consider this to be the same as teenagers, the adolescent group includes preteens and those slightly younger as well.

The adolescent years are a time when appearance is everything. Youngsters who suffer from adolescent acne tend to be picked on by their peers and, as a result, may suffer from low self esteem and/or depression. During these pivotal years, most will experience at least a mild form of adolescent acne- whether it is an occasional pimple or an ever-present gang of whiteheads, acne has affected almost everyone during their adolescent years. Young people often wonder, ?Why am I having breakouts?? The answer is oftentimes a simple one. Constantly changing hormones is usually the culprit. Once an adolescent reaches a certain age, the hormones become balanced and the skin condition usually subsides.

There are several easy ways to control, or even get rid of, annoying adolescent acne. One simple way is to keep the skin as clean as possible. This minimizes the amount of oil, which causes acne to form, that collects in the pores.

Next, another way to combat adolescent acne is for the youngsters to adopt a healthy eating pattern. Fruits, vegetables, and a lot of water keep the skin hydrated and also allow the body to rid itself of harmful toxins which could cause breakouts.

Lastly, in conjunction with healthy eating habits, young people can use over the counter products to help minimize adolescent acne. Products with a gentle exfoliants help to unclog pores as well as remove any dead skin still left on the face and other acne prone parts of the body. Adolescents must be careful not to overuse these products though; doing so can aggravate the skin and cause more breakouts.

Written by Kismet W. Johnson

http://www.teenacnesolutions.com

Acne Program Step 10: Vitamins You Should Be Taking

Vitamins

Here are some of the vitamins and minerals you should be taking to help you get rid of acne.

* B6, 25 ? 150 mg in a B vitamin complex

* B5 pantothenic acid, 500 ? 1000 mg per day

* Vitamin A (water soluble), 50,000 IU ? take just before meals. Taking more than 50,000 IU requires a Doctors approval

* Vitamin C, buffered 1000mg three time a day

* Vitamin E, 400 IU two times a day before meals for a total of 800 IU a day.

A word of caution: Do not take more than 50, 000 unit of vitamin A since it can be toxic at higher levels. If you experience any symptoms with 50,000 vitamin back off to 25,000 units.

Minerals

Here are them most important minerals to take when you have acne.

* Calcium Hydroxyapatite Complex ? a tablet after each meal.

* Chromium 200 ? 500 ugm or micrograms a day

* Mineral electrolytes

* Zinc gluconate 25 ? 60 mg a day (zinc is one of the most important nutrient to add to your diet) Zinc works to reduce the male sex hormone dihyrdrotestosterone (DHT), which in excess will produce acne. Do not take over 100 mg unless you consult with a Doctor.

Word of Caution: After you have gain relief from acne, you can discontinue the use of the above supplements and get back to your normal supplementation program. Continual use of high doses of vitamins and minerals will offset you natural body?s chemical balance and is detrimental to your health in the long run.

Other Supplements

There are seven special supplements that you should consider taking that can help you get rid of acne and to improve your overall health. These supplements will improve your immune system and help to clear and prevent future acne. Look at these supplements and take the one or ones that you feel will give you the most health benefits.

* Oxygen Elements Plus

* Electrolyte Minerals

* Systemic Enzymes

* Digestive enzymes

* Flax Seed Oil

* Lecithin

* Chlorophyll and Lemon

Oxygen Elements Plus (only this nutrient is discussed in this article)

The skin needs plenty of oxygen to keep it clean and free of bacteria. Using a product like Oxygen Elements Plus gives you at least 10-20% more oxygen in your blood. Here?s where to get Oxygen Plus. The plus in this product are added minerals and other nutrients.

Increasing the oxygen in your blood is now a necessity for normal health. Your body needs more oxygen than you presently get from the air you breathe so that your body functions normally.

The amount of oxygen you have in your body that is available to you cells is dependent on many things such as,

* Acid in the body

* Nonfood waste products

* Pathogens in the body

These three items, acid, nonfoods, and pathogens use up your oxygen. The oxygen that is left over is then used for your body?s needs. So the more you have of these three items, the less oxygen you will have to supply your body?s needs. This results in more toxins in the blood and can prevent you having an acne free face.

Bio: Rudy Silva has a degree in Physics and is a Natural Nutritionist. He is the author of Constipation, Acne, Hemorrhoid, and Fatty Acid ebooks. He writes a newsletter call ?natural-remedies-thatwork.com.? More acne hints and information on his acne e-book can be found at: http://www.acne-remedies.for--you.info

Instant Healing with Magic Eraser Technique

All of us make mistakes. That's part of a learning process and learning is a life-long experience. As long as we live and breathe, we are bound to keep on learning something new and we are likely to make some mistakes along the way. Mistakes are not so much of a problem in themselves. They become a problem when we hold onto them, when we get fixated onto them, when we become attached to them as if they were great treasures, until they become so deeply embedded in our minds, emotions, and bodies that they prevent us from fully enjoying the present moment.

Perhaps you can think of some experiences in your life that you wish never happened - experiences from the past to which you still feel in some way mentally and emotionally attached, and even though they may be long gone, they are unsettling you or even causing you some pain when you think about them. The pain may be mental, emotional or physical (it may have even expressed in a form of physical illness). It's nice to know that you have the power to erase it - from your mind, emotions and body, from your energy field as a matter of fact, as if it never happened, allowing you to more fully enjoy the present moment.

The technique which I like to call it never happened or magic eraser is the essence of all spiritual practices and plays a major role in shamanic and esoteric practices. Sometimes it is labeled as the practice of forgiveness, sometimes as the practice of emptiness. After all it's much easier to build something new, something you would desire to experience now, starting with a clean slate, than upon undesirable leftovers from the past.

There are varying degrees to the practice of this technique. They depend upon your purpose for using this technique, upon your perception of the world and therefore upon what you may feel is safe for you to let go of.

At the very basic level of application, what you are doing is letting go of emotional attachment to some specific experience, which seems to be the source of greatest pain and obstacle in your life. Some of the applications may deal with healing some pain from broken relationships, or from any other kind of loss, getting rid of addictions, and even recovering completely from illnesses which are believed to be incurable. It never happened technique is the essence of instant healing.

On a higher spiritual level of practice, for example, you would practice letting go of emotional attachment to everything that is manifested, everything that is not the Source itself. The feeling of safety in letting go of everything in the material world comes from being aware (experientially, not just intellectually) of the Source and shifting your sense of identity from your physical body to your spiritual self, to the Source itself.

Forgiveness is not about encouraging or condoning hurtful behavior, nor is it about shoving it under the carpet and forgetting about it. Forgiveness is about letting go of the emotional attachment to the situation, behavior or person that has caused you pain. If something or someone is causing you repeated pain and you don't know how to deal with the specific situation, you may completely remove yourself from it. Forgiveness is not about letting yourself getting hurt over and over again. It is about letting go of the ties that bind you to the past, about freeing the energy that is stuck in the past, so that you can more fully enjoy your life now.

And in the same way, it never happened technique is not about shoving unresolved issues under the carpet. It is about resolving them. It is about clearing them, washing them away, dissolving them into nothingness, so that you can use the freed energy to build the life you would enjoy living now. The resolution is ultimately about liberating your emotional energy.

If you just attempt to forget about the painful event, to hide it from your awareness, to shove it deep inside you where you won't be aware of the pain it's causing you, sooner or later it will seek to be expressed in some way - and one of the most likely ways may be through some form of physical illness. That's why when people suffer from some chronic health problems, the moment they let go of past hurts and resentments, they often experience spontaneous recovery. It is useful to know that any hurtful feelings you hold onto are not doing damage to anyone else as much as they are dragging you down. That's why it's important to let them go.

You may have learned from your past experiences what you like to experience in life, what you would rather do without, what makes you feel more alive, what drains your energy, who and what contributes to your sense of well-being and happiness and who doesn't and you can arrange your present life in accord with all that which you believe contributes to your greatest sense of well-being. And as you do, you can just let go of your emotional attachment to everything and everyone that doesn't contribute to your sense of well-being. Fill your mind and heart, and surround yourself as much as possible with that which makes you feel good, and let go of the past.

The ways of practicing it never happened technique are as varied as your imagination may allow. You may imagine a brilliant white light or a violet fire blazing through the situation you desire to dissolve. White or violet light will dissolve all dis-harmonies from the situation, leaving only that which is lovely, beautiful and harmonious. You can use them to heal any condition. You will know when you are done because your feelings toward that situation will change, the pain will be gone, sometimes even within just a few minutes of practice.

You can also imagine having a magic eraser and erasing the problem - this has worked well for some people working with addictions.

You can scan your body, by moving your awareness through your body from the top of your head all the way down to your feet and noticing any tense areas where blocked energy may be and imagine them dissolving into nothingness. You may also just breathe through those parts of your body, until the tension (or the pain) is gone.

This technique is sometimes used with physical injuries due to accidents in a way that you repeat the motions that lead to the injury, but with an alternative - desired ending. For example, if you accidentally cut your finger with a knife while chopping vegetables, you may repeat the motion with the knife, but where it was intended to go in the first place, without touching your finger. This will re-imprint the event in your subconscious mind and may instantly stop bleeding.

If you desire to change some life-long condition, you can go back in your memory all the way to the time before that condition happened for the first time (even to the time of your birth or before) and re-live your entire life in your mind as if that condition never existed in your life. You can at the same time replace it with desired experience and re-live your life as if you had the desired condition throughout your life. You should repeat this process as many times as necessary until the desired condition has been firmly impressed upon your subconscious mind and the effect is obvious in your outer experience.

For example, if you are using this technique for healing of incurable illness, you should keep repeating it for half-an hour, few times a day, every day, until the problem is gone. If you really get wholeheartedly involved in this process, you should notice visible improvement after each half-an-hour session.

Remember that the secret of the rapid success with self-hypnosis is in your willingness and ability to experience your desired condition as if it were real for you now, in your inner world, in your subjective experience. Your outer experience merely reflects your subjective experience.

Dr. Laura De Giorgio is a Clinical Hypnotherapist and NLP Master Practitioner. She has created hundreds of hypnosis, subliminal, supraliminal and supraliminal plus recordings in several languages. She also publishes a free inspiring, informative and motivational hypnosis newsletter designed to help you learn how to use your mind power successfully and offers many free hypnosis downloads at http://www.deeptrancenow.com.

How to Choose a Clinical Hypnosis Professional

The major dilemma in deciding to pursue hypnotherapy is selecting a qualified Hypnotist.

You need to decide whether you want to work with a psychiatrist or other licensed mental health practitioner who includes hypnosis as a part of their practice, or if you want a hypnotist who uses hypnosis exclusively as a healing modality.

Psychiatrists and other licensed mental health practitioners at times use hypnosis in treating people; however certified hypnotists have more in-depth training. The psychiatrist or licensed mental health practitioner may have attended a weekend workshop and learned how to induce hypnosis but may have little or no experience in communicating with the mind in its subconscious mode.

The first question to ask anyone with whom you consider working is Are you a certified hypnotist and by whom? The National Guild of Hypnotherapists is the oldest and largest worldwide non-profit certifying organization cited by Congress in the Congressional Record of May 11th, 1993 as the foremost hypnosis organization in the country.

Although, one assumes all licensed professionals are highly qualified, that does not hold true with hypnosis, a licensed professional needs to be certified in hypnosis in addition to their license. Therefore, whomever you choose, be sure they are certified by a certifying institution or recognized organization and have had a minimum of 100 hours of training?not just a weekend seminar.

In addition, it is important to consider a Hypnotist, who is also a certified Regression practitioner. The reason it is important to choose a Hypnotist, who is also a certified Regression practitioner is because the root cause of your issue is more often than not rooted in your past experiences?therefore, regression to those experiences to heal the emotional issues is necessary. A certified Hypnotist has little or no training in regression work. Therefore, to have the most qualified Hypnotist make sure they are a certified Hypnotist and certified Regression practitioner.

The International Board for Regression Therapy (IBRT) Inc. as an independent examining and certifying board www.ibrt.org is the foremost regression certifying organization. Its mission is to set professional standards for practice, evaluate the preparation and qualifications of practitioners and the quality of training programs, and to issue certificates to those who pass the rigorous evaluation process. It is a not-for-profit corporation registered in New York State.

Another area to explore is how much experience the prospective therapist has had in your area of need. How long have they been in full-time practice? What are their specialties? Do they have experience in addressing the problem you want to address or in attaining the goal you want to achieve? How many clients have they treated? How many successfully?

Another question particularly helpful is What is the law regarding the practice of hypnotherapy in your state? In Illinois, it is PA473. The reason it is important that any prospective hypnotist know the law is because hypnotherapy must be practiced in strict conformity with it. Be suspicious of anyone who doesn't know the limits of their practice.

Finally, if you are satisfied with the responses to all other questions, ask yourself one final question. Am I comfortable with this person? Attempting to work with someone who maybe highly qualified but with whom you have no rapport or with someone you don't feel you can trust will only serve to interfere with your progress.

Dorothy M. Neddermeyer, PhD, a Certified Hypnotist and Regression practitioner has 25 years experience in healing many issues. http://www.drdorothy.net

Hormone Therapy for Prostate Cancer

For prostate cancer treatment we give the patient hormones that will suppress the male hormones (andrones) in their body. Androgens (male hormones) are produced mainly in the testicles. Sometimes androgens will stimulate the growth of prostate cancer and speed up the growth of the cancer cells. If the levels of the androgens is lowered then the cancer will grow much slower and possibly shrink. Hormone therapy is not meant to cure the cancer in the prostate but if used in conjunction with other therapy such as radiation or surgery if their is a risk of recurrence.

There are numerous ways that the androgen levels can be lowered in the bloodstream:

Orchiectomy - is the surgical removal of one or both of the testicles which are the main source of androgen production in the male body. By removing the testicle or testicles the levels of male hormones will drop enough to slow the growth of the cancer

Luteinizin hormone-release hormone analogs (LHRH) - often chosen instead of having an orchiectomy, LHRH analogs are injected or inserted as small implants underneath the skin. These injections are usually given every month or ever 3, 4, 6 or 12 months. The LHRH analogs that are used most of the time are Lupron, Viadur, Eligard, Zoladex or Trelstar.

Antiandrogens - are given to block the action of the androgens (production of male sex characteristics). Antiandrogens are given in daily pill form and the drugs used are Eulexin, Casodex, and Niandron. Antiandrogen treatments is often used in conjunction with an Orchiectomy because even after the orchiectomy there are sill androgens that will be produced by the adrenal glands.

Estrogens - largely replaced by LHRH therapy because of severe side effects, the use of estrogens (hormones that produce female sex characteristics) was often used in the past as a substitute for Orchiectomy

Side Effects of Hormone Therapy

The side effects for Orchiectomy and LHRH treatment are basically the same:

-reduced or no libido (sexual desire)

-impotence

-hot flashes (these may go away with time)

-breast tenderness and growth of breast tissue

-osteoporosis (weakening of bones) leading to bone fractures

-anemia (low red blood cell counts)

-decreased mental acuity

-loss of muscle mass

-weight gain

-fatigue

-decrease in HDL (good) cholesterol

-depression

The Side Effects of Antiandrogen Treatment

-diarrhea

-nausea

-liver problems

-tiredness

*Note that the biggest difference between the side effects of LHRH treatment and Antiandrogen treatment is when Antiandrogens treatment is given alone their are less sexual side effects. The patients libido and potency can still be maintained.

Many of the side effects noted above can be treated so if they do arise consult with you doctor about what can be done to reduce them.

Steven Wallace provides information about Prostate Diseases and Prostate Cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment options at http://prostate-answers.com

Acne And Stress

Stress - Since your skin in your largest organ, how you live can sure influence how healthy your skin is. And stress, not necessarily bad stress, but rather certain external and internal stressors, factor into this health equation. So let's take a look at how to handle these stressors with regards to acne prevention.

External Stressors- A goal of acne prevention would be to keep your skin pores clear from clogging and becoming infected and irritated, resulting in blemishes and inflammation. So you need to take a look at your external environment throughout the day for factors that could trigger skin pore clogging. Here are some examples of what to look for: grease, oils and sun, like being around open fryers in kitchen areas, or around machine oil and grease in workshops or factories, or out in the sun all day on a construction jobsite. Too much oil, grease or sun on the skin can clog pores and trigger acne and other skin irritations.

Minimize contact by wearing long sleeves and other protective wear and gear and discussing further options with your dermatologist or healthcare provider. With regards to being out in the sun, note that a small amount of sun each day can be fine and healthy. However, extended periods can trigger the sebaceous glands to create more oil as your skin dries out. At the same time, the dried out skin needs to be cast off or shed at a faster rate than normal. The resulting extra oils and dead skin make a wonderful environment for pore clogging. So here, too, use protective clothing for outdoor activities and apply sunscreen; oil-free products are best for acne-prone people, and those with a minimum protection of SPF 15 and both UVA and UVB protection.

Internal Stressors - Internal stressors like anxiety, fear, low self-esteem, depression and a variety of other internalized emotions, can trigger chemical reactions inside your body that can result in acne flare-ups and other skin irritations. What happens is that these emotions can set your adrenal glands to work creating more cortisol, the substance that in turn causes your sebaceous glands to produce increased amounts of sebum oil, excessive amounts of which can be blocked in pores. Same old story: extra oil + extra dead skin cells = blocked pores, triggering acne flare-ups. With internal stressors, though, the results are usually inflamed papules or small, solid inflammations (or skin elevations that do not contain pus), instead of whiteheads or blackheads.

To combat internal stressors and prevent acne problems, here are some suggestions. Get plenty of rest and sleep a recommended average of eight hours per night. Try to maintain regular hours each day, regardless of which shift your work. Some say to focus on reducing SWAT: reduce your stress, worry, anxiety and tension, so journal a little each day mentioning any SWAT stressors you've felt. And focus on those that may seem overwhelming or to be taking too long to end, seeking help from others or other resources as needed for stress management. Check with your dietician or healthcare provider to establish and follow a regular well-balanced dietary and exercise plan of action to keep your body healthy on the inside and outside. Keep a check list of Things that Calm You handy for stressful times, like reading a book, resting, listening to music, taking a walk, going out for an ice cream cone, etc.

Michael Raetford writes for http://www.acness.com. You will find a lot of very useful acne information together with news, articles and a huge range of resources. Take a look now!

Acupressure Fast Facts Get Pain Relief at Home

• Acupressure was originated in China thousands of years ago, and evidence has been found that acupressure was practiced in the stone age!
• Acupressure has been used to reduce post-operative nausea and vomiting in children.
• Acupressure also reduces nausea in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.
• Acupressure can be done anywhere without special equipment.
• You can treat yourself safely with acupressure, as long as you follow the guidelines of a professional acupressure practitioner.
• Correctly performed, acupressure increases circulation, reduces tension and pain and enables the body to relax.
• Acupressure strengthens the immune system and promotes wellness.
• Acupressure should be applied slowly and gently. Applying it too quickly or vigorously can do some damage, especially in the abdominal area.
• Special care and caution is needed in the case of a pregnant woman or in treating a person with burns, infections and recent injuries.
• Acupressure is more effective than physical therapy for the majority of patients with low back pain.
• Ear acupressure can be used to reduce stress and anxiety.
• Acupressure is used to reduce fear and anxiety in trauma victims and in pre-operative care.

Acupressure can be used to treat all these conditions:

• Tension Headaches
• Migraine Headaches
• Jaw Pain, Toothache, Earache
• Neck and Shoulder Pain
• Wrist, Hand, Arm pain
• Backache, Hip, Knee, Ankle and Foot pain
• Colds, Flu, Sore throat, Sinus Infection, Loss of Voice
• Allergies
• Anxiety Attacks and Nervousness
• Depression
• Insomnia
• Fainting
• Hiccoughs
• Improve Memory and Concentration
• Angina, Heart Palpitations and High Blood Pressure
• Constipation, Diarrhea, Heartburn and Stomachache
• PMS and Painful Periods
• Hot Flashes, Pregnancy Discomfort, Morning Sickness
• Bed-wetting, Incontinence, Urinary retention
• Nose bleeding, Itching, Asthma, Decreased Libido, Hangover

You can learn to do acupressure at home to supplement professional treatment. This is especially useful when you are stricken with illness or pain and you can't get to the doctor soon. For more information see my website listed below.

Nancy Barney is a free-lance writer and editor of http://www.natural-pain-relief-solutions.com where you will find more in depth articles on pain relief using alternative treatments.

You are free to reprint or republish this article as long as this resource box is included.

Aerobic Videos Shapes You Up!

I have been using aerobic workout videos for about a year now, and let me tell you if you have the right setup and the right attitude, they work every bit as well as an actual aerobics class with an expensive personal trainer. Although many people buy aerobic videos, and then leave them sitting there, gathering dust, and never do anything with them, many others use them to embark on a healthier, more successful life. What is the difference? Why do aerobic videos work wonders for some people, but fare horribly for others? Allow me to explain.

You see, the reason is not the aerobics videos at all, but the person watching them. The first and most important thing is attitude. Now, we have all heard that before but I will have to emphasize it again: attitude is everything. The right attitude towards exercise will enable you to find joys in hours of sweat which could otherwise make you give up for the tempting leisures of a potato-couch instead. The right attitude is essential to your success. Right from the onset, you need to set realistic and achievable goals and a constant schedule of exercise that will help you approach your goals. That is no easy task, I know. And nobody or nothing can help you. Motivation can not come from the aerobic videos it has to come from within.

The most important thing is that you exercise regularly. Doing each aerobic video twice every third Sunday won't count. Frequency matters more than how much time you spend on each once-in-a-blue-moon session. Even if you never make it all the way through your aerobic videos at first, you have to be using them every day or you will not get the maximum results from them I doubt that you will get any results at all. Set realistic goals and stick with them. It is no good telling yourself that you will do a two hour workout with your aerobic videos every day, and then compromising that unachievable goal the very next minute. Set little goals, ones you know that you can succeed at, to build confidence and slowly move on to bigger goals.

Equally important is to have a good space to do your aerobics workout. If you live in a tiny one room apartment with clothing spread all over the floor, forget it. You can use some aerobic videos with less space than you might think, but if you don't at least clear a little room to move around in, you will never reach any of your exercise goals, and that is a terrible excuse. The beginning of your aerobic workout is really setting a time, clearing out a space, and psyching yourself up. Don't expect immediate success from using your aerobic videos. It will be very hard work and you might feel like giving up at times. But if you persevere, within a month you will notice major changes.

http://Entertainment-Articles-Guide.com provides readers with the latest reviews, articles, commentaries and write-ups on all entertainment, music, movies and related topics.

Treating UTI's Naturally

UTIs, or urinary tract infections, are infections that occur in the bladder, urethra or kidneys. While women suffer from UTIs most often, men are not immune. Generally, if a man has a UTI, he should address his concerns with a medical doctor because it may indicate a more serious condition affecting the prostate.

The most common symptoms of a UTI are frequent and urgent needs to urinate even if the bladder is empty, burning upon urination and sometimes abdominal cramping. It is now possible to determine if you have a UTI at home. Most pharmacies sell reagent strips that can be used to detect the presence of bacteria in the urine much the same way a doctor?s office will.

Many UTIs can be treated naturally at home. The most well known folk remedy for UTIs is to drink cranberry juice. There is actually a great deal of scientific evidence that suggests cranberries can inhibit bacteria from attaching to the lining of the urinary tract which will prevent and even treat UTIs. What has always seemed to get lost in the translation is that the cranberry juice must be as natural as possible (no added sweeteners) and should be a high concentrate of cranberries rather than some cranberry and a lot of grape or other juice type. This type of juice is usually not available in a regular grocery store. It can, however, often be purchased from a health food or natural foods store. To effectively treat a UTI, it is necessary to drink a large amount (approximately a gallon per day) until symptoms clear up and then to drink about half as much for a minimum of 10 additional days.

Natural, pure cranberry juice can be very tart. If you prefer, you can take a cranberry juice supplement instead. Some high quality supplements will combine cranberry with Buchu, a diuretic which will help ease the feeling of needing to urinate when the bladder is empty. Remember to take these frequently throughout the day (every 3 to 4 hours is best) and with plenty of fresh, clean water.

Colloidal Silver and Garlic may be used as a natural antibiotic which will destroy the bacteria in the urinary tract. When using garlic supplements, it is important to use garlic that does not have the odor component removed as this is the part of the garlic that is antibacterial. If you are concerned about odor, use a garlic supplement that is combined with chlorophyll and is enteric coated.

Things to avoid during a UTI
* Citrus fruits: May cause an alkaline environment which will encourage bacterial growth.
* Sugars, processed foods, caffeine, carbonated beverages and alcohol.
* Feminine hygiene sprays, packaged douches, bubble baths, and tampons.

With diligence, most UTI?s can be remedied at home. However, if there is blood present in the urine or symptoms persist for longer than 1 week, a doctor should be consulted as it may indicate a more serious UTI that must be treated with antibiotics.

Nicole Bandes is a Certified Herb Specialist that has been helping others to regain their health and vitality since 1999. Nicole uses and recommends

The Wonderful World Of Frequency

All of us have turned on a radio or a television, selected a station and enjoyed a broadcast.

We, being unable to see the actual waveform of the frequency selected, rely on the signal being transformed by the wonder of circuitry in the radio or television, into an audible and/or visual manifestation of that frequency. This is true of a microwave oven or a cell phone and many other electrical devices we use daily and pretty much take for granted.

The selection of a power level in a microwave oven or the entering of a phone number into a cell phone uses a unique frequency to obtain a desired result.

As a young boy our home had a large console radio we listened to. It had several selector switches and a large tuning dial as well as a big speaker, many tubes and wires, and was hooked to an external antenna.

This wonderful electrical machine allowed us to selectively dial a frequency and listen to radio shows like Gunsmoke, Suspense, Amos and Andy, Groucho Marx and many more. The machine was designed to manipulate energy to be used for a specific task. In addition the radio could be tuned to frequencies allowing us to listen to broadcasts from all over the world in languages we had never heard before. Police calls, airport traffic, Morse code transmissions could be heard by selectively dialing their unique frequencies as well.

When I went to high school, I had a friend who worked at a radio station. He opened my understanding to the transmission portion of radio frequency signals. A radio station, a radio receiver, a cell phone, and many other devices must have a power source, circuitry, and a means of displaying the converted a signal into a useable form. These invisible frequencies are organized information having some effect on life as we know it. This technology is not new; we have all been using it and really do not think much about how it works.

Everything we know of, everything in existence, including the human body, its' components and things that effect its' well-being has a frequency. That frequency is a specific number that belongs only to it . Just as a local radio station has a frequency number such as 99.7, so does everything else. The frequency number is an indication of the vibrational activity of the atomic and molecular structure of matter and energy. That frequency number resides in a highly organized position in the Electromagnetic Spectrum, giving it identity and location. This assigned number, just as a radio station, enables one with the right circuitry to find and utilize it.

What if it were possible, using the right circuitry, to observe body functions by selecting specific frequencies? What if it were possible to fine-tune imbalances by selecting specific frequencies? What if selected frequencies could synergistically energize food and water, or nullify toxic chemicals?

Does all of this sound like an episode of Star Trek? Much of what was once science fiction, today is reality. Frequencies are all around us, they are part of us, and hold answers to questions that need to be answered. There is more to this story, stay tuned, or better yet, use the specific frequency of an email address to inquire further.

About the Author
Dr. Steve Denehie, Cookeville, Tennessee
DrSteve@AliveAndBeWell.com
Learn more at http://www.AliveAndBeWell.com

www.AliveAndBeWell.com copyright 2002-2006 Dr. Steve Denehie, Alive And Be Well.

Dr. Steve Denehie is not a medical doctor, but is a researcher and wellness consultant. As founder and owner of Alive And Be Well, his mission is to help people take control of their health by being informed rather than conformed. Wellness should be the standard for us all. Sickness is an event, for many it is a lifestyle. If we know how to compete against it, we can be Alive And Be Well!

Tibetan Medicine Defying Time

Tibetan medicine is a centuries-old hallowed traditional medical system. This is a fairly complex approach to diagnosis and utilizes behavior and dietary modification, natural medicines and physical therapies to treat illnesses. Since Tibet is a border country, Tibetan medicine is a synthesis of the Indian (Ayurveda), Persian (Unani), Chinese, Greek and Tibetan medical systems. Tibetan medicine is practiced in a wide belt of the world including countries like India, Nepal, Bhutan, Ladakh, Siberia, China and Mongolia, in addition to Tibet. More recently, Tibetan medicine has also started seeping into the West, invading parts of Europe and America.

Since Tibet is the land of monasteries, monks and meditation, it is inevitable that Tibetan medicine is a fusion of the scientific with the religious. It embraces the traditional Buddhist belief that illness of the body is caused by the poisons in the mind, namely ignorance, aggression and materialism.

Tibetan medicine is an art, science and philosophy that encompasses a holistic approach to health care. It is an art because its diagnostic methods are based on creativity, subtlety, insight and compassion of the medical practitioner. It is a science because it has a systematic and logical framework that is based on the study of the body and its relationship with the environment. It is a philosophy because it embraces the Buddhist principles of altruism, ethics and karma.

According to the underlying Buddhist philosophy that shapes Tibetan medicine, all suffering has a reason. According to the Buddha, impermanence is the only permanent feature of life. Everything in this world is in a state of flux. This is a reality and a necessity of life. This state of constant change brings with it suffering and it is this suffering that is inflicted on man from time to time. Thus suffering is not accidental. One can avoid suffering only through proper guidance and the rigorous following of one?s Karma.

According to Tibetan Medicine, everything in the universe is made of 5 elements ? Earth, water, fire, air and space. And each of these elements has a specific influence on man. Tibetan medicine also believes that there are 3 principle energies or humors in the body. These principle energies are responsible for the mental, physical and spiritual activities of the body. In a healthy body, all the elements are in proper equilibrium. Where there is non-equilibrium, a state of disorder or ill-health arises.

Diagnosis in Tibetan medicine is fairly straightforward. Doctors depend on observation, interrogation and touch. Visual observation includes checking the color of the skin, texture and color of the nails, blood, sputum and faeces. The patient?s tongue and urine also gives important clues. The next step is pulse analysis where the physician places three middle fingers on the patient?s radial arteries. Medical interrogation leads the practitioner to important clues regarding the causative factors, site of the illness and symptoms that the patient is experiencing.

Tibetan medicine places a lot of importance on dietary and lifestyle factors. The immediate reason for most disorders is improper diet or lifestyle. Therefore the first step of the treatment is to change the lifestyle and diet of the patient. Only if this fails, medication is used.

Bloodletting, Moxibustion, golden-needle therapy and Tibetan acupuncture are some of the therapeutic measures taken. Medicinal baths and natural spring baths are also important parts of therapy.

Alternative Holistic Medicine

The Number 3 Killer in America is Iatrogenesis

The number 1 killer in America? Heart disease. Number 2? Cancer. Number 3? Iatrogenesis.

Have you ever heard of iatrogenesis? The word doesn't even sound that harmful. It comes from two Greek words ? iatros ? meaning physician, and genesis ? meaning created. Yes, the number 3 killer in America is death by doctor.

Did you know this? Wasn't it plastered all over the newspapers? Unbelievably, it was not broadcast on cable news channels, daily newspapers or on the radio.

This might make you suspect the origin of my claim. Did it come from some crazy tabloid? Some off-the-wall Website?

Well, that depends. It depends on whether you consider the Journal of the American Medical Association as a crazy tabloid. I really don't think it is. These statistics were published clearly and convincingly in the most esteemed medical journal in the world.

I'd like to venture into how and why doctors kill, and give you some alternatives to consider.

First, let me qualify my statements. I do not consider doctors to be bad people. As we'll examine in the next few minutes, it is the system that the doctors are forced to operate within that causes all these deaths.

How many deaths are we talking about? Death by doctor kills over 200,000 people each year. Cancer takes over 500,000 lives, and heart disease takes 600,000.

Death by doctor includes several types of problems:

• unnecessary surgery, resulting in death
• medication errors and other types of errors
• fatal drug reactions
• infections from hospitals

Essentially, each of these causes was separated from the cases where the patient would have died anyway. For instance, if someone was dying of a heart attack and a medication was applied that quickened the patient's death, it's not fair to say the medication was the killer. That would be like saying someone who fell off a cliff died of a heart attack that they suffered mid-way down.

But hospitals are dangerous places. The primary reason for people dying unnecessarily in a hospital is the pharmaceutical drug. This is a strange thing to hear. We know that drugs have saved many lives, and we tend to hold the drugs in great esteem. But there is a flipside. Many of the most commonly prescribed drugs are also terrible killers, due to bad patient reactions and the possibility of human error in administering the drugs.

Pharmaceutical drugs are immensely powerful, in a good way and a bad way. Take the right drug at the right time and it will help your illness in a dramatic way. Take the wrong drug at the wrong time and it will kill you on the spot.

I've said we have great respect for pharmaceutical drugs. Maybe our problem is that we don't respect them enough! These powerful, dangerous pills should really be something we handle gingerly, almost like a bomb. How many bombs killed 80,000 people since 1999? Vioxx did.

It seems to me that our best solution is to find health practitioners who treat drugs with as much respect as they deserve. A practitioner who uses pharmaceutical drugs as a last, best resort, who tries everything else possible before they prescribe these powerful, dangerous substances.

Some people think that doctors like this don't exist. I used to think so too. But once I looked a little harder, I found lots of them. In fact, I believe there is a revolution going on. Doctors are switching to a better, safer path for their patients, and they are tired of being ?the number 3 killer.? Wouldn't that grate on your nerves too?

I think you should seek out alternative-tolerant doctors who will use the safest, cheapest, effective remedies first, and only then move you on to the expensive, dangerous pharmaceutical drugs.

Safe, cheap solutions might be exercises, herbs, vitamins, acupuncture, bodywork, dietary changes or other types of healing.

I know this may sound a bit odd to some of you, but please consider the alternative. Using pharmaceutical drugs as a ?first resort? got us where we are today. With so many problems in the existing system, aren't we obligated to search for a better way for our own health and the health of our families?

I'd like to ask you to consider switching to one of these doctors as your primary physician. I realize it might be a longer drive or perhaps cost a little more per visit. But can you afford to be a statistic? Can you afford to die at the hands of the number 3 killer in America?

The only way we'll reduce the number of deaths by doctor is to change the way we use doctors. Send the medical system a signal that you want better, less dangerous care, and that you want to live!

Daryl Kulak is the author of Doctors of the Future, a book containing eleven profiles of Central Ohio doctors who use alternative medicine in their daily life with patients.

He is also the author of Health Insurance Off the Grid, a guide to help you afford the holistic lifestyle.

Lose Weight And Skyrocket Your Metabolism With Regular Cardiovascular Exercise

Do you try to eat well, even diet, but aren?t seeing the results you were hoping for? Are you just trying to gain more energy? Do you ever feel like you?re not breathing enough?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above you should consider the proven, time-tested weight loss tool called cardiovascular exercise.

I know that it?s terribly hard to start walking or jogging when you have so much stress to deal with in your life. I?ve been through this myself numerous times, but I can always count on the fact that even walking around outside or parking far away from the store can truly increase my energy and metabolism.

For maximum results, balance your meals with a ratio based on 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat; and do 10 minutes of walking, jogging or running on 3-5 days of the week.

We all have tons of work to do. At many times, we can?t follow the idealistic command of ?get off your fat ass and just do it,? so I?m not telling you that. That would be pure hypocrisy, so the advice I give to you is to just take 10 minutes to do cardiovascular exercise next time you want to watch television or talk on the phone with a friend.

If you want to make this weekly exercise easier on yourself, you should take a moment to visit our weight loss forum, over at PhenForum.com. Start your own personal daily progress journal and post whenever your want. Expect nothing less than tons of support from our community of friends with the same goal; healthy weight loss!

Copyright (C) Shoppe.MD and Ian Mason, 2004-2005

Learn more about health, diet and exercise at our weight loss forum.

PhenForum.com is a popular discussion forum for weight loss programs, diet advice, and tips to help you burn fat.

All the best,

Ian Mason

The Roots Of Alternative Medicine

Alternative medicine and modern medicine have may differences and whose to say which is best? Today, we expect doctors and medicines to fix whatever ails us instantly and doctors only look at the current physical problem when diagnosing our needs.

Alternative or holistic medicine, on the other hand, takes many different factors into consideration before prescribing a cure. This type of healing has been in use for thousands of years and can be very effective. It concerns itself not only with the physical problem, but with the problems of the whole self.

Alternative medicine includes massage, therapy, herbal tea, herbal medicine and millions of people today still use these types of treatments instead of or in addition to modern medicine.

Different cultures have had their own specific types of alternative medicine and many different types of treatments. Many of these treatments have survived and are still effective today. In fact, massage, which many people swear by in the modern world is actually one of the oldest forms of alternative medicine and records of massage therapy date back to ancient Egypt.

In ancient Europe there were two types of healers, the professional physicians and the folk healers. The folk healers lived in the lower class and healed the people of each village who could not afford the expensive physicians. These people believed in the folk treatment and it worked for them. This type of situation also occurred in many other cultures.

In Western culture, philosophy was frequently used to assist the folk healers in their quest for a holistic treatment. Philosophy was important because it told the stories of their lives. With a twist of philosophy and religion as well as belief, they easily found the best treatment available for whatever it was that was ailing the villagers of this time.

We now have a more advanced or instantaneous form of medical treatment, but alternative medicine can still be very effective. Massage, aromatherapy, acupuncture, herbal, humor therapy, meditation, and many other forms of holistic healing are used every day. In fact some of these treatments have become so popular that they are no longer considered alternative medicine and they are now supported by modern physicians.

Although the theory of alternative medicine has been ridiculed throughout the centuries , it has survived for one reason - It works. Alternative treatments may not work as fast as the treatments that we have today, but these natural types of treatments can be better for you overall, if you just give them a chance.

Lee Dobbins enjoys learning and writing about herbs, home remedies and alternative treatments. Please visit http://www.herbs-home-remedies.com for more on alternative healing.

What is Acne A Brief users Guide for Parents Teens and the Rest of us

Acne is a disease in which the hair follicles on your skin become clogged and infected. This results in one of the three types of acne lesions to form.

The production of excess sebum is the culprit. It causes the follicles to become blocked. The medical community is still uncertain as to what triggers this excess production. Sebum is produced by the sebaceous oil gland and everybody needs a small amount to achieve healthy skin. Sebum helps protects the skin from harmful bacteria by washing it away.

Types of Acne Lesions:

The three types of acne lesions are whiteheads & blackheads (also known as closed and open comedones respectively), papules & pustules, and cysts.

Whiteheads as the name suggests, look like white bumps. They form under the skin and never reach the surface. This makes them very hard to eliminate. Blackheads grow upward and break the skins surface. This enlarged follicle and the oxidation of the dead cells, sebum, and bacteria have a black color, hence the name.

Papules form when a whitehead burst and the bacteria spreads to the surrounding tissues under the skin. This causes your body?s immune system to increase its fight on the infection making the inflammation worse. They appear as small, firm, red bumps. Pustules form as the body?s immune system continues to fight the infection by sending pus to the area. They appear similar to a papules with the addition of a yellowish white head.

Cysts are the third and final type of acne lesion. They form when a pustule worsens and expands further down under the skins surface. They appear red or purple and are very painful. This is the most serious of all types of acne lesions.

Types of Acne:

Acne can not only be classified by the types of acne lesions, but further broken down by acne type; depending on what types of lesions you have. People whose acne consists of whiteheads and blackheads would have what is called comedonal acne. A mix of blackheads, whiteheads, papules and pustules acne lesions is called acne vulgaris and is the most common type of acne. The third type of acne is called cystic acne and it is when someone has all three types of acne lesions with numerous cysts.

Who Can Get Acne:

While most people associate acne with teens, anybody can experience some type of acne at any age. That said certain groups of people are more likely to experience acne. They include teens, people under stress, people who have a family history of the disease, people taking certain drugs and adult women.

Mark MacKay is a researcher, marketer, and former Acne sufferer. For more information on Acne Myths, Causes, Types of Acne, Acne Treatments, Skin Care, Adult Acne, Teen Acne, Acne Discussion forum, latest research articles and much more visit Mark?s Acne Explained web site at http://www.acne-explained.info.

What You Should Know About Acne

There are many different types of acne and with that come many theories, myths, and treatments. The exact cause of acne remains a mystery. Why some pores are affected by acne and others aren?t, is not known. Each case of acne is as complex as the individual battling it and a treatment that works on one person?s acne may not work on yours.

Acne obviously has physical effects but it can also have psychological effects, especially in teens. Most teenagers already feel awkward and different, add acne to the equation and they are identifiably different. Most teenagers with acne tend to have lower self esteem, than their peers with clear skin, and are not involved in as many activities.

Adult acne is on the rise and can also be very difficult to deal with. Due to the changes that our skin goes through as we mature, scarring is often worse in adults with acne than in teens with acne. Adults with acne are also less likely than teens to seek treatment for their acne, leaving them to suffer alone.

Whether you are an adult with acne or a teenager with acne, your acne probably falls into one of a two main categories, inflammatory acne or non-inflammatory acne. If you have blackheads or whiteheads, or both, then you have non-inflammatory acne. Inflammatory acne can be a little harder to identify. Inflammatory acne is characterized by papules, pustules, and in more serious cases, nodules or cysts.

Once you have determined which category your acne falls into, you can explore the treatment options for your acne. Keep in mind that even if you have tried several different acne treatments to no avail, there is always something else to try for your acne. There are new acne treatments coming up left and right and the next new acne treatment might be the one that goes directly to work attacking your acne and leaving you with the clear skin you?ve longed for.

Amber Lowery is an online publisher and is responsible for maintaining a large network of health and beauty related sites. For more information on Acne, visit: http://www.acnehelp.info - the Acne Resource Portal. Comparisions of Acne treatments can be found here: http://www.acne-cure.us

Acne Treatment Regime For Severe Acne

This kind of acne requires intensive treatment over a period. Your doctor will treat you with combination therapy to control and cure the acne while trying to take care that minimum scars form. The treatment regimen for severe acne may include physical as well as oral and topical treatments. The options ay include- Isotretinoin, Oral antibiotics, Oral contraceptives for female patients, Injecting corticosteroid in the lesion and Surgical procedure. Let us look at them.

Isotretinoin: Isotretinoin is one of the most potent treatments fore severe form of acne which has not responded well to other therapies. Isotretinoin is the best treatment option for cystic acne. Isotretinoin is a form of Vitamin A. The normal course of Isotretinoin is one or two pills a day for up to twenty weeks. Your dermatologist best decides this. Isotretinoin should never be taken without medical supervision. Isotretinoin is one of the best options because it helps treat all the four factors of acne formation- excess oil, clogged pores, inflammation and the bacteria P.acnes. Isotretinoin can also have many side effects.

Side effects of Isotretinoin - For women, it is very important to be in constant contact with their doctor because Isotretinoin can cause damage to developing foetus. It cannot only never be given during pregnancy but before the treatment begins all possibilities of pregnancy have to be eliminated. Please talk to your doctor in detail and follow his/her instructions very strictly. The other side effects of Isotretinoin may include joint pains, headaches, nausea, depression and others. You must not miss your appointment with your doctor while taking Isotretinoin.

Oral antibiotics - broad spectrum antibiotics can reduce the bacteria P.acnes substantially. With reduction in the population of this bacterium inflammation reduces. The choice of the antibiotic is best left to your doctor. The antibiotic may include drugs such as - tetracycline, erythromycin, doxycycline etc.

Oral contraceptives for female patients- overactive sebaceous glands produce more sebum and are one of the main causes of acne. Some oral contraceptives can reduce the production of excessive sebum. These drugs can be taken only under medical supervision. Sometimes, you may have to consult gynecologist for which your doctor will advise you.

Injecting corticosteroid in the lesion - a great help in preparing for a social event, in this treatment a mild steroid is injected in the cyst. The steroid reduces the acne substantially with in few days. This treatment also prevents scarring as it reduces the possibility of bursting of a cyst and dries it totally.

Surgical procedure- your doctor may find it necessary to cut open the acne and drain it. It is done with sterile equipment and needs skill. Acne patients should not do draining of acne.

This article is only for informative purposes. This article is not intended to be a medical advise and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your doctor for your medical concerns. Please follow any tip given in this article only after consulting your doctor. The author is not liable for any outcome or damage resulting from information obtained from this article.

The author C.D.Mohatta writes articles on skin problems, skin treatments and skin care. You can visit http://www.doctorgoodskin.com/ for more information about how to have good skin. The author also writes for free animated screen savers and desktop wallpapers at http://www.screene.com/ on topics like nature, spirituality, motivation, love, holidays, animals, etc. You can downlaod as many free wallpapers as you wish from here.

A Look at Laser Acne Treatment

Laser acne treatment has been around for a few years now, and it is quickly replacing more traditional forms of acne removal and prevention. As antibiotics become increasingly ineffective due to overuse, more and more people are opting for this new technique. During laser resurfacing, a doctor holds a laser pen just above the acne or acne scar tissue and waves the concentrated beam of light back and forth, vaporizing only the unwanted tissue and creating a new surface for skin cell growth. Thus the term ?laser resurfacing?. New collagen actually forms after laser treatment. (Collagen is a protein in the skin's connective tissue that helps give the skin its texture.)

Although laser resurfacing is safe and painless in almost all cases, some post-procedural bruising and swelling are normal. In most cases, these side effects persist for seven to ten days. Wait until this passes before applying make-up.

Currently there are no federal restrictions on who can perform laser resurfacing; regulations only affect the laser manufacturers themselves. There are many types of lasers for many different purposes, so be sure to use a dermatologist or plastic surgeon. Be sure to ask where your doctor was trained to use the laser equipment and whether your doctor rents or owns his or her laser equipment. Ask to see before and after pictures of the doctor's cases, and find out how many different types of lasers the doctor owns and how often each piece of equipment is used.

Many doctors feel that laser resurfacing isn?t meant for dark skin because it alters the color of skin too dramatically and unpredictably. Others believe that in the hands of a very experienced surgeon, people with darker skin tones can benefit.

Lasers acne treatment is much more invasive than non-ablative lasers. They remove by erosion, melting, evaporation, or vaporization. Ablative lasers are not recommended for use on darker skin colors.

Laser resurfacing costs upwards of $2,500 for a full face, versus $1,000 for other types of scar and acne removal. Consult with an experienced aesthetic dermatologist and laser surgeon to determine what it best for you.

Acne Treatment Info provides detailed information on the best acne treatments, including laser acne treatment, and scar treatment, as well as adult, natural, home treatment, and more.

Cervical Cancer Early Symptoms 7 Early Symptoms of Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer early symptoms will be experienced by an estimated 13,000 women in the USA each year. Early symptoms of cervical cancer and cervical cancer are the second most common type of cancer in women worldwide.

Cervical cancer causes are commonly related to a sexually transmitted virus called the human papilloma virus or ?HPV?. Most HPV infections will not lead to cervical cancer early symptoms and cancer. However, infection with these viral types can lead to abnormal changes in the cells of the cervix. Certain changes called ?high-grade lesions? may progress to early symptoms of cervical cancer and cervical cancer if not treated.

Common cervical cancer early symptoms include these symptoms:

? Vaginal bleeding after sexual intercourse
? Pelvic pain
? Pain during sexual intercourse
? Unusual vaginal discharge
? Abnormal bleeding between menstrual periods
? Heavy bleeding during your menstrual period
? Increased urinary frequency

When cervical cancer early symptoms are suspected, Pap smears are the best screening technique currently available to evaluate the cells on the face of the cervix. The Pap smear is a test for the early symptoms of cervical cancer such as cancerous or pre-cancerous cells of the cervix. Most Pap smear test results are rated from Class I through Class V.

? Class I is normal,
? Class II means an irritation or inflammation,
? Class III means it is a true cervical dysplasia that can range from mild to serious,
? Class IV may be one of a variety of pre-cancers or cancers,
? Class V is one of the serious invasive cervical cancer signs.

Pap smear tests are necessary, but they are not always accurate. And their results sometimes appear normal even when a woman has the abnormal cells of cancer. If cervical cancer early symptoms are suspected and the Pap smear test comes back either as normal or as positive, consider getting another Pap smear from a different laboratory and a second opinion from another doctor. If your Pap smear shows dysplasia, a biopsy can rule out cervical cancer.

Another testing method being developed uses a small fiber optic probe that may replace pap smears. This method is still being tested. Hopefully, it should give women more accurate screenings, eliminate unnecessary biopsies and help diagnose cervical cancer early symptoms and early cancer stages. Ask your doctor if this or a more accurate test for cervical cancer is now available.

Early symptoms of cervical cancer often go on without the woman suspecting that a problem exists! Cervical cancer is usually a slow-growing cancer. As a result, cervical cancer is often diagnosed and treated in an advanced stage when the success rate is much lower. Most women with invasive cervical cancer will be treated with surgery, chemotherapy and radiation or some combination of these. And a hysterectomy may be recommended as a consequence of cervical cancer that has spread within the cervix.

With the ovaries being an important source of hormone production, a hysterectomy with removal of the ovaries is a major event with health consequences for a woman. Even if the ovaries are not removed, their function will become impaired within 1-2 years after a partial hysterectomy, again with related health consequences.

Understand what the cervical cancer early symptoms are so that proper medical help can be obtained when needed. And learn more about the early menopause symptoms and side effects of hysterectomy, two important related womens health concerns.

Copyright 2006 InfoSearch Publishing

Learn more about hysterectomy, the early signs of menopause, menopause symptoms and natural treatment. Olinda Rola is President of InfoSearch Publishing and webmaster of http://www.safemenopausesolutions.com where you will find a variety of natural health articles for women.

Chest Massage

Chest massage is helpful in many ways. It strengthens the chest muscles, increases circulation, and tones up the nervous system of chest, heart, and lungs. It is especially recommended in weakness of the lungs, palpitation, and organic heart disorders. Bust and mammary glands can be developed by proper massage.

The patient is made to lie on the back with the arms at the sides. The masseur starts manipulating the chest by means of strokes with both hands on each side of the breast bone. A circular motion is formed by the movement made up and down, moving down the chest.

Next the muscle kneading is done by picking up the skin and muscles with both hands. Treatment is given to both sides of the chest likewise. Circular kneading is next done by placing one hand on each side of the breast bone and making the circular motion outward towards the side.

Tapotement follows by hacking and slapping.

To learn more about the energy principle in healing, please read:

Cost-free Miracle Asthma Cure
Overcome Type I Diabetes and Type II Diabetes Naturally
Alternative Treatments for Incurable Diseases made easy

Secrets of a Pain Free Body

What would deepen your connection to a higher power? Maybe some exploration is needed. Having a pain free body requires feeling grateful for yourself, your life, and others. If your life is one big complaint and you are suffering, you need to consider taking accountability for yourself and your life. You need to work on that. Your whole sense of perspective will change, incredibly. There is no need for ?scarcity consciousness.? You can get what you need. There is enough for everyone. You are enough. Your possibilities for this life are endless. You can trust that. You can trust that if you make it your intention to heal yourself, and do your part in showing up for that, then the universe will provide for you and meet you there.

Be clear that healing comes from inside. Of course, providence moves, the universe will meet you. It starts with you. No one can ultimately help you but you. Be very clear about that. You can pray all day and seek out other spiritual ventures, but if you are not willing to take the action steps for your own well being not much may happen for you. Of course, you can use prayer if you resonate with it. Be direct and specific. Then let go, detach, and trust. Be open to the fact that your desire may come in a form different from what you had imagined. Trusting in a higher power is an opportunity for you to ?chill out.? It is an opportunity for you to expand your inner knowing, and to trust that some things are out of your control. It is okay to trust. It is safe to trust. Play with all of this. Experiment with what works for you. Experiment with what resonates with you. It has been said by all the great traditions that human beings are motivated by love. That is why we get up every day. Everything is done for love. We long to be deeply connected to, to love, and to be loved. We are our most joyful when we are connected to what is in our heart. If any part of you feels doubtful about this, see if you can identify what belief is coming up.

Marnina Reid is a nationally certified Holistic Health Practitioner. She is the author of Natural Cures For Chronic Headaches, a newly released e-book. Marnina has a private practice in San Diego, and faciliates trainings in emotional healing. She mainly works with women who have suffered from emotional trauma helping them to remove the blockages that are preventing them from moving forward. Several of Marnina's clients have suffered from chronic headaches and have been successful at eliminating them. This inspired her to create an e-book specifically addressing headaches.

For free cutting edge health tips that can enhance your life and prevent disease visit: http://www.naturalcuresforchronicheadaches.com/

What Parents Should Know About Milk Junk Food and Teen Acne

You are what you eat. How can growth occur without food? The food choices many of us make from rising first thing in the morning, through to going back to bed at night, are unhealthy and damaging. Tell you what! Do this. Keep a written record of everything you eat for a 24 hour period. In short, you would be shocked-probably ashamed as well. The march toward teen acne begins the minute our parents place that first glass of cow?s milk on the table before us. Moreover, we exacerbate an already bad situation when we chose to eat junk food.

Let?s face it, cow?s milk is meant for baby cows, not for our baby children. Let me dive right into the problem that I have with cow?s milk. My family does not drink cow?s milk. A few specifics why. After pasteurization, regulators tell us that milk should contain no more than 20,000 bacteria per milliliter. In addition, it shouldn?t have anymore than 10 coli form bacteria in each milliliter. What this boils down to is that, a 10oz. glass of cow?s milk may contain 5 million bacteria and still be acceptable for human consumption. This type of bacteria intake overpowers the gatekeepers to an adult immune system. Paving the way for the unchecked, free movement of other bacteria, acne and viruses that attack the body. Worst of all, if milk wages this type of assault on an adult body, what chance does a child stand or for that matter a teen with a developing immune system?

Let?s suppose that the bacteria in milk does not exist. I know, I know! Work with me, I?m only trying to highlight a point. Let?s jump ahead to coli form bacteria. This bacteria is found in the stool of a cow! Got that! The stool! Need I bang this home anymore? I didn?t think so. In a nutshell, these bacteria ravage the body. Then acne piggybacks, or gets an unhindered ride as a result. Worse still, the regulatory body that sets these standards, anticipates the myriad contaminants in milk! Milk causes excess mucus in the system, thereby slowing things down. It attacks and binds vital organs, unduly taxing them and stressing them out. Additionally, it does a good job in causing ?dirty? or ?unclean? blood. This type of ambush robs the system of its ability to attack invaders. Once forced into a defensive mode, the body becomes prone to the onslaught of acne and other diseases.

Fact is, the external appearance of acne in teens and acne in adults can be compared to a warning shot across the bow. It is truly indicative of an unclean interior, and at this point, intervention is needed. Recently I was in conversation with a friend who is a computer technician. I told him that computers made mistakes. He contends that the problem lies with the people operating the computers. He capped off the discussion by saying, ?garbage in ? garbage out.? Then it hit me, that?s how many of us are with our eating habits. We put garbage in, and when garbage comes out in the form of acne, we are mystified.

Hold that thought! This is going to surprise you. Chocolate cake (which I love), doesn?t cause acne. It doesn?t cause teen acne nor does it cause adult acne. Pizza and soft drinks do not cause acne. However, the cumulative result of years of putting this garbage in, eventually leads to garbage out and many times the garbage on the outside is in the form of teen acne and adult acne.

In sum, a written record may indeed shock us into action, and force us to get a grip on the foods we consume; since we are what we eat.

Wycliffe Williams has been in sales management for twenty years. Writing articles has become rewarding and fun. He has a young daughter who has battled acne for years. If you enjoyed this article please check his site: http://www.wyclefinnovations.com/indexincome.html

Acne Review Treatment The New Face Of Benzoyl Peroxide

One of the problems with benzoyl peroxide topical acne treatments is that they can be quite irritating, particularly to sensitive skin. Those fans of benzoyl peroxide will thus be pleased to learn that one skin care company that supplies prescription acne and skin care products is releasing a treatment with a delivery system that reduces benzoyl peroxide's irritating effect.

Called NeoBenz Micro, this acne treatment will be available only by prescription, which is one drawback. On the plus side, it should mean that the acne sufferer is given the appropriate strength to their particular needs. It is aimed at helping people with mild to moderate acne, and comes in three strengths. These are 3.5% benzoyl peroxide, 5.5% benzoyl peroxide, and 8.5% benzoyl peroxide.

The difference in this treatment as compared to regular benzoyl peroxide solutions, is that it is a time release product. The method designed by SkinMedica, NeoBenz Micro's developer, uses very small 'sponges', called microsponges. These hold the active ingredient, in this case benzoyl peroxide, to be slowly released throughout the day. It means that though acne is kept in contact with benzoyl peroxide for the whole day, only small amounts of it are released onto the skin. These amounts are enough to be effective but far less irritating.

The side effects that this benzoyl peroxide acne treatment aims at reducing are rashes, skin soreness, and irritation. Aside from the unpleasant feeling these effects create, they unfortunately also reduce the effectiveness of benzoyl peroxide in clearing acne.

NeoBenz Micro is one example of a new trend in the pharmaceutical industry. It aims at taking existing products and developing new ways to package and deliver the active ingredients, thus effectively modernizing many treatments. The emphasis in the past had been more research oriented - finding new and more powerful treatments rather than fine tuning existing ones that were proven to work.

Other examples of this phenomena include converting treatments into sprays, with the effect of increasing absorption and convenience. MedPharm, a research contracting firm, is turning one eczema treatment and two acne treatments into sprays. These are still in the development stage, however.

References: 1. in-pharmatechnologist.com/news/ng.asp?n=65831&m=1IPE215&c=qgtqmovbyiaxdub
2. outsourcing-pharma.com/news/ng.asp?id=64465

These are traditional acne treatments, but if they frustrate you, check out these alternative natural acne treatments. Rebecca Prescott runs the website Acne To Health, providing information on both conventional and alternative acne treatments.

Laser Hair Removal Information: Which Laser Machine Is Best?

So you?ve got some hair somewhere that you are just dying to get rid of. Maybe you?re sick of shaving it, or maybe you can?t even reach to shave it. Waxing doesn?t last very long, and most of the other products on the market are either are ineffective or outright scams.

Then there is the laser. Laser hair removal has been available now for over ten years. Significant technological advances have been made since the fist lasers hit the market. Today?s lasers are more effective and longer lasting, with several receiving clearance to be marketed for ?permanent hair reduction?. With all the lasers to choose from, is one laser better than the others, or does your choice of laser even matter?

Hair Removal Lasers: Choosing the Right Equipment

Does your choice of laser affect the ultimate outcome of your treatment? The short answers to these two questions are no and yes. Despite what anyone might tell you, no single laser has been clinically proven to be the best ? there simply have not been sufficient comparative trials to establish this. As a result, doctors and clinics tend to promote the virtues of whatever laser they purchased or leased. At $70,000 to $125,000 per machine, you can see why they have a vested interest in promoting their chosen equipment.

Yet while there is not yet a clear-cut winner of the ?best laser? designation, certain lasers do work better for people with certain skin types and hair colors. There are several guidelines that are important in helping you choose which laser is right for you.

Laser Safety and Dark Skin: Avoiding Side Effects

The first guideline is this: the longer the laser?s wavelength, the safer it is on darker skin and the fewer side effects. The reason for this is that longer wavelength laser energy tends to penetrate deeper into the skin. This is especially important in people with dark or tanned skin. Nd:YAG lasers have the longest wavelength of current hair removal lasers at 1064nm. Nd:YAG lasers include the CoolGlide, the Lyra, and the Athos. Diode Lasers, with the second longest wavelength of current hair removal lasers at 810nm, are also used to treat people with olive to dark complexions. Thus diode lasers are a viable alternative if you cannot find a doctor with an Nd:YAG laser in your area. Popular diode lasers include the LightSheer, LaserLight, and Apex 800.

Laser Speed and Hair Removal Cost: Cutting the Price of Treatment

The second guideline to keep in mind is this: the faster the laser?s repetition rate (the speed at which it ?fires?) and the larger its spot size (the size of skin treated with each laser shot) the faster the treatment. For areas such as the legs or back, it is wise to choose a laser that can cover a large area in short time. Alexandrite lasers like the GentleLase have the largest spots sizes available on the market at up to 18mm. The GentleLase is perhaps the fastest on the market at covering large areas. The Lightsheer diode is also quite fast and represents a good alternative if you have olive or brown skin. Generally, the faster the laser, the less your treatment will cost, so it pays to seek out a speedy laser when treating large areas.

Laser Hair Removal: Treatment of Fine Hairs

Finally, if the hair you want removed is fine or light in texture (as opposed to light in color), you might find that it is less responsive to laser treatment than is thicker or coarser hair. In this instance, Alexandrite lasers such as the GentleLase might be your best choice (unless you have dark skin). The GentleLase has been reported to be particularly effective on fine hairs. Nd:YAG lasers are the least effective on fine hairs, and diode lasers fall somewhere in-between.

Ultimately, you must decide upon a laser in consultation with an experienced doctor, for they are best able to determine your precise skin type. Since many laser hair removal offices and clinics offer free consultations and spot checks, it is usually wise to get the opinions of two or more doctors before choosing a laser and a treatment plan.

By doing your research and finding the right laser for you, you will help ensure that your laser hair removal experience will be a successful one (and you might even cut your costs at the same time).

Jess Miller is a consumer advocate and an editor of Laser Hair Removal Ratings, which includes reviews of Phoenix laser hair removal clinics and Philadelphia laser hair removal clinics.

Health & Beauty: 5 Steps to PainFree Shaving for Sexy Smooth Summertime Legs

Summertime is near. And with the days getting longer and warmer, out come the shorts, mini-skirts, and bare legs.

Like most women, I?ve tried it all: shaving, waxing, depilatories? you name it. While I do love the benefits of waxing, waiting a couple of weeks during the summer for the hair to get long enough to wax is not my idea of a good time. And I?ve never had success with depilatories.

So what?s a girl to do? Fall back on our old friend: the razor.

While shaving is definitely the easiest, quickest, and least expensive hair-removal option, shaving still comes with its own problems: most notably nicks, cuts, and the dreaded ?razor burn.? But it doesn?t have to. There are some very simple (and economical!) things you can do to avoid the pit-falls of shaving.

Follow these five easy steps that will keep you and your razor friends?all the way through the long, lazy days of summer:

Exfoliate, Exfoliate, Exfoliate. I can?t stress this enough. Exfoliation helps to smooth the skin by remove dead skin cells while softening the coarse hair on your legs. And that adds up to smoother, easier shaving.

Grab your trusty scrub puff or a washcloth and a moisturizing body wash. You don?t need to scrub hard, as the puff or washcloth will do most of the work. (And while you?re at it, wash your whole body like this?your skin will glow!

Save the Shave ?Til the End. While it?s not quite like saving the best for last, waiting until the end of your shower will make shaving much easier. Ask any man. They usually wait until the end (or after) their shower to shave, giving their stubble time to soften. Not only is it easier to shave, but it allows for a much closer shave.

The hair on your legs is coarse and needs time to soften in the hot water. Shaving at the beginning of your shower or bath, before the hair softens, will almost guarantee nicks, cuts and/or razor-burn. So to save yourself some pain?and get smoother legs?by saving the shaving until the end.

Use a New(er) Blade. This one may seem like a no-brainer, but so many women don?t change blades often enough. While I couldn?t find statistics from any of the razor companies as to how many shaves a you can get from one disposable blade, the women in my informal poll agree that a razor blade is usually only good for about 10 shaves. And that number can be even less if you have very heavy or very coarse hair.

You know when it?s not sharp enough. It may feel dull or like it?s pulling at your skin. It may look old. Or you may realize that you can?t remember the last time you changed it. But the rule of thumb: it?s better to change too often than not often enough. A dull blade is more likely to cause nicks, cuts and razor-burn.

So switch out that old blade with a new one. Just remember that a new blade is sharp?so always shave slowly and carefully!

Use Conditioner. If you only remember one tip from this article, remember this: conditioner is the best substance to use to shave with! Yes, I?m talking about hair conditioner. Conditioner provides a thin layer of protection on your skin, helps the blade glide smoothly, and further softens your hair.

I keep a large bottle of inexpensive conditioner in my shower (I get the jumbo size from Costco, with a pump in it?which also makes it easier to dispense) that is dedicated for shaving. Use about the same amount that you do when putting lotion on your legs. Make sure you rinse your blade well after shaving. Try this tip once and you?ll never go back to soap or shaving cream again!

Moisturize While Wet. This is the final step to the pain-free shave. You can moisturize with one of the new in-shower lotions, the kind that you put on and then rinse off in the shower. Or, after turning off the water but before reaching for your towel, you can moisturize with body oil or baby oil.

I keep a bottle of almond oil in the shower, and add my favorite aromatherapy oils to it. Not only will your skin retain more moisture this way, but you also won?t be rubbing lotion onto dry skin?a combination I have found almost guarantees razor burn.

Incorporate these simple tips into your shaving routine and you?ll be on your way to smooth and sexy legs, all summer long!

Kimberly Sobie is a freelance writer, consultant, executive coach, and tax attorney. She lives in Seattle with her husband, son, and cat.