Home remedies for Stretch Marks
- It is very important to exercise in order to get rid of stretch marks.
- Toning your muscles helps your skin to firm which prevents stretch marks.
- Your diet should have plenty of protein and foods rich in Vitamin C and Vitamin E, they promote good tissue growth.
- Massaging your body with olive oil or Vitamin E.
- Apply a mixture of one ounce of carrier oil (try avocado, sweet almond, and jojoba) with seven drops of lavender and five drops of chamomile.
- Apply cocoa butter and/ or elastin cream though out the body as directed on label.

Some good home remedies are:

1. Ingredient list:
- 1/2 cup virgin olive oil.
- 1/4 cup aloe Vera gel.
- Liquid from 6 capsules of Vitamin E.
- Liquid from 4 capsules of Vitamin A.

Procedure
- Mix all the ingredients together in a blender.
- After that pour the mixture into a jar and store it in the fridge.
- Apply the oil externally all over the places where the stretch marks commonly appear (abdomen, hips, thighs and breasts).
- If you do this consistently every day, you may prevent stretch marks.

2. Ingredient list:
- Sugar,
- Coffee grins,
- Bi card soda,
- Fresh Aloe vera plant,
- Argan oil,
- Vitamin E oil,
- Emu oil,
- Vitamin C powder
- Cocoa butter
- Pure Oils

Procedure
- Mix together coffee, sugar, bi-carb, aloe Vera and enough water to make a paste.
- Massage onto areas and leave for 10-15 mins.
- Wash off in shower.
- Mix SMALL amounts( as a little goes along way!) of Argan oil, Vitamin E oil, Emu oil, Cocoa butter and Vitamin C powder into a consistent liquid then use as a mosturiser.
- Do both steps daily for two weeks.

3. Ingredient list
- 1/2 a cup of baking soda
- 1/4 a cup of water
- a little bit of cocoa butter with shea
- & vitamin E oil

Procedure
- Mix it all up.
- Leave it on the stomach for 30 minutes.
- Do this for a month.

Homemade stretch mark creams
Ingredient list
- 1/2 cup cocoa butter
- 1 Tablespoon wheat germ oil
- 1 Teaspoon apricot kernel oil
- 1 Teaspoon Vitamin E oil
- 2 Teaspoon grated beeswax

Procedure
- Heat mixture until beeswax is just melted.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- Apply this cream to your stretch marks until desired results are achieved.

Homemade massage oil
Ingredient list
- 1/2 cup olive oil.
- 1/4 cup aloe Vera gel.
- 4 capsules Vitamin E (remove liquid from capsule and discard casing).
- 2 capsules Vitamin A liquid.

Procedure
- Blend ingredients together.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- Apply.

Record everything that you are eating
Keeping a record of what you are eating helps in managing your weight. It actually tells you how much you are eating. It can tell you what unhealthy diet you are having in your day to day life. It can motivate you to achieve your goals. Few steps in this are:
- Decide how detailed you want your food journal to be.
- Record everything. Do not even miss the sauces, gravies and even a small thing that you eat.
- Service sizes should be specific while noting them in the food journal.
- Include the time interval and food groups.
- Maintain the food journal for two weeks to get a consistent record.
- Maintain a record of physical activity.
- Every food has a calorie and nutrition content. Keep a knowledge of that.

Be more active
- More calories should be burn than consuming.
- At least 60 minutes of workout daily is necessary to keep yourself active. Workout can be a walk or any other physical activity.
- Exercise will keep the weight off.
- Exercise will also take a large amount of weight off the abdomen.
- Besides walking, some other ways to be active are swimming, dancing or biking.

Goals set should be reasonable
The key to successful weight control is to set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and track-able. Setting an unrealistic goal will lead to your disappointment. The focus should be on making performance goals rather than outcome goals.

Triggers should be identified
There are always some factors that are responsible for making you overweight. These factors should be identified and accordingly changes should be made.
- You should be honest with what you are eating.
- Sometimes, eating is related to the mood of the person. Identify the cause of eating by:
1. You tend to eat more sweet when you are depressed over something.
2. Is there any kind of pressure which is making you eat more?
3. Is the environment trigger over eating?
Try to do:
- Are you really physically hungry?
- Say no to extra calories.
- Distract yourself from your desire to eat.
- Direct negative energy into a positive energy.

Watch out for foods that you eat
- Reduce the caloric consumption which means choosing the foods wisely.
- Reduce food high in sugar or fat.
- Say no to junk food.
- Favor fruits, vegetables and whole grain products.
- Select foods that are low in energy density.

Thyroid secretes hormones T3 which is called thyroxine and T4 which is called triidothyronine. They control how fast and efficiently cells convert nutrients into energy. Thyroid gland is controlled by pituitary gland and it produces a thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and it pushes the thyroid gland to produce thyroid hormones in balancing quantities.

Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland produces less T3 and T4 and the main reason is that the immune system attacks and destroys the thyroid gland. TSH is released by pituitary gland and it informs the thyroid gland to step up production. The gland enlarges and the body functions slow down. Women especially are affected more.

Symptoms of Hypothyroidism
- Feeling cold.
- Feeling drowsy, lethargic and exhausted.
- Poor memory.
- Depression.
- Anemia.
- Heavy menstrual flow.
- Infertility.
- Weight gain and bloating.
- Constipation.
- Hair thinning.
- Muscle cramps.
- Husky voice.

Causes of Hypothyroidism
- Thyroid surgery in which the gland is removed or treated.
- Iodine deficiency.
- Medication used to treat bipolar disease.
- Infections like viral and bacterial can harm the gland temporarily.
- Congenital in which you are born with thyroid hormone deficiency.

Treatment of Hypothyroidism
Diagnosis can be done with a blood test of thyroid hormones T3, T4 and TSH.
- Replacing the thyroid hormone to normalize levels.
- Symptoms get cured within couple of months.
- Left untreated, it can cause depression, heart failure and coma.

Thyroid secretes hormones T3 which is called thyroxine and T4 which is called triidothyronine. They control how fast and efficiently cells convert nutrients into energy. Thyroid gland is controlled by pituitary gland and it produces a thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and it pushes the thyroid gland to produce thyroid hormones in balancing quantities.

Hyperthyroidism or active thyroid is the result from excess production of thyroid hormones particularly T3. The increased level of T3 pushes up the body’s metabolism which is the main reason for losing weight despite eating well.

Symptoms of Hyperthyroidism
- Anxiety
- Fast heart rate
- Nervousness
- Irritability
- Muscle weakness
- Weight loss
- Hair loss
- Trembling hands
- Moist warm skin
- Heart intolerance
- Frequency of bowel movements increase
- Less or decreases menstrual flow
- Painful enlarged thyroid gland

Causes of Hyperthyroidism
- Hyperactive thyroid nodules
- Graves disease affecting people between age 30 and 50.
- Thyroiditis which is the inflammation of thyroid gland releasing excessive hormones and it is caused by virus.
- Over stimulated pituitary gland which produces too much TSH.
- Excessive iodine in the form of iodised salt, sea food, dairy products.
- Thyrotoxicosis is taking too much thyroid hormone while treating for hyperthyroidism.

Treatment for Hyperthyroidism
- Anti thyroid drugs interfere with gland’s ability to make T3 and T4 but they are accompanied by side effects like rash, itching, fever and very rarely liver inflammation and deficiency of white blood cells.
- Beta blockers to prevent symptoms of palpitations and tremors.
- Radioactive iodine treatment is done to damage and kill thyroid cells. The only side effect is the destruction of thyroid tissues.
- Surgery of land or nodules.

- Oats have compounds that also reduces inflammation inside the artery walls.
- These compounds are called avenanthramides and they contain anti-inflammatory properties and they help in reducing inflammation.
- These compounds inhibits the action of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
- Cytokines are small proteins that are released by cells to repair tissues.
- Few cytokines triggers inflammation which can also lead to atherosclerosis in response to an infection.
- Oats and other cereal grains helps in a gradual rise in the level of sugar in the blood as they are digested slowly. Less insulin is needed to control blood sugar after eating plain, unadorned cereal grains than after eating some other high-carbohydrate food.
- Oats are rich in soluble fibre and it helps in reducing hypertension, or high blood pressure.
- The high content of fibre in oats keeps the bowel movements regular.
- Oats contain iron which helps to boost the immunity of the human body.
- Oats are a good source of magnesium, selenium, manganese and phosphorous.
- Oats are also a good source of vitamin B1 and dietary fiber.

Consumption of oats is an optimal way of lowering health risks. The three instants of oatmeal – regular, quick or instant have same amount of beta-glucan, a kind of fibre, which gives oats their cholesterol claim to fame.

TYPES OF OATMEAL
- Plain oatmeal groats i.e. whole kernels take a very long time to cook.
- Steel cut oats groats are cut into 2 or 3 chunks and they cook a little quicker as the piece is smaller and water gets penetrated more easily.
- Rolled oats are first steamed, then rolled and dried. Since they are already steamed and rolled, water penetrates more easily and they cook more quickly. Rolled oats come in three varieties:
regular oats – whole groats rolled.
quick oats – oat in pieces and then rolled thinner.
instant oats – oats cut even smaller and rolled even thinner.

CAUSES OF BEING UNDERWEIGHT

- Inadequate calorie intake.
- Excessive bodily activity.
- Bad eating habits like skipping meals, small meals, fasting etc.
- Emotional factors.
- Inadequate digestion.
- Wrong dietary pattern for a particular metabolism such as overactive thyroid.
- Hereditary tendencies.
- Chronic dyspepsia.
- Chronic diarrhea.
- Intestinal worms.
- Liver disorders.
- Diabetes.
- Insomnia.
- Constipation.

SYMPTOMS OF BEING UNDERWEIGHT

- Fatigue.
- Poor physical stamina.
- Low resistance to infection.
- Diseases like tuberculosis, respiratory disorders, pneumonia, heart disorders, cerebral hemorrhage, typhoid fever and cancer are common.

REMEDIES FOR BEING UNDERWEIGHT

- Include banana milk shake in diet.
- Take musk melon three times a day for forty days.
- Have fruit diet with milk.
- Have a mango with a glass off milk.
- Figs have high percentage of rapidly assimilation sugar make it strengthening and fattening food.
- Raisins help in gaining weight.
- Nutrients like Vitamin D and Vitamin B6, calcium and magnesium are important for underweight people.
- Take a cup of milk and put some almonds, date palm and anjeer in it. Boil this milk and have it when warm. This is helpful in treating underweight problem.

DIETARY CONSIDERATIONS

Diet plays an important role in building up health for gaining weight. Underweight person should:
- eat frequent meals.
- diet should contain more calories than normal.
- regular exercise like walking, dancing, yoga, meditation and massage.
- proper sleep.
- reduced stress.
- yogasanas like sarvangasana, halasana and matsyasana.

Phenylalanine is effective for weight control because of its effect on thyroid selection. It also plays an important role in the control of appetite. If taken before meals, it suppresses the appetite substantially. This amino acid is also essential for the efficient functioning of the kidneys and the bladder.

Phenylalanine is found in abundance in:
- curd
- milk
- cottage cheese
- pulses and legumes
- poultry
- piyal seeds
- groundnuts
- pistachio nuts
- almonds
- leafy vegetables
- whole grains

Deficiency of phenylalanine can lead to a variety of symptoms including:
- bloodshot eyes.
- cataract.
- several behavioral changes such as psychotic and schizophrenic behavior.

Phenylalanine has many therapeutic uses like:
- It is considered beneficial in the treatment of obesity and is being successfully employed as an appetite suppressant for this condition.
- In the intestinal tract, the amino acids tryptophan and phenylalanine trigger the release of cholycystokinin which induces satiety, and a termination of eating.
- An intake of half a teaspoon of phenylalanine powder 30 minutes before each meal can lead to a loss of as much as 100 to 200g of weight a day.
- Positive effects noticed after 24-48 hours of taking phenylalanine are a feeling of greater alertness, an increase in sexual interest, memory enhancement.
- It also diminishes depressant feelings.

CAUTION: Caution should be observed in the use of phenylalanine in hypertensive individuals. Low doses of around 100mg daily should be taken by anyone with suspected high blood pressure, and a check should be kept on pressure levels.

Health Benefits of Watermelon

- Lycopene is an antioxidant found in most red colored fruits except strawberries. Studies show that Lycopene reduces the risk of prostate cancer and heart disease in people.
- Vitamin B6 is an important attribute to have in a healthy diet because it promotes chemicals in the brain that help people to cope with anxiety and panic.
- Vitamin C boosts the immune system so that you get sick less often and it also slows down aging and medical conditions such as cataract.
- Vitamin A works much like Vitamin C, in that it helps boost immunity, but it also help your body fight off infection.
- Consumption of water melons has been found to result in alleviation of some of the symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
- Watermelon is a good source of potassium and magnesium as well. Potassium works with sodium and chloride as an electrolyte in the body to balance water levels in the body and regulate blood pressure and heartbeat. Magnesium promotes heart health and is important for building strong bones and reduces the risk of developing osteoporosis.
- Watermelon is very low in calories, making it the perfect snack for those who are trying to lose weight.
- Watermelons have been associated with reducing the airway spasm that occurs in asthma.
- It is said that watermelon works like a natural Viagra. Arginine improves sexual function in men as it boots nitric oxide which relaxes blood vessels.

Nutritional Value of Watermelon

Given below is the amount of nutrients present in 100 gm of watermelon:
Calcium – 7 mg
Carbohydrate – 7.55 gm
Fats – 0.15 gm
Fluoride – 1.5 mcg
Iron – 0.24 mg
Magnesium – 10 mg
Phosphorus – 11 mg
Potassium – 112 mg
Protein – 0.61 gm
Sodium – 1 mg
Sugars – 6.20 gm
Total Dietary Fiber – 0.4 gm
Total Folate – 3 mcg
Vitamin A – 569 IU
Vitamin C – 8.1 mg
Water – 91.45 gm
Energy – 30 kcal
Carotenoids (Lycopene, Phytofluene, Phytoene, Beta-Carotene, Lutein and Neurosporene)

Health Benefits of Aerobics

- Aerobic exercise strengthens the heart and lungs, making breathing more efficient and improving the efficiency of the heart.
- Aerobic exercise tones muscles throughout the body, which can help reduce blood pressure.
- People who get regular aerobic exercise consume more oxygen and pump more blood with each beat.
- Blood supply to the muscles is increased, as well as their ability to use oxygen.
- Heart rate and blood pressure are lower in people who get regular aerobic exercise.
- HDL cholesterol (that’s the good stuff) is increased.
- Triglycerides in the blood—a risk factor for heart disease— are decreased.
- Body fat and weight can both be reduced by getting an hour of aerobic exercise a few times a week.
- Glucose tolerance and insulin resistance improve in those who regularly exercise, reducing the risk of diabetes.
- Mitochondria inside the muscle increase in number and activity. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of your cells. They do all the heavy-duty work to keep you moving.

Bring aerobics safely into your daily life

- Maintain a comfortable pace.
- Increase your workout in stages to get the most benefits with the fewest risks.
- Select activities that fit your personality and have an element of fun.
- Plan a workout schedule. To gain the most health benefits it is important to exercise as regularly as possible.
- Maximize your safety and comfort.
- Challenge yourself.
- Whether your goal is to control your weight or just to feel healthier, becoming physically active is a step in the right direction.

Health Benefits of Banana :
- Banana is an energy booster.
- Bananas are fruits that are high in fiber, making them an ideal remedy for constipation and an alternative to chemical laxatives.
- Bananas are a natural source of potassium which helps to keep the body fluids and electrolyte balance in body cells and helps in regulating blood pressure.
- Bananas are not only a good source of B vitamins they also contain vitamin C, A.
- Banana is a rich source of iron, thus it is helpful in cases of anemia.
- The skin of the banana is said to help remove warts(cover the warts with the inner skin of banana).
- Banana is also helpful in Stomach ulcer (banana has a natural antacid), Colitis, Digestive disorder, Diarrhea, Constipation (banana is high in fiber), Hemorrhoids.
- Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.
- Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood-sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.
- Bananas are useful in the treatment of arthritis and gout. A diet of bananas only for three or four days is advisable in these conditions.
- One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey as it calms the stomach.
- Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.
- Cooked banana flower eaten with curd is considered an effective medicine for menstrual disorders like painful menstruation and excessive bleeding.
- Bananas are an ideal fruit to be eaten when a person is suffering from ulcers.
- Eating bananas as part of a regular diet can reduce the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%.

Bananas and losing weight :
Bananas may be one of the best fruits to eat when attempting to lose weight. They are full of nutrients for increased energy and vitality. Bananas are also low in calories and fat, plus they have a high water content and potassium levels. A diet high in potassium foods and lower in sodium-loaded processed foods can help reduce water weight.
The daily diet is restricted to six bananas and four glasses of skimmed milk or buttermilk made from skimmed milk for a period of 10 to 15 days. Thereafter green vegetables may be introduced gradually, reducing the intake of bananas from six to four.

Storing Bananas :
Bananas need to be treated with care as they bruise easily. The ideal way to store bananas is to keep them at room temperature. In order to ripen bananas, you can either wrap them in a newspaper or keep them in a brown paper bag. If you store a banana in a fridge it will turn black. However it will still be edible.