Posts Tagged ‘Health Benefits’

What are some of the health benefits of Coconut?

The coconut palm is a large (30 meters high) tree, and is a meber of the Arecaceae family, with the binomial nomenclature as Cocos nucifera. Coconut is known as Naarikela in ayurveda. This plant is grown in the tropics. For this tree, many parts are useful. The fruits, flowers and roots of this plant are used as ingredients of many Ayurvedic preparations. The texts of Ayurveda try to explain the properties of this fruit – “Coconut is sweet to taste, to act as a coolant to the body, is creamy and heavy to digest..”

The tender coconut water:
Coconut water has a calming effect on the intestines. It can be administered to infants as a rehydration solution. It is known as “krimighna”, that is, it can kill intestinal parasites. When administered as a regular health drink for children, it promotes growth and also supplies nutrients. Coconut water helps to overcome irritation of the bladder and helps prevent urinary tract infections. Regular consumption of this water helps in the easy flow of urine and also removes small stones in the kidney. It can be spread on irritated skin (due to sunburn, rashes, chicken pox etc) for a cooling effect. Coconut water increases the fairness of the skin. Hiccups can go away, and thirst decreases rapidly with the consumption of coconut water.

Uses of coconut flowers:
Flowers are used in the prevention of frequent bowel movements of diarrhea and dysentery. They help normalize vitiated pitta and rakta (blood). Flowers help to reduce the need to urinate frequently.

Uses of coconut kernel (copra):
Tender flesh cools the body and provides nourishment. It is easy to digest and reduces acidity. Tender coconut pulp helps increase the body’s energy and strength.
Fully ripe pulp acts as an excellent aphrodisiac (Vajikara). It is known to increase the quality and quantity of semen. It is high in dietary fiber and cleans the intestines.

Uses of coconut oil:
According to Ayurveda, coconut oil is mainly used to massage the scalp. It increases hair growth and prevents the loss of dandruff and hair. Coconut oil accelerates wound healing and prevents diseases that arise due to the dryness of the skin.

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What are the health benefits of turmeric (a common spice)?

Turmeric is a very commonly used spice, used primarily to give taste and color to cuisines. It also has many medicinal properties. Turmeric contains Curcumin (diferuloylmethane), which is considered to be the main component of turmeric. This is the component which gives the yellow color to the turmeric stick. Turmeric is also known as Curcuma longa (botanical name). Turmeric is a herb which belong to the ginger root family. Many of us are quite aware of the benefits which turmeric provides. This article will discuss in detail the health benefits which are provided by turmeric and some them are such that they are commonly not known to people. In addition, turmeric is under medical investigation for many other properties such as anti-cancer.
The health benefits of turmeric can be listed as follows:
 One of the main benefits of turmeric is its power to prevent heart attacks and also make the heart strong enough so as to avoid further heart problems. Oxidation causes lipids to build within your arteries which my lead to heart attacks. Taking turmeric regularly for a period of time reduces the chances of formation of lipids in the arteries hence preventing heart attacks and it also helps in reducing the level of bad cholesterol in your body.
 The antioxidants present in turmeric also help reduce the chances of cancers like breast cancer and prostate cancer and lung cancer, skin and colon cancers. The combination of cauliflower and turmeric is very good for the treatment of prostate cancer. Regular intake of this mixture ensures the existing prostate cancer growth to stop.
 The neurodegenerative disease known as Alzheimer’s disease is also impacted by the use of turmeric. Turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties which help lower down the plaque burdens and amyloid levels. Turmeric also slows down the growth of this disease.
 Turmeric is very helpful in treating bruises, wounds and sprains. Turmeric along with hot milk is good for bones. If you are bleeding due to some wound or cut, application of turmeric on the cut will stop the bleeding immediately. Swellings and pain due to bruises can be reduced with the help of turmeric when mixed with lime juice or water.
 Skin problems can be treated very effectively with the help of turmeric. The application of turmeric along with til oil helps in reducing the eruptions caused on the body. Applying turmeric on the whole body before bath acts as antiseptic and fights against various skin problems. It also helps in decreasing spots caused due to ring worms. Turmeric paste is applied to the skin to tone up the skin evenly and enhance the complexion of the skin and stretch marks are also visibly reduced with the application of turmeric on affected areas.
 Turmeric is a very good supplement to reduce diabetes. The intake of herbal extracts of turmeric has shown great improvements in the blood sugar level of the diabetic patients.
 Arthritis can be reduced by turmeric. The regular intake of turmeric gradually decreases the chances of arthritis and also reduces the existing problems due to arthritis like swelling, pain, etc.
 Digestive problems are also reduced by the intake turmeric. Bile juice is responsible for efficient digestion. Turmeric stimulates the secretion of bile juice hence maintaining a proper digestive system.
Turmeric is a very beneficial herb and its list of health benefits is endless. This was just a glimpse of the benefits which turmeric provides. Increase the intake of turmeric in your diet to improve your present health conditions and increase the chances of leading a problem free life ahead.

What are the health benefits of taking naps (short bursts of sleep)?

Your daily schedule makes you feel very tired in between. You feel irritated sometimes and you are unable to concentrate on your work. All this is due to the lack of proper rest and the impact on your body. All these finally leads to problems such as lack of productivity and reduction of alertness in your daily work. But you don’t need to worry. The solution to all these problems is very simple and easy. Taking a nap can benefit you a lot and make you feel much more relaxed and lets you concentrate better on your work.
The sleep taken at night, in most cases is enough enough for a human body, but small power naps help your body and mind refresh itself. The brain works all day long and in between gets tired and needs some rest so that it can refresh itself and get back to the normal state and again work properly. This article will help you learn more about the benefits of taking naps.
The first benefit of taking naps is that it is very good for your heart. You can reduce your chances of dying from some heart disease by taking frequent naps during the day. It is shown by some studies that taking naps is beneficial for both, the people with bad health and the ones who are active all day long.
Taking power naps in between your work will help your sharpen your senses. Whether it is students, businessman, housewives or any other employees, all of them get tired and get the feeling of drowsiness while doing their work. The problem to all these problems is taking a small power nap of approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Taking this nap will also prevent the accidents caused by fatigue and drowsiness in people. This in turn will also boost up your performance level and you will be able to give better performance in whatever work you do. Research was done on this which proved that people who take regular naps are better in their IQ levels also than those who work without taking naps.
The people who work in shifts, especially the night shifts suffer from disturbed sleep schedule which in turn disturbs their performance at work also. It is a proven fact that the night shift workers tend to work better when they take proper naps combined with caffeine (present in coffee). Many of us do not know that taking nap can also maintain your exercise regime well. We feel very drowsy and lazy while doing exercise because of lack of sleep. People who take naps tend to run and exercise faster and longer.
Sometimes it may happen that you are not able to get your complete night sleep of 7 to 8 hours. In these case taking naps help you add up to your total sleep. Although naps do not have the same benefits as that of the actual sleep but it is surely better to take a nap than not taking one. Naps also helps you make learn faster and make you smarter.
The ideal time to take a nap is in the afternoon, although it depends on your night sleep as to when you sleep at night and when you get up in the morning. People who prefer sleeping early at night and waking up early in the morning, your nap time in the afternoon should be at around 1 pm or 1:30 pm. On the other hand if you sleep late and wake up late then prefer sleeping at around 2:30 pm or 3 pm in the afternoon. The nap duration must be enough, not too less and not too much. The ideal duration of taking nap is approximately 10 to 20 minutes. So take frequent naps and make yourself healthier.