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 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)
Acid Reflux and Heartburn Natural Remedies Part II
Date: Tuesday August 4, 2009Posted in: Alternative Medicine
If you have acid reflux or heartburn, using natural remedies to rebalance your stomach is what nature intended. Listed are four natural remedies that you can use to rebalance the acid in your stomach
Cinnamon
Cinnamon has many medicinal uses aside from being great for various pastries. It has an antiseptic effect and has been historically used for colds and flu’s. It has fighting power against Candida albicans and has the ability to settle acidic stomachs.
Here’s how to use cinnamon for an acid stomach or heartburn:
· Toast raisin bread
· Butter the raisin bread
· Sprinkle cinnamon on the bread
· Sprinkle cardamon on the bread
When you eat this toasted bread, chew slowly and completely before swallowing to allow the digestive juices in your mouth to start breaking down this food.
Cardamon, which is found in India, has been used successful in treating Celiac disease, which is an intolerance to gluten found in most breads.
Grapefruit Skins
Here is a way to settle your acid reflux stomach with grapefruit. Use only organic grapefruit for this remedy. Here’s what to do:
· Grate the entire outer skin of an organic grapefruit
· Spread them out on a flat dish to dry
· Allow them to get crinkly dry
· Store them in a glass jar or zip lock bag
Whenever you get an upset stomach, acid reflux or heartburn start chewing and eating these strips of dried grapefruit. These strips will settle out your stomach. Eat only a few of them and test to see how many you need.
Romaine Lettuce
Romaine lettuce can be used to eliminate an acid reflux or heartburn condition. This lettuce is high in minerals and is highly alkaline.
Here’s what you need to do:
· Buy an organic romaine lettuce head
· Wash in distilled water
· Cut up the leaves and place them in a blender
· Add cold distilled water to make a slurry
· Add a slight amount of honey to give it taste
Drink a 4-8 oz to get relief from your acid reflux or acid stomach
Mace, Nutmeg, and Slippery Elm
Here is a natural remedy that uses mace and nutmeg, which has a history of treating indigestion, acid stomach, heartburn, acid reflux, stomach gas, and vomiting.
Here’s how to use it with half and half and slippery elm root herb. Slippery elm herb can be purchase in any herb store in powder.
· 1 teaspoon of slippery elm bark
· a pinch of nutmeg
· a pinch of mace
· add distilled water to make a smooth slurry
· heat a pint of half and half to boil
· pull half and half from stove and add herb slurry
· stir in herb slurry
Allow this mixture to cool. Drink up to ½ cup at a time. Store the unused portion in the refrigerator. When drinking the next cup, warm this mixture up.
Acid reflux and heartburn require alkaline nutrients to provide relief. These 4 natural remedies, when prepared properly, will give you the relief you need from these conditions. Try them; you will be surprised on how well they work
