Health Living Tips

is our largest organ, and yet it is one that so many of us forget to take care of as well as we should. We douse it with fragrances, lotions, and other beauty products that contain an amazing amount of chemicals, many of which have been proven to cause cancer (like parabans for example). The best way to nourish our skin is the same way we nourish the rest of our body–from the inside out, with fresh fruits and vegetables and plenty of good fats. There are also several ways to feed your skin from the outside too that are easy, cheap, and all natural:

Body Brushing: A wonderful way to detox your body, great for your lymph system, nervous and circulatory systems, dry body brushing is best done once a day to three times a week, preferably before taking a bath or shower. Using a loofah or natural bristle brush, and start at your feet. Brush toward the heart in circular movements for five minutes. After a few sessions you will notice a more natural glow to your skin, increased vitality, and a sense of invigoration, especially if done in the morning.

Masks: Our skin loves good food. Some wonderful masks that help nourish the face:

For dry/ sensitive skin: 1/2 an avocado mashed and mixed with ground oatmeal. The fat from the avocado nourishes the skin while the oatmeal soothes it.

For oily skin: a mixture of french green clay and pulverized strawberries or cranberries act to draw out impurities while giving your skin the astringent benefits it so needs.

For normal skin: A pina colada for the face! crushed pineapple and banana work wonders–the acid in the pineapple exfoliates the skin while the banana soothes and tightens.

Sea Salt Scrubs: These are yet another great exfolient for all skin types. Adding a bit of almond oil to the salt keeps it smooth and glowing. The salt helps relax muscles and detoxes the skin. Adding herbs to the scrub is great too–lavender to soothe, lemon or mint to invigorate, a pinch of cayenne on a cold day to warm you up, rosemary or calendula flowers to heal rashes or other skin problems.

Bug Spray: As the summer months approach, our thoughts turn to mosquitoes and how to prevent their nasty little bites. Most bug repellents are literally awful for you. Natural prevention is the best recourse–taking 3 or 4 capsules of garlic and 100mg of vitamin B1 create a smell that repels mosquitoes while avoiding sugar and fruit juice, to which mosquitoes are naturally attracted can cut down on your victimization. Using certain essential oils—such as eucalyptus, lemon balm, pennyroyal, citronella, tea tree, and geranium also makes effective bug sprays. Simply add a mixture of the above to a water/witch hazel (3 parts water to 1 part witch hazel) solution and transfer to a spray bottle. Several naturopaths say using these oils works as well as commercial mosquito repellent.

Baths: Warm baths are highly underrated. They soften the skin, relax the muscles and release stress from the body, mind, and emotions. Plus you can add all sorts of wonderful things to them– milk to soften skin, sea salt to soothe sore muscles, a tea of herbs such as lavender, mint, rose petals, chamomile, lemongrass, orange rinds to leave you smelling sweet and and all natural.

Everyone in the world wants to look young. Unfortunately, we cannot stop the aging process. Once you cross your 3′s you will start to feel that there is no hope to be beautiful anyomore. Or is it?

Actually, there are many ways in which you can feel younger and look more beautiful. You have to take care of youself, both from the inside and the outside. Most men and women don’t realize that there are many simple anti ageing treatments that they can use in order to avoid or slow down aging .

There are 2 main types of anti ageing:

1. Natural : This type of aging is hereditary and depends on the genes & hence it is quite difficult to prevent.

2. Un-natural : This is caused by the extrinsic factors like exposure to sun, over drinking, bad eating habits etc.

While comparing both the types of aging, you can come to a conclusion that you can prevent the second type of ageing.

Here are some tips for the prevention of un-natural aging :

1) You should maintain a diet that is low in sugar and fat.

2) You need to consume lots of water, ie 5- 8 glasses of water daily.

3) You should exercise regularly. This will help you look younger.

In addition, you may consider the following anti-aging treatment products:-

1. Anti ageing treatment (Creams) :

People whose skin is always exposed to the sun are at more risk since the sun’s rays can cause wrinkles on the face. Thus, wrinkle creams have become one of the major anti aging treatment products today. Scores of anti ageing wrinkle creams have entered the anti-aging market. But it doesn’t mean that all these creams are good. The introduction of many “herbal and ayurvedic creams” has made it difficult for the women to decide on which product is right for them. So choose carefully.

2. Anti ageing treatment Genetic Treatment)

The most dynamic aspect of the genetic research is to create genetic treatments for anti ageing. Geneticists say that, human beings have 30,000 active genes. As we grow older, these genes become inactive which ultimately results in ageing looks. With respect to the researchers, anti ageing treatment with animals are likely to continue in next few years, before tests with human begin. Thus, this Anti ageing treatment will be a boon for the coming generation.

3. Anti ageing treatment (Copper peptide treatment):

One of the anti aging treatments that are boomingtoday is the copper peptide treatment. Copper is normally found in trace quantities in our cells. When this is converted into copper peptide results in the skin regeneration . Since copper is an anti oxidant, it damages free radicals leaving a better skin.

4. Anti ageing treatment through vitamin tablets:

We need anti ageing vitamins to suppress the free radicals. They are the protective force against free radicals. Let us explore some important anti ageing vitamins :-

i) Vitamin C – It lowers the blood pressure . It fights cold and flu. It is also a very good anti aging treatment agent.

ii) Vitamin E – It is a good supplement of anti oxidants. It helps to maintain healthy cells and acts as a good skin and hair repair agent.

iii)Vitamin A – It is a very good anti oxidant that neutralizes the free radicals in the body which causes tissue and cellular damage. It also has retinol which helps to keep the skin and eyes moist.

Apart from using vitamins as an anti ageing treatment, it is always better to go with proper eating habits too.

5) HGH or human growth hormone is another product that you can opt for to fight aging. This is the latest in the field of anti aging treatment and its effects have been proven in many cases too. HGH supplements, for instance, can induce your body to produce more natural HGH, thus resulting in you looking and feeling years younger.

As you can see, there are many anti aging treatments and they all play a vital role in human life. Science is trying to find new remedies today and skin care treatment is on the frontiers of scientific research. Thus there is hope yet for you to look fabulously young again.

Do methods weight loss salons use work? How about the weight loss pills that ‘burn up to 2000 kilocalories per day’? Well, in most cases, people don’t even eat up to 2000 kilocalories when they’re trying to lose weight.

Quote from Singapore Health Promotion Board’s Nutrition FAQ:

The use of weight loss products may lead to relatively fast weight loss initially. Many weight loss products contain bioactive substances that suppress appetite, stimulate metabolism or induce water loss from the body. It is not safe to use these products without medical supervision. Moreover, weight loss products are usually expensive and do not help change the overweight individual’s eating and exercise behaviors that are the root causes of weight gain. This makes maintenance of weight loss difficult.

 

Enough said.

With regards to numerous weight loss salons using body wraps, infrared or electro stimulation devices etc – must you really be educated to realise that all these don’t work? Please don’t fall victim to their intensive marketing tactics. If they really work, why do they spend so much money on advertisements mostly showing astonishing ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures and slim figures of celebrities but little or no scientific information about their weight loss devices?

Wait. Didn’t recent TV programs show normal Singaporeans losing weight after visiting beauty salons? How do you explain that? Well, these weight loss salons know their stuffs don’t work, so now they’re getting smart enough to recruit some personal trainers and nutritionists to ‘preach’ healthy living. So on top of their dubious weight loss gimmicks (where the real bucks are rolling in), they have their clients exercise and diet. Without a doubt, exercise and diet worked, and weight loss resulted. At www.PT.com.sg we offer the same services (without the body wrap nonsense of course!) at a fraction of the cost.  

Seriously, only lazy people wanting a quick fix would visit these weight loss salons. But the thing is that they don’t even provide a quick fix! You’ll only get ripped of.

Here’s an excerpt from a very informative report compiled by the Federal Trade Commission of the United States Of America – Deception In Weight Loss Advertising Workshop:

Seizing Opportunities and Building Partnerships to Stop Weight Loss Fraud. A panel of experts discusses and analyses claims made by manufacturers, citing scientific references to show how these claims are false and misleading the public. The claims include:

1. Consumers who use the advertised product can lose substantial weight without reducing caloric intake and/or increasing their physical activity.

2. Consumers who use the advertised product can lose substantial weight while still enjoying unlimited amounts of high calorie foods.

3. The advertised product will cause permanent weight loss.

4. The advertised product will cause substantial weight loss through the blockage of absorption of fat or calories.

5. Consumers who use the advertised product can safely lose more than three pounds per week for a period of more than four weeks.

6. Users can lose substantial weight though the use of the advertised product that is worn on the body or rubbed into the skin.

7. The advertised product will cause substantial weight loss for all users

8. Consumers who use the advertised product can lose weight only from those parts of the body where they wish to lose weight

 

 

Find them familiar? Read them in ads on the papers or on television lately? Please do take time to read the full report: http://www.ftc.gov/os/2003/12/031209weightlossrpt.pdf

Losing weight ain’t easy. Nobody said it is. Only hard work and smart dieting will help you achieve your goals. Another important key is to change your eating behaviors and adapt to healthy eating so that the weight will be put off for good. Please do show your friends and family the reports and help to prevent any more fellow Singaporeans from falling into the traps of these useless companies!

 

References

Muris, T. J., Thompson, M. W., Swindle, O, Leary, T. B., and Harbour, P. J. (2003). DECEPTION

IN WEIGHT LOSS ADVERTISING WORKSHOP: Seizing Opportunities and Building Partnerships to Stop Weight-Loss Fraud. Rockville MD: Bureau of Consumer Protection of the Federal Trade Commission..Available from World Wide Web:

http://www.ftc.gov/os/2003/12/031209weightlossrpt.pdf – Page 59-73

Health Promotion Board. (n.d). Nutrition FAQ. Singapore: HPB Online. Available from World Wide Web:

Singapore Health Promotion Board’s Nutrition FAQ – Q.12

*The statements in the above article are mere opinions of its author and are by no means directed to any beauty salons, weight loss salons or whatsoever, in Singapore.

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