SMARTPHONE

For most of us, our smartphone is the first thing we look at in the morning and the last thing we check before going to bed. But, is it a right practise? Well, it is not. As per a recent study published by the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, using a smartphone right before bedtime actually reduces the overall quality of sleep. 

Here's how:

Difficulty in falling asleep - We feel sleepy when our brain releases a hormone called melatonin, which is determined by the body's circadian rhythm. The blue light emitted by the screen of the smartphone interferes with this rhythm and the secretion of melatonin, which makes it difficult for us to fall asleep, even after we keep our phone aside. 
Poor quality of sleep - Using a smartphone before going to bed also hampers the overall quality of sleep because, when we check an office email or a text message as the last thing before we sleep, it gets difficult for our brain to relax, due to which we are unable to sleep peacefully.
Decreased attention span - Our productivity suffers during the day, due to lack of proper sleep at night. Also, not getting enough sleep is known to hamper our decision-making skills, impair our long & short-term memory, which leads to unnecessary stress and anxiety.
Increased risk of weight gain - Our body is more likely to feel hungry when we don't get our due share of sleep, as sleep deprivation slows down our metabolism. Thus, use of smartphone right before bedtime can induce cravings, which lead to snacking and weight gain.
Weak immune system - While we are asleep our immune system produces antibodies that help fight infections, it also releases a protein known as cytokines. This protein not only promotes sleep but also fights inflammation and other problems caused by stress. Lack of sound sleep decreases the production of cytokines and increases the risk of falling sick, it also slows down our recovery cycle. Further, long-term sleep deprivation can raise the risk of diseases, such as diabetes, heart problems and obesity. 
Skin damage - Sleeping late at night and not getting enough sleep can lead to dark circles, puffy eyes and fine lines across our face. The blue light emitted by our smartphones triggers the secretion of cortisol, which can damage our skin's smoothness and elasticity.

Thus, even if we are spending only some time on our smartphone before going to bed, it affects our overall mental and physical well-being.

Liver Health

Tips for a healthy liver
The liver detoxifies our body. But alcohol, obesity and bad eating habits can cause fatty liver disease.

The good news is, a fatty liver can regenerate if you do the following:

reduce carbohydrates and bad fats. Avoid fructose syrup commonly found in soft drinks and processed foods.
Also increase intake of omega-3 fatty acids in your diet.
Many such fatty acids are contained in linseed oil.
Get in a half-hour workout at least 5 times weekly.
And drink at least 2 liters of water or unsweetened tea each day.
Don't smoke, and be careful about taking medications.
The most common liver-damaging drugs include painkillers and antibiotics. Extracts of plants such as milk thistle can help regenerate liver tissue.
Also good is artichoke, tumeric or dandelion.
A warm liver compress promotes blood circulation and detoxifies.
And try to get in an afternoon nap.

Remember, if you have a fatty liver, visit your doctor for regular check-ups.

Hot or cold bath

As the days become warm, you tend to turn the shower towards the cold water and as the days get cooler, bathing water usually gets warmer. A cold water shower can be very refreshing in the summer, similarly, a warm shower in winters can be quite relaxing. But have you ever thought about what actually is good for you? Well, there is no hard and fast rule about which one is better. As a general rule of thumb, according to Ayurveda, hot water should be used for bathing your body and cold water should be used for the head. However, when you clearly have to choose between hot water and cold water, a number of factors have to be considered, such as individual’s age, constitution, habits, diseases, if any, season, etc.

Let’s take a closer look

Age: Young children and elderly people will get more benefit from warm to a hot water bath. Teenagers and people up to the age of about 45-50 years can have a cold water bath. For students who need to be alert and be able to focus on their studies, a cold water bath is ideal.

Constitution: According to Ayurveda, there are three types of doshas; Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. If you have a pitta body type, you should bathe with cold water. On the other hand, if your body type is Vata or Kapha then, a hot water shower is much better for you.

Habits: Your habits can also influence the water temperature. If you like to bathe early in the morning, a cold water bath is advisable. However, if you like to bathe in the evening, try a hot water shower. As the evening is dominated by the Vata dosha, hence it is ideal. Similarly, if you like to exercise before your bath, you must bathe with hot water.

Diseases: If you are suffering from diseases caused by an imbalance of the Pitta dosha, you should bathe with cold water, such diseases include indigestionand liver disorders. If you are suffering from an imbalance of the Vata or Kapha dosha bathe with hot water. Diseases caused by the Vata dosha imbalance include arthritis, joint pain and foot pain. Those caused by kapha dosha imbalance include respiratory diseases and allergies.

Some Ayurvedic practitioners also advise alternating between hot and cold baths. What is important is that you should not bathe with water that is either too hot or too cold as bathing with really hot water can disturb the pH level of the skin, while bathing with water that is too cold can make you catch a cold. 

Learn to say NO

Simple Steps To Help You Say No

Humans are social animals who thrive on reciprocality. It is in our basic nature to be socially courteous, and the word 'No' feels like a conflict that warns a potential relationship. Many of us tend to comply with every single request that is put forward to us by our peers, family, or at the workplace by our superiors. We choose to take up more jobs than we can efficiently handle and put unnecessary stress on ourselves even at the cost of our time and well-being. Must we always do that? 

Why is it so hard to say 'No'?

People have the notion that saying 'No' can come across as rude or uncaring. You may feel that you are letting someone down by turning down their request or risking a relationship. But, it has mostly to do with your self-confidence than your relationships with people. It may branch from overbearing parents, high expectations set by your peers and mentors or experiencing parenthood yourself and setting unreasonable standards for yourself. Childhood influences are usually the biggest cause of people always saying ‘yes’ all the time.

People who have low self-confidence tend to value their own needs less than the needs of others. Saying 'No' feels rude, and no one wants to be impolite.

Well... saying 'No' does not mean you are being rude or disagreeable.

At the end of the day, it is more about how you say 'no', rather than just saying the word 'No'. Saying 'No' is about valuing and respecting your own time and priorities. 

How to start saying say 'No'?
If you want to take a step back and start saying 'No' to make sure your own needs are valued, here’s what you need to do.

Refuse politely, when it seems not possible: Do not overcomplicate responses and try to be as simple in your responses as you can be. If you are asked to do something, and you want to say 'no', try to be polite in your body language and state that it is not convenient for you at the moment and that you would rather get back to it later.Seek time before committing: The transition from saying ‘yes’ all the time to saying no does take time! Start to give yourself more time and ask people to get back to you later. This way you can begin to build more self-confidence and learn to say no over time. This also allows you to evaluate your response instead of immediately saying yes or no to the person asking the favor or task.Do not feel guilty: Deep down if you want to do a favor, you can go ahead with it, but you should also understand that it is okay to say no, and there is no need to associate guilt with it. You should set boundaries and allow people around you to understand how much favors they can ask you for instead of presenting you with an endless amount of favors from you.Set your boundaries: Refusal does not amount to rejection as you have just as much right to say ‘no’ as the person who is asking the favor from you. You are simply turning down a request, and in most situations, there is a middle ground for compromises where both you and the requester can be satisfied. If you have limited time to fulfill a request, let the person know and help out only as much as you can without overstepping your boundaries.

Bringing in these changes can help you be more self-confident, and at the same time enable you to say no when you need to

Stomach Inflammation

Do you feel bloated like a whale? Do you have a burning sensation in your stomach that makes you want to bend over constantly? This inflammation of your stomach could be caused by a number of reasons. One of the most common scenarios can be that you may have had a little too much to drink the last night, eaten too much spicy food or just eaten something that may have inflamed your stomach. Worry not, because you can treat your stomach inflammation easily with these quick fixes.

Here are a few home remedies that can help:

Probiotics: Ever wondered why your grandmother told you to eat a bowl of curd if your stomach was out? Because, curd is rich in probiotics and probiotics are known to introduce good bacteria to your digestive system and help improve digestion. They also aid in regulating bowel movements and speed up the healing process. Apart from curd, foods such as kefir, Kimchi, and kombucha are also rich in probiotics and can help relieve stomach inflammation to a great extent.
Green tea: Amongst other things green tea also helps soothe your digestive system. It also improves digestion. Studies have shown that drinking a cup of warm green tea even just once a week can make a significant difference for gastritis patients. To improve the taste, you can add a spoonful of honey to the tea, as honey also has a number of potential health benefits for your digestive system.
Eat smaller meals: Eating heavy meals with large gaps between them can be one of the major causes of stomach inflammation. So, if you’ve been suffering from recurring gastritis attacks, consider eating smaller meals with shorter gaps between them. Also, pay attention to what you’re eating, avoid foods that make you feel bloated and are difficult to digest. If you do not know what foods trigger such a response, start maintaining a food journal. This will help you in identifying the foods that don’t suit your digestive system.
Garlic Extract: Garlic has a number of health benefits. This herb is also great for an upset stomach. Garlic extract can help remove H. pylori from your stomach. This is the strain of bacteria most commonly responsible for stomach inflammation. In order to get the maximum benefit crush a few pods of raw garlic, extract its juice and drink a teaspoon of it. Alternatively, you can buy garlic extract from an Ayurvedic store for the same purpose.
Ginger: Ginger also has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that can help treat stomach inflammation. To benefit from this chew a piece of raw ginger followed by a glass of water. Alternatively, boil a piece of ginger with water and milk; drink this tea to get relief from inflammation.

The stages of HIV

A report shared by the UNAIDS in 2017 shows, that new HIV infection cases in India have fallen to 80,000 in 2016 from 150,0 00 in 2005. Still, India recorded a number of 2.1 million people living with HIV at the end of 2016. Even though the number of new infections has declined, still AIDS has claimed 62,000 deaths till 2016. 

HIV or the human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus which causes HIV infection and leads to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome or AIDS. The symptoms of HIV vary from person to person and there are three main stages of HIV infection, where each stage has different symptoms.

Here are some facts about the three stages of HIV infection along with the accompanying symptoms.

Acute HIV infection stage: This is the first stage of HIV infection and after three to four weeks of getting infected with HIV, people experience symptoms, which are similar to flu. The flu usually does not last more than two weeks.

Symptoms include:

Fever
Rashes on the body
A sore throat
Swelling of different glands
HeadacheJoint and muscle pain
Improper digestion

These symptoms appear and indicate that the body is reacting to the HIV infection. Infected cells circulate throughout the blood, and the immune system produces HIV antibodies in order to attack the virus. This process is termed as seroconversion, and it takes place within 45 days of getting infected. The levels of virus in your blood is quite high during this stage.

Clinical Latency Stage
This is the second stage of HIV infection, which follows the early stage. This stage is also known as chronic HIV stage. During this stage, HIV is active but is reproduced at a very low rate. People in this stage may not show symptoms related to HIV or may get mild indications.

In case of people who do not take medicines for HIV treatment, this stage can last for a longer period of time. Some people, however, progress faster through this stage. Medication must be taken as per the schedule, in order to, keep the virus in check. During this stage, people can transmit HIV to others very easily in spite of not experiencing any symptoms. People who are on medication stay suppressed virally and have a low level of HIV in their blood, and the risk of transmission is less.

Symptomatic HIV infection or AIDS stage
This is the third stage of HIV infection, which is characterized by severe damage to the immune system of an HIV affected person. A patient is likely to suffer from serious infections and gets bacterial or fungal diseases. The infections are termed as opportunistic infections. The patient is now said to be suffering from AIDS.

The symptoms at this stage are:

Loss of weight
Diarrhoea
Sweating at night
Fever and persistent coughing
Problem in the mouth and skin
Infections on a regular basisIllness and development of other diseases.

HIV infection affects the body via three stages and leads to AIDS in the third stage. Each stage is accompanied by several symptoms.

Massaging feet at night

Reflexology says that foot massage aids in releasing the blocks that hold the energy from flowing through the body. Known by the name, Padabyang in Ayurveda, the massaging of the feet at specific points have many health benefits, and at the same time, helps in the curing of some diseases as well. Ayurveda considers feet massage as a beneficial therapy that offers amazing health benefits.

What are the advantages of feet massaging at night?
Any kind of massage contributes to enhancing your well-being and feet massage is no different. The massaging of the feet at night without fail has several benefits that are as enumerated below:

Relaxation: Massaging the feet at night gives a perfect relaxation and helps you to cope with the long and tiring day. It is simply a great way for the reduction of stress and feels relaxed.

Improving blood circulation: We all know that a good blood circulation is an essence of maintaining good health. If blood cannot circulate freely, it may give rise to many health problems. A foot massage at the specific point before going to bed significantly helps in the improvement of the flow of blood.

Good sleep: Massaging the feet at night plays a crucial role in having a good night’s sleep which is extremely beneficial for good health.

Reduce PMS: Pre Menstrual Syndrome abbreviated as PMS is a difficult battle that all women have to deal with. PMS causes a lot of pain accompanied by a lot of physical changes. To effectively deal with PMS feet massaging at night is an excellent option.

Reduce pains and aches: Massaging the feet every night before going to bed is a very effective way in the reduction of various types of pains and aches of the body. A proper and regular massage is recommended in this situation for more effective relief from pains.

Good for headaches and migraines: Another amazing benefit of feet massaging at night is that it helps to give you a great relief from headaches and migraines. It gives you a quick relief and most importantly without taking any medicines or having to face any other side effects.

Reduces heel pain: Many experience difficulties with heel pain in the morning after waking up. Feet massage at night before going to bed is a great way for the reduction of pain in the heels. At the same time, it also helps to deal with pain from flat feet.

Fights depression: A feet massage at night time also helps to fight depression effectively, and in this case, it is recommended to give a self-massage.

Thus, a foot massage at night is highly beneficial, and Ayurveda encourages massaging with oil as the benefits are multiplied when the foot is massaged with medicated oils.