Archives for August 2014

August 27, 2014 By Parwage Alam 3 Comments

Neem and its Health Benefits

Have you ever come across a lady or a man chewing a stick as a method of brushing his or her teeth. Well this is very common in the villages of India. They ain’t chewing any stick they are chewing Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) sticks.

Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) tree commonly seen and available in India everywhere yet, only a few are aware about neem and know that it is an integral part of Ayurveda for the benefits associated with it. The beneficial properties of Neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) have been recognized in the Indian tradition for thousands of years. Each part of the Neem tree has some medicinal property. It is an herb that is commonly available, throughout the year and has benefits that only a few natural products can provide.

Neem is known by many different names, Nimm, Arya Veppu, Azad Dirakht, DogonYaro, Neeb, Nimtree, Vepu, Vempu, Vepa, Bevu, Kohomba, Vembu, Tamar, Paraiso, Antelaea azadirachta, Arishta, Arishtha, Azadirachta indica, Bead Tree, Holy Tree, Huile de Neem, Indian Lilac, Indian Neem, Lilas des Indes, Lilas de Perse, Margosa, Margosa Tree, Margousier, Margousier à Feuilles de Frêne, Margousier d’Inde, Melia azadirachta, Neem Oil, Neem Tree, Melia azadirachta, Nim, Nimb, Nimba, Persian Lilac, Pride of China.

In East Africa it is also known as Muarubaini (in Swahili), which means the tree of the 40, as it is said to treat 40 different diseases.

Neem has anti- bacterial; anti- parasitic, anti- fungal, anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties that not only benefits your health but can help you get rid of common beauty problems that you face in your daily life. All parts of neem are used for preparing many different medicines, especially for skin disease.

Neem leaf is used for leprosy, eye disorders, bloody nose, intestinal worms, stomach upset, loss of appetite, skin ulcers, diseases of the heart and blood vessels (cardiovascular disease), fever, diabetes, gum disease (gingivitis), and liver problems.

The leaf is also used for birth control and to cause abortions. Various parts of the Neem tree have been used as traditional Ayurvedic medicine in India. Neem oil and the bark and leaf extracts have been therapeutically used as folk medicine to control leprosy, intestinal helminthiasis, respiratory disorders, constipation and also as a general health promoter.

Neem which is rich in Vitamin C also helps in getting rid of skin problems like blackheads, pigmentation, dullness and ageing thus leaving the skin with a youthful glow.

Some Ayurvedic use of Neem:

Leaf: Leprosy, eye problem, epistaxis, intestinal worms, anorexia, biliousness, skin ulcers,

Bark: Analgesic, alternative and curative of fever.

Flower: Bile suppression, elimination of intestinal worms and phlegm.

Fruit: Piles, intestinal worms, urinary disorder, epistaxis, phlegm, eye problem, diabetes, wounds and leprosy.

Twig: Cough, asthma, piles, phantom tumour, intestinal worms, spematorrhoea, obstinate urinary disorder, diabetes.

Gum: Scabies, wounds, ulcers, skin diseases.

Seed: Leprosy and intestinal worms.

Oil: Leprosy and intestinal worms.

To throw more light on the importance of having Neem can be seen through this that on the auspicious occasion of Gudi Padwa which is mainly celebrated in Maharashtra as a new year, after the Gudi is worshipped the offering or prasad as they call it in local parlance is made of Neem leaf paste, tamarind, Ajwain, pulses and jaggery is distributed. The Neem leaf paste is said to purify the blood and build immunity against diseases.

A traditional Indian plant medicine has now led to several therapeutically useful preparations and compounds, due to which the scientists are exploring more information about this medicinal plant. After have read all the above information it’s now time to make good use of centuries-old knowledge on Neem through modern approaches of drug development.

August 26, 2014 By Ami Shah 1 Comment

Health Benefits of Garlic‎

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of garlic? It’s a herb having a strong odour and pungent flavour that leaves behind a bad odour after having it. It is used by many cuisines around the world to add flavour to food. But, it enhances the flavour of the food, making it more scrumptious!

There are many who do not eat tubers and root for varied reasons including religious. But, I really feel they are losing out on such an important food ingredient!

Garlic has many medicinal, therapeutic and culinary uses. Most of the health benefits of garlic are attributed to the compound allicin. So, cooking garlic destroys allicin which in return destroys the health benefits. One should try and use garlic in a raw form wherever possible. This can be done by finely chopped in salads/buttermilk to avoid the pungent flavour.

There are ample of health benefits and other advantages…here are a few advantages

Boosts immunity: This herb could help keep those cold-weather colds and flus at bay. Try steeping garlic into a tea by steeping chopped garlic in hot water. Add a bit of natural honey to soothe your throat and cut some of the intense garlic taste.

Full of antioxidants: You can add few garlic cloves (finely chopped) to your salads as it is very rich in anti-oxidants. These antioxidants can kill the bacteria that cause acne. Next time you have a pimple, try rubbing a sliced clove of raw garlic.

Heart friendly: It helps in reducing hypertension, coronary heart diseases.

Anti-inflammatory: Garlic has anti-inflammatory properties. If you have psoriasis, a skin condition related to inflammation try rubbing garlic oil directly on the affected area for relief.

August 22, 2014 By Balwant Singh Leave a Comment

Strength Training and It’s Benefits

We have covered so many topics across fitness and health. Strength training is one aspect of it. I have always been fond of strength training. If performed properly, strength training can provide significant functional benefits and improvement in overall health and well-being, weight training can increase Bone Mineral Density, Muscle mass. Weight Training increases Tendon and ligament strength and toughness, improved joint function and range of motion, reduces potential for injury . Strength Training will tone your muscle.

Strength training or weight training or anaerobic training all are same. In anaerobic exercise Cells are using ATP (Adenosine Tri Phosphate) as a source of energy or glucose in the absence of oxygen and usually Last up to 2 minutes .

I had started doing strength training at the age of 16 with traditional Indian squat , surya Namaskar and push ups but that time my knowledge was limited about strength training. After some time I realised that my immune system is performing better. I used to fall sick more often like fever, cold but weight training really helped me to make my immune system stronger.

Weight training can be done using Own body weight, elastic bands ,dumbbells, barbells , kettle bells.But I prefer using own body weight where There is no investment required and some time I use dumbbells for weight training.

Weight training helped me to come out from depression and stressful conditional.

If you are feeling depressed or feeling stressed try weight training .After weight training session Endorphins Level increases in the body .Endorphins are the neurotransmitters released by pituitary gland which makes one feel better. Neuromuscular coordination improves . One benefit of strength training is that during training you are burning the calories but effect will remain for more time because of the increased muscle mass.So weight training will help to increase the B.M.R.as muscle need more energy to survive.

What happens in strength training?

During strength training session there will be wear and tear in the muscle fibre but that damage will be repaired after good sleep and proper nutrition and your muscle will become stronger. Your muscular strength and muscular endurance will go up after 2-3 session But for hypertrophy (increase in muscle mass) you need more training session and proper nutrition and Rest.

During weight training blood flow will increase to a particular muscle There will be more supply of nutrients to that muscle and muscle will increase in size and strength. Smaller muscle need less time for recovery but bigger muscle like hamstring or quadriceps they need more time for recovery and proper nutrition is also important.

But before starting weight training you have to prepare your body and mind . so start with proper warm up, during or before exercise ballistic stretching can be done where you are not holding the stretch .After your Training session perform cool down and static stretching where you will hold the stretch for 10-15 seconds.

August 21, 2014 By Aqsa Shaikh Leave a Comment

10 Tips for FAT BURN EXERCISE

…. Be intense with your fat burning exercise

Don’t be fooled by the so-called fat-burning zone. This is a misguided notion that working at a lower intensity is better for fat burning than working at a higher effort level (say, for example, walking instead of running.) The harder you exercise, the more calories you will burn and it is this that really counts when it comes to losing fat.

Choose your fat loss exercise carefully

There is no such thing as the ‘ultimate’ calorie-burning activity. Energy burned is dependent not just on the activity itself, but on how much effort you put in, how skilled you are at it, how long you do it for, and how often. So choose a fat burn exercise that you are going to do regularly and consistently. That means an activity that you actually enjoy (unless you want your workouts to involve untold misery and boredom!) and one that is practical and accessible.

Exercise larger muscles for greater calorie burn

Serious fat-burning activity uses the large muscle groups of the body – the thighs and bottom, chest and back. It has been seen that greater the overall recruitment of muscles, the higher the calorie expenditure. So in your gym workouts, you are much better off using the rower than one of those arm-cranking machines for maximum calorie burn.

Sustainable exercise development

To fire up the calorie furnace, fat-burning activity has to be sustainable for a reasonable period. While skipping is great exercise, it’s not of much use if you do only for three minutes. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 20-60 minutes per session, three to five times per week. It doesn’t have to be a continuous effort.

Interval training to maximise calorie burn

Interval training, in which you mix hard efforts with bouts of recovery, is one of the best ways of maximising calorie expenditure thereby improving aerobic fitness and making use of limited time. To get the most out of an interval session, ensure that you work outside the comfort zone on the efforts and ease right off during the recoveries. Try a 2:2 rest/work ratio to start with.

Carry the exercise load

Activities that are weight bearing, such as walking and running, use more calories than those in which your weight is supported (such as swimming or cycling), simply because you have to shift your own body weight against gravity.

Running on empty?

You may have heard that exercising on an empty stomach in the morning burns more fat. It is true that the body has to rely on fat stored if you don’t break the overnight fast, but then again, the lack of a ready energy supply may mean that you don’t work out for as long, or as hard, as you may have otherwise done.

Go for the after burn

One of the best things about exercising is that the fat-burning benefits continue long after you’ve got out of the shower. This ‘after burn’ (increased calorie expenditure) is far greater following exercise at 75% of maximum heart rate, or higher – another reason to eschew those low-intensity workouts! Top 10 rules for fat-burning exercise

Fat loss exercise tips
Increase exercise intensity

If you want to keep seeing results in your fat-burning programme, you must keep increasing the intensity. This isn’t the same as increasing your effort, because as you get fitter, your body will be able to cope with increasing demands. If you rest on your laurels, the benefits will begin to tail off.

Keep moving to burn fat

Maximise your daily fat burning by moving! Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have found that leaner people tend to stand and move more than overweight people in normal daily life. Their ‘non-exercise activity thermogenesis’ (NEAT) was as much as 350 calories higher each day. So don’t just sit there, wiggle your toes, shake a leg, get up regularly and move your body!

Typical calorie expenditure 9 – stone (57kg) woman 11 – stone (70kg) man

Running (calories per hour at 8-minute mile pace) 720-913

Swimming (calories per hour for continuous laps) 630-730

Uphill walking at a 10% gradient (calories per hour ) 590-694