World Coconut Day - 2nd September

The coconut palm is often compared to "Kalpavriksha", the celestial wish-giving tree in Hindu mythology and why not! All the parts of the coconut tree can be put to some use or another. Coconut is a staple diet of the people of several countries in the world, though it's considered as exotic in the western world. Coconut oil, wrongly got the bad press for being an unhealthy oil but recent studies have shown that it's one of the healthiest oils. Coconut water, especially tender coconut water is one of the most healthiest, nutritious health drinks out there which is full of electrolytes. Being rich is potassium and magnesium, two important electrolytes, this makes for an awesome after-workout energy drink. If you're vegan or lactose intolerant, you can use coconut milk as milk substitute. Even if you do eat dairy, you can add coconut milk in your recipes to enhance the taste as well to reap the health benefits. These are just a few uses of coconut that I have enumerated. If I start listing out each and every benefit, I'll have to write pages and pages.

So what prompted me to write this particular post is that today, that is, 2nd September is celebrated as World Coconut Day. It's great to know that a day has been dedicated to a wonderful fruit like coconut. So on this day, let's all make a resolution to eat and use more of coconut products and promote its goodness and also grow more coconut palms.

There are some wonderful articles about coconut in this blog which I'd like to bring to your notice.
Coconut oil For Beauty - In this post I've listed the various ways in which you can make use of coconut oil in your DIY beauty remedies and get soft skin, silky smooth hair, remove makeup etc.

Best Tips to make your life healthier and more beautiful with coconut oil - In this guest post, health benefits of the oil and some more beauty benefits are mentioned.

Then there is this recipe for wonderful health drink with sesame and dry coconut scrapings.

Kitchen sponges are a cornucopia of germs. So ditch that store bought kitchen sponge and use coconut coir/ fiber for scrubbing kitchen utensils. Do read the post Replace your kitchen sponge instead of sanitizing.

You can also try oil pulling with coconut oil for a healthy mouth and body!

Some recipes for DIY oils with coconut oil as base.

Hibiscus hair oil for premature graying.
Aloe oil for split ends in hair
Homemade oil (Lepam) with curry leaf stalks.

Also read The luxurious oil bath (using coconut oil as massage oil) for smooth, soft skin.

The ache of acne (pimples)

Acne is often the bane of a pretty face. It is painful more emotionally than physically, for the scar that it leaves behind can last for a lifetime, adding to one’s miserable look & feeling. No doubt many expensive skin care clinics have mushroomed in ever nook & corner, offering to clear all the scars & blemishes on the face, but they are very expensive & charge exorbitant price for each sitting; not everyone can afford them. So why not try out this simple skin care regimen to minimize the damage caused by acne & as far as possible prevent its eruption.

Natural remedies for dark circles around your eyes

Dark circles around your eyes. How unsightly they look and even your best dress and layers of make-up sometimes does not quite succeed in concealing them! Blame it on your genes or your lifestyle, but, you cannot deny the fact that these are a blot on your beauty . And they become more prominent as you age. Let’s just debunk some of the myths as well as unearth some of the facts about the causes of these ‘ panda eyes ’. Dark circles under eyes usually are temporary and not a medical concern. You may be surprised to learn that fatigue usually isn't the cause of dark circles. Instead, the most common cause is nasal congestion. When your nose is congested, veins that usually drain from your eyes into your nose become widened (dilated) and darker.

Home remedies for common cold

Common cold is a very common malady which affects people during monsoons. (Also see the post Beauty and body care in monsoon for a monsoon beauty regimen.) It can be caused by any one of more than 200 viruses. Normally it is confined to the nose and throat although the virus can infect the larynx and lungs. It is said that there is no particular cure for colds, they are naturally relieved within a week. Treatment is just an attempt to relieve its symptoms such as headache, stuffy nose, sore-throat and congestion. Paracetamol tablets are generally taken to get relief from these symptoms.

Beating stress – some tips

It is very difficult to come across a happy, contented face in a crowd these days. Stress has become a way of life with people these days. Sure, we all need to be a little tense once in a blue moon. After all it acts as a positive force and helps us get things done. But when tension becomes a habit with us and we are unable to cope up with it, we say we are undergoing stress. Some people are simply born more tense than others. Children of over-anxious parents generally grow up to be more anxious than the others.

Home remedies for sore throat

Sore throat is a common malady that each one of us faces sometime or the other in our lifetime. That scratchy, dry and abrasively painful feeling at the back of the throat that you experience is so very discomforting! There are many ways to relieve that scratchy and painful, infected throat. Sore throat home remedies are many and varied and range from the folk ones to the medically tested and proven ones. With this common recurring condition many sufferers have their own favourite sore throat treatments that seem to work for them. Sore throat is one of the ailments which responds very well to home based remedies, so there is no reason why one should hesitate to try out these invaluable tips which have been handed over to us by generations of yore. After all these remedies have negligible side-effects and so there is no harm in trying them. And you can always rush to a doctor if they don’t work for you.