Beauty and Personal Grooming

A few weeks ago, I suddenly had a throbbing pain on the left side of my neck which radiated towards my shoulder joint and upper arm. And this didn’t happen after waking up, as it usually happens with most people - as a matter of fact, it happened in the evening when I was surfing my tablet.

I've been taking this Kadha / herbal tea to boost my immunity since last 3 months. And I am happy to say that I haven't had a cold , cough , fever or any respiratory ailment all these days. [By the way Kadha is  called as Kashayam / Kashaya in the South.]

Neem herbal tea , that boosts immunity and wards off viral & bacterial infections is the perfect beverage to be had during rainy season or for that matter during the flu season. It's a homemade herbal tea (also called as kashayam / kashaya)  made with neem leaves and some incredible spices. But before we go to the procedure of making this potent neem herbal tea or kadha , let's take a look at how the weather changes during rainy season can give rise to many ailments and diseases.

One ingredient homemade face masks - really? Yes, you can have a delightful, home spa experience with minimal ingredients - in fact with the usage of only 1 ingredient, a single ingredient from your kitchen pantry or your kitchen garden!

You relish eating hot, spicy food. But this time, your mouth is literally on fire from too much spice especially as the spicy dish that you are savoring is full of chili peppers & also flavored with garam masala . Your immediate reaction would be to gulp half a dozen of glasses of water to relieve that fire in your mouth.

The health benefits of lemons are immense and most of us know about it already. It's widely used in home-remedies to deal with minor ailments too. But most of the time we only make use of the juice and discard the rind or peel.  Now that's a shame because the lemon peel contains more nutrients than the juice. In order to get the most out of a lemon,  it's better to consume it as a whole. Now I do admit that it's not possible to use a whole lemon every time, but you must at least try using it in at some of the dishes.

Instead of reaching out for that cough syrup when your child is suffering from an incessant, nagging cough that worsens at night, you might try good old honey as a home-remedy .

Malabar Spinach or Basella alba is one of the most common vegetables that is grown in kitchen gardens, especially in the coastal and Malanad regions of Karnataka. Called as " Basale Soppu " in Kannada, this is one of my favourite vegetables and makes me nostalgic as the very mention of this vine reminds me of my native place where it grew abundantly.

An ear infection occurs when a bacterial or viral infection affects the middle ear—the sections of your ear just behind the eardrum. Ear infections can be painful because of inflammation and fluid build up in the middle ear. Ear infections can be chronic or acute. Acute ear infections are painful but short in duration. Chronic ear infections do not clear up, or they recur many times. Chronic ear infections can cause permanent damage to the middle and inner ear.

Introduction Not all of us have enough of free time to visit beauty salons that often as we would like. May be it’s because we have to spend our free time taking care of kids, having to work overtime, or just want to spend that free time with our beloved ones.  It’s only natural then that we will not be able to take regular care of our skin during those times, especially not having the skin tone we want. Some of the problems you want to get rid of may include: Dull skin complexion Dark circles under the eyes Uneven skin tone If you can connect yourself with these problems, then you should try some of these homemade skin lightening treatments which will surely help you. Not only will you save precious time, but you will also save plenty of money you would usually spend on products.

There are a number of skin conditions that people suffer from and among them one is Sebaceous Cyst. This is one of the common skin conditions that requires medical attention if it outgrows and gets painful. Generally, a sebaceous cyst referred as keratin cyst or epidermoid cyst is a bump that develops under the skin. At most of the cases, these sebaceous cysts develop and go away by themselves.

Paridhi asks: I often suffer from nausea while travelling, especially in a car. Please help and preferably suggest tips and home remedies for the same.

Good oral hygiene ensures good health. And the best way to achieve this is to brush your teeth twice a day. Flossing is also as important as brushing to dislodge the impurities stuck in between the teeth. Along with brushing and flossing, cleaning your tongue is also highly necessary; it helps get rid of the white deposit that is a breeding ground for bacteria and other microbes. Rinsing your mouth really well after you eat is also crucial and you should never forget this habit. Following all these habits will also keep bad breath away. Now bad breath / halitosis is not just due to bad oral hygiene, it could also be a symptom of some other disease. Do read up on the various posts on bad breath ( Bad breath? Take these tests , Home remedies for bad breath ) and how to tackle it.  

M. Asks: My problem is the darkening of the inside areas of the thighs near the private parts. I have tried to scrub this hard but in vain. Can you please suggest some remedy?

Herbal and vegetable drinks have always been a part of every Indian household. Grannies of yesteryears, were very much into preparing such herbal concoctions to cure ailments like common cold , fever, acidity , skin allergies and sometimes to the extent of treating serious ones like jaundice and malaria ! Although it's not advisable to use herbal home-remedies to cure major illnesses, minor ones do respond well to vegetable health drinks.

Traditional dishes with banana stems have become rare these days. And it's good that many bloggers are keeping a record of these recipes by putting it up on their blogs. People living in cities and staying in multi-storeyed flats can hardly grow a banana plant in their vicinity. But people staying in  small towns and villages do grow them in their backyards. But even in these places, the preparation of such traditional dishes is fast disappearing as people these days are preferring to eat unhealthy packed and processed stuff.

Aloe Vera's benefits had been known since times immemorial. While the aloe gel was touted as a health promoter by the Greek physician Dioscorides, it's beauty uses was well-known to the Egyptians. Cleopatra was a great admirer of aloe plant and used it extensively in her beauty rituals. It's indeed a miracle plant with its amazing healing properties. It's seen that aloevera can be used to heal cuts, wounds and even eczema , dermatitis and psoriasis most effectively. Aloe vera can penetrate into the skin layers resulting in prompt healing and rejuvenation of the skin. Not only that it is also used to relieve conditions like arthritis, asthma, heartburn, hemorrhoids, and manage diabetes aside from its topical use.  There is no end to singing the glories of this wonder plant.

Dates are an ancient natural product which every culture has been using from time immemorial.The actual place of origin of date is not known but its home has always been the Persian Gulf and the Baluchistan area. Dates are the one-seeded fruits of Phoneix dactylifera , a tree of the palm family. Though usually oblong, they vary much in shape, size, colour, quality and consistency of flesh according to the conditions of their culture. The date is extensively grown in Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Libya, Oman, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and Yemen. Geographically, India, Pakistan and West Asia also figure in the date map, but they are not important from the production point of view.

Way back in 2009-10, the swine flu pandemic had produced a real scare. The fear of contracting this respiratory illness had prompted many people to wear face masks and at that time it was quite common to bump into such masked people on the streets. (Do read Fashionable Flu masks ) All sorts of preventive remedies were doing the rounds. For instance putting a few drops of eucalyptus (Nilgiri) oil on handkerchiefs and inhaling while in crowded places or taking Guduchi ( Tinospora Cordifolia ) / Amrutaballi herb tablets or preparing a decoction of one foot long branch of Guduchi / Giloy herb with  6-7 leaves of Holy Basil or Tulsi.   The epidemic wasn't as serious as  originally predicted and in most cases reported it was really mild. Only a a small number of cases resulted in serious illness and death. Mostly this happened in people with weakened immune systems, in the elderly, very young below 5 years of age, pregnant women and in those with pre-existing health con...

I don't have any first hand experience with alcoholics or alcoholism. Luckily for me, all of my family members and near relatives are teetotalers but I've seen many families ruined due to alcohol abuse of either of the spouses /parents/ siblings. Most alcoholics believe that they are moderate drinkers and that they  have the control over their habit but this is far from truth. Alcohol can take over you so slyly that you will not be aware that you have already become addicted to it. The good news is that you can help and kick the habit but it needs tremendous will-power and patience from your side. Places such as Alcoholics Anonymous can also help you in your endeavour. You can also try some of the natural remedies which will help you in your rehabilitation.