Health Articles

So is bee propolis a natural antibiotic? Here’s some research to help you judge for yourself!

Did you know that propolis is used so extensively in Russia that it has been labelled the ‘Russian Penicillin’? I certainly didn’t, until very recently. But I was aware that knowledge about the antibiotic and healing properties of propolis dates back over 2000 years.
Apitoxin from Russia
Hippocrates, the father of medicine, used it as a salve to treat wounds, while during the days of Aristotle propolis was taken internally to relieve ulcers. In his classic ‘Natural History’, Pliny wrote about the healing powers of propolis.

So what is propolis? It’s a resinous substance that bees gather from leaf buds and the bark of trees such as poplars. After adding their own glandular substance, they use it as a kind of cement to seal and tighten the hive to protect it. Any invader that wanders in is encased in the resin, so the bees avoid contamination.

Perhaps this insight seems uninspiring in terms of how it might help our health! Yet propolis has been revealed to be a natural antibiotic for man – and beneficial to the immune system against the onslaught of infectious disorders.

To quote Dr Arnold Pike D.C, Director of the Academy of Nutritional Sciences and member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Task Force on Nutrition:

‘Nature has given bees a natural antibacterial substance in the form of the sap-like propolis to keep their hives free of infection. No strain of bacteria has developed immunity to it. Propolis is resistant even to bacteria that are immune to antibiotic drugs.’

And Soviet doctors A.I. Tichonov and D.P. Salvo, in ‘The Healing Properties of Propolis’ reported on their successful use of propolis in more than 70 different studies over 20 years in Russia.

Highlighting the beneficial effects of propolis on the thymus gland, they stated: ‘When propolis is taken internally, the rate of metabolism is increased and the resistance of the organism is raised. Propolis, in contrast to antibiotics, intensifies the whole immunological reactive capability of the macro-organism.’

Dr Reny Chauvin, of the Sorbonne in Paris, a European researcher studying propolis, had this final word to say on the subject:

‘Scientists have long believed that nature has an answer for every disease. It is just a matter of finding it. Bee propolis boosts your powers of resistance and even immunity against such problems as viral infections, colds, flu, coughs, tonsillitis and cystitis. It works by a unique method, raising your body’s natural resistance to infection by stimulating your own immune system.’

What we think we know about acne is steadily being replaced by what scientists are learning. Meanwhile, many myths continue to circulate and endure. Clearing up some of the misunderstandings about acne is what this article is about.

Myth #1: Acne only affects appearance Acne can also cause deep psychological distress. Severe acne can lead to low self-image and feeling depressed. There is a strong link between severe acne and social withdrawal.

Myth #2: Acne is caused by poor hygiene While skin infections are associated with acne, lack of cleanliness is not the reason for acne outbreaks. The combination of oil and dead cells which produce acne is located beneath the skin’s surface where it is impossible to clean it away. Gentle cleansing with soap and water once or twice daily will keep your skin as healthy as possible. Scrubing too hard may worsen acne.

Myth #3: Acne is caused by specific foods Chocolate has long had a reputation as a pimple producer. Studies have shown no scientific evidence that this is true. The same holds true for potato chips and sugar. There are some foods that do seem to aggravate (not cause) the condition: milk and foods high in iodine, such as seafood.

Myth #4: Acne has to run its course There are many acne treatments available both over-the-counter and stronger medicines from a dermatologist.

Myth #5: The more acne medicine the better Some people believe that if their acne gets worse they should just use more medicine. That’s a bad idea because medicines can be dangerous when taken in large quantities. Excess use of acne ointments may just irritate the skin further.

Myth #6: Sunbathing is good for acne Exposure to the sun dries out excess oils, so it does improve acne short-term. However, long-term the skin adapts and the acne is unfazed. Worse, there is scientific evidence that sun exposure damages the skin and increases the chance of skin cancer.

Myth #7: Makeup causes acne Some makeup products can clog the pores, which is bad for the health of your skin. Cosmetics that are labeled “noncomedogenic” or “nonacnegenic” are safe to use. Some brands are made with ingredients that actually treat acne.

Myth #8: Acne is only a teenage condition While most teens have acne, so do many adults. Acne generally clears up by the early 20s. But some people experience acne for the first time as late as their 40s. And for the most unfortunate of all, some people endure acne flare-ups their entire lives.

Myth #9: Acne is related to sex We’ve probably all heard that either celibacy or too much sex causes pimples. There is no evidence for this. There is a link between sexual activity and hormone production, but the relationship between sex and the production of sebum (the oily substance which combines with dead skin cells to cause acne) is not known. Stress and anger also affect hormone levels.

Myth #10: Popping pimples is the best way to get rid of them The fact is popping pimples may worsen acne by spreading the bacteria that is causing it. Popping can also lead to eventual scarring, which in severe cases, can be permanent.

As one who is prone to feeling a stingy and bile-like sensation, finding the perfect cure for acid reflux would be one of your priorities. This sensation is really quite disturbing and at the same time a little uncomfortable.

Finding the perfect cure for acid reflux might be a little too subjective on most cases. This might be greatly dependent on the preference of the individual who will use the treatment.

Both pharmacological as well as natural remedies have been used for this condition. But due to various debates on the not so good after effects of some drugs, natural remedies are placed in the limelight.

Moreover, the natural options have been there for quite a long time but their importance was emphasized just recently. A list of some of the common remedies used to treat this condition is given below. One of these might just be found in your backyard or in your own kitchen.

Grapefruit – the skin of this fruit is perfect for easing the pain during instances of acid regurgitation. Dried outer peel of the fruit is the best in addressing this condition. This can be produced by simply removing the peel and have it dried in a plate until it wrinkles. The dried skin can now be stored in a clean jar and chewed whenever necessary. There is no prescribed amount as to how much one should eat but it will just depend on how long the pain will subside. Pineapple- aside from helping in proper digestion, this fruit contains many enzymes that help regulate acidity of the stomach and therefore lessen unwanted acid regurgitation.

Cinnamon – heartburn can also be healed with this delicious flavoring. Just sprinkling it over a piece of bread and chewing on it little by little will surely help ease the pain that you feel. Herbal tea – this is most common form of natural remedy for heartburn. It helps lower the concentration of acid in the stomach. A perfect cup can be created by mixing equal amounts of lavender, peppermint, and aniseed in boiled water. Drinking about 8 ounces when you rise in the morning and in the evening assures a lesser incidence of heartburn.

Male pattern baldness is the most common type of hair loss, affecting some men as early as their twenties, but many more by their sixties. Men with a genetic predisposition to hair loss have areas on their scalp that are especially sensitive to the male sex hormone. As men age these areas and the hair follicles that are located there, suffer from a biological imbalance caused by the male hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Slowly, over a period of years, hair follicles shrink and become less and less productive. Hairs that are produced are thinner and weaker, and as they are lost there are less new hairs to replace them, leading eventually to increasing areas of the scalp that are bald.

This Androgenetic Alopecia, as it is termed, is not easily cured because of its genetic component and because gene therapy is still in its infancy. Scientists are not yet able to manipulate the genes responsible for the condition, although maybe one day they will be.

For many men, the gradual loss of their hair is not of great concern, particularly if they are over fifty. A younger man though, still wanting to make the best of his appearance, may find the realisation that he has progressive balding quite distressing. If the hair loss has become pronounced, some men will resort to completely shaving their head to give a more “macho” appearance. Many more though will be desperate to find ways of restoring their hair, and there are several ways to do this. The options available include chemical applications such as minoxidil, DHT blockers such as finasteride, low-level laser treatment, hair extensions, and hair transplantation.

Chemical Applications The main agent used to apply to the scalp in liquid form is minoxidil (Rogaine or Regaine), which is usually applied twice a day over a period of several months. Clinical trials have shown that hair loss can be reduced by up to 90% and new growth may even be promoted by up to 20%. Its precise mode of action is not clear but it seems to work better for younger rather than older men, and for smaller areas of baldness.

DHT blockers The most popular pill is finasteride (Propecia), which is taken once a day and blocks formation of DHT so reducing general levels in the body. Clinical trials have demonstrated more than 50% of men who took it experienced cessation of hair loss and some regrowth. It may be necessary to carry on taking the medication indefinitely and there is a very slight risk of reduced libido. There are some natural DHT blockers available such as Saw Palmetto but they have been largely dismissed by the FDA as being less than effective.

Low-level laser therapy This is a relatively new type of treatment which is said to give good results. Soft lasers have been used for a while to help with wound healing and part of this effect is due to increased blood flow to the affected area. This effect is utilised in the form of low-level laser energy applied to the scalp either by means of a hood or by means of a special laser comb. The former is used at a treatment centre and a series of treatments is required over a few months. Some types of low-level laser comb are suitable for home use, either by themselves, or in conjunction with other treatments such as minoxidil, or in conjunction with clinic treatment visits.

Hair extensions and transplants Hair extensions can be made of human or artificial hair and coloured to blend in with one’s own hair. These are then fixed to existing hair on the head in a way that makes them virtually invisible. They may need to be re-tightened every few months but are a cost effective alternative to hair transplants. Transplants are of course the most natural of hair replacements since they are using your own healthy hair follicles and relocating them. These are often done now in the form of small skin grafts containing 1-4 follicles. These are time consuming to perform and then it can be a few months before they fully take, but for many the results are worth it.

Anybody suffering male pattern baldness should not despair as there is a wide choice of treatments that can help to slow or even reverse the hair loss, and, in our modern society, medicine and technology are improving our lives continually.

You might be doing some trial and error on some natural ways to lower cholesterol. But that should not be your case because your health is at stake. Trial and error can be okay when you experiment on food but you don’t experiment with your health. You must get the right approach in treating your high cholesterol.

There is nothing complex with how to lower cholesterol naturally. In fact, the method is just so basic that it appears silly to experiment on anything. You simply need to focus on three things: healthy diet, good amount of exercise, and an effective and natural cholesterol supplement.

Since the main cause of high cholesterol is the food that you eat, then the major solution to lower your cholesterol naturally is the food itself. Obviously, since you know that you have been eating foods full of fats and have so much cholesterol in it too, then you need to cutback your diet on that particular food. You need to shift to healthier foods, specifically those that are high in fiber plus those foods that are carbo-loaded. Fibers are good in rinsing out the cholesterol in the body at the same time it remove other toxins that were build up inside your system. It also helps boost your metabolism.

Carbohydrates give your body the energy to go through your physical activities. Since your body needs fats too, make sure that you supply the good fats like fish oil that contains fatty acids. Fatty acids help lower your bad cholesterol by increasing the good cholesterol. Good cholesterol or HDL removes the excess LDL in the blood stream. You can also get good fats from nuts and almonds.

You must have heard it before that exercise is important to keep your body healthy. People like you who have high cholesterol need to do a regular exercise everyday, no less than 30 minutes a day. Doing cardio-vascular exercises improves the condition of your heart and lessens the symptoms of hypertension. You can do a 15 minute exercise in the morning before you prepare yourself to work, and maybe another 15 minutes after work. Or instead of taking the elevator, you can just walk the stairs going to the your floor.

Now for the natural cholesterol supplement, you can buy the natural cholesterol lowering supplements. If you are not sure what to get, then I highly suggest you look for a product that contains active natural ingredients that can help lower your cholesterol effectively.

In the first part of this article series, I suggested energy healing techniques as the best way to heal emotional wounds because it works at the cellular level and helps with the emotional clearing of unresolved memories, painful feelings and limiting beliefs. In that article, I gave you several essential oils you can use for healing emotional wounds.

Apitoxin therapy
This article will offer healing meditation as a technique for emotional clearing.

Benefits of Meditation

• Meditation helps you relax and deepen your breathing. It strengthens the mind-body connection and can help you deepen spiritual awareness and connection, as well.
• Meditation helps you know yourself more intimately, becoming more aware of who you are at a deep level. It also can help you identify what needs healing or change in your life.
• It also can increase self-esteem, and help you think more clearly and improve your ability to focus.
• Meditation can help you heal. According to Belleruth Naparstek, psychotherapist, “trauma lives in the right side of the brain” and thus is best healed by right-brain activity. This makes meditation and guided imagery ideal for healing trauma.

Because our feelings also are stored in the right side of the brain, meditation is ideal for emotional healing, in general.

Grounding Meditation

“Have you ever been nervous before a speaking engagement, irritable after a sleepless night, or felt nauseous or hot after an argument? If so, you were probably not grounded. When we are ungrounded, we become nervous, easily irritable, or even nauseous.” -Sarah Wood Vallely, Sensational Meditation for Children

One easy way to get started with meditation is with simple grounding meditations.

When you focus on centering or grounding yourself, you then can let go of stressful or painful feelings like anxiety or irritability or tension. In meditation, when you experience letting go, you actually release the energy from your body.

Creating Your Own Meditation

With any meditation, you want to engage all of your senses, focusing on what you see, what you hear, what you feel, what you smell and maybe even what you can taste.

For a grounding meditation, you need at least two things: rootedness and release, but I also would add the element of healing.

First, include earth-centered imagery that suggests rootedness, like having roots grow from the bottom of your feet into the ground. Next, you might breathe in and out deeply and imagine having healing energy fill you.

And then imagine some form of release, like having your stress flow out of your feet and into the ground. When I create a healing meditation, I also usually imagine that whatever has been healed becomes absorbed into love.

Many people have hypertension, also known as high blood pressure. I myself have mild hypertension. Hopefully I’ll never need to go on medication, and there are several ways to lower blood pressure besides medication.

• Eating a balanced diet is one. Low in saturated fat, with lots of fruits, veggies, fiber, and whole grains is often recommended, and the DASH diet is one example. DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. For those of us who love to eat, this can be tough, but your diet doesn’t need to be perfect to make a difference.
• Exercising regularly will lower your blood pressure, even simply walking 30 min several days a week. Exercising is simple to do, although getting into the habit can be tough. Once you get into the habit it’s not tough, and you may find you even look forward to your daily exercise. I know I do.
• Keeping alcohol intake low helps with hypertension. I have a problem with this as I’m a wine lover. Medical professionals recommend no more than two drinks a day. My doctor has suggested trying close to zero alcohol for a month to see what affect it has, and I am trying that now.
• Reducing stress in your life. This can be tough depending on your life situation. I have a high stress job, a high stress wife, and three little kids, but every little bit helps.
• Weight, keeping it close to your ideal weight. Of course many of the above suggestions help with weight a lot, like exercise, limiting alcohol, and eating a balanced diet. Unfortunately I fight with my weight a lot like many do, and it goes up and down, but averages much lighter than it used to fortunately!
• Not smoking. If you don’t smoke, obviously do not start. If you do smoke, quitting is ideal if possible. It’s easy for some folks and next to impossible, perhaps actually impossible, for some. If you cannot quit, cut down. My friend Grim Jon has cut down to a pack a day from an amazing three and a half to four packs a day!
• Reduce your salt intake. In fact it’s the sodium in the salt that affects blood pressure. Numerous studies have shown that limiting salt has an often significant effect.

There are many ways to potentially reduce your blood pressure other than medication, and I’m working on them, even though mine is only borderline high.
Apitoxin manufacturers

The calf is made up of two muscles. The gastrocnemius is the larger of the two, and this attaches above the knee and heel joint. The soleus is the smaller muscle positioned beneath the gastrocnemius, and this attaches below the knee and heel joint. When these contract, flexion of the knee joint occurs. During sports, calf muscles are commonly injured resulting in pulled or even torn calf muscles. Pulled calf muscle treatment is recommended when the muscle is pulled to prevent a worsening of the injury. This form of muscle treatment can be done on your own as explained in this article.

When pulled calf muscle injury occurs, immediately apply this treatment by following R. I. C. E. ‘R’ stands for ‘Rest’, ‘I’ stands for ‘Ice’, ‘C’ stands for ‘Compression’ and ‘E’ stands for ‘Elevation’. The first thing we want to do in a pulled calf muscle injury after muscles building workout routines is to stop any internal bleeding which causes swelling of the muscle. Applying cold compression will cause the blood vessels in the pulled calf muscle to constrict, thus restricting blood flow to the area. Elevation of the limb also discourages blood flow to the injured area. All this reduce any further internal bleeding and starts the healing process. The injury will not heal without adequate rest. So make sure you stay off physical activities until healing is complete.

The short term treatment is R.I.C.E.

For the injury to heal, the long term pulled calf muscle injury must be started. This basically involves treatments that will aid blood flow to the area. It might sound contradictory here, but it is not. R.I.C.E. stops the internal bleeding. Once the internal bleed stops and swelling is reduced, the injured muscle needs to be flushed with nutrients for repair and healing to take place. Our blood carries all the necessary nutrients to the injured area for repairs to begin. Hence, the more blood flow towards the area, the better and quicker is the healing.

To increase blood flow to the area, you can do three things:

• Apply heat treatment. By rubbing and applying heating ointments like tiger balm to the area will cause blood vessels to expand.
• You can gently massage the area with the ointment. Massage will speed up blood flow to and from the area.
• You can apply a hot bag over the affected area and secure this with a bandage. This combination of heat and massage treatment will allow the injured area to heal up.

Of course this will take time, and you must rest a lot.

While resting, it is sometimes impossible to give heat and massage treatment to your pulled calf muscle all the time. In between periods, you can also apply R.I.C.E. to make sure that swelling does not occur. However, the pulled calf muscle treatment should be made up of more heat treatment than anything else.

Yeast infection is known to be one of the most difficult infections to ever deal with. The sufferer would be subjected to intense itching, which makes it very uncomfortable, even debilitating. Well, to begin with a yeast infection happens when there is more yeast level in one’s body, usually in moist parts like the skin and mouth and vagina as well.

Bacteria build up equates to more yeast production and of course, this then is a good recipe for disaster. The best and easiest way to prevent yeast infection doesn’t even require anything but what if you may ask? Nothing else but common sense! The reason people get infected with something is because of bacteria build up. How can one avoid bacteria build up? Of course, by proper hygiene. More than spending hundreds of dollars on antioxidants, everything starts from being conscious about how you take care of yourself, particularly, your hygiene.

How many time do you hit the shower in a day? Once? Twice? Sometimes none? Everyone should take a shower at least twice a day no matter what season it is, yes, even on winter! Many people are under the impression that you only take a shower when you get to sweat profusely, then let me tell you that this not at all true. You take a shower to remove excess dirt and oil accumulated the whole day whether you just stayed home or went out to work or grocery shopping.

Accumulation of dirt and oil is a perfect breeding ground for bacteria, and of course next to it would be yeast infestation as well. When you take the shower, ensure that you clean thoroughly, with a mild antibacterial soap.

If you notice, this is nothing but the simplest way to avoid yeast infection, or any other sickness or infection for that matter. But it is also so true that the simplest of things sometimes or more often than not overlooked.

The new discoveries by medical researchers are that anorexia (the male version is known as manorexia) is not limited to women and that the idea of starving yourself in order to achieve the perfect body is crossing gender lines. Manorexia is a serious eating disorder which needs to be detected at its early stages.

What is Manorexia?

Manorexia is an eating disorder. Dietary restriction is the most significant manifestation of the disorder/disease. It sometimes occur in its pure form however appears in the form of alternating crises restriction and bulimia with vomiting. The body is viewed as too big, despite been extremely thin. This physical state due to malnutrition is often times fatal.

Who is affected by Manorexia?

While anorexia is typically thought to be a disorder affecting only teenage girls or women, experts estimate that about 1 million American men suffer from manorexia and the figures seems to be rises.

At what stage in life?

Risk of manorexia is particularly said to be high during two main periods i.e. between ages 12 and 13 and then between ages 17 and 18. This latter part is made significant because it is at the end of high school when ’serious’ dating occurs i.e. you want to get attention from girls.

How does it start?

For many it often starts as a simply attempt to get fit but it quickly turns into a deadly battle for the perfect body.

What are the underlying and predisposing factors of Manorexia?

In as much as there are biological factors, external factors like early like interactions e.g. family values, identity development and sense of worth/self esteem are vital I triggering the disorder. Pop culture is also a great influence here with some aiming to be wiry — think Mick Jagger, some want to be lean, muscular Brad Pitt, James Bond while other just want to be big and chiseled like Arnold [Schwarzenegger], the governor.”

Warning signs?

A sudden feeling of insecurity followed by a change in eating habits, an obsession with the mirror, an rate of loss of weight leading to general weakness are all signs of manorexia that should not be taken fore granted.

Are there consequences?

Since Manorexia is essentially depriving your body of nutrients dangerous consequences such as stated below may follow – abnormally slow heart rate, low blood pressure, changes in the heart muscle, risk of heart failure, electrolyte imbalance, anemia, changes in bones density (meaning your bones can break more easily, dental problems) loss of muscle tone, general weakness, severe dehydration, which can result in kidney failure, hair loss is common, death.

What should I do now?

It is important not to isolate yourself. The first thing to do is talk to a doctor. There are also a number of associations for parents of children with anorexia which offer good support and are good sources of information.

If you are going through it and you have a problem with manorexia, put away the pride, put away the ego, and don’t be afraid to seek the necessary treatment for it. It’s OK. It’s fine. Just because you are a guy doesn’t mean, ‘I can’t ask for help.’ Do not procrastinate consulting a medical practitioner as an early treatment facilitates cure.