How to Achieve Natural Headache Relief

June 26th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in Health Research

We all get headaches from time to time. If you are lucky, a headache rarely happens to you. Others are not so lucky and have headaches on a regular basis. We all know how difficult it can be to get through the day with a headache that you just can’t shake.

There are a lot of medications for headaches at your local drug or discount store including aspirin and NSAID drugs. People who have migraines and other serious headache issues often require prescription medication. The problem is that using medication to treat headaches regularly can be hazardous to your overall health.

You can get natural headache relief and avoid these medications. Here are some suggestions:

  • White Willow Bark - White willow bark is what aspirin is made of. In its natural form, it helps relieve your headache but is less likely to cause stomach upset. You should not combine white willow bark with aspirin or NSAID medications. You can get white willow bark at a health food store near you.
  • Apples - Eating an apple every day has always been said to keep the doctor away and it may keep headaches away as well. For best results, eat a whole apple when your stomach is empty once a day.
  • Lemon - You can use lemons in a variety of ways for headache relief. You can make lemon tea with lemon juice and regular tea. You can also make a lemon paste from the skin and put that on your forehead. If you are overheated and have a headache as a result, try pressing lemon peels to your forehead.
  • Sandlewood - When crushed and made into a paste, sandlewood applied to the forehead can help relieve headache pain.
  • Cayenne Pepper - The capsaicin in cayenne pepper is known for its ability to increase the size of blood vessels, which helps relieve headache pain. Cayenne pepper is available in capsules or in the spice form. You can add a tiny amount of the spice to water or tea and drink for headache relief.
  • Rosemary - Rosemary also helps increase the size of blood vessels to relieve pain. Rosemary tea made by mixing fresh rosemary with boiling water and steeping is good for headache relief. Other ways to use rosemary are to inhale the boiled rosemary water steam or to use rosemary oil on your forehead.
  • Cinnamon - Headaches caused by exposure to cold can be cured with cinnamon paste applied to the forehead.
  • Eucalyptus - This herb is said to help tension headaches. Eucalyptus oil applied to the forehead will help relieve headache pain. You can keep a piece of cloth with eucalyptus oil on it with you and inhale that when you feel a headache coming on.
  • Ginger - Ginger helps relieve swelling, upset stomach and migraine headaches. There are many forms you can use including whole ginger, ginger capsules and ginger tea.

No one wants to have a headache but if you get one, there are many ways to relieve the pain. Often you can get more relief from natural headache relief than from medication. Consider an herbal remedy next time you get a headache.

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Treating Your Child’s Cold at Home

January 25th, 2009 | No Comments | Posted in Family Health

The cold can make anyone miserable. No one wants to take a sick day from work or school just to stay at home, do nothing but simply feel terrible. It is not easy for parents when their children get the cold either. If you’re a parent, you want to do whatever you can to make your child feel better and to help him get rid of his cold.

You can’t cure your child’s cold but you can treat the symptoms. You can use medicine from your local drug store but it generally tastes bad and it is hard to get your child to swallow it. Many home remedies can be whipped up right in your kitchen and your child will take these a lot easier. The following are some ideas.

The same thing your mother gave you when you had a cold will help your child: chicken soup. Chicken soup has ingredients that help thin the mucus in your body and replace the nutrients the body needs to feel better. Hot chicken soup will encourage the sinuses to drain which will make your child more comfortable. Most importantly, your child will gladly eat a bowl of chicken soup.

Miso is a Japanese spice with natural bacteria that can help your body fight infection. You can add miso to hot soups or broths to help fight your child’s cold off. Make sure not to heat the miso up with the soup or you will kill the bacteria.

A spoonful of honey and lemon juice in equal parts will relieve sore throat pain and reduce coughing. This can be done every few hours. The honey lemon mixture can also be mixed into ginger tea if that is something your child would enjoy.

You can make a helpful nasal spray by mixing 1/4 tsbp. of salt and 8 oz. of warm water and putting it in an empty nasal spray bottle. Have your child spray the mixture into their nose several times a day to help reduce mucus. For smaller children, the mixture can be put in the nose with a dropper.

Don’t give your child milk or other dairy products until he is over his cold. These dairy products will increase the thickness of the mucus, which means the mucus will be more difficult to get out of the system. It’s important to clear out the mucus as soon as possible to help your child get over his cold.

Many over the counter products containing zinc or Echinacea can be found that will shorten the intensity and duration of a cold if used at the first signs of the cold.

It is highly likely that you and your child will get at least one cold this winter. You don’t have to spend a ton of money on cold treatments from the drug store. With a few simple ingredients, you can make home remedies for the common cold that will taste better and make your child more comfortable.

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Lemon Juice Cure for The Flu!

July 26th, 2008 | No Comments | Posted in Natural Cure

For many centuries, lemon juice has been used in medicine. In our country today, it is still used when dealing with colds. What makes it so effective? We will examine the history of the lemon.

As with many other fruits, the lemon is found growing on trees. Instead of developing from a flower, the lemon exists along side the flowers. It is believed that lemons are a cross between the mandarin and citron. Identifying a lemon is not tough, as they have a distinct yellow color, yellow inside, and a strong, unique smell.

When you are sick with a cold, you have been infected with a mutating virus. There is an uncountable number of virus strains for the cold, and since it is a virus, there is no cure. Our medicine today is only able to deal with the effects.

The biggest issue with colds is the way they work on the whole body. Though a cold may begin in one specific area, it soon spreads in the form of: sneezing, headaches, body aches, and chills. Also, once sick, it is very easy to contaminate other people and make them sick. Depending on the virus, it could take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to feel better.

The real value of the lemon comes in its high Vitamin C concentration. A lemon holds eighty percent of our daily recommended amount of Vitamin C. Studies have shown that Vitamin C benefits the immune system by boosting white blood cell production, which helps fight the virus. To gain this benefit without all the negative side effects of traditional medicine, mix the lemon juice with warm water and honey. The water negates some of the acidity, and the honey improves the taste. Also, the cold toxicity is decreased from the lemon juice, which aids the entire body. Lemon juice makes colds shorter and more bearable.

Try lemon juice, as it is more natural and gentler on your body than traditional medicines. At first sign of a cold, drink the lemon juice mixture twice a day. You should be pleased with the results!

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