|
|
| Alternative Medicine Information |
|
|
|
Nature, An ADHD Natural Treatment
My mother's warning; "You are going to rot your brain out..." still rings through my mind whenever I spend too much time in front of the television set. I grew up in a time when mothers shooed their children out - rain, snow or shine - to get a breath of fresh air. Our television set tuned in to only four or five channels and those channels signed off at midnight. It would be years before cable television, satellite dish, VCRs and Nintendo would debut. Lazy summer days were spent riding bicycles for hours because there wasn't much of anything better to do. This period of time was also a few decades before Ritalin and Attention Deficit would become commonplace terms. I have long believed that inactive hours spent indoors has contributed to the increased incidence of Attention Deficit Disorder. A recent study, published in the September 2004 issue of the "American Journal of Public Health," validates that believe. University of Illinois researchers studied nature as an ADHD natural treatment. This study showed that children with ADHD benefit from time outdoors enjoying nature with a significant reduction of ADHD symptoms. Researchers of this nationwide recruited the parents of 322 boys and 84 girls, all diagnosed with ADHD, through ads in major newspapers and the Internet. Participants, ages 5 to18, spent time in a variety of settings which varied from big cities to rural settings. Some activities were conducted indoors, others in outdoor places without much greenery such as parking lots and downtown areas and other activities were in "green" areas such as a tree-lined street, back yards or parks. The parents were interviewed and asked to report how their children performed after participating in a wide range of activities. The researchers found that symptoms were reduced most in green outdoor settings, even when the same activities were compared across different settings. Researchers believe that simply incorporating nature into a child's day could be widely effective in reducing ADHD symptoms. Based on the results of this ADHD natural treatment study, researchers recommend that children with ADHD spend quality after-school hours and weekend time outdoors enjoying nature. Study authors Frances E. Kuo and Andrea Faber Taylor suggested that daily doses of ''green time'' might supplement medications and behavioral approaches to ADHD if clinical trials and additional research confirm the value of nature as a natural treatment for ADHD. The study findings indicate that exposure to ordinary natural settings in the course of common after-school and weekend activities may be widely effective in reducing attention deficit symptoms in children. In each comparison (there were 56 in all), green outdoor activities received more positive ratings over the activities taking place in other settings. In 54 of the 56, the difference was significant, signaling that the findings were consistent. Researchers said that exposing ADHD children to nature is an affordable, healthy method of controlling symptoms. Researchers also suggested that daily doses of "green time" can supplement medications and other traditional treatments of ADHD. Simply using nature may offer a way to help manage ADHD symptoms that is readily available, doesn't have any stigma associated with it, doesn't cost anything, and doesn't have any side effects. ADHD natural "green" treatment has endless possibilities, many of which might closely resemble childhoods from years long past. Here are just a few ideas for increasing "green time": Play in a green yard or ball field at recess and after school. Take after-dinner walks. Make a scarecrow. Doing class work or homework outside or at a window with a relatively green view. Build a birdhouse. Grow an outdoor garden. Bike, ski, sled, inline skate... Visit a nature center. Choose a greener route for the walk to school. Participate in local nature clean-ups. Take up bird watching. Star gaze. About The Author Jeannine Virtue is a freelance writer with a focus on issues relating to Attention Deficit Disorder. For research-based information about Attention Deficit Disorder, practical tips to help parents survive the task of raising Attention Deficit children and information about effective Ritalin alternatives, please visit www.add-adhd-help-center.com. info@add-adhd-help-center.com
alternative medicine - Google News |
|
|
|
Alternative Medicine Cure for Shingles Shingles is a patch of painful blisters that appear on one side of the body. These blisters are filled with fluid. These blisters are caused by the varicella-zoster virus, a virus from the herpes family causes chicken pox in us. Shingles may cause permanent damage to vision and hearing capability in some cases. If shingles is found near the eyes and ears it should be treated immediately. Reduce the Effects of Fears and Phobias with Hypnosis Hypnosis is very useful in the treatment of fears and phobias. Hypnosis is perfectly natural and allows you to experience deep physical and mental relaxation. Daydreaming is very similar to hypnosis in that it is a mild hypnotic state. With hypnosis you are always in control, you remember everything that happened and you can come out of a hypnotic state at any time. The Writer As Activist Almost two years ago, before the release of my first book, "Short of a Picnic," I began writing nonfiction Internet essays that, like the book itself, deal with mental health. I say "deal" with mental health instead of "dealt" with mental health because these essays, five or six of them altogether, continue to be read. I know that people still read them because some folks e-mail me about them, sharing their personal stories and requesting elaboration on my part. In addition, the pieces have appeared in various places without my prompting, which means not only are they alive, they are multiplying. Fraicheur DAgrume (Citrus Fruits): Freshness in a Bottle Citrus oils are perhaps one of the more popular essential oils for perfumery. They provide a fresh, invigorating and stimulating aroma that is indispensable in fragrances. Otherwise known as agrumen oils, they are obtained from various sources of the citrus fruit family that includes bergamot, lime, lemon, grapefruit and bitter orange. Among these, the commonly used ones are bergamot and lemon. Boost Self Confidence Through Hypnotherapy What is self confidence and how do you get it? The compact oxford english dictionary is simple in its definition: "a feeling of trust in one's abilities, qualities, and judgment". A positive sense of self confidence is more than just believing in you. Self confidence means that you have a respect for yourself and your abilities that allows you to take risks in life and put one foot in front of the other daily. You can build your self esteem with hypnotherapy, and by reading self improvement articles and books. Lead Poisoning in Environment and Our Children Pollution is generallyy defined as the release of harmful environmental contaminants. Pollution can take two major forms: local pollution and global pollution. In the past, only local pollution was thought to be a problem. For example, coal burning produces smoke and in sufficient concentrations can be a health hazard. One slogan, taught in schools was "The solution to pollution is dilution". In recent decades, awareness has been rising that some forms of pollution pose a global problem. What Is Reiki? Reiki is an ancient form of energy healing in which a properly attuned Reiki Practitioner serves as a conduit for Universal Life Force (or ReiKi). The Reiki practitioner opens them self up as a conduit for a semi-sentient energy summoned from a higher source to facilitate healing or correct a person's aura. The Reiki Practitioner is not a healer per se but the energy moves through them to work with the recipient's higher will in correcting imbalances and treating situations from the core causal point rather than the effect. This is thought to have a beneficial effect on the body, mind, and spirit, emotional and in Indian systems - the chakra system. Not Now, I Have A Headache Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks? Heart Healthy "Open your heart to me, my own," whispers Grandmother Growth so softly you aren't certain you hear her. "Open the wisdom way of compassion here in your heart and draw me inside. Let Grandmother Growth be inside you, helping you encompass the whole, in the beat of your own heart, my heart, Crone's heart." Honey - Natural Treatment for Wounds and Burns Honey is a highly concentrated sugar solution produced by honeybees. It is commonly used as substitute for sugar or a flavor enhancer. But other than that, honey is also effective in treating burns and wounds and it has been used for this purpose for many centuries. Now it is known that the secret of honey lies on its antibacterial activity. Arthritis and Aromatherapy Arthritis is an inflammation of the joints and is characterized by pain, stiffness, swelling, decreased range of movement and at a more serious stage deformity. Aromatherapy is a holistic approach to health and wellness by means of aromatic, plant derived scents. It is very much a traditonal method as well as a science that encompasses the intuitive and creative aspects of preparing special purpose blends. How Dirty Dishes And Stale Bread Saved The World Home Remedies - Facts or Quacks? Homeopathy Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine used for over 200 years. Introduced to America in the early 1800s, homeopathy is based on the Law of Similars ("like cures like"). Homeopathy is still used very effectively in patients around the globe. Taking Control of Your Health & Well-being Taking Control of Your Health & Well-being by Georgianna Donadio D.C., M.Sc., Ph.D. Do you ever wonder why, in spite of all your good intentions, you just cannot seem to take control over your health and wellness the way you really want to? The answer to that question can be found in the words of Albert Einstein, who reminded us "you cannot correct a problem with the same thinking that created it". In other words, you cannot change old behaviors without new information. The Institute of Medicine recently published a study that indicates ninety million Americans are "health illiterate", which means we do not know how to interpret or use health information to control or improve our health, or prevent chronic disease. Data compiled previously identified, "lack of information as the number one root cause of death". Understanding that there exists a cause and effect relationship between what we know and how we behave, we need a model of integrating this important information to change the behaviors that lead to chronic disease. According to a 7-year, 1996, Harvard Medical School study, approximately 70% of all cancers are preventable through lifestyle changes. Furthermore, our diseases and conditions are primarily a result of stress, food, environment, attitude, emotions or beliefs that keep us in behaviors that lead to illness. Which invites the question, are we consciously choosing to be unhealthy, or do we just not understand sufficiently the relationship between what we think, how we behave, what we put into our bodies and how we keep ourselves well or make ourselves sick? In a world exploding with health information, especially on the internet, we are caught in the dilemma of having abundant amounts of information, without a context through which we can understand and utilize this information in a way that is appropriate for our own unique personal health needs. There is, however, good news - making its way into the mainstream of health care is an integrated model of health information and education that provides a "whole picture of health" perspective, allowing each of us to discern and create our own unique approach to taking charge of our health and well-being. Whole Health Education, developed over the past 28 years, in cooperation with Boston physicians, nurses and educators, is an approach to understanding the cause and effect our behaviors and choices have on our state of health. Demystifying the five major factors that influence how sick or well we become, Whole Health Education provides a perspective on human anatomy and physiology, bio-chemistry, psycho-social, environmental and spiritual aspects which allows for an authentic understanding of what we need know to resolve chronic health problems or to stay healthy. Integrating evidence-based information with the wisdom of various spiritual teachings and a whole-person overview of behavioral options, Whole Health Education offers each of us a tool for personal health management by providing personalized health information that explains the physical, emotional, nutritional, environmental and spiritual aspects of a health concern.For example, Mature Onset Diabetes affects approximately 18.2 million Americans and is the leading health concern in our culture today. As all chronic conditions are, Mature Onset Diabetes is a multi-dimensional disease state and the unique Whole Health perspective, can facilitate the restoration of health for those with chronic diseases such as diabetes. Physical/Structural What happens on a physical and structural level with Mature Onset Diabetes? The specialized beta cells of the pancreas, which produce insulin, become incapable of producing adequate amounts of the critically necessary secretion. This happens over a period of years and can begin in our bodies, over time, by eating large amounts of insulin-provoking foods. These insulin provocateurs, which are sugars and starches in the form of complex carbohydrates, require the pancreas to produce more insulin so that the sugars can be carried over the cell membranes to all parts of the body. Serious disturbances occur when we do not have enough insulin to carry the sugar over the cell membranes. Insulin hooks onto the sugar molecule and acts like a lock and key mechanism to bring that sugar into the cell which is then used in the energy cycle of cell metabolism. The nervous system, brain and the lungs cannot function without the proper metabolism of sugars. Emotional/Social Just as diabetes is a lack of nourishment on a chemical/nutritional level, so is it a lack of emotional nourishment on an emotional/mental level. It relates to the "feel good" nourishment component of your body. What do we know about carbohydrates and serotonin? Carbohydrates provoke the production of serotonin. Serotonin is a neuro-transmitter that produces a feeling of well-being. There is a direct relationship between what our body is doing chemically and how we feel emotionally. When we crave or build our diet around carbohydrates, this can be a way of "self-medicating" our emotional needs by eating carbohydrates to provoke insulin production. Sugar problems can affect us emotionally. Let's say you have a pancreas that is not working properly. What can happen somatic/psychically from the pancreas to the brain? If we are feeling the ups and downs of hypoglycemia, and its biochemical/neurological symptoms, it may undermine our sense of security, self esteem, and produce anxiety and fear. What is the emotional component of diabetes and the pancreas? Often, it can be a poor sense of self-esteem and a fear of not being "good enough" or not belonging. These feelings, medicated by the serotonin foods, can lead us to not look deeply enough into what is causing our health concerns and allow the feeling/feeding cycle to continue. Chemical/Nutritional On the nutritional side, the treatment for people with Mature Onset Diabetes is to decrease the stress on the pancreas by making changes in their diet -- decrease starches and sugars and decrease calories. Eat less, eat right. What kind of a diet would be best for preventing Mature Onset Diabetes? Vegetables, vegetables, and vegetables combined with lean proteins such as fish, chicken, water, a little fruit and a little fat. In a hypoglycemic situation, it is wise not to eat grain or sugar, but sprouted grain bread, and other substitutes can be healthy and satisfying. Because hormones are chemicals, diabetes and hypoglycemia are both hormonal-based problems. What we know about the hormone system is that it works as a balanced interdependent system. Diabetes is an endocrine-related, systemic problem. With a systemic problem like diabetes, you have a body system problem--you do not just have a condition by itself. It is known that the pancreas is related, through hormone interaction, to the adrenals, and the adrenals are in turn related to the reproductive system. It is known that these glands are related through hormone interactions to the pituitary and the pituitary is related to the thyroid gland, the thyroid is related to the thymus, and the thymus is related to the immune system. Environmental/Internal & External The environment that we work in, live in, walk through, live near -- how does that environment have an impact on the way that we feel and the way we feel about ourselves? How do we learn to trust in the order of the universe? By behaviors that come from trusting the order inside ourselves. We do this by setting boundaries -- codes of conduct of how we are going to behave, eat, work exercise and live. If we don't violate our own boundaries, we are less likely to let anybody else violate our boundaries. We have to start with ourselves. Our experience of victimization can begin with our own self-victimizing behavior. Spiritual/World View A Hindu Vendata truth is that "the whole world is one family". It is said that there is only one disease, the disease of separateness, separating oneself from the awareness that we are one living organism. Competition creates isolation. The spiritual challenge presented by hypoglycemia and diabetes appears to be involved with over- or under-valuing the self: judgment of self and then others. Where are we in the process of getting to the truth that we are all equally important? The drama created by a one-up or one-down dynamic that we may allow to be part of our experience can lead to psychophysiology and the behavioral issues which can contribute to and create Mature Onset Diabetes.Whole Health Education can transform our experience of taking care of ourselves. It can provide an understanding of our health concerns and conditions from this multi-dimensional perspective that makes sense in a way we can utilize the information directly and in a meaningful way. In addition, having the information provided in a mindful, respectful way that invites each of us to discern what we know about our health and condition, how to choose to resolve the problem and what kind of care we choose to have, allows each of us to experience whole-person health care through whole health information. Then, WE become the center of our health and healing process, rather than the doctors or practitioners we go to for guidance. Buyer Beware: Is That Ergonomic Chair Really Ergonomic? Not everybody knows exactly what ergonomic means, but it's getting to the point where everybody knows an "ergonomic chair" is better than just some plain old chair. Thus even Joe Newbie is more likely to buy the ergonomic chair than the chair that is not advertised as ergonomic. Aromatherapys Mind-Smell Connection Why is smell so strongly linked to memory and emotion? Home Spa and Bodys Adaptation. The More the Better? The More The Faster The Better?Or Some Words About The Body's Adaptation. Some Alternative Health Strategies CAM (complementary and alternative medicine) therapies are generally classified into 5 seperate categories or domains. Some of these domains have sub-domains but we will broadly go into them here. Isnt It Time For WHOLISTIC Medicine? I posted a story the other day on one of my blogs - the headline reads: "Antidepressant drugs quadruple risk of suicides, research shows". Health Improvements for Your Family Your husband always seems tired. Your son is always hungry. And your daughter? Well, she goes through enough hair products to try to make her hair look healthier, that you are sure all the chemicals she's using are going to make her go bald. So, what if there was a way you could increase your husband's metabolism, decrease your son's hunger, and give your daughter really healthy hair instead of hair that just looks healthy? And what if all that could be done from the juice of just one plant's fruit?
|
| home | site map | |
© 2006 www.elearn-university.org |
