Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Are you prepared for the winter?

Pomegranate is so in season and it will not stay for long. Don't miss this opportunity. There is reason why nature provides certain fruits at certain time. It for being prepared for winter. The same with oranges and Apple's. Give these fruits everyday and keep your child immune high to fight any battle. And these amazing fruits keep wheezing at check.

Give wide range of seasonal vegetables and greens either boiled, seasoned or in soup. Use spices like coriander, pepper, ginger, garlic which all helps in increasing the immune system.

Mornings are dull and sun goes down by 4 pm. Hence hit the outside in the afternoon to get the sun. Every bit counts.

Get lot of indoor physical activities to keep your child active and breathing.

Good luck Moms! Let's be prepared for this brave winter battle.

To my blog readers
If this article has helped you in anyways or if you have some thoughts to share please comment below. It will encourage me to continue writing this blog.
Spread these words around to stop another mother see her child suffer from the condition.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Eczema cure through natural oil bath and food

Oil bath is an old traditional ayurvedic method of taking bath and usually done twice weekly. It involves applying warm natural oil all over the body allowing it to get absorbed by the body for a span of 15 min to 30 mins and washing it off using herbs or flour preparation. The oil bath allows the body to retain oil on the skin and cools the body. Both these benefits the person with eczema.

Natural oil like coconut oil, sesame oil, mustard oil, olive oil have the nutrients to cure eczema and can be used to take oil bath. The flour of the natural grains like gram, oatmeal   have the power to heal eczema. The flour can be mixed with milk and a pinch of turmeric(antibacterial). The flour should just wash the dirt off but not strip moisture. Please apply the flour preparation gently on the skin and wash it off with rubbing.

Usually eczema flare up in the night time as our body's anti-inflammatory property is less at this time. The best test if the oil bath is working for child is prepare the child's body during day time with twice oil bath and maintaining a healthy diet through the day. If the child sleep through the night without itching and eczema flaring up then you are going in the right direction. This would work only for that day and you will have to follow this everyday to keep eczema on check. The frequency of oil bath can be reduced as time progresses and your child outgrows eczema.

The challenge is to find which oil and flour will suit your child. So first test the oil on child's skin in small portion and leave it for 15 mins to see the reaction.  Wash it off with the flour preparation. If the skin feel soft and moist and does not have any rashes then it should be fine. My child is fine with coconut and sesame oil but allergic to extra virgin olive oil. And I use green mong flour with milk and turmeric to wash off.

Few tips to begin with
- If possible use the organic option.
- Always warm the oil before applying. Warming up kills any germs in the oil and when slightly warm oil is applied to the skin it will get absorbed better.
- While warming the oil it can be infused with herbs like garlic which has good properties for skin care. But don't try this before knowing what suits your child.
- gently massage the oil over the skin to help absorption and blood circulation.
- Body oil bath can be done twice daily while head bath needs to be done every 3 to 4 day once.
- Oil bath should ideally be given on empty stomach.
- apply moisturizer after bath to maintain an extra level of oil.
- Please do not give oil bath when your child is sick or has fever.
- if your child has cold or susceptible to frequent cold the frequency of oil bath should be reduced.
- avoid using mineral oil and soap. Mineral oil does not provide any benefit to skin and soap strips the moisture.

Gut is another reason for eczema flaring up. Giving lots of fruits, veges, whole grain, probiotic yogurt all helps in maintaining a toxin free balanced gut.
Avoid anything artificial additives and processed food in your child's diet. Give home cooked( slow cooked) food. Also avoid pesticides, harsh detergents, frequent antibacterial hand wash, cleaners etc.

The important point to note is to keep following these day in and day out until the body outgrowns the eczema. Usually the eczema lessens as the child grows unless there is a constant trigger for it flare up. Hence the oil bath becomes a life style routine rather than a day's fix.

To my blog readers
If this article has helped you in anyways or if you have some thoughts to share please comment below. It will encourage me to continue writing this blog.
Spread these words around to stop another mother see her child suffer from the condition.

Sunday, October 5, 2014

The Eczema and the Asthma connection

Eczema is over reactive skin disease.
Asthma is over reactive lung disease.
These lines should teach you the connection between the two. Both are caused by a defect in a person's gene. This genetic condition can cause over reaction of any organ to some foreign body. The foreign body doesn't have be really harmful( it can be as simple as detergent or dust) but it some how gives a red flag to the body and makes the specific organ to over react. The most affected organs are the skin and the lungs.

Eczema hits babies as young as a month old. But not all parents are well informed about the connection it has with asthma and how dangerous asthma can be if it hits hard.
Hence this article is to teach parents with newborns having eczema  to be well prepared for the next step Asthma. The Asthma can hit a child as young as 1 year old eventhough the worst hit is at 3 when the child starts going to preschool when they get the most cold attacks.  Asthma and eczema can surface at any point during the person's lifetime due to some trigger if the body is not prepared to fight.

Both these conditions are handled by hospital with steroids which help in suppressing the skin or lungs from over reacting. It is very effective medicine but has several serious side effects. Also these medicines only cut the symptoms but does not cure the cause.

The good news is both can be prevented and cured in the nature's way. Once you know that your child has eczema you can prepare your child's body to escape from the several wheezing episodes your child might have in the future.
All it takes is good diet and life style discipline. Please read more about how to prevent and cure asthma in my older post.