Celiac disease is a malabsorption syndrome and chronic digestive disorder. The intestine is not able to absorb vital dietary nutrients from foods containing gliadin, an alcohol-soluble portion of gluten. This condition which is often hereditary means the sufferer has a serious intolerance to wheat (including durum, semolina and spelt), rye, oats, barley, and related grain hybrids such as tritaclae and kamut.
Arthritis refers to inflammation of the joint. The most common form of arthritis is osteoarthritis which is characterised by joint degeneration and loss of cartilage. Rheumatoid arthritis is a type of inflammatory arthritis which is also an autoimmune disorder. In this case the body's immune system attacks its own cartilage and tissue surrounding the joints.
Some detoxification experts advocate fasting, while others do not. It is known that the components of any well-designed detox program will stimulate the body to cleanse itself, but people who are underweight, are undernourished, have weak hearts, have blood sugar issues or are ill should avoid fasting. Some studies have shown that restricting food intake can actually lead to bingeing.
Hemorrhoids are extremely common in industrialised countries and it is estimated that fifty percent of persons over fifty years of age have symptoms of hemorrhoidal disease. Although most people may begin to develop hemorrhoids in the twenties, the symptoms do not become evident normally until in ones thirties!
Migrains
- What are migraines?
- How do I treat migraines naturally?
- Migraines - Natural treatments and remedies
- Diet for migraines
- Homoeopathy for migraines
- Herbs for migraines
- Supplements for migraines
- Lifestyle tips for migraines
What are Migraines?
Migraine headaches are caused by excessive dilation of blood vessels in the head
and they are surprisingly common. More than half of sufferers will have a family
history of them. Although some migraines come without warning, many migraines sufferers
recognise the description of flashing lights, anxiety, fatigue, numbness or tingling
and the desperate need to retreat to somewhere quiet and dark. Others know their
headache is definitely the result of a food allergy.
It is claimed that food triggers are responsible for up to 90% of migraine cases, however it is difficult for a sufferer to identify which foods they are reacting to. Elimination and rotation diets can help pinpoint more obvious culprits, but it can become problematic by the fact it can take someone more than a week to react to a particular food you may have eaten.
No two migraines are the same; they can also be caused by hormonal disturbances around the time of menstruation; and some are so severe that one may spend three days in bed vomiting; migraines which more closely resemble cluster-type headaches are more typical in men.
Allergies are a normal physiological process to the world around us, and within us. We interact with foods, chemicals and other substances such as microbes and moulds every day, whether by ingestion, inhalation or physical contact with the body’s tissues. Our body’s immune system is designed to correctly identify and differentiate between self and nonself—that is, between what our body needs and what is foreign to it. When it encounters foreign substances, it reacts by making antibodies or releasing certain chemicals, such as histamines. The problem arises when we have an inappropriate response, or "hyperresponse." Then the antibodies attach to the antigens, causing a variety of internal reactions.
How do I treat migraines naturally?
Migraines - natural treatments and remedies
Diet for migraines
Firstly one should try to identify the triggers or the precipitating factors. Studies
have shown that the detection and removal of allergenic foods will eliminate or
greatly reduce migraine symptoms in the majority of patients. Foods such as chocolate
can precipitate migraine attacks in many people because they contain histamines
and / or compounds that can trigger migraines in sensitive individuals by causing
blood vessels to expand.
Common foods responsible for migraines include:
- Chocolate
- cheese
- Monosodium glutamate (MSG), a flavor enhancer found most notably in food from Chinese restaurants; you can always ask them to prepare the food without MSG
- Foods containing the amino acid tyramine (found in red wine, aged cheese, smoked fish, chicken livers, figs, and some beans)
- Nuts
- Peanut Butter
- Some fruits (like avocado, banana, and citrus)
- Onions
- Dairy products
- Meats containing nitrates (bacon, hot dogs, salami, cured meats)
- Fermented or pickled foods
Fish oil and other omega 3's or seafood eaten in the form of oily fish 3 -4 times a week can halve the number of migraine attacks, but also reduce the pain and severity of those that do occur.
Eat plenty of other foods that inhibit platelet aggregation such as quality vegetable oils, garlic and onion.
Homeopathy for migraines
Homoeopathy which has proven highly effective for many sufferers.There are different
remedies for different types of migraines and headaches however. If the headache
is worse on the right side, for example, and if trying to concentrate makes the
pain worse, your homeopath is likely to suggest Lycopodium 6c. Blurring
of the vision and vomiting would suggest Iris 6c, while a throbbing, blinding headache
with a feeling of congestion in the head would probably be best treated by Natrum
mur. 6c. Gelsenium has also good reports if you take it at the very first
sign of onset.
Herbs for migraines.
Whatever the type of pain, the herb feverfew has an excellent track
record in helping to keep migraines at bay when taken daily. It can take up to a
month to kick in - so you need to persevere and take 40 drops of a tincture with
your breakfast each morning. Ginger extract is also highly effective in migraine
prevention. Use fresh ginger sliced into 1/4 inch slices and have approx 10 grams
per day or 40 drops of ginger extract 2 times a day.
Also herbs that help clear the liver can be useful such as dandelion root and blue flag. Jamacian Dogwood is good for helping deal with the pain and if the migraine is hormonally related you may need to balance estrogen with possibly wild yam or black cohosh amongst others.
Supplements for migraines
If you cannot get enough of these nutrients through food you may wish to consider
the following supplements:
Taking fish oil capsules daily has been shown to not only halve the number of migraine attacks, but also reduce the pain and severity of those that did occur. Take 3000- 5000 mg a day from an unpolluted source of fish.
Many sufferers have been found to be deficient in magnesium. Take 250 mg three times a day. Vitamin B2 has also been shown to help reduce the number of attacks; as the B vitamins work best when taken together, take a B complex supplement which provides the equivalent of 400mg of B2 daily.
The immediate cause of a migraine headache is constriction and then swelling of the arteries that supply the brain. Abnormally low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin have been identified in many sufferers. To help serotonin levels you can take 5HTP (200mg two times a day).
Some studies suggest that 5-HTP supplements may be effective in children and adults with various types of headaches including migraines. 5-HTP is an amino acid. The body makes 5-HTP from tryptophan (an amino acid that is obtained from the diet) and converts it to an important brain chemical known as serotonin. 5-HTP dietary supplements help raise serotonin levels in the brain.
Lifestyle tips for migraines
Sweet Marjoram essential oil on the back of the neck covered by a hot
towel works wonders for some people as does peppermint essential oil
or lavender essential oil.
Biofeedback and other relaxation techniques have been judged as effective as the drug approach but without any of the side effects. Stress can be a trigger; consider relaxation techniques in the form of yoga, meditation and / or breathing techniques.
Acupuncture can be most helpful as it will help balance and alligned the meridians. Another approach can be cranial sacral work or chiropractor allignments.
