Do-It-Yourself Home Chest Congestion Remedies

Are you tired of every cold and flu season searching the stores for cough and cold remedies that are effective yet don’t have harmful side effects?

Most commercial cold and congestion formulas contain one or more of these chemicals:

• Dextromethorphan HCL – A cough suppressant which can cause drowsiness,
• Acetaminophen – A pain reliever which can cause liver damage in large quantities,
• Guaifenesin – An expectorant which can cause dizziness, or
• Pseudoephedrine or Phenylephrine–Decongestants which can cause restlessness, anxiety, sleeplessness and headaches.

Did you know that some of the most effective chest congestion remedies are readily available, fairly inexpensive, have little to no adverse effects and have the added benefit of being good for you?

Here are a few herbs to keep handy in your home…

1. GARLIC

Garlic is valued by both chefs and herbalists alike. It is a versatile culinary spice with medicinal properties. It is antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral, which makes it an excellent remedy for most respiratory infections.  It has been shown in several studies to not only reduce cold and flu symptoms, but shorten the duration of a cold.

In addition to being a natural antibiotic, garlic has also been found to help lower cholesterol. It acts as a natural anticoagulant and helps dissolve cholesterol in the blood stream. Many naturopaths and herbalists recommend taking garlic on a regular basis to help fight high cholesterol and heart disease.

Garlic is best eaten fresh, crushed and added to soups or other dishes. But for those who cannot tolerate its pungent taste, garlic extract is also available over-the-counter in tablet and capsule form. The recommended dose is 600 to 1,200 mg daily, divided into individual doses, or 2 to 4 grams per day of fresh garlic.

2. ECHINACEA

Echinacea, or purple coneflower, is a folk remedy native to North America. It is a long-standing remedy for the common cold and flu. It is naturally antioxidant and antibacterial, and has been shown to help strengthen the immune system.

Traditionally Echinacea has been used to treat a variety of cold symptoms, including sore throat, cough and chest congestion. It is most commonly taken as an herbal tea, up to three times per day. It is also available as a standardized extract in capsule or tincture form. The recommended dose is 300 mg or 1 to 3 mL, three times per day, for up to 7 days.

3. LOBELIA

Lobelia is a native folk remedy for respiratory problems. It is sometimes referred to as Indian tobacco. But, unlike traditional tobacco it is not inhaled, but consumed as an herbal tea.The use of lobelia as a tobacco substitute has been banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

It is naturally antioxidant and expectorant, and is used by herbalist to treat asthma, bronchitis and chronic cough.  It has also been used in smoking cessation programs to help reduce the effects of nicotine.

Lobelia can be found in liquid extract or dried capsule form. The recommended dose is 2 oz. of dried herb, four times per day, or .6 to 2.0 mL of liquid tincture up to three times per day.

4. RED CLOVER

Although generally thought of as fodder for cattle, red clover is an age-old remedy for respiratory illnesses. Traditionally herbalists used the herb to treat whooping cough. It is naturally expectorant and considered a natural blood-purifier.

Today, scientists have found that it has a number of health benefits. It is rich in vitamins and minerals, including vitamins B1 and B3, vitamin C, calcium, chromium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus. It is also high in isoflavones, chemicals which have an estrogen-like effect on the body, and can be used to address many menopausal symptoms, including osteoporosis.

It is generally taken as an herbal tea, although it can also be found in liquid extract and capsule form. The typical dose is 40 to 160 mg per day, or 3 to 5 mL, three times per day.

5. FENNEL

Fennel is an Ayurvedic remedy for gas and indigestion which doubles as a natural cough and chest congestion remedy. It is considered carminative, or soothing to mucous membranes. It is also naturally antioxidant and antibacterial.

While fennel seeds are commonly chewed to treat indigestion and upset stomach, the juice of the seeds are used as a cough syrup. Simply crush or juice 1 to 2 teaspoons of fresh fennel seeds and add to one teaspoon of honey. Take 3 or 4 times per day until symptoms subside.

REFERENCES

1. University of Maryland Medical Center: Alternative Medicine Index: http://www.umm.edu/altmed/

The Many Options of Natural Lice Treatment

You should never settle for a commercially available product when you are looking for a solution to a problem as trivial as lice, and natural lice treatment is usually all you need to get rid of your lice and move on with your life. The only thing you need to worry about with this kind of treatment is making sure you do everything properly during the application process. You may need to apply a natural remedy more than once for it to work effectively, but you will be very proud of your final decision in the end.

The infestation in your hair of lice and other similar problems is likely related to the environment found in your home, so you also need to make sure you take care of the lice problem around your house. You are probably not the only person in your house with lice, so make sure everyone else gets checked out as soon as possible. Once you know the level of the problem found in your home, you can then move onto methods of natural lice treatment to get rid of the lice troubles.

There are not many clinically researched natural lice treatments, so you will have to rely on evidence that does not rely on science and numbers when you decide to go this route. There are plenty of people who have seen the productivity of natural treatments for lice first hand, so these are the accounts you will have to rely on for research. The best thing about natural treatments for lice is that they don’t contain any of the harmful chemicals that could end up damaging your health that are found in the chemically based products sold at the store.

Natural lice treatment is the safe treatment

You don’t want to throw chemicals on your body and around the house when you don’t have to, especially if there are young children who live in your home. Children are much more problematic when it comes to chemicals because their bodies have not fully developed and been able to handle invasions by dangerous chemicals. Natural lice treatment is always the right decision for anyone who has children because these natural solutions do not contain any harmful chemicals.

The simplest method of lice treatment that won’t contain harmful chemicals comes through the use of a nit comb. You have to shampoo the hair before you begin, but leave the conditioner in the hair as you go through it with the nit comb. The process of using the nit comb is rather simple and you just need to go up and down the hair until you’ve found that no lice or eggs can be found in the hair at all.

Food products are another option

Some people use mayonnaise as a natural lice treatment, but this method can get rather messy. You still need to use a nit comb to go through the hair with the mayonnaise in it, but the mayonnaise is actually better for setting up the hair than conditioner.

Understanding the Types of Meditation – Mindfulness, Transcendental and Vipassana

The evidence of the benefits of meditation for enhancing physical and mental wellbeing is increasing by the day and there are many forms of meditation that a person can derive advantage from:

Mindfulness Meditation or Smriti

Smriti is a Sanskrit word that means awareness of remembering and is considered to be one of the 7 important factors that bring about enlightenment according to the teachings of the Buddha. This type of meditation tries to perceive things as they are and a clear comprehension of reality. It is method of letting go of negative emotions such as hatred, greed and the desire for material or unimportant things.


It involves the attempt to maintain a sense of calm awareness at all times in one’s day to day life. Today western psychologist employ this ancient form of meditation to help resolve a range of mental and physical conditions such as drug addiction, obsessive compulsive disorders, depression and so on.

It is also found to be useful in preventing relapse of certain conditions.

Transcendental Meditation

This form of meditation was popularized by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (of the Beatles fame) in about the 1950’s and went on to become something of a spiritual movement. This is a form of mantra meditation and is one of the most widely practiced and researched forms of meditation.

This meditation involves thinking rather than speaking a mantra and requires the mind to reach a quieter and less active plane. The mantras may be wordless sounds and may vary from person to person as may suit a particular individual. 15 to 20 minutes of this meditation is ideally supposed to be practiced in the morning and in the evening.

Vipassana Meditation
One of the most ancient methods of meditation, this form is also a Buddhist tradition that seeks to obtain insight into the true nature of reality. A steadfast mind uses introspection and self observation to lead to self transformation in this type of meditation. The focus is on attaining clarity and lucidity of the mind; which helps the mind see and perceive more clearly.
Rather than the release of past trauma this meditation seeks to comprehend the real nature of human suffering. The impermanence of things and the achievement of wisdom are the ultimate aims of this meditation.
The different forms of meditation can all have beneficial impacts of helping to lower stress and help enhance mental and hence physical health.