Lifestyle Choices

To counteract these toxic and harmful vibrations, introduce forms of radiant energy through light, air, aroma and sound.

Light

Pure sunlight has a very powerful cleaning action. The light rays purify and cleanse all natural objects as well as any dark spiritual forces. Curtains and blinds hold dust and dirt particles as well as block out a good deal of natural light, so if you want to thoroughlycleanse a room it is a good idea to start by taking these down. The extra natural sunlight which will enter the room through the larger window area, will help clean the room while the curtains are being washed. (more…)

Many disease processes involve inflammation, often characterised by swelling, redness, pain and heat.

These include all the `itis’ diseases — arthritis, dermatitis, colitis, nephritis and hepatitis, as well as asthma and others not often associated with inflammation, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s in which parts of the brain become inflamed. Inflammation also lies at the root of atherosclerosis, the common cause of thrombosis, heart attacks and strokes. In addition, it is an underlying cause of irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, now suffered by eight million people in Britain. (more…)

Baths have been taken since time immemorial to improve both health and looks. Continuing in this tradition, bath oils, in which essential oils are used, are the most popular of our preparations.

An aromatic bath is not only useful for the wonderful aroma it creates, but also for the numerous therapeutic properties in the various essential oils. (more…)

Essential oils are absorbed through the skin and penetrate its deepest layers. The main property of all essential oils is that they are highly antiseptic, though at different degrees, depending on the essence chosen. They help speed up the removal of old skin cells and thus encourage the production of new cells.

Essential oils help muscles to regain a healthy condition and aid the soft tissue to get rid of excess fluid and waste materials or, if required, to restore lost hydration. They also act as blood regulators, improving the blood circulation. With the help of pressure points on nerve centres, the essential oils help to regulate the nervous system, making it more alert to impulses and quicker to react. (more…)

Aromatherapy is the art of using essences of plants to treat the skin, the emotions, and the body as a whole. It is one of the most interesting areas of beauty care. For each plant essence has its own unique qualities, yet like a piece of music or a painting will evoke slightly different responses from different people depending on their personalities, needs, and tastes. Learning about aromatherapy, the essences themselves, and some of the things you can do with them is sheer delight. It is also a wonderful way of looking after your skin, calming your nerves when you are overwrought, and creating interesting atmospheres in your living and working environment. If I were allowed only one luxury I could easily dispense with makeup and trips to the hairdresser, but I would never want to be without the beauty of aromatherapy. Let’s start at the beginning. (more…)

It is a good idea to start with three or four essences and then experiment, each time adding more oils to your collection as you get to know them. Some of the best to start with are jasmine, sandalwood, geranium, neroli, lavender, and cinnamon.

Always keep your essences in a cool place (the refrigerator is ideal) in dark glass bottles. Essential oils are highly volatile and easily destroyed by heat and sunlight. They have to be treated like something very precious.

Here are some of the common uses of essential oils:

Skin

To improve circulation For broken veins

For oily skin (more…)

The Vitamins

Vitamin A applied to the surface of the skin either from a capsule on its own or mixed into cream and oil preparations has been used successfully in the treatment of dry and aging skin and acne. It appears to work particularly well in combination with vitamin D, which itself has a healing effect on the skin. (This is why vitamin D is often used in diaper-rash remedies and in burn ointments.)

Vitamin E, about which there has been such controversy, and vitamin C are certainly useful in the treatment of skin healing from a cut or burn. There is no conclusive evidence that, applied topically, it will do much for normal skin, although many women who use vitamin E regularly claim good results from it. (more…)

The Living Skin

Beneath the epidermis, in the dermis, or true skin (which unlike the epidermis is entirely a living thing), are found the nerves. They register pleasure and pain, touch, heat and cold. Here, too, is a rich supply of blood vessels and lymphatics plus all the various skin appendages: the hair follicles, with their sebaceous glands, and the sweat glands. Also important in the dermis is an elaborate network of fibers made by special cells called fibroblasts. These fibers look like the warp and woof of fine cloth. They are collectively known as connective tissues and are made up mostly of protein called collagen together with about 2 percent elastin. This network gives your skin its form and resilience. So long as it remains smooth and ordered, your skin stays young-looking and firm. When its fibers start to bunch up and harden or to cross-link and become disorganized, your skin rapidly begins to sag, to wrinkle, and to age. This aging process has many causes. It can occur as a result of exposure to the sun, internal wear and tear from illness, or an insufficiency of certain vitamins and minerals (particularly vitamin C and the trace element zinc), or exposure to cigarette smoke and pollution. It also appears to be part of your genetic programming. (more…)

Scientists have been working for generations trying to understand how our noses distinguish one smell from another, to find a classification for scents, and perhaps to develop some kind of notation system for their description. So far without much success. One of the most interesting theories about the sense of smell comes from J. E. Moore, a British chemist. He claims that there are seven primary odors, under which all smells can be classified. Each of these, he says, has a distinctive molecular shape, which the olfactory cells in our nose recognize and react to. And this reaction is not only chemical, as you might expect. According to Moore (and several American researchers agree with him) these special-shaped molecules slot into submicroscopic pores of differing sizes and shapes in the receptor cells. The researchers claim that any change in odor is the result of a change in the overall shape of the molecule. But just how a fragrance affects the nervous system and brings about many-layered emotional responses remains yet another unsolved mystery. (more…)

2 ID FAT AVOID BAD FATS

Some fats are essential to health, which is why we have an instinct to eat fat. The body’s ‘fat sensors’ are in your mouth - and we are instinctively drawn towards the creamy texture of fats, sauces, cheese and cream. That’s why fat-free diets are such a struggle for most of us. There are ‘good’ and ‘bad’ fats in food. Only when you eat the right kind of ‘good’ fats will your body stop craving that smooth, creamy texture.

GOOD FATS

The ‘good fats‘ are essential fats (listed on packets as polyunsaturates) found in seeds, grains and oily fish. They include the essential fatty acids (EFAs) such as omega-3 and omega-6. These fats are essential to health and can help you lose weight. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, your body actually craves essential fats. Secondly, they help your metabolism to work properly: they improve the effectiveness of the brain and the nervous system, they boost immunity, balance hormones and create healthy skin. (more…)

Bubble Bath Oil

This is a nourishing and softening oil and children love it.

250 ml (1 cup) good quality soap, grated

1 litre (4 cups) boiling water, into which 6 sprigs rosemary or lavender, approx 20 cm long, have been steeped for 15 minutes

25 ml (2 tbsp) witch-hazel

50 ml (4 tbsp) glycerine

12,5 ml (1 tbsp) wheatgerm oil

few drops lavender oil (more…)

Making soap from scratch is a complicated and time-consuming business, and for most people, whose lives are full and busy, far too involved and difficult — even dangerous if you are not an expert, as an alkaline can burn the skin as badly as acid. So leave soap-making to the experts and rather choose a plain soap which suits your skin and grate it. You can then add herbs, oatmeal, honey etc, using the recipes below as a guide. They are quick and easy to make and have been tested and proved suitable for most skin types. Experiment on your own (always test with care) for you will get infinite satisfaction and pleasure out of making your own beauty preparations.

Honey and Lemon Dry Skin Soap

This is a nourishing soap for dry skin, and is particularly good for legs and feet.

500 ml (2 cups) grated plain soap

125 ml (1/2 cup) honey

25 ml (2 tbsp) finely grated lemon skin or rind 12,5 ml (1 tbsp) lemon juice

5 ml (1 tsp) oil of lemon

Use the same method as for the Rich Moisturising Soap.

Soft Herb Soap

This is a jelly-like soap that should be kept in a jar beside the wash basin. I use it for washing my hands frequently and, as a potter, when my hands get very rough and sore it has been my salvation many a time. (more…)

The amount and kind of food you eat affects your health and well-being.

There are about forty-five to fifty nutrients in food that are believed to be essential for the body’s growth, maintenance, and repair. These are classified into six categories: carbohydrates (and fiber), fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and water. The first three provide energy, which is measured in calories.

The Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences National Research Council has established a recommended daily allowances (RDA) for each nutrient. To help assure that you select foods containing the essential elements, (more…)

How do you get the essential nutrients into your diet? Here are some super foods to eat that help maintain great health, increase immunity and make you feel good. They are packed with essential nutrients and powerful natural antioxidants, they taste delicious and add variety to your diet. They are some of our favourite foods, and we buy them regularly.

Fruits and vegetables

The best way to eat fruits and vegetables is straight from the tree or garden, when they haven’t lost any of their vitamins and minerals. This means that the produce is in season and you are obtaining the best nutrient value. Growers’ outlets or markets also supply good seasonal produce

There are endless ways to serve up your veges. We love leaving them raw and cutting them into small pieces to dip in hummus. Kids love this, too! Try different or unusual vegetables once in a while to add variety. When cooking vegetables, steaming is usually better than boiling, as it preserves more nutrients. For sauteing, use a little butter or olive oil. (more…)

It is an exciting time in the health and beauty industry. As awareness grows surrounding the skin and its impact on our health, we are seeing more responsible companies offering unsafe and very effective products. These companies are looking very seriously at the science of the skin and combining that with the best quality, natural plant-sourced ingredients. As this industry is constantly evolving we can look forward to the latest cutting-edge information on how to keep our skin at its optimum, while supporting our health and protecting the environment. (more…)

Despite what you may have read in advertising or seen at cosmetic counters, your skincare routine does not need to be complicated. You do not really need a different cream for each part of your face. Good nutrition from good ingredients will help your skin balance and thrive.

Your skin needs to be cleansed, nourished and protected. Sound simple? It is, and your routine should reflect that. This way you will become aware of how your skin functions and reacts to your lifestyle and environment, then you will know when you need to supplement with other products to bring about balance at various times. (more…)

Apart from helping in your daily skincare, natural ingredients can also help in healing specific skin problems you may have. Here is a list of helpful remedies for the whole family:

Acne

More than just a spot or blemish, acne is an inflammatory condition often brought about by a sensitivity to androgen (male) hormones in the body. In mild cases blackheads and blemishes are present and in more severe cases you find inflamed pustules and cysts. Acne sufferers often carry a higher bacterial content on their skin and experts suggest that it could be this bacteria and its reaction on sebum (oil) levels in the skin that are affected when you are under stress, as stress seems to be a contributing factor. (more…)

You may well be aware of the benefits of massage. Massage increases circulation, promotes sleep, reduces stress levels, increases muscle tone, promotes elimination of toxins and waste, supports weight loss, increases skin pliability and enhances well-being - to name but a few. Imagine if you could do this every day. Well, you can, and it only takes a few minutes every morning to do it.

How would you feel if we told you we both have a full body massage every day? Well, it’s true, and we have been having these massages every day for the past 14 years - not once have we missed a day! It is the ultimate skin treatment. We love it and cannot imagine life without it. Having a daily full body rub or massage is a great insurance policy for your overall health. The important thing to remember is to ensure the products you massage your body with are natural and full of essential vitamins and minerals. Also, it is important to make sure this is a good body rub, not some airy-fairy tickle! You want your body to wake up, feel alive and be ready to get into your day. You may have guessed by now that your daily body massage is performed by YOU!

A little note: how do you feel when you stand naked in front of a mirror? Are you horrified, pleased, shocked or rapt? If for some reason you cannot stand in front of the mirror every morning and say: ‘Wow - I look and feel great: then you definitely need to take on the daily body massage routine! (more…)