Runny nose.

Introduction:

During the summer holidays we used to always be in the village pond with our heads full of oil. As a result of this, we used to constantly have a runny nose. Grandma had many remedies for this and we never used to go the physician and take antibiotics or cold medications.

Some of grandma’s remedies were:

Rocksalt

To treat cold, she used to make a paste of ginger, clove, rock salt and honey. She used to give us about half spoon of this home remedy for cold two times in a day to treat and cure cold.

Sometimes she used to put few drops of almond oil in our nostrils and it used to work wonders…

Sometimes grandma used to treat nose blockage by giving us steam with few drops of eucalyptus oil.

She used to increase our intake of fruits and food rich in Vitamin C.  She used to insist that we eat more of. oranges, amla, grapes, sweet lime to help  protect and prevent cold.

For adults who had a runny nose, grandma would make ginger tea by boiling ginger into water before boiling tea leaves to get good results to treat cold.

She also made delectable balls of jiggery mixed with ginger and roasted sesame seeds. This was a great remedy to open up chocked sinuses.

Personally she used to take half a spoon of turmeric powder twice a day as a preventative home remedy for cold and flu.

She recommended that we start the day by drinking lukewarm water with honey and lemon juice to prevent colds.

I recall all our elders consuming  Betel leaves (Pan) juice. I now understand that it is a good way to treat cold and sneezing at home..

Honey bee sting.

Bee stings:

As children we used to throw stones on a bee hive and  we used to get bitten by the angry bees.

My grandmother’s home made remedy was very simple.

She used to take 1 teaspoonful of lime (sometimes more). She used to add a spoonful of tamarind paste to this mix and  vigorously stirred to form a paste. She then crushed garlic cloves and released its juices into this mix.  She finally added some honey to the mix.

Lavender oil

When we were out on picnic and she could not make her wonder mix. She rubber   lavender oil which, she always carried in her purse and applied it to the bee sting and the pain used to vanish soon.

Another interesting tip I have heard from my elders to combat bee stings is to use tobacco.. If you have loose tobacco you can hold it with light pressure against the sting until the pain and swelling go down. If you do not have loose tobacco but have a cigarette, just simply break the cigarette open to remove the tobacco. This is a sure shot way of combating the ill effects of bee stings.

Stomach upsets.

Introduction:

As children, we used to love visiting grandma in our summer holidays. All of us cousins created havoc at our ancestral home in the southern state of Kerala, India.

We used to get small injuries, stomach upsets and diarrhea from over eating and my wonderful grandma had a home remedy for all these small ailments.

Grandma’s concoction for stomach pain due to indigestion and over eating:

Mint leaves

Grandma used to a small bunch of crushed fresh mint leaves and put it into 1 cup boiling water.

Cinnamon

Then she used to add a teaspoonful of cinnamon powder to the mix.

Ginger

Then she used to grate half a spoon of ginger into this mix

Cumin seeds         Fennel seeds

Then she used to add half a spoonful of cumin seed powder, fennel seed powder and asafetida each.

Mango leaves

To this mix she used to add two teaspoonfuls of mango leaves which were previously dried and powdered.

Finally when the mix was brought to a boil over a small flame. She used to cool this mixture and add some honey to taste. She then strained this mix and allowed it to cool.

One glassful of this wonderful mixture worked wonders for any stomach pain or indigestion brought about due to a gastronomic extravaganza.

Introduction:

 A new term eggetarian has been coined for vegetarians who eat eggs. It is a very common misconception that eggs are vegetarian sources of protein. It is often impossible to make people believe that an egg has a potential life and it has an unborn chick within its shell.

 Just look at these facts before consuming eggs:

 The hen’s egg is an important link in its reproductive system. Its internal structure is clearly meant for the propagation of its species and not meant for human consumption.

By eating eggs, we are certainly meddling with nature. Contrary to popular beliefs, the poultry industry breeds violence. The hens in any poultry are treated as egg-producing machines.  They are confined to a narrow space called as chicken havens.  Due to the shortage of space, the chickens become violent, obsessive and quarrelsome. They attack each other in a barbarous manner. To prevent them from hurting themselves and other chickens are de-beaked.

 In addition, hens are fed with bone meals, blood meals, excreta food, meat and fish. The egg is produced without any contact with the male bird and thus it is infertile but it is also animate because it is born out of the hen’s body with its blood and cells.  Therefore, its consumption is 100% non-vegetarian. 

 A hen can lay an infertile egg, before the day of contact with the male and also the next day.  According to the famous American scientist Mr. Philip J. Scamble, no egg is without life in it.  The scientists at Michigan University in America have proven it beyond doubt that no egg – fertile or infertile – is without life (inanimate). 

 Victoria Moran, the author of the book Compassion: The Ultimate Ethics says, to eat fertilized egg is in fact to consume a chicken before its birth.

 Dangers of eating an egg:

 Infectious diseases.  Whether the egg is fertile or infertile, life is essentially there; and it has all the symptoms of life, such as respiration, brain, feeding ability, etc.  There are 15,000 porous-breathing holes on the shell, the cover of the egg, where there is an exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. When the egg is spoiled, there can be a transmission of infectious diseases.

 High cholesterol.  The yolk of the egg contains 250 to 300 mgs cholesterol, a waxy fat, which deposits itself in the liver and hardens the arteries. The coronary arteries supplying blood to the heart are thus affected, causing fatal heart- attacks, strokes, and gallstones.

 Other diseases.
Since egg has no fiber in it can lead to diseases such as; chronic constipation, piles, gall-bladder-stones, colon cancer, indigestion, ulcer, colitis, kidney -failure, and diverticulosis.

Dangers of egg white.

 Egg white contains “Avidin” – a poison that can cause Leprosy, eczema, skin inflammation, skin cancer and allergies.

 Other infectious diseases.  Egg ingestion can cause Typhoid, Listeria infections and even the dreaded Creutzfeldt Jacob’s disease or the Human variant of the Mad Cow Disease.

Nutritional value of the egg is questionable:

Eggs contain saturated fatty acids, which are dangerous to health.  Eggs also lack in vitamin B complex, vitamin C, calcium and carbohydrate and produce hyperacidity. Eggs are not easily digestible in human beings and should not be give to young children.

Conclusion: 

 It is impossible to sow eggs and produce a plant of eggs or hens. So to call egg a vegetarian food is a myth.

Reference:

 www.medicalnewstoday.com.

 www.sciencedaily.com.

 www.inspection.gc.ca.

BACILLINUM.

This is a Nosode and it is made from the maceration of a typical tubercular lung.

It has been employed successfully in the treatment of tuberculosis.

It has been found particularly useful in many chronic non-tubercular diseases too, like many non-tubercular respiratory ailments.

 Bacillinum is indicated for the lungs of old people with chronic catarrhal condition of an enfeebled pulmonary circulation.

 It is also useful in removing tartar from the teeth.

The skin symptoms for this remedy are useful is for ringworm, eczema of eyelids.

It is also useful in enlarged glands in the neck that are tender.

TIPS FROM THE MASTERS…

 In children who look old, dwarfed and wrinkled, also with a tuberculous heredity, SYPHILINUM AND BACILLINUM given in turn, will work wonders.

                                                                    Dr. Noel. Pudephatt.

 I have often used BACILLINUM in grippy colds or in bronchitis where a cough has persisted despite the usual treatment.  It is astonishing sometimes to note how promptly a dose of BACILLINUM will stop such a cough.

BACILLINUM has proved to be one of the best remedies in asthma where there may not be a history of tuberculosis.  It is especially useful when there is a very bad chronic cough accompanying and many calcified nodes are seen throughout the chest in the X-rays.

                                                                   Dr. Wilbur. K. Bond, M.D.

I find Bacillinum very useful in children with bronchitis and constant colds with a family history of Tuberculosis.

AURUM METALLICUM.

IT IS A USEFUL REMEDY WHEN SADNESS IS ASSOCIATED WITH A DISPOSITION TO SUICIDE.

 This remedy is derived from gold and it was Dr. Hahnemann who proved it.

 This remedy is useful in hopelessly despondent persons with a great desire to commit suicide.

 This remedy is useful in sleepless patients who sob aloud in their sleep and have frightful dreams.

 This remedy also suits young boys, who are lifeless, low-spirited with weak memories and who do not have the self-confidence.

It is useful in dissolving the exostosis of bones.

 It is useful in curing heart ailments like Angina associated with palpitations.

 It is also useful in Atherosclerosis with Hypertension.

This remedy is useful when the nose is obstructed, ulcerated, painful and swollen with a horrible odor of the nose and the mouth.

This remedy suits persons who are worse in the cold weather and who have complaints that come on after coming in contact with cold water.  This remedy also suits persons who are worse between sun set to sunlight.

 TIPS FROM THE MASTERS…

AURUM METALLICUM is useful in pre-cancerous conditions of the cervix that are associated with profuse leucorrhoea.

Dr. Burnett, M.D.

AURUM MET is useful in preventing recurring attacks of Angina Pectoris.

Dr. Leon. Vannier.

One remedy we need much more often than we think in our cases is AURUM METALLICUM, which is always needed when there is hypertension when persons are easily made angry. It is not necessary for them to have an aversion to life. Just being angry is enough.  Here, AURUM is very often indicated. This anger comes from a defective liver that accompanies such heart diseases.

 Dr. F. K. Bellokossy, M.D.

I have cured more cases of Ozaena with AURUM METALLICUM from the 1^st to 12^th dilution than with any other remedy.

Dr. Foubister, M.B., Ch.B, D.C.H. 

AURUM METALLICUM 200 – 10M is a pathological remedy for undescended testicle, providing the testicle is not ectopic.

Dr. Foubister, M.B., Ch.B., D.C.H.

 AURUM METALLICUM is an excellent remedy in arteriosclerosis in which there is an element of vasomotor constriction.

Dr. Hale, M.D.

ARUM TRIPHYLLUM.

THIS IS A USEFUL REMEDY FOR SINGERS WITH HOARSE VOICE. WHICH IS UNCERTAIN AND UNCONTROLLABLE.

This remedy is derived from the Indian turnip and belongs to the mustard family.

ACRIDITY is the keynote of the action of this remedy.

This remedy is useful whenever the child bores its head on the pillow during a headache.

 This remedy is useful in soreness of the nostrils, with an ACRID, EXCORIATING DISCHARGE, producing raw sores. The nose is obstructed and the patient is forced to breathe through the mouth.

 It is also useful whenever the nose is completely stopped up with a fluent acrid discharge.  This remedy is useful in Hay fever. 

 This remedy is useful when the patient picks his nose constantly till it bleeds.

 This remedy is useful when there is a raw feeling at the roof and the palate. The corners of the mouth are sore and cracked. The tongue is red and sore and the whole mouth is raw.

 The remedy is useful when the saliva is profuse and acrid and corroding.

 This remedy is useful whenever there is a swelling of the sub-maxillary glands and throat feels raw and burns and the lungs feel sore.  This remedy is useful in clergyman’s throat, when the voice is uncertain and uncontrollable.

 This remedy suits persons who are worse talking and singing.

 This remedy is also useful Typhoid fever or any other ailment associated with the constant picking of the nose.

 This remedy was found to be useful for Diphtheritic paralysis of the palate, a condition we do not see any more because of the Expanded program of Immunization.

 It is a useful remedy in children who refuse food and drink because of the soreness of the mouth and the throat.

 This remedy is also said to be useful in Acute Renal failure caused by Septic states.

 This remedy is useful in eczema of the scalp in children suffering from catarrhal affections of the eyes, nose and the throat.

 This is a terrific remedy in cases of nasal catarrh with an acrid nasal discharge with a sore throat.  I have also found it useful in laryngitis, where the patients lose their voice after expose to cold winds, speaking continuously and this remedy acts best in winter.

 Introduction:

 The Hippie generation of the 1960’s and 1970’s exposed America to Marijuana in a big way.

 History of Marijuana:

 The term “marijuana” is a word, which is derived from the Mexican words for “Mary Jane”; others hold that “marijuana” comes from. The Portuguese word marigu-ano, which means “intoxicant” (Geller and Boas, 1969: 14).  The plant has been grown for fiber and as a source of medicine for several thousand years, but until 500 A.D. its use as a mind-altering drug was almost solely confined in India. The drug and its uses reached the Middle and Near East during the next several centuries, and then moved across North Africa, appeared in Latin America and the Caribbean, and finally entered the United States in the early decades of this century (Snyder, 1970: 129). Meanwhile it had been introduced into European medicine shortly after the invasion of Egypt by Napoleon and had a minor vogue as an intoxicant for a time in France.
  

Consider these Marijuana Statistics.

• Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States.
• The percentage of youth aged 12–17 indicating a great risk of smoking marijuana once a month remains at around 38%.

• Marijuana contains more than 400 chemicals, including most of the harmful substances found in tobacco smoke. Smoking one marijuana cigarette deposits about four times more tar into the lungs than a filtered tobacco cigarette.

• Harvard University researchers report the risk of a heart attack is five times higher than usual in the hour after smoking marijuana.

• The risk of using cocaine is estimated to be more than 104 times greater for those who have tried marijuana than for those who have never tried it.

• Smoking marijuana can injure or destroy lung tissue. In fact, marijuana smoke contains 50–70% more cancer causing chemicals than tobacco smoke.

• Reaction time for motor skills, such as driving, is reduced by 41% after smoking one joint and is reduced 63% after smoking two joints.

• There have been over 7,000 published scientific and medical studies documenting the damage that marijuana poses. Not one study has shown marijuana to be safe.

Medicinal uses of Marijuana:

Marijuana has been a main ingredient in natural remedies for thousands of years in China from as early as 3000 B.C.  It has found medical uses in diseases such as; easing the pain of childbirth, relieving asthma, epilepsy, improving appetite and disposition.  It has also been used to treat sciatica to insomnia.

 In recent years, researchers have tried marijuana for headaches, menstrual cramps and more recently for glaucoma, ‘wasting syndrome in AIDS’, multiple sclerosis and treating pain in the terminal stages of cancer. It may be used in certain medical conditions such as:

  used in the following conditions: 

• Muscle spasms caused by multiple sclerosis
• Nausea from cancer chemotherapy
• Poor appetite and weight loss caused by chronic illness, such as HIV, or nerve pain
• Seizure disorders
• Crohn’s disease

How does marijuana produce therapeutic effects?

 It is very difficult to understand how marijuana confers medical benefits.  It has over 400 compounds.  Your body already makes marijuana-like chemicals that affect pain, inflammation, and many other processes. Marijuana can sometimes help those natural chemicals work better,

However, it is seen that marijuana has the ability to improve the appetite, reduce nausea and vomiting and prevent muscle spasms.  The US FDA in 1985 approved a synthetic version of marijuana called as Dronabinol (trade name – Marinol) for nausea due to cancer chemotherapy.

Marijuana is unique because it can be absorbed by inhalation for all those patients with severe nausea.  Research is being done to deliver marijuana in the form of vaporizers.

 How Is It Used?

Medical marijuana may be:

• Smoked
• Vaporized (heated until active ingredients are released, but no smoke is formed)
• Eaten (usually in the form of cookies or candy)
• Taken as a liquid extract 

Side Effects:

Side effects of marijuana that usually don’t last long can include:

• Dizziness
• Drowsiness
• Short-term memory loss
• Euphoria

More serious side effects include severe anxiety and psychosis

 Dangers of using marijuana as a medication:

 It will be easily available to drug abusers.

It has a potential to impair the function of the immune system in severely ill patients.

It can damage the lung and has cancer-causing chemicals found in tobacco

It can create drowsiness and muddle the thinking

It can speed up the heart rate.

Conclusion:

 It is not possible to predict if marijuana will get the medical nod as a medication. There is a lot of skepticism about the therapeutic benefits of this drug versus the dangers. Perhaps, many synthetic compounds will evolve from marijuana and might be found useful for migraines to wasting syndrome of AIDS.

Despite the strict federal laws, marijuana or pot is illegally available in the streets and despite stringent DEA laws, millions of Americans can still get it illegally from the street.

References:

 www.medicalmarijuanaprocon.org.

 www.gdcada.org/statistics/marijuana.htm

 www.alcohol-and-drug-guide.com.

 www.webmd.com.

ARSENICUM ALBUM.

This remedy is derived from Arsenious Oxide and it was Dr. Hahnemann who proved it.

It is a profoundly acting remedy on every tissue and organ.

 It suits persons who are extremely fastidious, critical and tidy.  Such patients are also anxious and become vexed very easily.

 It is useful whenever there is debility, exhaustion and restlessness with nightly aggravation.

 It is useful in burning pains.

 It is a useful whenever there is thirst for small sips of water.

 It is useful for injurious effects of fruits, especially the succulent ones.

 It is a great remedy that gives quiet and eases in the last moments of life.

 This remedy is useful when the patient has great anguish and restlessness, with fear of death, suicidal tendency and a despair that drives him from place to place.

 This remedy is useful in burning in eyes with acrid lachrymation with intense photophobia and corneal ulceration.

 This remedy is useful when there is a thin watery excoriation with discharge and the nose feels stopped up.

This remedy is useful whenever there is great thirst for small quantities of water, with nausea and vomiting after eating and drinking and the patient craves for acids and coffee. It is also useful whenever there is heartburn and dyspepsia with vinegar, ice cream, ice water and tobacco.

It suits persons who are allergic to ice cream, fruits, meat, fish and cheese.

 This remedy is useful in painful spasmodic protrusion of the rectum, tenesmus, burning pain and pressure in the rectum with small and offensive stools with great prostration. This remedy is also useful in dysentery and cholera.

 It is useful whenever the urine is scanty, burning and involuntary.  It is also useful in albuminuria. It is considered to be a useful remedy in Acute Nephritis.

Herpes Zoster.

 This remedy is useful whenever there is itching of the skin with burning, swelling, edema and eruptions, which are dry and scaly.  This remedy is also useful in Urticaria and in Psoriasis.  It is also useful in Herpes Zoster, where there is burning, shooting pain, with  black color exudates.

 This remedy is a good sleep inducer and can be giving when the sleep is anxious and restless.

 It is useful to break up fevers with a periodicity and marked exhaustion.

 This remedy suits persons, who are worse in wet weather, after midnight, from the cold weather, from cold drinks; seashore and all complaints have a preponderance to be on the right side.

 This remedy suits persons who are better from the heat, elevation of the head and warm drinks.

 TIPS FROM THE MASTERS…

 ARSENICUM is the most trusted remedy in collapse in Cholera.

Dr. Hughes, L.R.C.P.

 In various advanced septic cases with persistent vomiting (and possibly diarrhea) ARSENIC ALBUM possesses considerable virtue, I have known it to work almost miraculously in several desperate cases of this kind.

Dr. H. L. Northrop, M.D. F.A.C.S.

 Use ARSENIC ALBUM in high potency to relieve the mental distress of dying.

Dr. R.A.F. Jack.

ARSENICUM ALBUM is very valuable for the weak heart, which is irritable, rapid action on slightest provocation.

Dr. Allen, M.D.

 ARSENICUM is our most important diuretic suitable for all forms of dropsy, more particularly in dropsy depending upon heart disease and edema of the lungs.

Dr. Bahr.

When the Peptic ulcer is at the pyloric end: ARSENICUM should be considered.

Dr. Pope.

 Diarrhea after ice cream points to ARSENICUM.

Dr. Dorothy Shepherd.

In asthma, the more the patient seems on the point of suffocation, the more painful and distressing his restlessness, the more wheezing and louder his respiration, the more ARSENIC will be found appropriate.

Dr. Boehr.

 ARSENICUM ALBUM is very efficacious in the 30^th potency every half hour for 4 to 6 doses for the usual colds due to change of temperature.

Dr. Blakey.

 ARSENIC will establish more than any other remedy in the stage of effusion.

Dr. Mitchell.

 ARSENIC ALBUM is an excellent remedy for the treatment of Idiopathic neuralgia, which occurs as a result of Malaria or Influenza, more frequently as a symptom of pure debility.

Dr. Hughes, L.R.C.P.

In simple uncomplicated cases of Cholera, ARSENIC is only by far the best remedy.

Dr. Ringer.

Hay Fever

As a prophylactic, ARSENIC OR ALLIUM CEPA may be given for sometime before the expected time for the HAY FEVER.

Dr. Custis, M.D.

According to me, ARSENIC is proved specific to counteract the effect of PENICILLIN.

Dr. M.B. Desai.

ARSENICUM ALBUM antidotes the evil effects and distressing symptoms that follow the Yellow fever shots.

Dr. Grimmer, M.D.

I have relied upon ARSENIC ALBUM almost exclusively in the treatment of typhoid in hospitals.

Dr. Fleishmann.

 ARSENIC seems especially adapted to loss of vision dependent upon the use of tobacco, and has proven clinically to be the first value in Retro-bulbar neuritis.

Dr. Norton. M.D.

In Pellagra the most efficient remedy is ARSENICUM ALBUM in low potency.

Dr. Hunder B. Stiles, M.D.

ARSENICUM ALBUM is of great service in Epithelioma of the nose and the lips.

Dr.Kent. M.D.

ARSENICUM is an excellent remedy for baldness, if the hair falls out in consequence of an impoverished condition of the follicles, the scalp and the skin generally are dry, and the patient’s assimilative powers are impaired.

Dr. Charles Hempel.

Even in the most hopeless cases of extensive inoperable malignant disease, where morphia would seem to be indicated, small doses of ARSENICUM or some other indicated remedy would abolish the pain.

Dr. Kent. M.D.

I find this remedy extremely useful in fastidious and critical persons, who are easily vexed. It is useful in certain anxious patients with acidity and surprisingly in those patients, whose asthma gets worse at midnight.  It is said to be useful in cholera.  But, I have not tried it in such cases.  It is also useful in chronic bronchitis. I also find it useful in acute nephritis.  Of course, I have used it with supportive Allopathic care.

Introduction:

All of us desperately want to make a good impression. It is said that the FIRST IMPRESSION IS OFTEN THE BEST IMPRESSION. This is especially true in a financial deal, a social call, and maybe in a marriage proposal.

When asked what they first noticed about their life partners, more often than not, friends have replied “their teeth.”  A white smile is an important part of that all-important first impression, and because of that, here are some tips for getting that gorgeous, bright smile.

When it comes to whitening the teeth, many people swear by their dentist. While it’s true that many dentists nowadays perform whitening and other cosmetic procedures, and can do them in under an hour, the truth is that this can cost you hundreds of dollars for just one appointment. A much smarter option would be to go with a good at-home teeth-whitening kit.

Some homemade inexpensive ways of whitening your teeth:

1) Lemon Juice.

 Brushing teeth with lemon juice, or rubbing the peel across the teeth, is one of the most frequently mentioned ways to whiten teeth naturally. Unfortunately, it is also one of the worst.

 The way lemon juice works is by robbing your tooth enamel of calcium from the citric acid in the juice. This may lead to tooth decay without the right amount of calcium. Lemon juice can also strip away the tooth enamel until it is damaged beyond repair.

 Lemon juice for teeth whitening…not a good idea.

 2) Strawberries

 Another homemade remedy involves mashing strawberries into a pasty pulp and brushing your teeth with them. This tastes nice, but may be almost as harmful as lemon juice for the same reasons.

 Strawberries also contain acid, and the seeds can damage your gums or even your teeth if you brush too hard. If you do chose to use strawberries for teeth whitening, be sure to brush your teeth or rinse your mouth shortly afterwards.

 3) Crunchy Vegetables

 Vegetables such as celery, carrots, broccoli, and cucumbers are naturally abrasive and act like little toothbrushes that scrub away stains.

 4) Wood Ash (Lye)

 The potassium hydroxide found in hardwood ash is a bleaching agent and will whiten teeth. A popular home remedy is brushing with the wood ash on a regular basis. Potassium will harm the enamel in your teeth over time and it is best to stay away from this one.

 5) Baking Soda

 The process of brushing teeth with a baking soda and salt mixture has been around for a long time, and for good reason. It can actually be effective in removing stains, especially with the help of peroxide. Baking soda will also help to kill bacteria, which causes plaque, and reduce acids, which can harm tooth enamel.

 Baking soda is safe to use and easily obtained. If you do use a baking soda mixture, brush gently around your gums so you don’t irritate them.

6) Hydrogen Peroxide

 Gargling with peroxide is said to whiten teeth. The popular peroxide remedy has you brush your teeth normally, swish peroxide around your teeth, and then rinse with water. This is safe, however it may irritate the gums and cause tooth sensitivity over time.

 7) Baking Soda & Peroxide Combined

 This may be one of the best home remedies for teeth whitening and regular tooth maintenance.

 8) Homemade toothpaste:

 One of the better home recipes for whiter teeth is a paste consisting of baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, table salt and a dab of toothpaste. Mix it all together and brush away stains.

 The secret to this inexpensive home whitening method is malic acid, which acts as an astringent to remove surface discoloration.

  Ayurveda and teeth whitening

 Useful Herbs for Whitening of Teeth

 1. Babul (Acacia arabica)

The importance of babul in whitening of teeth cannot be expressed in words. It is so much important in Ayurveda for this purpose that the ancient Indians used nothing but the twigs of the babul (the other tree used for this is neem) as disposable toothbrushes. The tannin present in babul is effective in increasing the whiteness of teeth.

 2. Banyan (Ficus religiosa)

The aerial roots of the banyan can also be used as disposable toothbrushes. The banyan roots have astringent properties, which not only make the teeth whiter, but also make the teeth and gums healthier.

 3. Holy Basil (Ocimum sanctum)

The leaves of the holy basil are dried in the sun and powdered and used for brushing teeth. The leaves help in maintaining dental hygiene and make the teeth whiter. Apart from the whitening properties, holy basil is also used for protection from problems such as pyorrhea (i.e. bleeding of gums).

 4. Margosa (Azadirachtha indica)

The neem tree, or the margosa, is a traditional remedy for having white healthy teeth. Several Indians even today as toothbrushes use neem twigs. Neem oils contain astringent and antiseptic properties to fight bad breath, kill microorganisms accumulated on the teeth and to combat dental caries and cavities.

 If you want white teeth then you must:

• In order to keep the teeth clean and white, pungent, bitter and astringent foods must be included in the daily diet. These tastes have an astringent effect on the teeth, which helps to maintain them clean.
• Sugary foods in any form are bad for the teeth.
• Chocolates are also not good.
• Avoid excess tea and coffee. These beverages contain strong alkaloids, which can stain the teeth.
• Avoid smoking. Almost every person who smokes will lose the white coloration of the teeth.
• Chewing of the paan (betel leaf), as is done in several Indian regions, is also disastrous to the whiteness of the teeth. This habit can stain the teeth cream, yellow or even a dirty shade of rust brown.

 Simple Home Remedies for Whitening of Teeth

 v  For teeth that have lost their white color, prepare a mixture of charcoal of babul wood, roasted alum and some rock salt. Rub this on the teeth instead of using the conventional toothpaste. You will have white and long-lasting healthy teeth.

v  You can try using sodium bicarbonate regularly each morning as a toothpowder instead of toothpaste. Sodium bicarbonate replenishes the lost mineral content of the teeth, which helps them to regain their whiteness.

v  Strawberries, tomatoes and amalaki contain good vitamin C content. These can be directly applied on the teeth. Vitamin C helps in removing the plaque on the teeth and makes them whiter.

v  Rub an orange peel on the teeth every night before going to sleep. The vitamin C of the orange peel will combat with the microorganisms all through the night.

v  Take adequate measures of dental hygiene. Brush your teeth after every meal, or at least in the morning and before going to bed. While brushing your teeth, take care to sweep out all the embedded food particles. This is the most natural way to keep your teeth white and healthy.

References:

 www.ayushveda.com

 www.makemyteethwhiter.com.