Tips To Repair Split Ends

cure-split-ends

Split ends means your hair is not getting enough nourishment and lacks moisture. Harsh shampoos, sun exposure , blow drying, straightening, dyes and bleaches dry out the hair and damages the amino acids in your hair. Dry and damaged hair breaks easily while styling or brushing. If you think your hair is not growing fast then split ends could be the possible reason.

Here are some easy tips to cure split ends:

Alcohol Free Shampoo :

Avoid using shampoos that contain alcohol as it dries out hair. Use shampoos that contain natural ingredients. Also, Excessive washing with harsh shampoos makes your hair ends dry. You should not shampoo more than 3 times a week. It is better to wash your hair every alternate day than everyday. ALso, do not use hot water to wash your hair.

Let It Dry Naturally :

Avoid heat as much as possible. Heat is the worst enemy for your hair but its hard to completely avoid hair dryers and flat iron. It is best to apply a heat resistant serum to your hair before using heat. Towel dry your hair before drying, this way you minimize the damage of heat on wet hair. Also, use flat irons and curlers occasionally instead of everyday.

Get a Trim:
The best solution for split ends is to get a trim. You get split ends when you dont trim your hair for a long time. Always trim your hair once every 6-8 weeks to get rid of dry & weak parks and promote hair growth.

Treatments:
There are many treatments available which repair hair damage and provide moisture and nourishment. They can seal the split ends but not completely cure them so its better to use them with regular trimming to keep off split ends and help prevent future damage. Use a deep conditioner twice a week after you shampoo your hair. There are many easy homemade treatments that you can do to repair split ends.

Here are some easy homemade treatments for split ends :

Egg Mask :
Mix egg yolk in 3 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp honey. Gently massage this mask in your hair and cover with a shower cap. Leave it on for half an hour and wash it with a mild shampoo.

Oil :
Message your scalp with oil. Oiling regularly can restore moisture of your hair. Use olive oil, almond oil, coconut oil or a combination of these oils. Apply oil on your hair and message gently. Leave it on for about an hour then wash with shampoo.

Papaya Mask :
Papaya is rich in proteins which your hair needs in order to maintain its shine, moisture and growth. Mash 2 medium slices of papaya with a fork or in a blender. Mix 2 tbsp yogurt in it, apply it your scalp and hair.Cover your hair with a shower cap to lock the moisture. Leave it on for 30 minutes then wash with shampoo.

Honey rinse :
Another easy homemade conditioner for hair is honey. Mix 2 tbsp honey in 4 cups warm water and apply it to your hair after you shampoo/ condition your hair. Leave it in your hair. It will control hair dryness/frizz.

Source: 7beauty tips

 

Bone marrow stem cells show promise in stroke treatment, UCI team finds

bone-marrow-stem-cells-stroke-public

Stem cells culled from bone marrow may prove beneficial in stroke recovery, scientists at UC Irvine’s Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center have learned.

In an analysis of published research, neurologist Dr. Steven Cramer and biomedical engineer Weian Zhao identified 46 studies that examined the use of mesenchymal stromal cells – a type of multipotent adult stem cells mostly processed from bone marrow – in animal models of stroke. They found MSCs to be significantly better than control therapy in 44 of the studies.

Importantly, the effects of these cells on functional recovery were robust regardless of the dosage, the time the MSCs were administered relative to stroke onset or the method of administration. (The cells helped even if given a month after the event and whether introduced directly into the brain or injected via a blood vessel.)

“Stroke remains a major cause of disability, and we are encouraged that the preclinical evidence shows [MSCs’] efficacy with ischemic stroke,” said Cramer, a professor of neurology and leading stroke expert. “MSCs are of particular interest because they come from bone marrow, which is readily available, and are relatively easy to culture. In addition, they already have demonstrated value when used to treat other human diseases.”

He noted that MSCs do not differentiate into neural cells. Normally, they transform into a variety of cell types, such as bone, cartilage and fat cells. “But they do their magic as an inducible pharmacy on wheels and as good immune system modulators, not as cells that directly replace lost brain parts,” he said.

In an earlier report focused on MSC mechanisms of action, Cramer and Zhao reviewed the means by which MSCs promote brain repair after stroke. The cells are attracted to injury sites and, in response to signals released by these damaged areas, begin releasing a wide range of molecules. In this way, MSCs orchestrate numerous activities: blood vessel creation to enhance circulation, protection of cells starting to die, growth of brain cells, etc. At the same time, when MSCs are able to reach the bloodstream, they settle in parts of the body that control the immune system and foster an environment more conducive to brain repair.

“We conclude that MSCs have consistently improved multiple outcome measures, with very large effect sizes, in a high number of animal studies and, therefore, that these findings should be the foundation of further studies on the use of MSCs in the treatment of ischemic stroke in humans,” said Cramer, who is also clinical director of the Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center.

The analysis appears in the April 8 issue of Neurology

Source: UCI rvine

5 ways to stop snoring

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There’s no miracle cure for snoring, but lifestyle changes may help.  As snoring can be related to lifestyle, there are some simple changes you can make to minimize it.

Snoring self-help tips:

Maintain a healthy diet and weight. Being overweight by just a few kilograms can lead to snoring. Fatty tissue around your neck squeezes the airway and prevents air from flowing in and out freely.
Try to sleep on your side rather than your back. While sleeping on your back, your tongue, chin and any excess fatty tissue under your chin will probably relax and squash your airway. Sleeping on your side prevents this.

Avoid alcohol before going to bed. Alcohol causes the muscles to relax more than usual during a normal night’s sleep. This added relaxation of the muscles makes the back of the throat collapse more readily, which then causes snoring.

Quit or cut down on smoking. Cigarette smoke irritates the lining of the nasal cavity and throat, causing swelling and catarrh. If the nasal passages become congested, it’s difficult to breathe through your nose because the airflow is decreased.

Keep your nasal passages clear so that you breathe in through your nose rather than your mouth. Try rubbing a few drops of eucalyptus or olbas oil onto your pillowcase. If an allergy is blocking your nose, try antihistamine tablets or a nasal spray. Ask your pharmacist for advice, and see your GP if you’re affected by an allergy or condition that affects your nose or breathing.

Source: NHS

 

Plugging leaky blood vessels to save vision

Red-Eye-1-200x300A new drug approach has been developed for safer clean-up of deformed blood vessels in the eye by a research team at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.

The growth of malformed blood vessels that can burst is a leading cause of vision loss in North America. Retinopathy and retina degeneration are associated with premature birth, with diabetes, and with increasing age.
Research just published by Dr. Andras Nagy and co-authors shows both safety and effectiveness in their bioengineered compound when treating retinopathy in mice. The therapeutic, which they called “Sticky-trap,” shuts down tiny deformed blood vessels in the eye without affecting healthy vessels in other sites of the body.

The research appears in EMBO Molecular Medicine, which published a separate editorial stating that the compound “holds great promise as a strategy that could be rapidly translated into clinical practice. […] We expect that Sticky-trap and future related molecules will have significant impact on the field of tumour biology in local control of recurrent disease. […]”

Dr. Nagy is a Senior Investigator at the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum and holds a Canada Research Chair in Stem Cells and Regeneration. He is a Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynacology at University of Toronto and an Investigator at the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine. Co-authors include colleagues from University of California Los Angeles, The Scripps Research Institute (La Jolla CA), University of Toronto, and the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum.

Selective action is key to safety
Like some other treatments for retinopathy, Sticky-trap is injected into the eye. The potential game-changer is Sticky-trap’s safety profile. It is stable and long-lasting once in the eye. If the compound gets into the circulation, it quickly inactivates — ensuring that it does not affect other blood vessels, tissues, and organs.
A problem in this research arena — called antiangiogenesis — has been finding a compound that is selective, closing off abnormal blood vessels only in the diseased organ while leaving all others intact. “That’s difficult, and it’s what makes this research high-risk as well as high-impact,” Dr. Nagy says.

Type 2 diabetes illustrates the challenge. “Patients with diabetic retinopathy are losing vision because blood vessels in their eyes overgrow, become deformed and burst, often tearing the retina in the process. Drugs that suppress the excess vessel formation in the eye could negatively affect healthy organs if they escape into the blood, causing kidney function problems, poor wound healing, and hypertension,” Dr. Nagy adds. These side effects are serious health threats that the Sticky-trap approach can avoid.

Advanced bioengineering
Over the nine years it took to bring the project to fruition, Dr. Nagy’s team used cutting-edge genetic and pharmacological techniques to engineer the new two-step biologics. Sticky-trap includes a binding component that attaches to the surface of cells, ensuring that it remains in place and is stable, as well as the biologically active component. “That’s important when a treatment involves injection directly into a diseased tissue,” says first author Dr. Iacovos Michael, a post-doctoral fellow in the Nagy lab.

“The longer-acting it is, the fewer injections a patient will need.” He adds that the project “is just the beginning for the establishment of a new class of pharmacological entity, ‘sticky’ biologics, characterized by localized, targeted activity. The same principle could be used to develop similar local-acting biologics for other conditions such as inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.”
Dr. Nagy is renowned for his work in stem cells, blood vessel biology, and creating genetic tools in cancer cells, among other areas. His team is also working on applications of the two step Sticky-trap for solid tumours.

Upon publication on May 6, Sticky-trap became available to biotech and pharmaceutical companies to adapt and develop.
“The significant advance in this approach is its built-in precision guidance system,” says Dr. Jim Woodgett, Director of the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum. “Worldwide research efforts have developed powerful agents that can treat diseased tissues but if they cannot be steered to where they are needed, they can also cause collateral damage. The initial application to diabetic retinopathy shows proof-of-principle in a very important disease, but the approach can be adapted to other powerful drugs and diseases where localized activity is needed.”

Source: science daily

Indian-origin scientist makes leadless pacemaker

VIVEK REDDYThe world’s first leadless pacemaker, developed by an Indian-origin scientist Vivek Reddy, has shown promising results after one year of human trials on 32 patients who received the pacemaker.

“This is the first time we have seen one-year follow-up data for this innovative, wireless cardiac pacing technology. Our results show the leadless pacemaker is comparable to traditional pacemakers,” said Reddy, director of arrhythmia services at the Mount Sinai Hospital here.

The findings further support the promising performance and safety of this minimally-invasive, non-surgical pacing device.

The follow-up study evaluated 32 patients with a slowed heartbeat (bradycardia) who successfully received St. Jude Medical’s “Nanostim” leadless pacemaker at two hospitals in Prague and one in Amsterdam.

“There was no experience of infections or failure to sense, pace or communicate with the pacemaker,” Reddy noted.

The leadless cardiac pacemaker is placed directly inside a patient’s heart without surgery during a catheter-guided procedure through the groin via the femoral vein.

The device, resembling a tiny, silver tube and smaller than a triple-A battery, is only a few centimetres in length, making it less than 10 percent the size of a traditional pacemaker.

It works by closely monitoring the heart’s electrical rhythms and if the heart beat is too slow it provides electrical stimulation therapy to regulate it.

“More long-term follow-up of these ‘leadless’ study patients will further our understanding of the potential advantages, benefits, and complication risks of leadless pacemaker technology, along with additional ongoing, larger trials,” Reddy said.

leadless-pacemaker

More than four million patients globally have a pacemaker, and 700,000 new patients receive one each year.

Reddy presented the one-year ‘leadless’ study data findings at ‘Heart Rhythm 2014,’ the Heart Rhythm Society’s 35th annual scientific sessions in San Francisco city in the US May 9.

Source: Times of India

Healthy recipe: Oats upma

oats-upma-recipe

Oats may seem boring to eat due to its bland taste but by adding spices to it, one can make it not only more tasty but also more nutritious. What’s even better is that it makes for a healthy breakfast as well as a dinner option. This oats upma is low-fat, nutritious and delicious.

The main ingredient, oats, contains a legume-like protein, avenalin, known to be equivalent to soy protein. It is also rich in soluble fibre, vitamin E, fatty acids and antioxidants. It aids in weight loss, satiates hunger, cures constipation and has cholesterol-lowering properties. With so many health benefits, it makes for a wonderful nutritious meal which everyone should have, every week if not every day. Here’s the recipe.

Ingredients

Rolled oats – ¾ cup
Finely chopped onions – 1
Chopped, cooked carrots (optional) – 1
Cooked corn (optional) – ¼ cup
Chopped ginger – ½ inch
Chillies – 3
Water – 1 ¾ cups
Oil – 2 tsp
Salt to taste

For seasoning

Curry leaves
Mustard seeds
Cumin seeds
Roasted peanuts
Method

Step 1: Dry roast oats in a pan till their whiteness disappears and they turn golden brown. Take them out of the pan.

Step 2: Heat oil in the same pan. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves and green chillies.

Step 3: Add onion and sauté till it turns golden brown, and then add ginger and sauté again.

Step 4: Add water, salt and cooked veggies. Cover the pan with a lid, and bring water to boil.

Step 5: Add oats and mix well. Lower the flame and simmer till the water is absorbed.

Step 6: Add roasted peanuts and mix.

Plate it, and relish for breakfast or dinner.

Source: The health site

One bottle wine a day keeps the doctor away!

bottle-wine

Scientists have revealed that a bottle of wine a day is not bad for the health and abstaining is worse than drinking.
Former World Health Organisation expert has claimed that alcohol is only harmful when it is consumed 13 units in a day, the Independent reported.

Kari Poikolainen, who has analysed decades of research into the effects of alcohol on the human body, revealed that drinking more than the current recommended daily intake may in fact be healthier than being a teetotaler.

Poikolainen added that the weight of the evidence shows moderate drinking is better than abstaining and heavy drinking is worse than abstaining, but moderate amounts can be higher than the guidelines say

Source: Yahoo news

 

7 herbal alternatives to cosmetics

natural-cosmetics

Lip gloss, body lotion, shampoo… the list goes on! Most women use various cosmetic products every day to prep their skin. But are these chemical laden tubes good for our skin and hair in the long run? Nature has provided several products that have the ability to improve the condition of our skin and hair in a totally safe manner, free of chemicals. Here are a few natural alternatives to everyday cosmetics which will help you make the switch.

Coconut oil – Body lotion and anti-dandruff agent

With its composition of medium chain fatty acids, coconut oil is extremely effective at keeping skin healthy and free from dryness and wrinkles. Use it alone or in combination with some other oil or herb, for your skin or also hair – coconut oil works equally well. Because of its ability to penetrate deep into the hair shaft and also the skin, this oil acts from deep within to ensure conditioning and moisturising effects that last for long. Coconut oil is also a source of antioxidants such as vitamin E and so, using it regularly can also help prevent those wrinkles that appear on the skin with ageing.

Henna – Hair dye

Hair dyes work their magic instantly and this is what makes it tempting to reach out for one when you need to hide your greys and look your best. But most synthetic hair dye products contain chemicals called secondary amines or tar derivatives that have been linked to cancer. Switch over to a natural hair dye used since times immemorial – henna. Combine with sesame oil and curry leaves, or mix with beetroot juice, or add into a mix of curd, lemon juice and tea – whatever the shade you desire, henna can help you get it and in the process, also keep your body cool.

Turmeric (haldi) and fruits – Rejuvenating face pack

If you don’t have the time or motivation to head to a beauty parlour, the easiest way to get glowing skin on-the-go is to use a face pack. However, a commercial face pack is quite likely to contain chemicals – preservatives at the very least – that may not be good for you in the long run. Instead, make use of simple ingredients in your kitchen to rejuvenate your skin and give it a soft glow. Mix in some turmeric powder with a little curd and apply on your face. Or, mash ripe papaya fruit into a rough pulp and apply – this will also help reduce the appearance of black spots on the skin.

Aloe vera – Dry skin moisturiser

Moisturising creams for dry skin generally contain ingredients such as petrolatum that tend to be contaminated with harmful chemicals. Instead of taking the risk of these being absorbed into the body through the skin, opt for one of nature’s best skin moisturisers and softeners – aloe vera. Simply make a cut on the fleshy leaves of aloe vera plant, collect the gel that oozes out and apply to your skin.

Garlic and sandalwood (chandan) – Anti-acne effects

A natural powerhouse of antioxidants, garlic helps purify blood and this gives the skin a distinct glow. However, it can also be used directly on the skin for instantaneous relief from pimples. Just peel out the outer covering over garlic clove and rub the clove over the area where the pimple has sprouted. An alternative way to use garlic is to grind a few cloves and make into a paste using some curd; this face pack is effective in reducing acne.

Sandalwood is another excellent alternative to anti-acne creams and also has a moisturising effect. Mix a few drops of sandalwood oil with almond oil and massage this into the skin. Or you can add a few drops of the oil into boiling water and inhale the steam.

Make a paste by using one cup of curd, half a teaspoon of turmeric, a pinch of sandalwood powder and one teaspoon of sugar. Massage the paste on your face with gentle circular movements, leave on for half a minute and then remove by rinsing the face with cool water and pat dry.

Soap nuts (reetha) and shikakai – Gentle cleansing shampoo

Shampoos available in the market make use of chemicals such as sodium lauryl sulfate to produce foam that can cleanse dirt and grease from hair. But along with this, they also remove all oil from the scalp that is so essential to nourish your hair. A natural alternative that avoids such damage is soapnut or reetha in combination with shikakai. Mix equal quantities of soap nut and shikakai powders and make into a paste with warm water; wash hair using this paste. If you find your hair feels a bit too dry with this 1:1 proportion, experiment with lesser quantity of soapnut powder.

Pomegranate seeds (anar ke dane) – Natural lip colour

Exposure to the sun, smoking, dehydration and too much caffeine can darken your lips. But dark lips may also be a result of using lipstick daily for a prolonged time. The chemicals in it can cause this and you’ll need more lipstick to hide the darkness… the cycle goes on! Break this cycle and get back the natural pink of your lips with a scrub made from pomegranate seeds. Crush pomegranate seeds and mix in some milk cream; apply to your lips every day and your lips will be naturally red and full. You can also combine crushed pomegranate seeds with sugar and olive oil and use this paste to gently scrub your lips.

Whether it is a skin lightening cream, a hair dye, moisturiser, body lotion or any other cosmetic you need, there is a natural alternative available that is free from harmful chemicals, make use of them.

Source: the health site

Why you should stop using your phone in the bathroom

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You should probably stop bringing your phone into the bathroom with you, because there’s more growing on it than you think.

Anne Bialachowski, manager of infection control at St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton, was testing smartphones and tablets at St. Joseph’s on Monday as part of World Hand Hygiene Day, and found that some devices were more than just grimy.

Using an ATP test, which measures organic material that gets left behind on surfaces, Bialachowski found some phones and tablets had scads of things living on them — that organic material could be anything from fecal matter and E. coli, to the virus that causes the flu.

“It’s pathogens — so things that we worry about daily,” Bialachowski told CBC Hamilton. “And no, it’s probably not a good idea to take your phone into the bathroom with you.”

A clean reading on the ATP test is a score of 30, but some of the devices swabbed at St. Joseph’s had readings of over 100 — one person’s cellphone even had a reading of 400.

It’s hard to say exactly what part the rise of hand-held devices has played in the spread of pathogens, as few studies have been conducted on the issue, Bialachowski says. But it has added a new level of concern at hospitals, she adds. “With every new example of technology, it adds a layer of intricacy to our work.”

According to a U.K.-wide study by scientists from the London School of Hygiene and Topical Medicine and Queen Mary University of London, one in six mobile phones in Britain was contaminated with E. coli bacteria. Fecal bacteria and viruses like the flu can survive on someone’s hands and on surfaces for hours at a pop, especially in warm temperatures away from sunlight.

Pathogens like C. difficile can even live on a device for days, Bialachowski says.

And if people really want to use their phone as a replacement for a magazine or bathroom reader, you should get into the habit of wiping it down with a cloth after washing your hands, she says. A test with a simple dry cloth also performed at the hospital removed most problem germs.

But stay away from chemicals and sprays — they’re generally harmful for electronics.

Source: CBC

WHO finds Indian cities have dirtiest air; Chinese data foggy

Vendors selling drinks stand beside vehicles near the India Gate war memorial on a smoggy day in New Delhi

An effort by the World Health Organization to measure pollution in cities around the world has found New Delhi admits to having the dirtiest air, while Beijing’s measurements, like its skies, are far from clear.

The study of 1,600 cities found air pollution had worsened since a smaller survey in 2011, especially in poorer countries, putting city-dwellers at higher risk of cancer, stroke and heart disease.

Air pollution killed about 7 million people in 2012, making it the worl ..

Thirteen of the dirtiest 20 cities were Indian, with New Delhi, Patna, Gwalior and Raipur in the top four spots. The Indian capital had an annual average of 153 micrograms of small particulates, known as PM2.5, per cubic metre.

Beijing, notorious for the smog that has prompted some Anglophone residents to dub it “Greyjing”, was in 77th place with a PM2.5 reading of 56, little over one-third of Delhi’s pollution level.

WHO experts said the Chinese data was from 2010, the most recent year made available to them by China. But Beijing’s city government began publishing hourly PM2.5 data in January 2012.

A year after it started publishing data, Beijing’s air quality hit the “worst on record” according to Greenpeace, with a PM2.5 reading as high as 900 on one occasion.

Beijing’s government said last month that PM2.5 concentrations stood at a daily average of 89.5 micrograms per cubic metre in 2013 ..

At the cleaner end of the table, 32 cities reported a PM2.5 reading of less than 5. Three-quarters of those were Canadian, including Vancouver, one was Hafnarfjordur in Iceland and the other seven were American.

WHO experts insisted the survey was not intended to name and shame the dirtiest cities, since the cities involved were volunteering the information to try to help themselves clean up.

Maria Neira, WHO Director for Public Health, Environmental and Social Determinants of Health, said the aim was to “challenge” cities and thought the survey would help them to become more open about their dirty air, which is often caused by burning coal, smokestack industries and heavy traffic.

She rejected any suggestion that China might be cheating and said it was becoming much more sophisticated about collecting air pollution data, with a new push to clean up the big cities.

“We are very much discussing with China putting on the table the issue of air pollution. Our director general (Margaret Chan) was recently there and she declared that China was one of the countries with major problems with air pollution. We will continue discussions on that to make sure that relevant measures are in place to reduce air pollution.”
Source: Economic times