Herbal Beauty Tips

Made popular by such celebrities as Oprah Winfrey and by television shows such as 60 Minutes, Hoodia Gordonii is gaining widespread attention as an all natural weight loss supplement. But what exactly is Hoodia Gordonii and how does it aid in weight loss?

Understanding Hoodia Gordonii

Hoodia Gordonii is a plant very similar in appearance to the cactus which grows mainly in southern Africa. The six foot plant, which is native to the Kalahari Desert, has been used for hundreds of years by the indigenous people of Southern Africa to quench thirst and to suppress appetite on long trips across the desert.

In recent times, clinical trials done by drug giant Pfizer and others have emerged indicating Hoodia as a powerful weight loss supplement. In one such study conducted in the UK, one group of volunteers was given a placebo while another group of volunteers was given an extract of Hoodia Gordonii. Both groups were then sent home and told to go about their lives as they normally would. Two weeks later, results showed that the group that was given the Hoodia extract reduced their caloric intake by 1,000 calories per day with no extra effort whatsoever. This study, and others like it, concluded that Hoodia Gordonii helps dieters lose weight by suppressing the appetite.

How Hoodia Gordonii Works

Studies done on Hoodia shows that it contains natural substances which, when ingested, causes your brain to think that you are full and eliminates the desire to eat. This makes Hoodia a powerful appetite suppressant and an excellent addition to any weight loss program.

Why Hoodia Liquid Works Best

In order for Hoodia Pills to work they must go through your digestive system. Not only does it take the hoodia pills longer to reach your bloodstream then a liquid does, but your digestive juices attack the hoodia losing some of the potency. With a liquid the absorption rate is 95 ? 98%, while with pills it is only 2 ? 20% maximum. Pills are also sometimes hard to swallow but a liquid hoodia can be taken by putter a dropper full under your tongue or mixing in a glass of water or juice. Plus liquid hoodia also tastes good.

You can easily see why the hoodia liquid is clearly the better choice.

Making Hoodia Gordonii Part Of Your Weight Loss Program

While Hoodia Gordonii shows a lot of promise as a powerful appetite suppressant, it is important to note that there is no magical solution when it comes to weight loss. An intelligent weight loss program should be combined with sensible changes in your lifestyle that include moderate exercise such as strength training which builds strength and endurance.

Additionally, attention should be paid to your diet and care should be taken to avoid foods that are high in sugars such as potatoes, baked goods, candy and other types of sugar containing foods.

Healthy, wholesome foods should make up your diet which includes unsaturated fats from olive oil and canola oil, for example, and omega-3 rich oils found in fish and other seafood.

Moreover, healthy weight loss should never go over two pounds per week. If you are on a weight loss program that goes beyond that, it is likely to include loss of muscle and bone density. While it may be easier to lose muscle mass and bone density, it is a lot harder to gain it back. A loss of bone density can lead to fractures, injuries and more serious illnesses such as osteoporosis. It is for this reason, therefore, that most dieticians suggest that weight loss should not go over more than two pounds of body fat per week in order to avoid the loss of muscle mass.

Additionally, full hydration during any weight loss program is essential especially while taking a supplement like Hoodia Gordonii because, in addition to suppressing the appetite, it will also eliminate your thirst as well.

Patricia has been interested in Health & Fitness since the early 70's and knows how to separate hype from fact. Patricia's choice for Most Effective Hoodia Gordonii visit http://www.BestHoodiaGordonii.com

Skin cancer like melanoma is potentially fatal. Hence, it is imperative that skin cancer treatment is begun early. Skin cancer treatment may take on the conventional form or it may be along the lines of alternative medicine. Cancer treatment is progressing rapidly by the day and new treatment methods are in the pipeline.

Conventional skin cancer treatment encompasses a range of methods, like:

Surgery
Surgery is the oldest form of treating skin cancer. This treatment involves the removal of the tumor and some adjacent healthy tissues in order to stem the cancer spread. For some surface-based cancers doctors and surgeons have found skin peels like the TCA skin peel have been very effective (see the link below for more info on TCA peels for home use).

Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy aims at skin cancer treatment by introducing specific cancer-combating drugs in the body. These drugs kill the cancer cells by hampering their development and regeneration. To counter the side effects, chemotherapy is being molded along new lines.

Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy uses x-rays to kill the cancer-causing cells. This therapy can be applied to any part of the body. New radiation techniques like External Beam Radiation aim at focusing the radiation to the cancer cell and away from healthy tissue.

Immunotherapy
Biotherapy or immunotherapy aims at treating skin cancer by enhancing the body?s immune system with doses of tumor vaccines, interleukin-2, or interferon-alfa. It involves fewer side effects than other methods.

Hyperthermia
The cancer cell is known to be sensitive to heat. Local hyperthermia is one method of cancer treatment where the whole body or the concerned area is subject to high temperatures to destroy or weaken cancer cells.

Photodynamic Therapy
A relatively new cancer treatment, Photodynamic Therapy, involves the injection of Photofrin so that when the cancer cell is subject to a laser beam, the drug is triggered into action. This treatment is relatively painless and entails less risks and side effects than other treatment forms.

Steering clear of these harsh methods are the alternative forms of cancer treatment like:

Nutritional Therapy
Here the cancer patient is put on an individualized diet in accordance with the specific dietary preferences and requirements to counter the ravages wrought by the disease and the treatment.

Pain management
Pain management aims to alleviate pain and distress either through drugs, surgery or psychotherapy.

Naturopathy
It is ?back to nature? in the realm of cancer treatment, with natural therapy. Naturopathy is an herbal treatment, which furthers your body?s innate ability to heal itself, combining a range of processes.

Psychoneuroimmunology
Another new form of cancer treatment is Psychoneuroimmunology. It believes that mind can wield enough control over the body to stimulate a healing process. Thus, this form of treatment engulfs a range of nutritional and medical issues to aid during the bodily healing and emotional and cognitive therapies like stress management and humor sessions to empower the mind.

Spiritual Support Therapy
Another popular form of skin cancer treatment is Spiritual Support Therapy, which takes care of the patient?s spiritual well being and a regimen of exercises and massages that forms the Physical Therapy, designed to abate stress and pain.

Skin cancer treatment is most effective when cancer is diagnosed early and the physician embarks on the best form of treatment.

David Maillie is a chemist with over 12 years experience in biochemical research and clynical analysis. He is an alumni of Cornell University and specializes in biochemical synthesis for public, private, and governmental interests and manufactures various skin peels for plastic surgeons, medispas, and in home use. He can be reached at M.D. Wholesale: http://www.bestskinpeel.com

Optimum health can only be achieved through good nutrition. The trillions of cells that make up your body must be healthy and functional before you can expect to optimise your energy levels and overall sense of well-being. No long term weight control or life enhancement programme can work, unless your cells receive the vital nutrients needed from natural food sources or any additional supplementations.

YOUR BODY IS UNDER SEIGE EVERYDAY! You feel rushed, hungry, fatigued and stressed out. So you eat fast food for convenience, sweet, sugary food for a pick-me-up and take medicine to keep away the aches, pains, sleeplessness and general malaise. It's no wonder we're overweight and overwhelmed. In recent years, excess weight has been documented as the leading cause of many common ailments. It's become a serious health concern that shouldn't be overlooked or minimised.

Nourishing the body at the cellular level assists and maintains the growth, repair and rejuvenation of your body's cells, which is the basis of a healthy diet. Throughout your life, your body goes through amazing changes. Hormonal shifts, pregnancy, mood swings loss in bone density and weight fluctuations, to name but a few. If we lived in a world that was as pure and unspoiled as our ancestors did, eating balanced meals would be enough to put us on the path toward good health. Unfortunately, today we are faced with undesirale external challenges such as pollution and chemically processed foods. If we don't properly elimanate these toxins, which we absorb either through the air we breathe, or the foods we eat, feelings of low energy, bloating and poor digestion can result.

Even when you think you're doing everything right, trying to eat better, getting exercise and resting, you may still feel sluggish, run-down and out of sync. So what are we doing wrong? Unless you nourish your cells, you cannot sustain your ideal weight or improve your well-being. Optimal well-being can begin when you nourish your cells for proper metabolism, growth, repair, detoxification and reproduction. By using the highest-quality herbs and purest ingredients, it is possible to sustain a vital, more energetic-feeling you!

Ann Reilly is a Practitioner of Reflexology, Reiki and a Herbalife Independent Distributor. For more information on how to optimize your well-being visit http://www.youshapeup.net

If you?re a smoker, then you?re probably panicking. Obviously you have come to this article because, on some level, you had a desire to stop smoking. But heck, as a former smoker myself, I know that you won?t be entirely comfortable with the proposition of never lighting up again. An emotional bond has been formed. Smoking is more than a habit to you - it?s like letting go of an old friend. So it?s only natural that you want to find the best way to stop smoking and, preferably, the easiest.

You?re going to be bombarded with a thousand ways to quit the habit. Your government?s health department will probably tell you to hit the patches. TV adverts will be promoting the nicotine gum. You may even have flirted with the idea of taking on herbal cigarettes as a means of breaking your ties with nicotine.

As a former 40-a-day man, and someone with a rather intimate knowledge on the profound effect smoking has on our psyches, I?d have to tell you to steer clear of all these smoking aids. There is an incredibly simple reason for this: if you take to patches instead of cigarettes, all you are doing is transferring habits. The bottom line is that you will still be taking nicotine, and you will still be addicted to a habit.

If we remain addicted to a habit, then we are slaves for a lifetime. It is the equivalent of locking the habit up in a box, but having to carry that box around your neck for the next 20 years. If you want to successfully quit smoking, then you have to let go physically and emotionally. You have to wave it farewell. You have to be at peace with yourself. As hippy-like as that sounds, it?s absolutely true.

To this extent, the best way to stop smoking permanently is to leave tobacco behind by your own choice. That means no patches, no gum, no herbal substitute. It doesn?t mean willpower, either. Smoking is primarily a psychological addiction, which leaves you with two choices - either tolerate the psychological wall as best you can, or knock the sucker down. By choosing to quit cigarettes through sheer willpower, you are essentially fighting your own mind. If you choose to tackle the psychological links you have with smoking, then your mind will be at peace and, consequently, you will be able to live a non-smoking existence in perfect harmony.

This is not a difficult task. There are many forms of hypnotherapy available to help you break down your psychological bonds with tobacco, coming in the forms of vis-?-vis consultations, CD?s and books. I managed to break a 10 year habit within four hours thanks to this method, and I didn?t even have to leave my own house. After nearly a hundred failed attempts using patches, gum and willpower, I?d say that was a pretty good result. So take inspiration, and always remember that the best way to stop smoking is to simply let the love affair go.

Jonty Smith is a former smoker based in the U.K.

After 10 years of smoking two packs a day, Jonty finally managed to quit in 2006. His story of how he managed to beat the habit is available for free reading at (http://www.How-I-Stopped-Smoking.com)

Herbal medicine for IBS may be included as part of a holist approach to IBS control. The medical community commonly states that there is no cure for the syndrome. It is a chronic disease and symptoms can flare up again and again over a person?s life because of stress and diet. A complete treatment plan or a holistic approach to IBS control will address factors like diet and stress. Prescription medications, over the counter products and herbal remedies for IBS can only be a part of a complete treatment plan. This article focuses on botanicals and herbal medicine for IBS relief and control, but they may not be effective if changes in diet and stressful lifestyle are not included as well.

If you are the type of person who prefers to use botanicals, plant remedies or herbs rather than chemicals to treat health problems and you suffer from IBS, then you will be happy to know that there are many botanicals, plants and herbal remedies for IBS. Slippery elm was recommended by Native Americans for indigestion and stomach ailments. While the term IBS was not used by them, herbalists have studied the effectiveness of slippery elm when looking for herbal medicine for IBS. Slippery elm can have side effects. It may have a laxative effect and may not be the best of the herbal remedies for IBS with diarrhea. However, it was used historically to treat both diarrhea and constipation. If you are taking a holistic approach to IBS with diarrhea, it is very important to look at your diet and the beverages you choose to drink. Caffeinated beverages including coffee, tea and sodas can all have laxative effects. Those who are taking a holistic approach to IBS with constipation should avoid these beverages as well, because they can slow down the digestive system and worsen constipation.

Aloe is commonly listed as an herbal medicine for IBS control. It was not used historically for indigestion, but to relieve the pain from burns and skin lesions and to reduce swelling. Modern herbalists have found that when purified and concentrated it is effective for the relief of many digestive problems. But, it can have a laxative effect and so may not be the best of the herbal remedies for IBS with diarrhea. As part of a holistic approach to IBS, keeping a symptoms diary may be helpful when you try herbal medicine for IBS. A symptoms diary can also help you determine what foods to avoid and what foods to include. You may also be able to see how a particularly stressful day can lead to a flare up of symptoms. Many people find that including meditation, particularly before eating, as part of their holistic approach to IBS control is helpful and may prevent symptoms completely.

Botanicals and herbal remedies for IBS control may work for some and not for others. People are different and so different plants affect them differently, just as different foods affect them differently. Foods that bring on symptoms in one person may not bring on symptoms in another person. Some people who claim to have a cure for irritable bowel syndrome are marketing books and products to consumers. It is important to remember that these eating plans may or may not work for you. A food and symptoms diary may help you design your own cure for irritable bowel syndrome, whether you have diarrhea, constipation or both. By noting what foods you ate at the last meal or possibly earlier in the day, you may be able to identify food sensitivities. Food sensitivities and even allergies can develop later in life, meaning that the food you ate with no problem once could be causing you problems now. Adding botanicals or herbal medicine for IBS control is an option and most are safe, but you should discontinue use and consult your doctor if symptoms worsen. A holistic approach to IBS should also include a stress management plan. While stress is not believed to cause IBS, it does worsen symptoms. If used alone, without a complete treatment plan, herbal medicine for IBS control may not be effective.

For more information about herbal remedies for IBS and general information about IBS and other digestive problems, visit www.digestive-disorders-guide.com.

Patsy Hamilton has more than twenty years experience as a healthcare professional and currently writes informational articles for the Digestive Disorders Guide. Read more at http://www.digestive-disorders-guide.com.