Archives for Sep 21, 2021

Sleep Apnea

What is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder that occurs when your breathing is interrupted several times during sleep. This is common in young children, but it may also affect some adults. Loud snoring and abnormal breathing are the two main symptoms of sleep apnea. If you are suffering from this condition, you may feel drowsy and irritated the whole wakeful state due to the lack of proper sleep.

What are the Symptoms of Sleep Apnea?

Typical: The signs and symptoms of obstructive and central sleep apneas overlap, sometimes making it difficult to determine which type you have.
Might Experience: Sleep apnea has some typical symptoms. Some of the common symptoms are loud snoring and unusual breathing patterns during sleep. You may have incidents when you stop inhaling while sleeping for few seconds and then gasping a larger amount of air for breathing. You may also suffer from headaches due to a lack of rest. Extreme daytime tiredness and sleepiness (hypersomnia) are very common symptoms of sleep apnea. A person with sleep apnea often becomes irritated.

What are the Causes of Sleep Apnea?

  • There are some typical causes of sleep apnea. One of the main causes which trigger this condition is the blockage of the airway in the soft tissue of your mouth and throat.
  • This is mostly seen in people who are overweight. Obesity significantly boosts the possibility of sleep apnea. Excess fat may cause the blockage of the airway and trigger this condition.
  • Another major cause may be neck conditions. People who have thicker necks often have narrowed airways and might develop this condition.
  • Smoking may also cause sleep apnea.
  • It is seen that older people tend to develop sleep apnea more than younger people. However, you may also suffer from this condition if you have a family history of sleep apnea.
  • The use of alcohol is also found to be one of the causes of sleep apnea.

When to see a Doctor?

Sleep apnea may lead to some serious health conditions and hence it is important to be taken care of. If ignored it may cause stroke and other health conditions such as heart attack, heart failure and irregular heartbeat. You may also suffer from depression, headaches or even diabetes. So in case you notice any signs and symptoms of sleep apnea, please see your doctor.

Lifestyle Prevention of Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea can be prevented just by following some measures. Let us understand how it can be done.
  • Regular walking or jogging will help an obese person to breathe better. Heavy breathing caused by exercise will help you clear the blockages.
  • However, in case you are heavy, do not jog or do any other exercise. Initially stick to walking only.
  • Shifting your sleeping position is also a very effective measure to prevent sleep apnea. You can try different sleeping positions to see which is working better and helping you to ease the condition.
  • Humidifying your house may sometimes help in preventing this condition. There may be instances when you may suffer from a feeling of choking in the nose due to dry or hot air in the room. So, using a humidifier will help in that case.

Common Ayurvedic Remedies for Sleep Apnea

Some Ayurvedic remedies are very effective on Sleep Apnea. Herbs like Ashwagandha, Shankapushpi, Sarpagandha, Jatamansi, Nirgundi, Chamomile tea, etc are very useful to relieve the symptoms of sleep apnea.
  • Ashwagandha: Ashwagandha is a great adaptogen that soothes the nerves. Ashwagandha is infused with phytonutrient triethylene glycol, which stimulates uninterrupted sleep at night, to effectively prevent sleep apnea and enhance the quality of sleep. 300 mg twice daily after food for 60 days.
  • Jatamansi: Jatamanshi is a very efficient herb for stimulating deep sleep at night. So for obvious reasons, it is very effective on sleep apnea as well. Mix ¼ – ½ teaspoon of powdered Jatamansi and drink it before sleep.
  • Chamomile Tea: Chamomile is also a very effective flowering herb for improving the quality of sleep. To make the Chamomile tea, take 3 g dried flowers in 1 cup of hot water and steep it for 3 to 5 minutes. Drink twice or thrice a day.
Curative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Ashwagandha | Shankhpushpi | Sarpagandha | Jatamansi | Nirgundi | Chamomile
Preventative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Not Known

Stomach ache

What is Stomach ache?

Stomachache is a medical condition that occurs when you feel pain and uneasiness in your upper or lower abdominal area. There can be numerous causes that trigger a stomachache, such as acidity, diarrhea, constipation, toxic liver, etc. There can be some other severe health conditions that may lead to a stomach ache as well.

What are the Symptoms of Stomach ache?

The typical symptoms of a stomach ache can be abdominal discomfort, pain, and cramping. In some cases, you may experience abdominal swelling or bloating. You may also suffer from frequent belching.

What are the Causes of Stomach ache?

There are several causes of Stomach aches. Some of the typical factors that may trigger this condition are discussed below:
  • Trapped wind is one of the major causes of stomach aches. If there is an accumulation of gas due to indigestion it may cause the wind to trap inside the stomach and can cause stomach ache.
  • Constipation and diarrhea are the two major causes of stomach aches. In case you have severe food poisoning, you may suffer from stomachache.
  • There are a number of medical conditions that trigger stomach aches, such as diabetic ketoacidosis, Kidney stones, Gallstones, stomach flu, appendicitis, pancreatitis, etc.

When to see a Doctor?

  • In most cases, seeing a doctor is not necessary if caused by general events. Some of the great home remedies and over-the-counter medicines can heal the condition. However, there can be some severe medical conditions that cause stomach aches and need immediate medical attention.
  • In case you are suffering from acute pain in your stomach which is unbearable, you need to visit a doctor. If you notice blood in your stool and you have a stomach ache, never delay.
  • In case your pain is accompanied by vomiting, it may be more serious and need a doctor’s intervention.
  • In case, your pain persists and spreads into other parts of your body, then it is important to get it checked by a physician.

Lifestyle Prevention of Stomach ache

The most important lifestyle change to prevent any disease is to have a proper diet plan. Eating high-fiber healthy food and drinking a lot of fluid could be the best preventive measures to prevent stomach ache. Some important other factors may help you to prevent stomach aches are stated below:
  • You should always avoid overeating.
  • Add fruits and vegetables to your diet as much as possible.
  • Never take your dinner right before bedtime.
  • Cleaning your hands properly before eating is important to avoid food poisoning and other stomach infections.
  • Sleep at least for 7 to 8 hours.

Common Ayurvedic Remedies for Stomach ache

Some Ayurvedic home remedies may help you in treating stomach ache effectively. Using herbs like Cumin, Ginger, Fennel, Black Pepper, Ajwan etc. is very helpful to cure stomachache.
  • Cumin: Cumin is very good in treating digestive disorders. Take one-third tsp of powdered cumin and a pinch of asafetida and little roc salt and chew gently. This is a great home remedy to help you digest your food properly.
  • Ajwain: This is a great herb to cure stomachache. Mix half tsp of Ajwain with a quarter tsp of baking soda and chew this mixture gently and drink it down with warm water.
  • Black Pepper: Black pepper can give you instant relief from indigestion. Take half a tsp of black pepper and mix it with a quarter cup of onion juice and a half tsp of honey and drink this juice. It will be a great healer for indigestion.
Curative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Preventative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Not Known

Sprains and Strains

What are Sprains and Strains?

Sprain and strain are the conditions that occur when you injure your joints due to sudden twisting. In most cases, these may affect your ankle, wrist, knees, or hip joints. These conditions are painful and caused by extreme stretching or even ripping of ligaments. You may also experience symptoms like swelling and blackish discoloration of the affected area. The basic difference between sprain and strain is just that the sprain affects ligaments and strain affects muscle.

What are the Symptoms of Sprains and Strains?

  • The symptoms of sprains are different from the symptoms of strains. Let us understand separately.
  • Sprain symptoms consist of pain, inflammation, bruising, and stiff joints that are unable to move.
  • Strain symptoms predominantly included muscle spasms, swelling, cramping, and difficulty moving.

What are the Causes of Sprains and Strains?

The typical cause of these conditions is an injury to your ligaments and muscles. You may hurt your ligaments while performing a sport, or walking on an uneven surface, or maybe running fast, etc. Any circumstances that may put a lot of strain in your ligament or muscle can trigger sprain and strain.

When to see a Doctor?

  • If the Sprain and strain are not severe, it can be treated with home remedies and over-the-counter medicines. It generally heals within a week.
  • However, in case you suffer from the condition for more than a week even after trying several home remedies and over-the-counter medicines, you need to visit a doctor. In case you have excessive swelling in the injured joint, you need to seek medical help. If your affected area is tender to touch and you find it really hard to put any stress in the wounded area, you need to book an appointment with your physician.

Lifestyle Prevention of Sprains and Strains

Preventing sprain and strain is not that easy. Limiting your physical pursuits and being prudent is something that may be an option but not always possible. But one should always avoid unnecessary physical activities or playing any sports if exhausted. Also, eating healthy food and including multi nutrients which reinforce muscles and joints is crucial.

Common Ayurvedic Remedies for Sprains and Strains

Some extremely effective ayurvedic home remedies can help you treat sprain and strain.
Most importantly, whenever you get a sprain or strain, wrap up the area in an elastic bandage as quickly as possible.
  • Drink Juice: drinking pineapple or pomegranate juice is very important and effective. These two fruits have anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant properties which help to cure the sprain and strain quickly.
  • Mustard Seed Tea Bag: For ankle sprain, soaking your foot in a pot of hot water with a mustard seed tea bag is very useful. To make this tea bag, put 2 tsp of mustard seed in a cheesecloth or other similar cloth and tie it up. Then plunge the knotted cloth with mustard seed in the hot water.
  • Healing Paste: This herbal paste made of Turmeric and salt is a great remedy to reduce your swelling. Just add about half tsp of turmeric and half tsp of salt and then mix it with water to make a paste. Apply on the injured area.
Curative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Preventative Ayurvedic Herbs:
Not Known