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Poongar Rice – Best for Expecting Mothers

Poongaar Rice is full of the nutrients required for a pregnant woman. Almost 1000 years ago, it was a staple part of the diet for pregnant women to help the formation of healthy lineage but now many of us haven’t even heard of this rice’s name. Just like the baby is dependent on the mother for nutrition, the mother was dependant on Poongaar rice for the required nutrition.

This rice takes around 70 days for full growth which is shorter compared to most rice. Per year, it can be grown three to five times. In 1952, when Tamil Nadu was hit with floods, most of the crops were damaged but farmers were able to save Poongaar rice. This is a unique rice that can grow in the driest of lands and also in the lands flooded with water.

The best quality of all traditional rice is that it doesn’t have only carbohydrates as its nutrition content and Poongaar rice is no exception. Even though carbohydrates are more in this rice, the fiber content in the outer part aids digestion. Its husk and porridge both are very nutritious and tasty. It is also very suitable for making idli and dosa.  The ionic nutrients are more which helps strengthen blood cells. It also increases the production of blood. Mainly, it eases pregnancy and increases lactation. It is very helpful in curing most women’s hormonal issues.

This article is to create awareness about natural remedies available for Dengue. Treatments must be always done under the supervision or advice of an expert doctor and not based on self-judgment.

Dengue Fever – How to naturally cure it?

Dengue, a viral infection, is caused by the bite of an infected female Aedes aegypti mosquito. It was initially documented in Thailand and the Philippines in the 1950s. It is now becoming the leading cause of increased sickness and mortality rates in several Asian countries, including India.

One must immediately contact a physician if they come across symptoms such as –

• High fever along with associated symptoms like
• Moderate to severe headache
• Pain in joints and muscles
• Pain behind the eyes
• Vomiting, Rashes ,etc., anywhere on the body.

This disease cannot spread directly from one person to another person.

When all the systems of medicine are still in the process of finding a perfect solution for dengue, Ayurvedic Vaidyas are already busy curing thousands of dengue patients and their complications.

The good news for us is, the solution for dengue can be in your backyard. Yes, Mother Nature has given us solutions for most of our ailments, around us. All we have to do is to just become aware of simple herbs like Neem, Seendhil kodi (Guduchi), papaya leaf, etc., which are available in abundance in our neighborhood, on the roadside, etc. – these can be a potential antidote to reduce fever and increase platelet count.

FEVER IN DENGUE
Fever is a widely discussed topic in Ayurvedic scriptures. One such wonder drug mentioned in the scriptures for treating fever with symptoms of dengue is Guduchi (Seendhilkodi). The kashayam (Decoction) of Guduchi is helpful in reducing the temperature and boosting the immune system.

THROMBOCYTOPENIA IN DENGUE
Thrombocytopenia is a condition where the number of platelets is less than their normal range. Normally, the platelet count in our body ranges from 150,000 to 450,000 per microliter of blood. One of the alarming complications of dengue is its rapid decrease in platelets, giving symptoms like, bleeding into the skin that appears as a purple rash, bleeding from the gums or nose, blood in urine or stools, etc,.

NATURAL REMEDIES –

• There are hundreds of studies which has clinically proven that the Pappaya leaf juice has increased the platelet numbers.
• Neem leaf juice is another tremendous solution for increasing platelet count.
• Fresh Aloevera would be great snack for increasing platelets.
• Tender coconut water will keep away from dehydration.
• A formulation called Nilavembu Kashayam is highly effective in fever, infection, and helps in treating Dengue as it is a blood purifier and contains many praise-worthy properties.

This article is to create awareness about natural remedies available for Dengue. Treatments must be always done under the supervision or advice of an expert doctor and not based on self-judgment.

Vegetables – Why they are best for your health

How much vegetables do you take in a meal, or even in a day? That can well decide how healthy you are or how effectively you are managing the major risk factors in your life. Vegetables are veritable powerhouses of many useful nutrients. They are rich in vitamins, minerals, and several plant chemicals, which have important functions in human biochemistry. Many of them play a vital role in the prevention of major diseases. There are a number of drugs and medicines manufactured from the phytochemicals extracted from various vegetables. Medical systems like Ayurveda and Naturopathy have records of therapeutic aspects of many vegetables and fruits.

Nature offers different kinds of vegetables in different seasons. Each vegetable is rich in more than one aspect of nutrition. Each is active in some specific function of the human organism. Each is needed for a different purpose and has a different taste, texture, and flavor. This is nature’s simple way of rich nourishment to the complex human organism. This body of ours grew on the offerings from nature for millenniums. Most diets offer all three major macronutrients we need, namely, starch, proteins, and fat. But the crucial difference that can make in a meal is its richness in micronutrients that are needed not only for the proper absorption and metabolism of the major nutrients but also for many other functions in the body. These micronutrients provide the cutting edge to the diet. Enjoy the best benefit of an intelligent and benevolent nature. Seek and follow the advice of the well-informed and get wise counsel.

There is one aspect of vegetable consumption that we cannot afford to ignore: cleanliness. Hygiene and cleanliness are of paramount importance in this matter. One can be exposed to any number of troubles if vegetables are not properly cleaned or if handled with unclean hands. It is absolutely important, whenever one eats them raw or cooked, that they are properly cleaned.

Remember that the vegetables may have been sprayed with or exposed to dangerous chemicals in the name of pesticides. Also, sometimes, highly contaminated manure may have been used. Often the manure is not fully dislodged or removed from the consumable part of the plant. This is especially the case with the leaf part or the stem part, or the root if that happens to be a consumable part. The vegetable before it comes to your table for cutting or cooking passes through several hands. Not all of them are hygienic or clean. Quite often they are dirty, shabby, unclean, contaminated, and infected hands, clothes, and containers. It is a very safe preventive measure to consider every vegetable as contaminated and treat it appropriately. The dreaded disease neurocysticercosis, which attacks the central nervous system quite often fatally, is considered for a long time to be the headache of pork eaters. Vegetarians consider themselves to be safe. Not anymore according to the latest studies and evidence. The problem is caused by a particular parasite, tapeworm tenia solium. It is firmly lodged in the soft tissue of the feces eating pigs and also in unclean vegetables grown with human feces as manure.

Be especially extra careful with vegetables like, leafy vegetables, cauliflower, cabbage, and such which cannot be cleaned completely if washed casually. To the extent possible avoid eating these vegetables raw. Cook them well after cleaning properly.

At any rate, one can only gain by being clean and hygienic. Keep the hands clean. Keep the finger webs clean. Especially keep the fingernails clean. Keep the table clean. Keep the knife clean. Keep the cloth used for wiping hands clean and dry. Keep the vessels clean. Wash vegetables with warm salt water or water with potassium permanganate.

It is all the more important to remember this, especially when dealing with the sick, the old, the children, and other vulnerable people.

Potatoes = Diabetes + Blood Pressure

Many diet articles mention a more or less similar solution for treating diabetes and blood pressure. But what they don’t tell you is that the main enemy is the humble Potato and its many forms in our junk food. 

Two studies reported in BMJ and NCBI have separately found that potatoes in any form-mashed, baked, fried, or boiled – play a key role in increasing blood pressure and diabetes respectively.

(Reference http://www.bmj.com/content/353/bmj.i2351 and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26681722)

Many of the good things said about vegetables do not apply to Potato. It is more of a starch supplement than a vegetable. It is low in fiber, high in calories, and is tamasic making you a couch potato. Due to their relatively high glycemic index, the carbohydrate in them is quickly converted to glucose when digested,

Cold, stale potatoes can cause flatulence and gastritis due to oligo compounds. They are bulky and may usurp the place of other helpful, high-fiber, mineral-rich vegetables. It would then be too high of a cost to pay in spite of eating good vegetables.