Simple Tips on How to Quit Smoking

Analyze reasons to quit

Many people find it really terrible smoking but don't know how to quit. You can start by thinking out various reasons why you must stop or at least, a reason. Review these reasons thoroughly and draw a conclusion at the back of your mind. 

Take aggressive decision

Because smoking is a passionate habit, having analyze reasons why you must quit smoking,make one but a brave and bold decision to put an end to the habit. Get a pen and write your decision boldly somewhere you can see it everyday.

Determination of purpose

Try to be very determined to quit, be very passionate about your decision. Memorize on it all time and above all, seriousness counts, be very serious about you new decision.

Engage in worthwhile activities

Try be creative, get yourself engaged in meaningful activities that can occupy your mind frame completely, it could be something you love doing before or something new. When you think/feel about smoking "don't give in to it." Concentrate on the worthwhile activities and be true to yourself.

Abstain from friends that smokes

During this period of training yourself to quit smoking, abstain from your friends that are smoking. Meanwhile, withdraw from co-habit like alcohol and other form of drugs. These may hamper your success.

Go closer to friends that don't smokes

Go closer to friends that doesn't smoke at all and hates it. They are your true friends at this period and can encourage you, make you begin to enjoy your new decision.

Alternate smoking with regular intake of fruits

Let your intake of fruits increase than as you use to. This is because you have to feed your cells with healthier chemicals as you want to flush out the unhealthy chemicals from your cells.

Be persistent on your decision

To effectively quit smoking, you have to be persistent on your new mind-set. By the count of each day, go to where you had boldly written your decision on earlier and re-assure yourself of the goals to be achieved, following these tips and again; truthfulness to yourself.

Practically realize purpose

Practically realize the purpose of applying these steps by following the steps from start to finish continually until you starts seeing positive results.

Give your reasons a pass mark

Having applied these tips to quit smoking, measure your purpose. Make out time and review each reason, check out for the one that has been met with then, give it a pass mark and apply tips again until achieve any reason that had not been met with if any.

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Truth Behind Weight Gain

The topic of soda and weight gain is fraught with conflicting information. “Yes, soda makes you fat!” “No, it doesn't as long as it is consumed in moderation.” What to believe? Who is telling the truth? It’s important to know who and where the information is coming from. Below are five scandalous and scary facts about soda and weight gain:

Soda Turns You Into a Mutant!

Okay, not really, but it does mess with your body on the cellular level and makes you more susceptible to soda weight gain. A study involving 33,000 men and women showed that sugary beverages (including soda) interacts with our “obesity genes” and increases that risk more than heredity alone. This is true even when taking into account diet and exercise. In other words, the more soda you drink, regardless of how you eat and exercise can lead to soda weight gain.

Soda can Cause You to Chase the Dragon!

Drinking too much of that carbonated stuff not only helps you perfect your ability to burp out the alphabet like a pro, it can also lead to soda addiction. The possibility of getting cracked out on Coke (Coca-Cola that is) is something that the beverage industry denies, but those of us who have had (or still have) a soda addiction knows it's true. Let’s see now. What are some of soda’s key ingredients? Sugar. Check. And/Or corn syrup. Check. Caffeine. Check. Oh. Those ingredients have addictive properties. And if you have a soda addiction, you’re probably drinking way more than you should. Those calories add up and guess what? Soda weight gain.

The Soda Industry is Lying to You and Pays Off Companies to do the Same!

Coca “don’t blame us for the obesity epidemic” Cola is a leader of information spin when it comes to soda and weight gain. They have an entire “institute” devoted to providing the “truth.” Their message, along with other impartial sounding “associations” like the American Beverage Association maintains that no single thing causes obesity and soda can be a part of a healthy life style. Blah, blah, blah. Hah! If the overall soda intake in the United States was at a healthy level (i.e. having an occasional soda) the soda industry would go out of business.

Did you know that studies that refute the relationship between weight gain and soda tend to be conducted by people who are financially supported by the beverage industry? Did you know that the makers of Dr. Pepper donated millions of dollars to the American Dietetic Association (ADA) and in exchange was allowed to place the ADA label on their diet drinks? There are many more examples. How can we trust these “authorities” to tell us the truth about healthy levels of soda consumption and the connection between soda and weight gain?

They Make it Cheap for a Reason!

The price of soda relative to that of fresh fruits and vegetables is much less expensive. From 1979 - 2009 the price of fresh fruits and vegetables has risen over 300% while the price of soda and other sugary goods has risen 125%. With so many people watching their wallets, less expensive and less healthy foods are tempting to reach for. However, what we save in money we gain in an abundance of over processed foods, full of sugar and beverages like soda that can lead to weight gain.

Coca Cola has marketed their products extremely hard in poor areas such as New Orleans and Rome, Georgia where the people drink three Cokes a day on average. Coke has pushed its campaign to places like Brazil where they made smaller sizes and charged twenty cents per can in an effort to get people hooked. When former Coke chief operating officer in both North and South America, Jeffrey Dunn spoke out about the lack of morality of marketing cheap, bad food to poor people, he was fired.

Your Kid is a Walking Target!

Start ‘em young and get ‘em hooked I always say. Whether it’s vending machines selling soda

in schools in exchange for sponsorship and money (did you know that one such sponsorship required the school to print the beverage's name of its rooftop so that planes arriving at a nearby airport could see it?!), or the incessant advertisements and availability making it hard to resist, soda now makes up 2/3 of the average child’s beverage calories. For every can of soda a child drinks each day, the risk of soda weight gain increases by 60 percent. Sixty percent!

When your child is drinking soda s/he is not also drinking healthy beverages like water along with it. The soda is replacing healthy drinks. This gets them addicted early, packs in calories, messes with their genes, not to mention possible teeth and bone decay and more, and yes, can lead to soda weight gain.

Make no mistake about this. The soda industry has no interest in us being occasional consumers. They want to be every day, multiple times a day consumers. They want us to want and need our soda fix like many coffee drinkers to get going in the morning. Sugar in drinks like soda are the single most caloric food source in the United States.

Most of the information in this can apply to non-soda sugary beverages and a host of sugary foods. Soda has been singled out because of the calorie intake market share it has steadily gained. After all, you can also gain weight from drinking fresh orange juice if you drink enough of it.

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The Truth Behind Hand Sanitizer

We often spend on  hand sanitizers that claim to kill 99.9 percent of germs, but all too often, we’re not getting the protection we’re paying for. Studies show that sanitizers aren’t very effective against some of the germs we fear most, including colds, flu and the nasty stomach bug norovirus.

However, there’s also research showing that alcohol-based sanitizers can reduce overall rates of GI infections, cut the number of days kids stay home sick from school, and lower illnesses among college students living in dorms.

New studies also raise concern about potential health risks from a widely used hand gel ingredient—and there’s also evidence that many of us use these disinfectants incorrectly. 

Take a look at some facts and myths about the germ-fighting gel.

Hand gels don’t cut through grime.

Dirt, especially proteins or fatty materials, reduces the effectiveness of hand sanitizer, so alcohol-based hand sanitizers are not suggested if hands are visibly soiled. Instead, wash with soap and water.

It is important to use the product correctly. Rub the sanitizer over the entire surface of the hands and fingers – including under the nails – just as you would when using soap and water.

One type of hand sanitizer actually raises bacteria counts.

That was the startling finding of a study comparing various products, according to the CDC. Volunteers placed their dominant hand on plates of agar growth medium (used to grow bacterial cultures in lab dishes) before and after various treatments, such as rinsing with tap water, lathering with antimicrobial soap, or rubbing hands with sanitizers, including one purchased at a discount store.

The next day, culture plates from hands rubbed with the store-bought gel not only had clumps of bacteria, but in some cases, they’d formed a visible outline of the volunteer’s hand. The researchers discovered that the discount product only contained 40 percent alcohol.

Though the study doesn't specifiy which hand sanitizer raised bacteria counts, there have been several voluntary recalls of hand sanitizers due to bacterial contamination, including Kleenex-brand Luxury Foam hand sanitizer in June, 2012 and X3 Clean Alcohol-Free Foaming Hand Sanitizer in November.

Not all disinfectants are equally effective.

It depends on which hand sanitizer [you’re] using. Alcohol-based sanitizer with 60% concentration is very effective at killing a wide range of bacteria and viruses on the hands—and the product of choice in the hospital setting based on rigorous randomized intervention studies.

However, “hand washing with plain soap and water is the preferred regimen, but if a sink is not available, or you are in rush or cannot leave your desk, hand sanitizer is an appropriate alternative.

Alcohol-based gels and sprays only kill certain microbes. 

There are a few germs against which alcohol gels are not very effective. This includes spores from Clostridium difficile (a cause of diarrhea in persons who have received antibiotics) and norovirus. Infections with the superbug C. difficile are at an all-time high, the CDC reports, killing about 14,000 Americans a year.

A 2011 CDC study found that long-term care facilities where staff used alcohol-based hand sanitizer were six times more likely to have outbreaks of norovirus than facilities where staffers lathered up with soap and water.

There’s not much evidence that sanitizers prevent colds and flu.

In the University of Virginia study, volunteers who used alcohol-based antiviral hand sanitizer every three hours had no significant drop in flu or rhinovirus infections, compared to non-users. The findings were presented at the 50th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in Boston. 

These results suggest that hand transmission may be less important for the spread of rhinovirus [the main cause of colds] and influenza virus than previously believed. Instead, these germs are mainly spread through airborne droplets released when infected people cough and sneeze.

An ingredient in many hand sanitizers, soaps, and deodorants may harm the heart and muscles.

A 2012 study reports that that the antibacterial chemical triclosan impaired muscle function in fish and mice, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the University of Colorado.

In test tube experiments, triclosan also hindered the ability of isolated heart muscle cells and skeletal muscle fibers to contract. The effects of triclosan on cardiac function were really dramatic. 

Although triclosan is not regulated as a drug, this compound acts like a potent cardiac depressant in our models. However, it’s not yet known if the chemical is harmful to people. The FDA and the EPA are conducting new risk assessments, while the researchers call for “a dramatic reduction in its use. 

Purell Advanced Hand Sanitizer is frequently used in hospitals and medical facilities, and does not contain the chemical triclosan.

Exposure to everyday germs during childhood may prevent diseases later in life. 

A 2009 study by Northwestern University found that kids raised in ultra-clean environments may have higher levels of inflammation as adults, which could boost risk for heart attack, stroke and other dangerous disorders.

Conversely, kids who grow up in less hygienic environments have five to seven times lower levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein as young adults.

The findings suggest that overusing sanitizers and antibacterial products may cut the number of infectious diseases kids get when they’re young, but make them less healthy over the long term—something parents may want to consider before reaching for disinfectants to protect kids from childhood diseases.

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Common Myths About Sleeping

When running your own business starts to feel like more than a full-time job, one of the first things to take a hit is sleep. While sacrificing a good night's rest might seem to be par for the course for entrepreneurs, too little shuteye could soon hurt your business.

You may believe you can function on less sleep than you need, catch up on the weekends or compensate by drinking more coffee. If only it was so simple. Here are five common beliefs about sleep and why they aren't really so:

Sleep is just a way to let your brain rest.

People often think the brain is resting when they sleep, but it is actually more active at night than during the day. During sleep, your cardiovascular system and brain are doing a lot of work when it comes to creativity, critical thinking and memory. For example, short-term memories get registered and stored in the brain during sleep. There's a physical change in the brain that happens only as a product of adequate sleep.

I can get used to sleeping less.

If you believe you can condition yourself to operate on less sleep, you're wrong. When you are chronically sleep deprived, your mental performance declines. We lose the ability to accurately judge how impaired we are. Chronically reducing sleep time to six hours or less per night hurt cognitive performance as much as staying awake for as many as two nights straight. You're going to lose the ability to focus; you have a greater likelihood of making mistakes; and you'll have greater risk taking behavior.

I can catch up on the weekends.  

If you don't get enough sleep during the workweek, sleeping in on the weekend won't easily make up for it. If you lost about two hours of sleep for five nights straight, you would need to tack an extra 10 hours onto two full nights of sleep. And that's highly unlikely. Without that much extra sleep on the weekend, you will start the next week just as depleted as you were at the end of the previous week. What's more, even if you did catch up on your sleep on the weekend, it won't undo the damage done in terms of lost productivity. 

Coffee is a substitute for lack of sleep.

There's no doubt that caffeine is a potent antidote for drowsiness. It inhibits adenosine, the chemical in the brain that makes us feel sleepy, but it can only go so far. Coffee might help you feel more awake, but your body doesn't get the same nourishment from caffeine that it gets from sleep. This means your thinking speed and ability to move through problems and situations will still be impaired. It keeps you awake and moving around, but it doesn't replace the need for sleep. Your body doesn't heal; your memory doesn't get better. What's more, besides making you jittery, excessive caffeine can also cause you to feel even sleepier than before when it starts to wear off.

Sleeping longer will make me gain weight.

You might think being in bed for longer will make you less active and cause weight gain, but the opposite is true. A 2011 University of Chicago study found that lack of sleep affects metabolism and can lead to obesity. Ghrelin and leptin, the hormones in your brain that cause you to feel hungry, actually increase in your body with less sleep. And when we are tired and sleep deprived, we tend to have cravings for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods. 

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Understanding the Different Type of Stress

Managing stress can be stressful. Stress brings on feelings of overwhelming strain or pressure, and can cause a wide range of symptoms that can include panic attacks, exhaustion, skin rashes, depression and even sexual dysfunction To be able to successfully understand and deal with your stress and its symptoms, or to be able to effectively help someone who is suffering from stress, you have to be able to first identify what type of stress it is. There are three main types of stress, acute, episodic and chronic. Each one is different and has its own set of symptoms, characteristics and treatments.   

Different Types of Stress

Acute Stress

Acute stress is the most common form of stress. This type of stress is brought on by situations, pressures or demands of our present, or what we anticipate in the near future. While short bursts of this type of stress, like having to make a public speech, can provide a positive release or thrill, like having an adrenalin rush, it can also be a negative situation, that can lead to psychological and physical symptoms.

Because of the short term nature of acute stress, symptoms don’t have time to manifest and cause long term damage. The most common symptoms of acute stress are:

• Physical problems – these symptoms could be in the form of tension headaches, back, chest or jaw pain, stomach or bowel problems like heartburn, acid stomach, flatulence, diarrhoea or constipation, a rise in blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, sweaty palms, heart palpitations, dizziness, migraine headaches, cold hands or feet and shortness of breath.

• Psychological problems – these symptoms could include a combination of anger, mood swings, anxiety, fear or depression.

Acute stress is common in day-to-day life – being late to a meeting, losing an important document at work, dealing with a trouble child at school, trying to meet a deadline – are just some of the situations that can bring on acute stress.

Fortunately, these situations and symptoms related to acute stress are easily recognise and highly treatable and manageable. If you feel that you are getting stressed over something small in your everyday life, take a step back,, relax and breathe – it probably isn’t as stressful as you think!

Episodic Acute Stress

There are people who suffer from acute stress frequently, to the point where it becomes overwhelming and demanding on their every day life. They are constantly in a disorderly and chaotic state, always in a rush, always late,  and they always have a string of demands and pressures that are constantly overtaking them and their time. This is known as episodic acute stress.

For sufferers of episodic acute stress, they seem to have a lot of nervous energy, and can be abrupt, irritable, short tempered, tense and occasionally hostile. You will find that relationships can deteriorate rapidly as they go through behavioural changes that include mood swings,  as well as being impatient and anxious. Work also becomes a very stressful environment, that will carry on in to their home and personal life.

Worrying is another form of episodic acute stress. Sufferers can be known as 'worry warts', in that they see disaster at every turn and have the view that everything is dangerous or un-rewarding, with a doomed ending. These views bring on feelings of anxiety and depression.

Other symptoms of episodic acute stress include persistent tension headaches, migraines, hypertension, chest pain, and heart disease. 

Treating episodic acute stress can require intervention on a number of levels, and generally includes professional help, which may take many months. This is because most of the sufferers of episodic acute stress don't see anything wrong with the way they conduct their lives, and will instead blame their stress on other people or factors, like work or school. They view their lifestyle and consequent levels of stress as simply the way their world works and is just who they are as a person. This type of mindset makes sufferers fiercely resistant to change, but usually it is a need for relief from the pain and discomfort of their symptoms that keeps them on track with their treatment and recovery program. 

Chronic Stress

Chronic stress sufferers are people who are constantly ground down every day by stress.  Chronic stress is long-term and destroys bodies, mind, spirit and lives. It is bought about by large, overwhelming long-term problems like poverty, unhappy marriages, dysfunctional families or high-strung jobs or careers.

Chronic stress is persistent as the sufferer never sees a way out of their miserable, stressful situation. They give up trying to find a way out, and become accustomed to their way of life. This is probably the worst aspect of chronic stress, in that the sufferers get used to it, as it just becomes a part of who they are and how they live.

Some forms of chronic stress are born from traumatic, early childhood experiences that become internalized and remain part of that person forever. Their trauma or view of the world, or even just their situations, causes unending stress for the individual. Professional help is needed to be able to start addressing and coming to terms with the deep, psychological issues that are causing the chronic stress.

Chronic stress can kill, through suicide, violence, heart attack or strokes. The sufferers of chronic stress will simply just shut down, or wear down, resulting in a final breakdown. Because physical and psychological aspects have been ongoing for a long time within the sufferer, the symptoms of chronic stress are difficult to spot, let alone treat. The victims of chronic stress may require extended medical and behavioral treatment, as well as stress management and meditation plans.

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Facts You Should Know About Sleeping

A good night’s sleep is vital for the human body. While there are many theories as to exactly why we sleep and what happens when we do sleep, it is generally agreed that sleep helps our bodies repair damaged cells, process and store information and helps our bodies process. 

How We Sleep

We all sleep in different stages. Every night when you go to sleep your brain goes through a pattern and cycle of sleeping. Tests conduction on people’s brain activity while they are asleep showed that there are two basic types of sleep. The two forms of sleep are rapid eye movement (REM) and slow-wave or non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM). These two states of sleep occur in 90 minute cycles that are repeated five or six times every night. Infants spend about half their sleep time in the REM sleep phase, adults about a fifth, and it is sometimes even less with elderly people. 

Non-REM Phase

Non-REM Phase is divided into four phases, accounting for 70 per cent of adults’ total sleep time every night.

STAGE ONE: In the first stage of sleep, that is just as you have started to drift off, your eyes start to slowly roll behind your lids. Breathing becomes more regular and slower. You are less aware of your surroundings, although a whisper could wake you. Often you have the dream-like sensation of falling or jerking, which is enough to arouse you awake. This stage usually lasts for five to ten minutes.

STAGE TWO: This stage accounts for half of the total sleep time. You can easily be aroused from this sleep stage, even though you are even less aware of your surroundings than in stage one. Your brain has small busts of activity which last only for a second or two.

STAGES THREE AND FOUR: In these stages is when you are in a deep sleep. You whole body, including your muscles is very relaxed and you have a slow, regular heartbeat and breathing. Trying to wake someone while they are in these stages is very difficult. During these stages growth hormones are released in our bodies, which encourage growth and development in children, and muscle and tissue repair in adults. A healthy adult will spend about seven per cent of total sleep time in stage three and eleven per cent in stage four.

REM Phase

The REM stage makes up roughly 20-25 per cent of a normal night’s sleep. It is called REM as while you are in this stage, your eyes move about rapidly, flickering and twitching behind your closed eyelids. In this stage you are also temporarily paralysed, except for the muscles needed for basic life-sustaining functions, such as breathing. The blood flow to your brain increases during this time, which is thought to help children’s brains to grow and adult’s brains to repair.

Adults experience REM sleep within 90 minutes of falling asleep and as the cycle repeats during the night, usually either five or six times, you spend a little longer in the REM stage. It is also during the REM stage that dreaming occurs, which lasts between five and thirty minutes. It is unclear exactly why we dream, with some suggesting it is our minds way of dealing with the events of the day, while others say it is how we sort through memories and what we have learnt in order to process it into long term memory, while others suggest that it is just our brain dealing with things that are worth forgetting, overlapping memories that might otherwise clog up our brains.

Why do we Sleep?

There are many theories as to why our bodies require sleep. Many believe that sleep, particularly the REM phase, is important for memory, healing and learning. Also, physical exustion is another reason for sleep, as the body requires time to rest and repair any damaged tissue or muscles. For infants and children, sleep is vital for brain development and growth.

A lack of REM sleep is believed to increase irritability and decrease concentration during the day, while a lack of all four phases of NREM sleep has been shown to leave a person complaining of physical tiredness while awake. After three days without any sleep, a person will normally start to hallucinate, be unable to think clearly, and lose their grasp of reality, as well as show signs of physical fatigue, like headaches and pain.

Sleep Facts

• Narcolepsy is the medical condition for the uncontrollable desire to sleep anywhere.
• The average yawn lasts for six seconds and during a yawn your heart rate can rise as much as 30 per cent.
• Sleepwalkers are called somnambulists, and sometimes they recall their adventures the next day, other times they are completely unaware of what has transpired. Sometimes somnambulists will dress and eat in the middle of their sleep. Sometimes they don’t always go back to their beds to resume their night’s sleep.
• In 1965 17 year–old US high school student Randy Gardner stayed awake for a record of 264 hours, or 11 days. This was part of an experiment conducted by researchers from Stanford University. During the experiment, Randy showed no signs of madness but used loud music and cold showers to stave off sleep. After finally going to bed he awoke after a 15 hour sleep feeling fine.
• Elephants sleep standing up during NREM sleep and lie down for REM sleep.
• Most of what we know about sleep we have only learned in the past 25 to 30 years.
• Scientists have not been able to explain a 1998 study showing a bright light shone on the backs of human knees can reset the brain’s sleep-wake clock.
• Our body’s ‘natural alarm clock’ which enables some people to wake up more or less when they want to is caused by a burst of the stress hormone adrenocorticotropin.
• Studies suggest that women need an extra hour of sleep a night than men.
• In 2000 a camper aged 14 fell 4m off a cliff in Australia after sleepwalking out of his tent. Thankfully, he survived.

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Know Your Health Through Your Hair

Everything from stress to nutrition to hormones can impact whether your strands are thick and shiny or thin and brittle. Check out these telltale clues that your tresses can give you about your overall well-being. 

Major shedding

What it means: The average woman may lose as many as 100 hairs a day, but if you suddenly notice fistfuls coming loose when you brush or piles on your pillow, it may be a clue that you have a hormonal imbalance called PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome. PCOS can trigger your ovaries to produce too many androgens, or male sex hormones, and contribute to hair thinning or hair loss. Other signs of PCOS include stubborn belly fat, facial hair, acne, and irregular periods. 

The fix: As many as one in 15 women may have some degree of PCOS, but losing weight by eating whole, unprocessed foods and exercising for at least 30 minutes a day can balance hormones and lessen symptoms. Taking the pill also helps regulate your period. As for your hair, it's a myth that skipping shampooing will prevent you from losing more. Your scalp has already been programmed to lose those strands. Be sure to keep washing regularly so you feel good and maintain a healthy scalp.

Fine, limp texture 

What it means: If your once-thick locks morph into thin strands, it could be a sign of hypothyroidism, a condition by which the thyroid gland doesn't produce enough hormones, causing your metabolism to slow down. The thyroid is the master gland that regulates your endocrine system and it also impacts how hair is formed. Other symptoms of hypothyroidism include unexplained weight gain, being cold all the time, and feeling fatigue despite getting adequate sleep. 

The fix: First thing's first: see your doc. She or he will give you a TSH test and - if diagnosed with hypothyroidism - you may have to take a pill such as Synthroid. As for keeping your strands thick, avoid getting highlights if you color your hair. Highlights over color cause damage and compromise the overall density by increasing the likelihood of breakage. 

Hair that falls out only in patches 

What it means: Losing hair in dime- and quarter-sized patches could be what's known as alopecia aratha. It's thought to be an autoimmune condition where your immune system attacks your body's own healthy cells and may be triggered by major life events such as a pregnancy or illness. Patches may fill in and regrow, and then another bald patch can show up.

The fix: It's important to consult with your doctor to pinpoint whether or not you have an underlying immune disorder, and cortisone shots could help. It may also just be your body's individual response to stress, similar to how some people break out in hives on their skin. If stress seems to be the cause, better manage your anxiety by pinpointing your specific triggers and avoiding them, as well as trying a mindfulness-based exercise routine such as yoga or tai chi. 

Going gray early 

What it means: Genetics are mostly to blame for those white hairs sprouting all over your head, and usually aren't indicative of an underlying health problem. However, if you have a lot of grays before age 35, some studies suggest you might be short on vitamin B12 and folic acid. Researchers discovered that folic acid, vitamin B12 and sun exposure could help re-pigment patches of both skin and hair that stopped producing melanin, according to a study by the Department of Dermatology at University Hospital in Uppsala, Sweden. 

The fix: To get more vitamin B12, fill up on lean red meat, shellfish, eggs, poultry, and milk. For folic acid, increase your intake of leafy greens, beans, and fortified grains. To cover grays without harsh chemicals, try a formula  that uses natural botanicals like henna instead of ammonia, formaldehyde, and other potentially harmful ingredients. 

Dry, flaky scalp 

What it means: Dandruff can be seriously embarrassing - it's definitely not an accessory you want to wear with a little black dress during the holidays. Besides using too many products, those little white flakes can also be the result of stress and anxiety.

The Fix: Try adding more fish to your dish - such as salmon and sardines - to up your levels of omega-3 fatty acids. This healthy fat not only helps keep skin and hair supple, but researchers have shown that people with the highest blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids are least likely to report symptoms of depression, and report having an overall more positive outlook. Also try an exfoliating scalp mask to slough off dead cells and moisturize skin. Think about your scalp the way you think about your skin because it's the base for your hair follicles to grow out. You want to moisturize it and soothe inflammation.

Strands that break off easily 

What it means: Your hair is made of a protein called keratin, and a lack of protein in your diet can weaken tresses to the point that they snap. Vegans or vegetarians may be especially at-risk since meats are one of the most common sources of protein. If you're certain you're getting enough protein, the damage may be caused by heat and overstyling. 

The fix: If you're eating an 1800-calorie-a-day diet, aim to get at least 68 grams of protein to help fortify strands. An example of an easy swap to up your intake includes trading a six-inch pancake sans butter or syrup (5 grams protein, 175 calories) for 1 cup low-fat plain yogurt with 1/2 cup apricots (13 grams protein, 186 calories).  To prevent weakening the cuticle and further breakage, turn the heat setting down to medium on your styling tools. Also try cutting two minutes off of your usual styling time, because it usually doesn't change the overall look of your hair but can potentially lessen cumulative damage that makes strands more fragile. 

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Harmful Beauty Trends to Avoid in 2013

So many beautifying techniques sound like a really great idea -- who wouldn't want to restore moisture and elasticity to their skin, deep condition and soften their hair, or get a pretty glow? But in our ever-enduring efforts to look our best, we can sometimes fall prey to unhealthy and even dangerous treatments.

Here are five beauty trends we saw this year that are just plain bad for you:

Keratin Straightening Systems

We've long been concerned about keratin treatments -- also known as Brazilian Straightening treatments. But as of earlier this year, the two biggest manufacturers of the treatment will include a warning about the carcinogenic effects of formaldehyde gas that is emitted when the product is mixed.`

Black Market Butt Injections

Loose solutions like silicone are not approved for injections in humans, and yet this fast-growing treatment that is meant to augment your posterior is regularly conducted at home or by unlicensed people, often known as "shot girls". 

In a certified surgeon's office, the typical augmentation would be done using the patient's own fat. And though any medical procedure caries its own set of risks, it's obvious that the regulated and controlled process conducted by a licensed physician is a safer bet.

Tanning

This year's tanning mom was a cautionary tale if there ever was one -- though the majority of tanners obviously don't look quite like her. But even if that tanning-bed session gave you a healthy-looking glow, you're now 29 percent more likely to develop basal-cell carcinomas and 69 percent more likely to get squamous-cell carcinomas -- two types of deadly skin cancer.

Fish Spa Pedicures

It sounds harmless enough: Toothless carp known as "doctor fish" nibble away at the dead skin cells that form unsightly callouses on a person's feet. But a recent analysis of fish slated for spas throughout the U.K. showed they were found to have antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as Vibrio vulnificus, Vibrio cholerae, S. agalactiae and even Streptococcus agalactiae, which can cause pneumonia and other serious infections. 

That callous-sloughing razor doesn't sound so bad now, does it?

Bikini Waxes

At least one crusader -- a family doctor who runs a student health center in the U.K. -- is out to end the practice of bikini waxing. 

Dr. Emily Gibson explains that waxing pubic hair creates microtears in skin that, in turn, makes waxers more vulnerable to picking up infections -- either from bacteria that grows in the genital region, or from sexually transmitted disease. 

“Pubic hair does have a purpose, providing a cushion against friction that can cause skin abrasion and injury, and protection from bacteria," wrote Gibson in MedPage Today. "It is the visible result of adolescent hormones and certainly nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about.”

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How to Treat a Stuffy Nose?

Winter knock you off your game? What's the best thing to do for a stuffy nose?

There's no secret formula, so you'll need to try treatments one at a time to see what works for you. Use this backgrounder on some common decloggers; as always, read labels for directions and side effect info. 

Antihistamines: They fight histamines, chemicals that cause congestion and stuffyiness during an infection or allergy attack. Older ones such as Benadryl may make you sleepy, so look for newer formulas marked nondrowsy. 

Decongestants: Oral decongestants with pseudoephedrine work to clear you up by shrinking swollen nasal tissues, but they could make you jittery. Nasal sprays are great for occasional relief, but they lose effectiveness with prolonged use. 

Nasal irrigation: Neti pots and the like can help literally wash out congestion. Saline sprays moisten nasal passages and ease inflammation to relieve stuffiness. Both can be used in tandem with most over-the-counter or Rx meds, too. 

Natural cures: Sprays with capsaicin, the stuff that makes chiles spicy, may clear congestion, but there's not a ton of research to back this up. I say: Natural treatments may work, but use them carefully-too much of anything can hurt you. 

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Eating Healthy This Holiday Season

Pause for a moment amid crazy schedules to appreciate the joy surrounding you this holiday.

The true testament to the power of food goes beyond any sensory gratification to the feelings of love and togetherness it evokes. Yet, it seems so easy to overlook the deeper pleasures of the table amid the hectic holiday swirl. 

The body's logic is to respond to any stressor by focusing on taking as much food as possible and storing it. But you're not enjoying it. So if you're stressed-and most people are during the holidays-you will overeat and won't enjoy the time.

By encouraging you to let go of stressors and enjoy the food you're eating, mindfulness can help you make the most of your food choices, paving the way for truly appreciating and savoring them.

1. Inhale and exhale. 

Slow, deep, even breathing tells the brain stem to put the entire brain into a state of calm. Take five deep in-and-out breaths after you sit down at the table and before you lift your fork.

2. Give thanks.

The parts of your brain that are associated with gratitude and appreciation cannot operate when there is stress. But the good news is the reverse is also true: If you're focused on gratitude, the stress can't take over. Gratitude stops addictive patterns in the brain.  After your five deep breaths, allow yourself a moment of gratitude, silent reflection, or prayer for the food you are about to eat.

3. All food is good.

Remove "good" and "bad" from your food vocabulary. You can't completely enjoy a piece of cake if you're telling yourself it is bad for you. There is no such thing as a bad or wrong food. If you get rid of the judgmental language around food, it becomes less stressful. When making food decisions, try replacing "I should" or "I shouldn't" with "I choose to.

4. Replay frustrating situations.

When you do find yourself mindlessly eating or reacting to stress by reaching for something sweet or salty (it does happen to everyone), forgive yourself and move on. Because we tend to remember what we did wrong, it helps to replay it in your mind with a different outcome. It's a way of rehearsing that behavior so it replicates more easily. Instead of mentally putting yourself through the ringer, replay the situation in your head again. You went overboard with the cheese board or the cocktail bar, and you're unhappy. Replay the scenario, only this time you're taking a bite or sip, enjoying it slowly, and truly savoring every flavor.

5. Enjoy what's on your plate.

Never eat anything you don't enjoy, and truly enjoy everything you eat. Take the first four bites of your meals slowly and with full attention on the food: Savor the flavors and textures so that you can begin to understand what mindful eating feels like.

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Skin Care Diets

Your diet keeps your body slim and healthy, but its impact doesn’t stop there. The food you eat—from wrinkle-fighting antioxidants in fruits and vegetables to hydrating healthy fats in fish—may matter to your skin almost as much as it does to your waistline. Is your way of noshing helping or hurting your complexion? We asked top docs for their take on the face-friendliness of six popular diets. Read on to see if yours passes the beauty test, and find out how you can alter what you eat for A-plus skin.


The Mediterranean Diet

The lowdown: Fish, leafy greens, olive oil, and fruit are the stars of this heart-healthy diet. But the benefits don’t end there—eating Mediterranean may also protect against melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, a recent Italian study suggests. On the cosmetic front, omega-3 fatty acids in fish help keep skin-cell membranes strong and elastic.

Olive oil, tomatoes, and red wine also have antioxidants that help block the chemical reactions that lead to sun damage, explains Leslie Baumann, MD, chief executive officer of the Baumann Cosmetic and Research Institute in Miami Beach, Florida.


Vegetarian Diet

The lowdown: Whether you skip meat and other animal products for your health, ethical reasons, or both, you probably eat more fresh produce and whole grains as a result—good news for your skin. The antioxidants in these eats neutralize the free radicals that contribute to wrinkles, brown spots, and other signs of aging.

Veggie diets tend to be low in fat, so incorporate ground flaxseeds and olive and safflower oils to help your skin retain water, making it more supple, Dr. Baumann says.


South Beach Diet

The lowdown: Cutting back on white bread, pasta, and refined sugar can also lower the stress hormone cortisol and minimize breakouts, says dermatologist Francesca Fusco, MD. Plans that swap in whole grains, fresh produce, and lean meats also up antioxidants, blemish-busting zinc, and collagen-building protein.

But beware of meat-heavy plans. "Too much animal fat can result in an increased production of free radicals, which are thought to interfere with normal cellular processing," says aesthetic dermatologist Lisa Airan, MD.

Drink lots of water to keep skin hydrated. Choose fish and other lean proteins, not just red meat. Eat antioxidant-rich leafy greens daily.


Low-fat Diet

The lowdown: Cutting down on saturated fat is great for your heart and waistline. A diet low in animal fat also stems the production of free radicals that can prematurely age skin, Dr. Airan says.

Still, your skin needs some fat, especially the good kind found in nuts and olive oil. Fat helps your body absorb complexion-friendly antioxidants and fat-soluble vitamins, and strengthens cell membranes—and ultimately your epidermis—for a dewier, more supple face.

"Get at least 20% of your calories from fat, mainly the unsaturated kind," says dermatologist Cheryl Karcher, MD.


Raw-food Diet

The lowdown: Raw-foodists—who nosh mainly on produce, nuts, and sprouted beans and grains—believe that not cooking food preserves its natural enzymes, aiding digestion, energy, and weight loss. Though these claims aren’t universally accepted by doctors, there’s no denying that these foods make for a happy complexion. What’s more, the healthy oils in nuts, avocados, and olive oil keep skin cell membranes strong and pliant. The downside: "When you eat very little meat, it’s challenging to get enough of the building blocks for collagen," Dr. Airan says.


CarbLovers Diet

The cornerstone of Health’s signature plan is Resistant Starch (RS), a type of carbohydrate that acts like fiber, moving through the digestive tract without being fully digested, absorbed, or converted to glucose. Piling your plate with RS foods boosts metabolism and keeps you fuller longer, which helps you steer clear of skin-damaging foods, such as fat- and sugar-laden snacks, while lowering blood sugar and insulin levels.

The result: a happy body and clearer skin, Dr. Karcher says. CarbLovers also provides lots of skin-smoothing omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidant-packed whole grains, and collagen-building protein.

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Treat and Boost Fertility with Avocados and Olive Oil

For women trying to get pregnant through IVF treatments, a new study finds that eating avocados and olive oil might boost their chances of success.

Dr. Jorge Chavarro and colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health in the US looked at how intake of different types of fats affected success of IVF treatment in 147 women, mostly in their 30s. 

Findings revealed that diets rich in foods typically eaten as part of the Mediterranean diet, including sunflower oil and nuts and seeds, tripled the chances of success for women having the fertility treatment.

In contrast, women who ate mostly saturated fat, found in dairy products and red meat, produced fewer good eggs for use in fertility treatment. High saturated fat intake has already been linked to lower sperm counts. 

The study was presented on July 3 at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Istanbul.

"The best kinds of food to eat are avocados, which have a lot of monounsaturated fat and low levels of other sorts of fat, and olive oil," said Chavarro. He said the study was small and more research is needed before clinical advice can be given to women. "While these results are interesting, this is the first time to our knowledge that dietary fats have been linked to treatment outcome in IVF."

Another new study presented at the same conference found that women who reported drinking five or more cups of coffee a day at the start of IVF treatment reduced their chance of success by 50 percent. The Danish researchers described heavy coffee drinking as being "comparable to the detrimental effect of smoking."

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Health Clues in Your Smile

Good teeth can do more than keep your dental bills low—they can help protect you from a whole host of health problems. The following are 5 good reasons why you should take great care of your chompers. 

Heart Disease and Stroke

A variety of studies have established that inflammation and bacteria in the mouth and gums can find its way into the bloodstream, leading to thickening of the arteries and increasing the risk of a heart attack; while fatty plaques that build up on the inside of the vessels can break off, go to the brain and cause a stroke.

Need further convincing? One recent study published in the British Medical Journal analyzed data from over 11,000 adults and determined that participants who reported brushing their teeth less frequently had a 70% increased risk of heart disease versus those who brushed twice daily. So do your heart a favor and brush up on good dental hygiene.

Diabetes

Doctors have long known that Type 2 diabetics have an increased occurrence of periodontal disease, but it turns out preventing gum infections may stave off diabetes in the first place. A recent study out of Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health that followed 9,296 nondiabetic participants over 20 years found that people who had higher levels of periodontal disease had twice the risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to those with low levels or no gum infections.

Although further research is needed to determine the exact reason, one theory proposes that serious oral infections can lead to low-grade inflammation throughout your body and that inflammation may destroy your ability to process sugar.

Respiratory Infections

Keeping your mouth clean and healthy can also help keep your lungs protected according to a recent study in the Journal of Periodontology. In a pool of 200 participants aged 20 to 60, researchers found that patients suffering from a respiratory illness such as pneumonia, acute bronchitis, an upper respiratory infection, or COPD had poorer periodontal health than those in the control group. The reason for this association likely lies in the bacteria caused by periodontal disease, which forms in the upper throat. From there it can easily be inhaled into the lower respiratory tract and can obstruct breathing or develop into more serious lung-related problems.

Breast Cancer

As science continues to discover a very clear link between oral health and overall health, more and more studies are being conducted that explore different parts of the body. The latest study out of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden suggests that women may be over 11 times more likely to develop breast cancer if they have missing teeth and gum disease. Since this is one of the first studies of its kind, more research needs to be done to back up the results, but so far they seem to be on track with the current findings that poor dental hygiene can directly affect your general health.

Pregnancy Problems

If you’re pregnant or thinking of getting pregnant it’s more important than ever to stay on top of your oral health. Due to hormonal fluctuations and the increased blood flow throughout your body during pregnancy, you are more likely to notice changes in your teeth and gums. According to the American Academy of Periodontists, about fifty percent of pregnant women develop gingivitis, a condition that leaves gums inflamed, bleeding, swollen, or tender. Left unchecked it can lead to periodontal disease, a serious infection that could create problems in the delivery room. While research is still being done, several studies suggest there is a direct relationship between infected bacteria in your mouth and premature deliveries, low-birth rate, and preeclampsia. To be safe, be diligent about brushing, flossing, and visiting your dentist, and make sure to alert her to any pain or problems that pop up over the nine months.

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