Health and Medicine Blog

Majority of quit smoking tips are fabulous to read but not so practical when it comes to quitting. Following a tip that tells you in different ways that you need to be sincere and determined about quitting will hardly do you any good. To quit successfully and for long term, you need some tips that may help you stop smoking without either trivialising or idealising this dangerous addiction. Let’s have a look at some tips that are practical and effective.

Understand the law of addiction

Cigarettes can be your best friend in times of difficulties, stress, or anxieties. But do you feel like smoking when you are extremely happy and free from any worries? Chances are very high that you don’t. Law of addiction can explain this phenomenon very well. Any form of addiction has a negative intensifier attached to it. Put simply, you don’t get addicted to bread and butter, but you do get addicted to alcohol. Wonder why? This is because bread and butter is taken for satisfying physical hunger. Once taken, your hunger goes away and you don’t feel like eating until hungry again. But an addictive substance like alcohol can intensify your cravings for more, putting you on a negative loop of desire-consummation-desire. Nicotine can do the same thing to you, making it difficult for you to come out of smoking addiction.

Once you understand this law of addiction, you can make an attempt to lower your cravings for nicotine. Champix (varenicline tartrate), one of the most sought after prescription quit smoking pills, can help you overcome your nicotine pangs. Varenicline attaches to the nicotine receptors in the brain and does not give the smoker any pleasure which is normally associated with smoking. This drug can also prevent the release of a hormone called dopamine, helping the smoker overcome nicotine withdrawal symptoms.

Personalise your plan for quitting

Many people who want to quit smoking tend to believe that some kind of general rule is there to quit. The reality is different. You must understand that each individual has different ways and means to achieve something or let something go. So it is advisable that you personalise your plan for quitting. Keep a diary and write down why you want to stop smoking. Is it because you smell bad, or is your money going down the drain? Also, you can make some changes in your eating habit to stay away from cigarettes. For example, if you are used to taking a cup of coffee every morning followed by smoking a cigarette, switch to a glass of milk instead. The effects of taste are different with milk and you may not like smoking as much after a glass of milk as you do after a cup of coffee.

Stop judging yourself all the time

Excessive self-judgment can be as problematic an addiction as smoking itself is. The reason is fairly simple: when you judge yourself too much and become critical about the smallest of issues, you tend to become very conscious about your every action, speech and body language. It can raise a war between your spontaneous self and your conscious self, resulting in you seeking an escape route through smoking.

Aging is a natural process and each and every person has to pass through this process. You can’t reverse aging but you can try to conquer the aging process with the right foods and a healthy lifestyle. A healthy diet with anti aging foods along with regular exercises can be the solution for aging.

The following is an anti aging foods list foods that can help you look younger for years to come.

1. Berries – Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries and all berries have an incredible amount of antioxidants. Antioxidants help fight free radicals, which damage your cells and cause premature aging.

2. Cruciferous vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, turnip and radish, are rich in vitamins and fiber, which help the body to fight against toxins and cancer. They are also high in vitamin C which helps the formation of skin rejuvenators – elastin and collagen.

3. Red Wine: The list of anti aging foods includes red wine too. Red wine contains resveratrol, which slows down cellular aging. It is also believed to be good in preventing age-related illnesses.

4. Green Tea. Green tea is rich in antioxidants that reduce inflammation and keep skin smooth and blemish-free. It’s also high in vitamins C, D, and K, as well as riboflavin, zinc, calcium, magnesium, and iron, all of which are good for your body and your skin.

5. Garlic and other Allium Family Members: Garlic has many medicinal properties, which help in preventing diseases, like colon cancer and heart diseases. Garlic can also prevent cell degeneration, which causes aging. To get the maximum benefits of garlic, you have to eat it in the raw form. Apart from garlic, other members of the allium family, like, onion, leeks, chives, etc., are also good for fighting the aging process.

6. Tomatoes – Tomatoes are wonderful, and they’re loaded with extremely nutritious elements. Tomatoes contain ample amounts of lycopene, which can balance your skin, reduce the risk of cancer, and slow down aging.

7. Fish such as salmon, macquerel, sardines. They have big amounts of Omega-3 fatty and Omega 6 fatty acids. These are healthy fats that will help keep the skin moisturized and lubricated thus reducing inflammation.

8. Water: Staying hydrated is one of the golden rules to prevent aging. For this purpose, there is nothing that can replace water. Drink at least eight glasses of water a day, as it contains no calories and chemicals. It is better to use filtered water than tap water. Water helps to flush out the toxins in the body and provides fluidity for blood, along with rendering a clear skin.

9. Avocado: an avocado is a good source of vitamin E and monounsaturated fats. While vitamin E helps to maintain shining hair , healthy glowing skin and prevent skin aging, mono unsaturated fats are good in reducing the levels of bad cholesterol in the body. It is also very rich in potassium which helps prevent fluid retention and high blood pressure.

10. Apples. Red Delicious and Granny Smith apples are excellent for the skin’s health. Studies have shown that they fortify the production of both collagen and elastin, which are crucial to maintain glowing skin and prevent skin aging.

Herbal shampoos, moisturizers, and toners can be found on the market in abundance. Everywhere you look it seems the word herbal is attached to a product. However, not every product labeled herbal skin care routine is actually using herbs that work for the skin.

If you are focused on natural skin care then it is important to read the ingredients contained in the product. An example might be a product labeled primrose skin tightening formula. Now normally one would assume this is part of a routine that was natural. However a person reading the ingredients might discover the active ingredients were products they could not pronounce and obviously not natural or herbal.

On the other hand women maintained beautiful and healthy skin for centuries using only herbal personal care products so they probably work. Choosing a completely herbal set of facial or skin products may be easiest, when using one product line. Choose a brand that is all natural and begin with a cleanser.

Cleansing the face thoroughly is important and most herbal cleansers do so naturally and gently. Once the face is thoroughly cleansed use a toner or astringent to tight the pores up. This can be followed with a moisturizer made from herbal products to help keep skin soft and supple.

Problem skin can be helped by a routine using natural products but the person with very oily skin will want to avoid excessively oily moisturizers. Alternatively the person with very dry skin will want a very rich moisturizing product. A weekly or twice monthly herbal mask can help keep the skin fresh and glowing by removing dead skin cells and stimulating blood flow.

In almost every case herbal products can produce similar results to those chemically manufactured. Good herbal products will depend on herbs to provide the desired results. It is usually wise to avoid products labeled herbal which have more chemicals than herbs, if natural personal care products are your preference.

Today, it is no different; there are myriad of ways to take care of the skin, some of which contain the natural skin care techniques once practiced in ancient civilizations. Plant oils and extracts are combined with synthetic products to make many of the skin care products we use today. Plant and fruits contain phytonutrients and essential vitamins and minerals that help to soothe, exfoliate, moisturize, heal and protect the skin. Phytonutrients such as carotenoids, flavonoids and lignans and vitamins A, C, E and the mineral, selenium, have protective and healing effects on the skin.

Modern science has turned to natural and herbal skin care not just for the benefits to the skin, but also because of the familiarity of the aroma of most fruits and herbs. Strawberries, apricots, raspberries, vanilla, chamomile and lavender are used in many skin care products for their phytonutrients as well as for their familiar aroma of which consumers become loyal.

Like all skin care products, natural and herbal skin care products can be classified according to the benefits they give to the skin. You have natural and herbal skin care products that tone, moisturize, exfoliate, protect and heal the skin. So if you are interested in making natural and herbal skin care a part of your skin care regimen, here are some of the natural and herbal skin care products you can use:

For natural and herbal skin care options to repair the skin, you should turn to tea extracts, aloe vera, honey, cucumber and rose oil. Most tea extracts work wonders on repairing the skin from UV rays; cucumber is also good for repairing the skin from sunburn.

For moisturizers, your natural and herbal skin care options should be aloe vera, rose oil and fruit oils. Oil extracts from fruits such as bananas, apples, avocados and melons are good moisturizers.

Witch hazel, aloe vera, lavender water, rose water, peppermint oil, horseradish and vinegar are good natural and herbal toners. You can steep dried lavender, rose or witch hazel in hot water to make a homemade toner you can use on your face and body. If you are going to use vinegar you should dilute it with 50% water before using it.

Natural and herbal skin care options for cleansers include lavender, witch hazel, aloe vera and elderflower. If you have oily skin, witch hazel would be a good natural and herbal skin care option for removing oil build up from the skin.

Fennel, thyme, marigold and lavender are all natural and herbal options for antiseptics. You can make homemade antiseptics to clean the face and prevent bumps, pimples and acne from forming.

Apricot seed, amaranth seed, walnut shell flour, jojoba seed and strawberry seeds are all natural and herbal exfoliants. You can buy these seeds in herbal beauty stores and make an all natural scrub to exfoliate the skin.

Following a natural and herbal skin care regime is an easy thing to do. You can buy plant and fruit extracts and oils from online or at beauty shops and treat your skin the way people have for hundreds of years before you.