Tag: Seasonal Affective Disorder

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Herbs & Plants

Rhodiola rosea

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Botanical Name : Rhodiola rosea
Family: Crassulaceae
Genus: Rhodiola
Species: R. rosea
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Saxifragales

Common Names :Golden Root, Roseroot, Aaron’s Rod

Habitat : Rhodiola rosea  is a plant that grows in cold regions of the world. These include much of the Arctic, the mountains of Central Asia, the Rocky Mountains, and mountainous parts of Europe, such as the Alps, Pyrenees, Carpathian Mountains, Scandinavia, Iceland, Great Britain and Ireland.

Description:
The perennial plant grows in areas up to 2280 meters elevation. Several shoots grow from the same thick root. Shoots reaches 5 to 35 cm in height. Rhodiola rosea is dioecious – having separate

 

click to see the pictures….>...(01)......(1).…....(2)…....(3)..…....(4).………………

Medicinal Uses:
Chinese medical practitioners describe adaptogens as “superior” plants that profoundly benefit the human body without dangerous side effects. While the most famous adaptogen is ginseng, cutting-edge research by top Russian doctors and scientists has shown that Arctic Root can ease more conditions, including stress, depression, heart disease and cancer
.           Rhodiola rosea has been shown to shorten recovery time after prolonged workouts, to increase attention span, memory, strength, and anti-toxic action. Rhodiola rosea extract increases the level of enzymes, RNA, and proteins important to muscle recovery after exhaustive exercise.  It has also been shown to increase the levels of beta-endorphin in blood plasma which helps prevent the hormonal changes indicative of stress.  This effect has also been linked to maintaining an increased cardiac output and subsequently having a cardioprotective effect.  Studies using proofreading tests have demonstrated that Rhodiola rosea enhances memorization and concentration ability over prolonged periods.  Finally, Rhodiola has been shown to increase anti-tumor activity by increasing the body’s resistance to toxins.

In Siberia it is said that “those who drink rhodiola tea regularly will live more than 100 years.” Chinese emperors always looking for the secret to long life and immortality sent expeditions into Siberia to collect and bring back the plant. Being one of the most popular medicinal herbs of middle Asia, for many years Rhodiola was illegally trafficked across the Russian border to China  In Siberia it was taken regularly especially during the cold and wet winters to prevent sickness. In Mongolia it was used for the treatment of tuberculosis and cancer.      Formerly regarded as a scarce plant, researchers from Tomsk State University found significant stands of this valuable herb growing wild in Sibera at elevations of 5000 to 9000 feet above sea level.  Subsequent research has substantiated high live giving biological activity with no toxicity.    For the treatment of depression extracts of rhodiola, namely rosavin and salidroside, in animal studies seem to enhance the transport of serotonin precursors, tryptophan, and 5-hydroxytryptophan into the brain. Serotonin is a widely studied brain neurotransmitter chemical that is involved in many functions including, smooth muscle contraction, temperature regulation, appetite, pain perception, behavior, blood pressure and respiration.  When balanced, it imparts a a sense of contentment and mental ease. Either too much or too little serotonin on the other hand has been linked to various abnormal mental states such as clinical depression. Thus rhodiola has been used by Russian scientists alone or in combination with antidepressants to boost one’s mental state, a boon in countries and seasons where one is deprived of adequate sun over prolonged periods of months. This leads to a condition known as SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder common to Northern European countries.
Rhodiola has also been shown to be effective for cardiac problems caused or aggravated by stress. Its action for these conditions is in its ability to decrease the amount of catecholamines and corticosteroids released by the adrenal glands during stress. The abnormal presence of these stress hormones will subsequently raise blood pressure, cholesterol, potassium levels and increase risk factors for heart disease. Rhodiola has been found to decrease harmful blood lipids and thus decrease the risk of heart disease. It also decreases the amount of cyclic-AMP (c-AMP) released into cardiac cells. Cyclic AMP is related to ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the body’s primary energy molecule. C-AMP acts as a ‘second messenger’ or liaison between the outer and inner environments of the cell. It assists in the uptake of more intracellular calcium into the heart thus promoting a greater potential for heart muscle contraction. Rhodiola thus regulates the heart beat and counteracts heart arrhythmias    As an adaptogen, rhodiola both stimulates and protects the immune system by reinstating homeostasis (metabolic balance) in the body. It also increases natural killer cell (NK) in the stomach and spleen. This action may be due to its ability to normalize hormones by modulating the release of glucocorticoid into the body.

Rhodiola has potent antioxidant properties. By limiting the adverse effects of free radical damage, it is able to combat all the diseases associated with aging. The presence of free radicals is associated with cell mutagenicity, the immediate cause of cancer. Again, Russian researchers have found that the oral administration of rhodiola inhibited tumor growth in rats 39 percent and decreased metastasis by 50 percent. It improved urinary tissue and immunity in patients suffering with bladder cancer. In other experiments with various types of cancer, including adenocarcinoma (cancer of glandular tissue such as breast cancer) and lung carcinoma, the use of extracts of rhodiola rosea resulted in significant increased survival rate                 Like Siberian ginseng, rhodiola is routinely used by athletes to improve performance. While the mechanism is not completely understood, rhodiola seems to improve the ratio of muscle-fat and increases hemoglobin and erythrocytes levels in the blood.

Many other benefits from the use of Rhodiola has been found including its ability to improve hearing, when applied to the gums to inhibit the progression of pyorrhea, to regulate blood sugar levels for diabetics and protect the liver from environmental toxin.

You may click to see :Rhodiola Rosea root extract supplement benefit, side effects and dosage

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:
http://www.metaefficient.com/medicines-and-remedies/rhodiola-rosea-hypereffective-adaptogen.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodiola_rosea
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_RST.htm?Voucher2=Connect+to+Internet

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Healthy Tips

Blue Light May be Key to Fighting Winter Blues

As winter approaches and the days get shorter, your mood may get darker too. Sunlight deprivation can make people feel lethargic, gloomy, and irritable, and for some it can lead to the condition known as seasonal affective disorder, (SAD). or winter depression.
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This can make you feel lethargic, gloomy, and irritable. However, while daylight as a whole is beneficial to fight off the syndrome, different colors of light seem to affect your body in different ways.

Click to see :7 Signs of Seasonal Affective Disorder

Blue light can affect your mind, including mood. And according to a new study, blue light might play a key role in your brain‘s ability to process emotions. The study results suggest that spending more time in blue-enriched light could help prevent SAD.

CNN reports:
“Studies have shown that blue light improves alertness and mental performance … The researchers discovered that blue light, more so than the green light, seemed to stimulate and strengthen connections between areas of the brain involved in processing emotion and language.”

Resources:
*CNN October 27, 2010
*Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 9, 2010; 107(45):19549-54

Posted By Dr. Mercola | December 14 2010

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Featured

How to Fend Off Depression in Winter

winter depression, blues, SAD

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While some people look forward to fall and winter, others dread the cooler temperatures and shorter days. They know that the winter season will bring worsening symptoms of depression.

Up to 3 percent of the population in the U.S. may suffer from winter depression, which experts term seasonal affective disorder, or SAD. Countless others have a less severe form, dubbed the “winter blues.” Symptoms may include:

• Extreme fatigue
• Getting too much sleep
• Difficulty concentrating
• Weight gain

Several treatments have been shown to improve seasonal winter depression, including:

• Light therapy
• Talk therapy
• Melatonin

Light therapy might be as simple as getting up early and walking outside on a bright winter morning. A technique called “dawn simulation” — in which a light is programmed to turn on early in the morning in your bedroom — can also help.

Light boxes are widely sold over the Internet, and exposure to them can help. When buying one, choose one that is at least 1 foot by 1.5 feet. These larger boxes have more supporting research. Patients sit in front of the light boxes daily for a specified amount of time. Getting bright light in the morning is best for most people.

Most people with seasonal winter depression respond best not only to bright light exposure in the morning, but also to a low dose of the hormone melatonin in the afternoon to reset their body clocks to normal.

For some people with winter depression, getting more therapy during colder months can help, too. A boost in activity will also help, even walking around the block or getting out to a ball game.

One warning: Craving carbohydrates — especially sweets — is a common symptom of SAD. But the boost in energy you get form these simple carbs is temporary, and the extra sweets can mean you’ll put on weight.

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Fruits & Vegetables

Amazing Effects of Bananas

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Click & See the pictures

“NEVER PUT BANANA IN THE REFRIGERATOR“

Bananas contain three natural sugars – sucrose,fructose and glucose
combined with fiber. A banana gives an instant,
sustained and substantial boost of energy.

Research has proven that just two bananas
provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout.
No wonder banana is the number one fruit with the world’s leading athletes.

But energy isn’t the only way a banana can
help us keep fit.
It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial
number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet..

Depression: According to a recent survey
undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain
tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin,known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you
feel happier.

PMS: Forget the pills – eat a banana… The
vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate
the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is
extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure.
So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration
has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit’s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham
(Middlesex) school were
helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast,break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has
shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist
learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation: High in fiber, including bananas
in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing
a hangover is to make a banana milkshake,sweetened with honey.The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect
in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between
meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect
bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swellingand irritation.

Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that
help calm the nervous system.
Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute
of Psychology in Austria found pressure at wor k leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and chips. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients,
researchers found the most obese were more
likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that,to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar
levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods
every two hours to keep levels steady.

Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food
against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Temperature control: Many other cultures see
bananas as a’cooling’ fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand ,for example,
pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby
is born with a cool temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can
help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.

Smoking &Tobacco Use: Bananas can also
help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they contain, as well as
the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which
helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body’s water
balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic
rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help
of a high-potassium banana snack.

Strokes: According to research in The New
England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk
of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear
that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place
with a plaster or surgical tape!

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the
carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five
times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say,
‘A banana a day keeps the doctor away!’

May I add one here; want a quick shine on our
shoes?? Take the INSIDE
of the banana skin, and rub directly on the
shoe…polish with dry cloth.
An Amazing fruit ! Is’nt it?

You may click to see:->Eat banana everyday
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Ailmemts & Remedies

Bipolar Affective Disorder

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About 1 in 100 people in the US has bipolar affective disorder, also known as manic depression. in this disorder, episodes of elation and abnormally high activity levels tend to alternate with episodes of low mood and abnormally low energy levels (depression). More than half of all people with bipolar affective disorder have repeated episodes. trigger factor for manic and depressive episodes are not generally known, although they are sometimes brought on in response to a major life-event, such as a marital breakup or bereavement. Bipolar affective disorder usually develops in the early 20s and can run in families, but exactly how it is inherited is not known.

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Symptoms?
Symptoms of mania and depression tend to alternate, each episodes of symptoms lasting an unpredictable length of time. between periods of mania and depression, mood and behavior are usually normal. however, a panic phase may occasionally be followed immediately by depression. sometimes, either depression or mania predominates to the extent that there is little evidence of a pattern of changing moods. Occasionally, symptoms of mania and depression are present during the same period.

The symptoms may include:

· Elated, expansive, or sometimes irritable mood.
· Inflated self-esteem, which may lead to delusions of great wealth, accomplishment, creativity, and power.
· Increased energy levels and decreased need for sleep.
·Distraction and poor concentration.
· Loss of social inhibitions.
· Unrestrained sexual behavior.
· Spending excessive sums of money on luxuries and vacations.

Speech may be difficult to follow because the person tends to speak rapidly and change topic frequently. At times, he or she may be aggressive or violent and may neglect diet and personal hygiene.

During an episode of depression, the main symptoms include:

· Feeling generally low.
· Loss of interest and enjoyment.
· Diminished energy level.
· Reduced self-esteem.
· Loss of hope for the future.

While severely depressed, an affected person may not care whether he or she lives or dies. About 1 in 10 people with bipolar disorder eventually attempts suicide.

In more severe cases of bipolar disorder, delusions of power during manic episodes may be made worse by hallucinations. When manic, the person may hear voices that are not there praising his or her qualities. In his or her depressive phase, these imaginary voices may describe a person’s inadequacies and failures. in such cases, the disorder may resemble schizophrenia.

It may be helpful to think of the various mood states in bipolar disorder as a spectrum or continuous range. At one end is severe depression, above which is moderate depression and then mild low mood, which many people call “the blues” when it is short-lived but is termed “dysthymia” when it is chronic. Then there is normal or balanced mood, above which comes hypomania (mild to moderate mania), and then severe mania.

In some people, however, symptoms of mania and depression may occur together in what is called a mixed bipolar state. Symptoms of a mixed state often include agitation, trouble sleeping, significant change in appetite, psychosis, and suicidal thinking. A person may have a very sad, hopeless mood while at the same time feeling extremely energized.

Bipolar disorder may appear to be a problem other than mental illness—for instance, alcohol or drug abuse, poor school or work performance, or strained interpersonal relationships. Such problems in fact may be signs of an underlying mood disorder.

What might be done?
During a manic phase, people usually lack insight into their condition and may not know that they are ill. Often a relative or friend observes erratic behavior in a person close to him or her and seeks professional advice. A diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder is based on the full range of the person’s symptoms, and treatment will depend on whether the person is in a manic or a depressive phase. For the depressive phase, antidepressants are prescribed, but their affects have to be monitored to ensure that they do not precipitate a manic phase. during the first days or weeks of a manic phase, symptoms may be controlled by antipsychotic drugs.

Some people may need to be admitted to the secure environment of a hospital for assessment and treatment during a manic phase or a severe depressive phase. They may feel creative and energetic when manic and may be reluctant to accept long-term medication because it makes them feel “flat”.

Most people make a good recovery from manic-depressive episodes, but recurrences are common. for this reason, initial treatments for depression and mania may be gradually replaced with lithium, a drug that has to be taken continuously to prevent relapse. If lithium is not fully effective, other types of drugs, including certain anticonvulsant drugs, may be given. In severe cases in which the drugs have no effect, electroconvulsive therapy may be used to relieve symptoms by including a brief seizure in the brain under general anesthesia.

Once symptoms are under control, the person will need regular follow-ups to check for signs of mood changes. A form of psychotherapy can help the person come to terms with the disorder and reduce stress factors in his or her life that may contribute to it.

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Disclaimer: This information is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advise or help. It is always best to consult with a Physician about serious health concerns. This information is in no way intended to diagnose or prescribe remedies

Resource:

http://www.athealth.com/Consumer/disorders/Bipolar_1.html

http://www.charak.com/DiseasePage.asp?thx=1&id=31

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