Tuesday, February 21, 2012

“YOGA” - TO STAY YOUNG AND HEALTHY


The ancient Indian tradition of yoga involves a wide variety of mind – body exercises, ranging from postural and breathing exercises to deep relaxation and meditation. Yoga exercise may be tailored to the needs of individuals with health problems. Besides helping particular disorders, regular yoga practice also boosts energy level and improves all round well-beings.
Yoga has many styles, forms and intensities. Hatha yoga, in particular, may be a good choice for stress management. Hatha is one of the most common styles of yoga, and some beginners find it easier to practice because of its slower pace and easier movements. But most people can benefit from any style of yoga — it's all about your personal preferences. Yoga can treat many of other common conditions, such as arthritis, heart disease, high blood pressure, migraine, obesity and premenstrual syndrome.
The core components of Hatha yoga and most general yoga classes are:
Poses: Yoga poses, also called postures, are a series of movements designed to increase strength and flexibility. Poses range from lying on the floor while completely relaxed to difficult postures that may have you stretching your physical limits.
Breathing: Controlling your breathing is an important part of yoga. In yoga, breath signifies your vital energy. Yoga teaches that controlling your breathing can help you control your body and quiet your mind.

Health Benefits of Yoga:
The potential health benefits of yoga are numerous and may include:
ü  Stress reduction
ü  Increased fitness
ü  Management of chronic health conditions such as depression, anxiety and insomnia etc
ü  Weight loss
While you shouldn't expect yoga to cure you or offer 100 percent relief, it can help some health conditions when combined with standard treatment. And if you already enjoy good health, yoga can be an enjoyable supplement to your regular fitness routine.

Yoga Compared to Conventional Exercise:
Yoga
Exercise
Parasympathetic nervous system dominates
Sympathetic nervous system dominates
Subcortical regions of brain dominate
Cortical regions of brain dominate
Slow dynamic and static movements
Rapid forceful movements
Normalization of muscle tone
Increased muscle tension
Low risk of injuring muscles and
ligaments
High risk of injury
Low caloric consumption
Moderate to high caloric consumption
Effort is minimized, relaxed
Effort is maximized
Energizing (breathing is natural or controlled)
Fatiguing (breathing is taxed)
Balanced activity of opposing muscle groups
Imbalanced activity of opposing groups
Noncompetitive, process-oriented
Competitive, goal-oriented
Awareness is internal (focus is on breath and the infinite)
Awareness is external (focus is on reaching the toes, reaching the finish line, etc.)
Limitless possibilities for growth in self- awareness
Boredom factor

Precaution:
Yoga is generally considered safe for people of all abilities, even if you use a wheelchair or you're severely overweight. But there are some situations in which yoga might pose a risk. You may need to find an alternative to yoga or scale back your yoga poses.
See your health care provider before you begin yoga if you have any of the following conditions or situations, since complications can arise:
·         Balance problems
·         Uncontrolled high blood pressure
·         Certain eye conditions, including glaucoma
·         Severe osteoporosis
·         Pregnancy
·         Artificial joints
You may be able to practice yoga in these situations if you take certain precautions, such as avoiding certain poses or stretches. Regardless of your health status, start slowly and gently. If you develop symptoms or concerns, see your doctor to make sure you're getting benefit and not harm from yoga.

PSORIASIS & HERBAL TREATMENT


Psoriasis is a common chronic inflammatory dermatosis. Person of all ages may develop the disease. Psoriasis is sometime associated with arthritis, myopathy, enteropathy, spondylitic heart disease or the AIDS. Psoriatic arthritis may be mild or may produce severe deformities resembling the joint changes seen in rheumatoid arthritis.1 Clinically, psoriasis most frequently affects the skin of the elbow, knees, scalp, lumbosacral areas, intergluteal cleft and glans penis. The most typical lesion is a well demarcated, pink to salmon colored plaque covered by loosely adherent scales that are characteristically silver white in color.

Psoriasis affects both sexes equally and can occur at any age, although it most commonly appears for the first time between the ages of 15 and 25 years.

The prevalence of psoriasis in Western populations is estimated to be around 2-3%. The prevalence of psoriasis among 7.5 million patients who were registered with a general practitioner in the United Kingdom was 1.5%. A survey conducted by the National Psoriasis Foundation (a US based psoriasis education and advocacy group) found a prevalence of 2.1% among adult Americans. The study found that 35% of people with psoriasis could be classified as having moderate to severe psoriasis.

 

Classification of Psoriasis:

In Ayurveda, skin diseases are known as Kustha. There are 2 main type of Kustha i.e. Maha kustha & Kshudra kustha. Seven are Maha kustha and eleven Kshudra kustha.
There are three types of Psoriasis called
  i)       Kitibha, is characterized with rough papulosquamous dermatosis in which the scaling papules are light blue or red in colour.

ii)          Ekakustha, is identified with silver gray scaling papules, which can spread in big patches.

iii)        Charmakhya, is characterized with thick scaling papules, which finally turns just like the skin of the elephant

We cannot exactly correlate ayurvedic types of psoriasis with modern terminology / types but on the basis of disease symptoms we can conclude as follow,
Kitibha = Non-pustular psoriasis
Ekakustha = Pustular psoriasis

Causes of Psoriasis:
The effect of slow poison or the poison, which is partly counteracted with anti-poisonous drugs or antidote, is the fundamental cause of psoriasis. As per modern medical science there is a no specific cause for psoriasis. In charak Samhita (Classical text book of Ayurveda) some specific causes was mentioned for kustha roga as follow,
  • Consuming opposite foods like curd – onion, milk-onion etc
  • Controlling natural urges.
  • Exposure to severe climatic conditions.
  • Consuming food that is too salty, too sour and/or too heavy for digestion.
  • Sleeping during the afternoon with sedative lifestyle.
  • Taking a bath in cold water immediately after physical exertion.
  • Mental stress.
  • Psoriasis is caused by vitiation of vata and kapha dosha. The vitiated doshas affect the skin and blood tissues. They also influence the water element of the affected region on the skin. Thus the skin which is influenced by the affected doshas becomes discolored (white or copper coloured), scaly and thin.

Preventive steps you should take:

                There is no way to prevent psoriasis. But the following tips may improve symptoms or help reduce the number of psoriasis flare-ups.
·         Avoid intake of opposite food like curd – onion, milk-onion, etc
·         Use moisturizing lotions, do not keep your skin dry
·         Take proper care of your skin and scalp
·         Use humidifier during dry season
·         Try to avoid dry and cold weather
·         Avoid scrapes, cuts, bumps and infections
·         Get some sun bath, but not too much
·         Decrease stress
·         Reduce alcohol intake
·         Do exercise, Eat right and maintain a healthy weight 

 

Product profile:


CUTISORA OIL & TABLET
Cutisora is a combination of potent herbs which are renowned for reducing scaling, erythema and thickening of skin, antiproliferative & anti-inflammatory properties. They are also known to posses tremendous skin rejuvenating properties.

ü  Provides prompt symptomatic Relief                                                              
ü  Corrects liver function by balancing pitta & kapha the root cause of psoriasis      
ü  Reduces scaling and thickening of skin
ü  Controls itching and redness of scalp     
ü  Non steroidal and safe for long term use

Cutisora Tablet [60 Tab]



      Cutisora Oil






Application & Dosage:


Cutisora Oil: To be applied 2 to 3 times a day after cleaning the affected part or as directed by the Physician.

Cutisota Tablet: 1 to 2 tablets 2 times a day or as directed by the Physician

Presentation: Cutisora Oil: Pet Bottle 100 ml; Cutisora Tablet: HDPE Bottle 1X60 Tablets

References:
1.      Rakesh K. Sindhu et. al., Psoriasis and Herbal Care: A Brief Review. International Journal of Pharma Research & Development, Vol.1, Issue 9, Nov. 2009.
2.     Andrew IB, Richard AB, Jeffery WJ and Mark PL Emerging therapeutic targets in psoriasis. Current opinions in pharmacology.2004; 4:306-310.
3.     Lo KK, Ho LY. Psoriasis; Handbook of Dermatology and Venereology (Social Hygiene Handbook) 2nd edition.
4.     Prof. Priyavrat Sharma; Charaka Samhita, chikisasthan to siddhisthan, Vol.IV, Edition 2010

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