Quit Smoking and Health

Recently the childhood obesity has taken a form of endemic in the United States. Rate of childhood obesity has increased by 5 fold from 1970s to the current time. Consumption of food rich in calories and fats are the main culprits for this increasing trend in the childhood obesity. A major part of this increase calorie intake by children comes from consumption of fast food.

In 1970s fast food constituted only 2 percent of the daily meal of a child and by mid 1990s this has increased to 10 of the daily meal of our children. Today one tenth of our children aged between 2 and 5 years and 15% of children between ages 6 and 19 are overweight.

A recent study conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture looked at the food intake data of children in the United States. These researchers analyzed data from 6,212 school children with ages ranging from 4 to 19 years. The study found that children who ate fast food consumed significantly higher number of calories compared to those children who did not consume fast food. They found that those children who ate fast food had significantly higher consumption of fat, saturated fat, and carbohydrates. Also those children who consumed fast food added more sugar to their meals, drank more of sweetened beverages and ate less milk, fiber and vegetables.

This study has shown that consumption of fast food on a regular basis does not provide the necessary nutrients and had more fat, and calories. Lack of essential nutrients may have a negative effect on the children especially at the growing years. Consumption of excessive calories, unless balanced by physical activity would lead to increased body fat and obesity. Increasing trend towards consumption of fast food is a major contributor to childhood overweight and obesity.

Parents and teachers of children should make every effort to make our children realize the dangers of fast food. They should be briefed about the negative health implications of fast food consumption. The parents should value nutrition and make healthy diet a family priority thus passing the good message to children.

In 1970s children spent much time in outdoor activities. In our modern lives children do not get as much physical activity they should be getting. Our children spend more time on the computers, television and video games. Our children and youth do not eat healthy meals and do not meet recommended levels of physical activity. Greater emphasis on good nutrition, avoidance of fast food and increased physical activity are the corner stones of a healthy childhood. Every parent and teacher should contribute toward the goal of bringing up our children healthy.

Fed up from the side effects of the drugs, people are now shifting towards alternative therapies for the cure and treatment of common problems. Home remedies are one of the alternative methods that have been proven inexpensive and can be easily made at home without many efforts. Since ages our ancestors were using these home remedies for the treatment of diseases but the latest inventions and discoveries in the field of medicines darkened the benefits of these home made treatments. In the recent times the people have again shifted towards these home remedies.

Home Remedies for Acne, Arthritis, Asthma, Anaemia, Backache, Common Cold, Constipation, Eczema, Hair Loss, High Blood Pressure, Indigestion, Obesity, Sore Throat, Stress

Home remedies for some of the most common diseases and problems are:

Home Remedies for Acne

Application of cucumber leaves or grated pieces of cucumber to the affected areas.

Paste of fenugreek leaves applied overnight on the affected area and washed off next morning is also effective.

Mix one tablespoon of besan flour and one teaspoon of lemon juice till a smooth paste is formed. Apply on neck and face and wash off when it gets dry.

Home Remedies for Acidity

Drink a glass of cold milk to get quick relief from acidity.

Drink a glass of water with a teaspoon of baking soda for immediate relief.

Chewing bubble gum will also provide relief from acidity in few minutes.

Home Remedies for Arthritis

With an empty stomach take 3-4 walnuts (akhrot) or 1 fresh coconut.

Spread warm mustard oil on a madar leaf and apply to the affected area for a few hours .

Drink some radish juice with sugar added to it.

Home Remedies for Asthma

Drink a cup of black coffee, the warmth will break up the flem and the caffeine will help to remove tightness from the chest and throat.

Add 30-40 leaves of tulsi in one liter of water, strain the leaves and drink the water throughout the day.

Home Remedies for Anaemia

Eat 2-3 apples daily without peeling to increase the iron stores in the body.

Intake of beet juice is highly beneficial for the anemic person’s.

Home Remedies for Backache

Drink some hot milk or water with powdered sonth, meetha soda, and salt.

Massage the back with turpentine oil.

For temporary and quick relief heat can be applied at the back with hot water bottle.

Home Remedies for Common cold

Drink a cup of water with a few drops of garlic oil and a teaspoonful of onion juice.

Rub the chest and throat with camphor water or oil.

Drink honey and lemon juice in hot water to get relief from sore throat.

Home Remedies for Constipation

Drink a tablespoon of corn syrup in a cup of water.

Drink a glass of prune juice to facilitate bowel movement.

Drinking a cup of coffee will also provide relief from constipation.

Home Remedies for Eczema

Mix one teaspoon of camphor and one teaspoon of sandalwood to form a paste and apply on the affected e areas.

Drinking Aloe Vera juice will help cleanse the system.

Home Remedies for Hair loss

Wash hair with peppermint or spearmint tea to prevent hair loss and to promote hair growth .

Wash hair with white vinegar periodically to prevent falling of hair.

Home Remedies for High blood pressure

Mix half onion juice and half honey. Take 2 tablespoons once a day for 1-2 weeks.

Eat two cloves of garlic every early morning.

Eat one Papaya on an empty stomach daily for a month.

Home Remedies for High blood cholesterol

Drinking onion juice daily for a week will lower the blood cholesterol.

Eat a few garlic cloves every day to reduce blood cholesterol.

Home Remedies for Indigestion

Drink aloe vera juice, papaya juice, or chamomile, comfrey, red raspberry, or peppermint tea.

Drinking a glass of water with a tablespoon of baking soda will provide immediate relief.

Home Remedies for Obesity

Eat 10 fresh curry leaves in the early morning for three or four months.

Drink a cup of water with 3 teaspoons limejuice, one-fourth teaspoon powdered black pepper, and a teaspoon of honey every day for three months.

Eat freshly sliced tomatoes with onion and lemon juice.

Drink lemon juice with honey and warm water every morning.

Home Remedies for Sore throat

Gargle every hour with vinegar water or salt water.

Drink hot milk with honey at bedtime for immediate relief from sore throat.

A teaspoon of honey will provide relief from sore throat.

Home Remedies for Stress

Chewing 12 tulsi leaves twice a day, morning and evening is the highly beneficial treatment of stress.

Various seeds such as alfalfa, sunflower and pumpkin are highly beneficial in the treatment of stress.

The use of these home remedies is highly effective and causes no side effects on one’s physical body.

Obesity among children is a national health crisis and a terrifying reality. It can cripple our country for generations to come unless significant changes are made.

Not all obese infants become obese children, and not all obese children become obese adults. However, the older one gets, the more likely it is that one gains weight. Our metabolism slows as we grow older, and we also become less active. In addition, it is very likely that obesity beginning even in early childhood will persist through the life span. In other words, if your 14 year old son is obese, it’s likely that he will carry the extra weight (and put on more weight) during his adult life.

For parents of overweight children, the time to help your kids get in shape is now or never. Obesity presents numerous problems for the child. In addition to increasing the risk of obesity in adulthood, childhood obesity is the leading cause of pediatric hypertension, is associated with Type II diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease, increase stress on the weight-bearing joints, lower self-esteem, and altered relationships with peers. Between 5-25 percent of children and teenagers in the United States are obese, according to some studies. Other statistics indicate that 17% of children between ages 6 and 19 are obese.

Childhood obesity is the result of an interaction between food, state of mind, family and the environment.

An imbalance between intake and output.

Intake: excessive consumption of fast foods and unhealthy food choices. Output: less time spent playing outside, more time spent on a computer, playing video games or watching TV.

The Family.

The risk of becoming obese is greatest among children who have two obese parents. This may be due to powerful genetic factors, the manner in which the child is raised, parental modeling of both eating and exercise behaviors. One half of parents of elementary school children never exercise vigorously.

Low-energy Expenditure.

The average American child spends several hours each day watching television; time which in previous years might have been devoted to physical pursuits. Obesity is greater among children and adolescents who frequently watch television, not only because little energy is expended while viewing but also because of simultaneous consumption of high-calorie snacks. Only about one-third of elementary children have daily physical education, and less than than one-fifth have extracurricular physical activity programs at their schools. The American Academy of Pediatrics urges parents to take walks or otherwise get physical with their children at least once a week, to make up for shrinking levels of physical education in schools.

Fast food companies.

It is easy ad inexpensive to buy unhealthy foods from vending machines. The good news is that beverage makers have agreed to pull sugared sodas and whole milk out of all school vending machines over the next three years, as well as diet sodas and sports drinks from machines in elementary and middle schools.

Heredity.

Since not all children who eat non-nutritious foods, watch several hours of television daily, and are relatively inactive develop obesity, the search continues for alternative causes. Heredity has recently been shown to influence fatness, regional fat distribution, and response to overfeeding.. In addition, infants born to overweight mothers have been found to be less active and to gain more weight by age three months when compared with infants of normal weight mothers, suggesting a possible inborn drive to conserve energy.