Alternative Approaches to Pain Relief

﻿Alternative Approaches to Pain Relief

Pain is a message sent by the body to the brain, signaling the presence of disease, injury or strain. Without pain, you would be unaware of many problems – from torn ligaments to appendicitis. Pain is simply, Mother Nature’s way of telling you something is wrong.
Many of us kill the messenger with narcotics, anti-depressants and tranquilizers that take care of the symptoms, but not the cause of the pain. This kind of treatment cannot only mask symptoms of serious disease, but can also create a cycle of chronic pain.
Not all pain though, serves a useful function. While acute pain, as described above can alert us to a serious problem, chronic pain can linger long after an ailment or injury has healed in the body. Examples of chronic pain include backache, migraines and arthritis. In these cases, pain management, as opposed to a cure, may become the goal of treatment.
The psychological effects that accompany recovery from a disease or injury heighten chronic pain. A loss of confidence is often triggered by prolonged periods of rest and inactivity that cause a loss of physical strength, endurance and flexibility. If the injury has prevented you from performing your usual duties, you may succumb to frustration and depression. Impatience is chronic pain’s best friend as many individuals overexert themselves before they have completely healed, thus triggering more pain.
Various treatments can help alleviate chronic pain. Some treatments do so on a purely physical level by interfering with signals from the nerves to the brain or desensitizing the nerves. The following sections are meant to introduce you to some of the ways of dealing with pain without relying on non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, narcotics, tranquilizers or anti-depressants.
For many people, particularly those in the western world, pain relief solutions such as acupuncture, and herbal medicine are novel concepts. However, the rest of the world is probably wondering what the fuss is about, because these traditional approaches to pain relief have been around for thousands of years; Traditional Chinese Medicine, which relies on various techniques and herbs in order to balance the body’s internal energy, is over 5,000 years old.
Acupuncture: the ancient Chinese Practice of acupuncture is based on the belief that health is determined by the level of chi (vital life energy) that is in t he body. This energy is thought to move through the body through pathways called meridians, which connect to specific organs in the body. Acupuncturists insert needles into points on the body that connect to these channels to release blocked “chi” that might be the cause of pain. During acupuncture treatment, the acupuncturist inserts thin needles for anywhere from a few minutes to a half an hour into specific points on the body. This practice is thought to stimulate endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers and is useful for the treatment of a variety of disorders including backache, sinus pain, jaw pain, spinal disorders, withdrawal and mental disorders.
Herbs: another important part of traditional Chinese medicine is herbal medicine. Herbs have been used for centuries for their pain relieving qualities. Here are some herbs that are recommended for common disorders:
Cramps & Spasms: angelica, cramp bar, kava, rosemary, valerian root.
Nerve Pain: capsaicin, chamomile, gotu kola, licorice, white willow.
Back Pain: hops, wood betony, passionflower.
Migraine: feverfew, linden, skullcap.
Headaches: peppermint, spearmint.
Joint pain: ginger, sea cucumber.
Meditation: meditation, which has also been practiced for thousands of years, is a conscious attempt to calm the mind so that it is not cluttered with thoughts and anxieties that might be contributing to an unnecessary belief in the existence of pain. There are hundreds of different meditation techniques, but mostly they all into three categories: concentrative, mindful and transcendental meditation. During concentrative meditation, focusing on a single sound, object or one’s breath, produces tranquil mind that facilitates the production of pain-relieving endorphins. During mindful meditations, the mind is encouraged to become aware of, but not reactive to thoughts, feelings and sensations in order to achieve a tranquil state of mind.
Nutrition: eating a well balanced diet that includes fresh fruits and vegetables is thought to be the best way raise your pain threshold or resistance to pain. A deficiency in any of the main vitamins (A, B, C, D or E) can cause chronic pain. Vitamin E is used to treat joint pain. A deficiency in calcium, iron, magnesium and other minerals may also lower your pain threshold. A calcium magnesium supplement taken in a 2:1 ratio of calcium to magnesium is thought to relieve joint pain and headaches. Manganese is a vitamin that is sometimes used for chronic headaches and neuralgia. A deficiency of the B vitamins is also thought to cause nervousness, headaches and chronic pain.
Guided Imagery: research has indicated that bodily functions that were previously thought to be beyond conscious control, such as chronic pain, can be controlled thorough the use of visualization. Guided imagery encourages the sufferer to think in pictures that eliminate negative thoughts thus raising levels of pleasurable brain chemicals, such as serotonin, decreasing anxiety and increasing the effectiveness of the immune system. Through guided imagery, the mind conjures up mental scenes in order to better direct the body’s energy. For instance, if an individual is suffering from a stabbing pain, he or she might want to imagine a knife being removed from the spot and a subsequent glowing feeling of relief. Guided imagery has been used successfully to manage the pain of headaches, sinus problems, arthritis and cancer.
Biofeedback combines a variety of relaxation methods, such as guided imagery and meditation with the use of instruments that monitor the individual’s responses to the therapy. After many treatments, biofeedback is thought to train the individual to consciously regulate autonomic functions such as heart rate, blood pressure and other processes that are commonly believed to be out of our control. During a session, electrodes connected to a monitoring unit are taped to the skin. The monitor measures skin temperature, pulse, blood pressure, muscle tension and brain activity to determine the success of the relaxation technique. Eventually, over time, biofeedback can train an individual to control the pain of such disorders as TMJ, headaches and migraines.
It is difficult to imagine a world without pain; where would our poetry come from? What would divas sing about? Given that pain is probably always going to be a part of our world, it is of critical importance that we understand the various methods that exist to manage that pain. For some of us, that remedy may lie in the traditional realm, while for others it will be through prescription drugs or some other alternative. Regardless of what remedy you choose, make sure you inform yourself of the various pain treatment options open to you, and by doing so, you may just reduce the amount of suffering in your life. And isn’t that, in some respect, the goal that we all strive towards?
It is important to note that the above suggestions do not represent cures for conditions, but more represent strategies and opportunities to manage your chronic pain. It is also recommended that you consult with your health practitioner before embarking on any new pain management program.

Online Weight Loss Programs: Are They Worth the Money?

﻿Online Weight Loss Programs: Are They Worth the Money?

Have you ever heard of an online weight loss program before? Online weight loss programs are designed to assist individuals, possibly just like you, who want to lose weight. What it nice about online weight loss programs is that they are operated online, which is nice for those who have busy schedules; schedules that may not allow them to join locally operated weight loss programs.

If you have never joined an online weight loss program before, you may be wondering if one is right for you. Better yet, you may be wondering if an online weight loss program is worth the cost. In all honestly, you will typically find that online weight loss programs are well worth their costs, but it all depends. To ensure that your money is wisely spent, you will want to make sure that you choose the online weight loss program that is perfect for you and your needs.

When finding an online weight loss program that is more than worth the costs, you will want to examine the features that you have access to. Features are also commonly referred to as membership benefits or membership perks. The program features that you have access to plays a large part in determining whether or not the online weight loss program that you want to join is worth the money. A few of the many online weight loss features or member perks that you will want access to are outlined below.

One of the many features or membership benefits that would make an online weight loss program well worth the cost is that of healthy eating tips. As you likely already know, healthy eating is an important part of any weight loss plan. Many online weight loss programs have healthy eating sections that include easy to make recipes for foods and drinks, as well as shopping tips and much more. As previously stated, healthy eating is an important part of losing weight; therefore, you should look for an online weight loss program that does have a healthy eating or a healthy foods section.

Another feature that would make an online weight loss program more than worth the costs is that of an exercise program. It has been said that exercise and healthy eating are the two most important components of losing weight. You should be able to find an online weight loss program that has an exercise section for you to access. This section may outline workouts that you should try, which may be accompanied by pictures, videos, or at least detailed directions. You may also find charts that outline how many calories are burned with common exercises, and much more.

One feature that you may not necessarily think of, but one that is important, is that of an online message boards or a community section. Community sections are often comprised of online message boards. These sections often allow you to communicate with other online weight loss program members or group leaders. This communication is nice as it may help to give you motivation. You may even find an online weight loss buddy or partner to help you on your journey.

Guaranteed results or free trial periods are another sign that an online weight loss program may be worth the money. Often times, many individuals are unsure as to whether or not they should pay to join an online weight loss program, as they do not know for sure that they will lose weight. A large number of online weight loss programs give you the ability to test out their programs free of charge and then there are others that give you guaranteed results. With guarantees like these, online weight loss programs are more then worth their costs.

The above mentioned points are just a few of the many that may be able to help you decide whether or not joining an online weight loss program is worth the cost. If you are able to find an online weight loss program with a free trial period or even just one with affordable membership rates, you may want to think about giving it a shot.



• Economy. Rio’s harbor is deep enough for the largest vessels to come alongside the wharves, which lie near the city center. Through the port flows the major portion of Brazil’s imports and exports (iron ore, manganese, coffee, cotton, meat, and hides). Rio is also a distribution center for the coastal trade. The city’s manufactures include textiles, foodstuffs, household appliances, cigarettes, chemicals, leather goods, metal products, and printed material. There are two major airports.

Natural Solution For Tooth and Gum Health

﻿Natural Solution For Tooth and Gum Health

Despite the initiation of latest tools for oral hygiene such as toothpastes and mouthwashes and the advancement in dental science, number of people experience from tooth and gum related diseases these days than ever before.

We can’t ignore that tooth decay is really a most prevailing disease of the modern civilization. Modern diet and refined foods, cereals, processed or synthetic foods lead to a condition of spongy and receding gums. A range of gum diseases such as pyorrhea and gingivitis are also a increase outcome of our modern living habits.

Mouthwashes and chemical-based toothpastes many time worsen the problem that they claim to correct, these are the processed and synthetic formulations such as. Dreadfully the consequences can be even more severe. Alcohol in mouthwashes is associated to both oral and throat cancer. Fluoride in toothpastes has already been linked to cancer.

The question arise that why use these toothpastes and mouthwashes, when nature has bestowed a wealth of herbs and fruit that have a exceptional consequence on oral health with absolutely no side effects. These “miracles” of nature are so powerful that our forefathers have used them for thousands of years. As an example, just try pressing a clove between your teeth in cases of toothaches and feel the pain vanish!!

Nature’s solution for Oral Health and Hygiene

To establish the a good number efficient method for reducing plaque formation and the level of bacteria on teeth surface it was found that micro-organisms found in inflamed gums are resistant to antibiotics but not to antibacterial plant extracts like Neem. And unlike antibiotics, antibacterial plant extracts produced no allergy in the gingival that could inhibit their effectiveness.

Neem extracts have been very useful in destroying cavity-causing bacteria, enhancing mouth immunity and preventing tartar and plaque buildup. They have helped millions of people avoid cavities.
Neem can be a painless way to avoid severe dental problems. In a German study, 70 patients with pyorrhea in varying stages showed significant improvement after just 5 to 10 treatments with neem-based products. Bleeding gums had healed and the secretion from pockets around the teeth had stopped. The bluish-colored gums returned to a healthy pale pink color.

The Ayurvedic and medicinal properties of the Babul tree (Acacia Arabica) are also well known. This natural ingredient strengthens the root of the teeth, cleans and maintains the whiteness of the teeth.

Neem Twigs have been used by thousands of people for hundreds of years as an extremely effective method of total oral hygiene.

Clove and its oil is a complete wonder therapy for toothaches and gum disorders. It is an excellent pain reliever and often dentists use it to numb the gums prior to administering a shot. Besides this clove oil is also useful in relieving sore throats and is a powerful breath freshener.

Besides, neem, babul and clove, there are a number of vital herbs and natural oils that work wonders on tooth and gum health. A mixture of Eucalyptus, clove, and Spearmint is extremely potent in eliminating harmful bacterial build-up in the mouth and a very good cleansing agent.

Majuphal is a fruit that has a outstanding astringent property and it reduces over secretion of mucous. It’s haemostatic property ensures its beneficial effect on bleeding gums and on gingivitis.

The Catechu (Khadir) bark is tremendously beneficial in cases of toothache and spongy gums. Ginger oil is an astringent for teeth.

Ginger is a exceptional astringent wash for the teeth while lemon is a good whitener.

Herbodent (Orohyi) Herbal Toothpaste is a powerful formulation that uses the power


﻿Top 3 Reasons Why You Suffer From Pain In The Back Of The Knee

1. Possible Arthritis
2. Minor Tear of the Cartilage Surface

Five More Common Types Of Massage

﻿Five More Common Types Of Massage








Weight Loss Help You Can Use Every Day

Weight Loss Help You Can Use Every Day









Cold Coffee-Who Woulda Thought

﻿Cold Coffee-Who Woulda Thought

“What is the last thing that your patrons taste/drink before leaving a restaurant ?” And if you do not believe me go out there and watch. Nearly everybody will toss back that last cold cup of coffee before leaving their table, therefore it is vitally important that your coffee tastes wonderful hot, warm or cold.

Now how can you be sure that your coffee tastes good.


Cleanliness is more important than godliness, therefore ensure that you not only clean your bowls every night (there must be a joke in that line somewhere), and your coffee supplier can give you urn cleaner to really clean them occasionally, or run them through the dishwasher. DO NOT FORGET THE BREW BASKET. This will be dirtier than everything else, so once again ensure that there is no oily residue, plus clean the showerhead, and the area around it. If you have an urn or dual system, ask your coffee supplier to come in and train/educate your staff on how to properly clean the equipment.


Many times I go into a restaurant to find the brewer is short-potting (no this is not a gardening term), and the remedy can be very simple. Adjust the timer or float mechanism. BUT, maybe the equipment is short potting because the water line (including the filter/strainer) or machine or showerhead is clogged with lime, or some other gunk. Cleaning and maybe de-liming is necessary. Remember that if your brew time is too long, your resulting (revolting) coffee will be bitter, with a burnt after-taste. It’s rather like drinking coal tar – although I must admit I cannot remember the last time I knocked back a shot of coal tar.

Also, ensure that the water coming out of the showerhead is at the correct temperature, too cold and you will underextract, too hot and we start going down the coal-tar path again. A simple thing to check (use an oral thermometer, not a r…… one), and then adjust the temperature on the thermostat as necessary.


A cup of coffee is 98% (approx) water, so if your water tastes lousy, your coffee will taste lousy. So test your faucet water by comparing it to the taste of a bottle of filtered water. And if necessary, put in a proper water filtration system. Remember your ice, soda, and cooking will all taste better.


The people responsible at your coffee roaster will cup (taste) coffees through the temperature range, right down to room temperature – specifically to address the question at the top of this page, and to ensure that the coffee tastes good even when its been sitting for a while in your coffee cup. The coffee cupper (and by the way the best tea tasters, coffee cuppers, and wine sommeliers are all women, this is because physiologically God built a woman’s mouth differently to a man, and women have much better taste buds than men ) will cup and blend the coffee so that the taste profile always remains the same. People do not want surprises when they first wake up, least of all in their coffee cup at 7am, therefore the job of cupping and blending is one of the most difficult in the world. Mind you, most people don’t want a surprise in their martinis about 12 hours later, so once again tasting and blending is vital.

Having determined that your coffee supplier/roaster (hopefully one and the same company) can roast and blend coffee well, lets look at packaging, and the whole bean versus fractional pack/ground coffee debate.

Your coffee supplier is loaning you brewing equipment, and if you want to do a whole bean programme (no that is not a spelling mistake), they will lend you a portion control/doser grinder. Now the grinder they lend you will be a proper commercial grinder, costing about $700. But just consider that your roaster uses a grinder where the blades alone cost upwards of $15,000, and your roaster is checking the degree of grind several times a day with very expensive and sophisticated equipment. Therefore what chance do you have with a $700 grinder of achieving a consistent grind? And just remember that your brewed coffee quality will vary enormously with the vagaries of heat and humidity playing havoc with the coffee particle size coming out of your grinder. Or you can buy fractional packs, which have been nitrogen flushed to remove oxygen and preserve freshness.

A doctorate in nuclear engineering is not required to understand that fractional packs will always produce a better, and more consistent brew than a whole bean programme. The difference between local/regional coffee roasters is not in the roasting. Anyone can set themselves up as roaster. Even you. Buy some green beans and toss them into your hot air popcorn popper, and Voila you have air-roasted some coffee. And provided you didn’t cremate them, they probably smell wonderful. No, the difference in coffee roasters is how they buy the coffee, where they buy their coffee, how they blend the coffee, and most importantly (and this is really where the women are separated from the girls/ politically correct phraseology) how they pack the coffee.

Coffee’s enemies are heat, oxygen, light and humidity. Therefore coffee that does not arrive in your restaurant in foil/film wrapped, hermetically sealed bags will lose its freshness within a day or two. BUT, packing equipment is very expensive to buy and run, and this where the difference lies between a roaster dedicated to ensuring freshness in your patron’s coffee cup, and one who does not have what it takes.

And now dear readers to summarize :

Correctly clean and calibrated coffee brewers (try saying that after drinking a couple of martinis)
Clear, pure, and great tasting water.
Good fresh coffee, from a hermetically sealed portion/fractional pack.

Follow these simple rules and your clients will leave with a smile instead of a grimace.

Approaches to Knee Pain Relief

﻿Approaches to Knee Pain Relief






Jaw Pain Exercises-Tips For Pain Relief

﻿Jaw Pain Exercises-Tips For Pain Relief

Does your jaw hurt pretty much all the time, no matter what you do or when you do it? Not only can this type of pain get very old, very quickly, it can also lead to other more serious health issues. Many people suffer from TMJ which affects the joints of the jaw, but you may be able to find relief with some jaw pain exercises. Sometimes keeping the jaw loose can help alleviate some problems.

When you are in that much pain all you are about is getting relief. There are many things that might be able to help. Doctors and dentists will often prescribe things like mouth guards to keep you from grinding your teeth while you sleep or over the counter or prescription pain medication which does nothing to fix the problem, it only relieves the symptoms.

Many patients get little to no relief from their symptoms with these traditional methods of treatment and are left disappointed, in pain and frustrated.

Mouth guards and pain relievers are short term fixes at best. What may provide a longer term and more permanent fix are doing jaw pain exercises.

Stretching, strengthening or massaging can help alleviate the pain in your jaw. Your doctor, dentist or even your chiropractor can no doubt help you find the right exercises for you. They will help you get stronger so your jaw doesn’t get pushed out of shape. Keeping these muscles strong can really make a difference.

Many people have reported getting permanent relief after just a few days of doing the exercises. Of course, the results you get may not be quite so impressive, everyone is different. But for a lot of people who are willing to spend the time (around 10 minutes or so everyday) they have proven to be the answer they were looking for. It is a much better alternative to having to take medications or sleep with a mouth guard in your mouth.

Another thing that may be able to provide you with some relief is stress relief. Stress is a very common reason for grinding teeth at night so anything you can do to de-stress will be good not only for your jaw pain but for your overall health as well.

Chamomile tea or a warm bath or shower right before bed might help you relax so you get a better nights sleep and can wake up without a sore jaw. Stop watching t.v. in bed right before you go to sleep and for crying out loud, don’t watch the news before you go to bed, that is enough to stress anyone out.

sometimes a different type of pillow can help you stop grinding your teeth while you sleep. Again, ask your doctor or chiropractor for a recommendation. All of these things are easy to try and might just help you out. Give it a shot.

Talk to your doctor or dentist about using jaw pain exercises to help relieve your jaw, neck and shoulder pain. It can be a simple, non invasive solution to a very painful problem.