Garlic Helps To Go Or Stay??

I have always been fascinated by natural remedies/ herbal medicine. I think with proper regulations herbal medicine has a lot to offer in terms of disease prevention and management.
The other day at work, a colleague of mine and I were discussing the benefits of natural remedies and she mentioned using garlic for the treatment of diarrhea…That was news to me!
She said her mum, who is a nurse, recommended it to her when she had travelers diarrhea while on a trip to India. What is the dosage, I asked, and she said she chewed one to two raw garlic cloves for  3 to 4 times a day for 3 days and it worked!
I only know about the proven benefits of garlic for cardiovascular disease prevention and heard recently about the benefits of garlic for the prevention of cancer and the common cold.
So, I did a little research, got conflicting findings about the use of raw garlic for the treatment of diarrhea, some studies like this one reported that raw garlic can actually cause diarrhea, while another study indicates garlic's benefits in the treatment of stomach ulcers.
 Diarrhea is often times caused by viral or bacterial infection and garlic is known to have antimicrobial properties. However, there are yet to be adequate studies to support the use of garlic (raw or processed) as an anti-diarrhea and the safe/effective dosage is still unknown.

Thoughts?

P.S  The University of Maryland Medical Center reports that typical safe intake falls around 2 to 4 grams of fresh garlic per day -- each clove is about 1 gram. 

Let's Go Cruisin' II

Hope your week has been going okay. This is the continuation of last week's post on the boat cruise I went on late last year. Below are some of the photos of the places we got the chance to visit.....Enjoy!

*The "Daydreamer". A sculpture behind the Key West Museum of  Art and History.

Sculpture in front of the Key West Museum of Arts and History

The famous Mallory Square, location of the Sunset Celebration.

The Conch tour train.

*The famous 0 mile road that marks the end of the  US Route 1 that runs from (North to South on the East coast)  Maine to Key West,FL

Information kiosk at the port in Cayman Islands.

Key West, FL, viewed from the ship.

A road sign in Corzumel. 

Painted ceramic skulls are popular home decor in Corzumel.

Entrance to the Turtle farm on Cayman Islands

Never seen so many turtles all in one place before!

Part of a unique rock formation in Cayman Islands. It is now a tourist attraction popularly known as "Hell".

*Description of the rock formation.

*Images copied from the internet.

Let's Go Cruisin' !

How are you folks "marching" forward this new month?.....
Just wanted to share some photos from a recent trip.
One of the events on my wish list is to go on a cruise ship, and guess what!.... I got to do it! .....woot! woot!...*breakdancing*
We went on a cruise the week of Christmas '14, with friends and family. We were 32 in number, including children. It was a 7-day, 6 night cruise on the Carnival Freedom cruise ship. Boarded the ship at the Port Evandales in Florida, stopped at the following destinations on days 2 , 3 and 6: Key-West, Cayman Islands and Corzumel-Mexico.
The ship, we were told has a capacity for over 2,000 guests, and it is just a normal size ship! Some of the guests we were on the ship with commented that the ship is just average in terms of amenities and services...Oh well, I have never been on a cruise , so there was nothing to compare my experience with. All I can say is, it was a fun experience. It has about 12 floors, an amphitheater, 3 swimming pools, about 3 restaurants, shopping galleria, a spa, a gym, a daycare for children, a casino and some rooms for different  events.

                                                     Side-view of the ship at the dock

The Visitors' area on the main (3rd) floor.

The "Amphi-theater". It has capacity for about 1,500 guests. There was a concert, show or presentation here every night. Accessible from the 3rd to 5th floors.

The swimming pool from the top deck.

The casino : Opened 24 hours.

A pub for a pint or 2 : Opened 24 hours.

The ship's housekeeping did a good job of towel-origami in every room at least twice a day. It was always something different. This is an elephant. :)

The children daycare center on the 11th floor for children ages 6 months to 12 years old. They  had activities for every age group.

If You Like/Love Someone….

About two weeks ago, my daughter, a 5th grader, came home very upset about what one of her BFFs said to her in school. She said her friend wanted her (my daughter) to give her " some space", that she feels my daughter clings to her too much. So, I told my daughter not to take it too personally, that sometimes our friends do need their personal space and we need to respect our friends' wishes......At least she got to learn this important "life lesson" early, I told myself.

That conversation I had with my daughter brought this popular quote by Richard Bach to mind: " If you really love someone, let them go, if they are yours, they will come back". When I was much younger and naive, I did believe that quote. One of my main reference is the story of " The prodigal son", although, it can be argued that it is different from a boy-girl relationship.  
To me, this quote speaks about mutual love- reciprocate love. But oftentimes, in reality, it is not so, the scales are not usually balanced in a relationship. We sometimes expect too much from the people we love and care about. Like someone wrote and I quote " Love isn’t owned and cannot be taken. It can only be given.  If you love someone, you have to give them the freedom to choose for themselves".

However, as I grow older (I still cannot claim expertise in this department, though) my opinion about the quote is a little different. You see, when you love or like someone and you let them go, with or without their consent, your relationship with that person may not be the same again, and you are left with memories and questions- "what-shoulda-coulda?". 
When we love someone — whether it’s a spouse, family member or best friend — we always want them near us in order to cherish and be cherished.  -Quote from bet.com.

The Science of Love.

It’s that time of the year again ♥♥. *wink* *wink*. 
Share love and not diseases, people!……. Love is a beautiful thing, as the saying goes.
I find it interesting, though, that science has an explanation for love. This article was found on the BBC science website, it explains how the neurotransmitters and hormones are responsible for “those feelings” and also liken the events occurring in the brain when we are in love to be similar to mental illness…Ah! *wide-eyed*.

While I don’t quite agree with this theory, I am looking forward to the hypothesis that would shed light into what happens when we “ fall out of love”…....hehehehe..... That would be interesting to know.

So, read and be enlightened.

The Science of Love

• There are three phases to falling in love and different hormones are involved at each stage.
• Events occurring in the brain when we are in love have similarities with mental illness.
• When we are attracted to somebody, it could be because subconsciously we like their genes.
• Smell could be as important as looks when it comes to the “ fanciability factor". We like the look and smell of people who are most like our parents.
• Science can help determine whether a relationship will last.

Three Stages of Falling in Love

Stage 1: Lust

Lust is driven by the sex hormones testosterone and estrogen. Testosterone is not confined only to men. It has also been shown to play a major role in the sex drive of women. These hormones as Helen Fisher says "get you out looking for anything".

Stage 2: Attraction

This is the truly love-struck phase. When people fall in love they can think of nothing else. They might even lose their appetite and need less sleep, preferring to spend hours at a time daydreaming about their new lover.

In the attraction stage, a group of neurotransmitters called 'monoamines' play an important role:

• Dopamine - Also activated by cocaine and nicotine.
• Norepinephrine - Otherwise known as adrenalin. Starts us sweating and gets the heart racing.
• Serotonin - One of love's most important chemicals and one that may actually send us temporarily insane.

Stage 3: Attachment

This is what takes over after the attraction stage, if a relationship is going to last. People couldn't possibly stay in the attraction stage forever, otherwise they'd never get any work done!

Attachment is a longer lasting commitment and is the bond that keeps couples together when they go on to have children. Important in this stage are two hormones released by the nervous system, which are thought to play a role in social attachments:

• Oxytocin - This is released by the hypothalamus gland during child birth and also helps the breast express milk. It helps cement the strong bond between mother and child. It is also released by both sexes during orgasm and it is thought that it promotes bonding when adults are intimate. The theory goes that the more sex a couple has, the deeper their bond becomes.
• Vasopressin - Another important chemical in the long-term commitment stage. It is an important controller of the kidney and its role in long-term relationships was discovered when scientists looked at the prairie vole

Dear God…..

Welcome February!

February the shortest month, the month that ends with the same day of the week as the month of October every year….Yep, you read that right. You can check your calendar to confirm.

Anyway, this post is not about the month of February. I found these prayer quotes I found online when I typed in “Dear God”.  It’s amazing the kind of things one would come up with on the internet. 

It was not out of boredom, I think it was borne out of finding the words to express some of my thoughts in the simplest way.

Warning: By the time you are done reading these quotes you would have said a prayer or two :)

Just A Cup Of Water….

Hey, Special!...How have you all been?...Taking care of yourselves, I hope........Now, let's talk about how to take care of ourselves with one of the most popular essential commodity...WATER!

Water, as they say popularly say in Nigeria, " no get enemy"..
Literally meaning: Water does not have enemies...which basically means, with water, you can't go wrong…. 
There are many posts online about the benefits of drinking water on an empty stomach(more like, first thing in the morning). Benefits like,  being a cure/prevention for cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, weight loss, clearer skin etc are yet to be scientifically/medically proven, however.

 Some school of thought even recommends not to brush your teeth before drinking water and/or not to eat until 45 minutes after drinking water to allow water to "wash out toxins”. 
I have been "practicing" drinking water first thing in the morning for a couple of years now because I thought…why not?... but I am not strict about the brushing teeth before or after, or about the 45 minutes wait before eating. I drink at least a cup (8oz) of water, sometimes 2 cups first thing in the morning. 

Personally, what I have found beneficial about drinking water in the morning is that my craving for sugar/grease has reduced.
Even though the popular weight management advice is that  breakfast is the most important meal of the day (here is the post about breakfast/meals, if you missed it), I would recommend, in addition to that, being well hydrated with water before the first meal of the day to everyone ,( including children), your body will thank you for it.

P.S:There are complaints of nausea, stomach ache resulting from drinking water on an empty stomach, my recommendation would be: Add a few drops of lemon or lemon/lime slices to the water and drink/sip slowly.

Don’t Rest On Your Oars….

Happy New Year, people!…We made it!!
It’s a new year, a fresh start, new goals , continuing goals….
We are all at different stages of our lives, with different expectations….as we embark on this journey together, I pray for more  peace, grace and wisdom. 

We human beings are wired to “achieve goals” and I guess that’s what keeps us functioning…but sometimes we get hung-up on our achievements, …..We tend to stop “growing” and  stop ‘improving” ourselves at that stage. 
So, as we approach that place in our lives when "all” the goals seem to be met…..When we have the degrees, the spouse(s), the children, the car(s), the house (s), the desired body weight/ dress/shirt size , the relationship with God etc….Then, what’s next?…

…….Stay Motivated...Stay Inspired…..Keep learning…Count your blessings...

Here is a short story that  illustrates this well :

A young man, for the first time in his life, found a $2 bill on the side-walk . From then on, he kept his eyes on the ground , hoping to find another dollar bill. After so many years of spending most of his time doing nothing else but comb the streets for another     “ lucky find”, he had picked up  29,516 buttons,  54,172 pins,  and  7 cents.  In addition to his “finds”, he got a bent back and a miserable disposition. … He never really got to appreciate the sunlight, skies,smiles from friend and neighbors...He lost focus of  better opportunities to earn a livelihood because of a one-time lucky find...

Easy On The Sugar...Pass The Salt,Please...

I am one of those people that sometimes check  food labels while grocery shopping. What I usually look out for are : sodium, caloric, and  fat contents, I seldom check for sugar content, but I do look out for and try to avoid, as much as I can, products with high fructose corn syrup.
Sodium have been labelled the "bad guy", for as long as I can remember, with regards to being one of the factors that can cause cardiovascular events.
However studies have shown that it is actually SUGAR that is the culprit!

The authors ( A pharmacist and a medical Doctor) of an article in Open Heart conclude that foods and beverages with high sugar content  may make a significant contribution to cardio-vascular  risk/diseases. They also suggest that  processed foods ( which tend to have high sugar content from preservatives and additives) be replaced by natural whole foods like fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts.
Below is an except from  Medscape. com:

"It is a little bit frightening that we have been focusing on salt for so long," Richard Krasuski, MD, from the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, told Medscape Medical News. Dr Krasuski was not affiliated with the research.
A reduction in the consumption of added sugars and, in particular, processed foods may translate into decreased rates of hypertension as well as decreased cardio-metabolic disease. In particular, a new review article suggests that sugar, not salt, appears to contribute to the majority of the hypertension risk associated with processed food.
The conclusion that sugar represents a greater danger to the heart than salt, Dr Krasuski said, was an "eye opener." He acknowledged, though, that he should have anticipated it. He and other cardiologists have noticed that the recommendations to increasingly lower salt intake have not resulted in the expected positive cardiovascular outcomes.
Nevertheless, the bottom line of the article's recommendation should be familiar and comfortable to most physicians: Eat less processed food.

Tips For Feeling Fine On Long Flights.

         This time of the year till the first week of January is when people tend to travel the most, especially by air, to spend time with friends and family during the holidays as businesses and schools are winding down for the year. 

So, if you are traveling by air , especially more than 4-6 hours long, here are some tips to make your travel more tolerable:     

• Consume somewhat more liquids than normal to prevent dehydration. 
• Take caffeine or alcohol in moderation.
• Do exercises in your seat (see below).
• Walk regularly through the cabin, when possible.
• Consult your doctor prior to your trip if you suffer from chronic disorders or airsickness.
• Have gum or candy ready for take-off and landing to reduce the effect of changes in air pressure.Low humidity in the cabin can exacerbate allergic or asthmatic conditions. Take the necessary precautions, if necessary.    

Exercises on board

1. Take a walk through the cabin.
2. Foot circles: Lift your feet off the floor and move your toes in a circle, one foot moving clockwise and the other anti-clockwise. Then change direction. (15 seconds each)
3. Foot lifts: Place your heels on the floor and bring your toes up as high as you can. Next, pull your heels up while keeping the balls of your feet on the floor. (30 seconds each)
4. Knee lifts: Keep your knee bent and raise your leg while tensing your thigh muscle. (10-15 times each leg)
5. Shoulder rolls: Raise your shoulders, then roll them forward, downward and back in a smooth movement.
6. Arm bends: Start with your elbows on the armrest and hands pointed forward so that your elbow makes a 90-degree angle. Take turns moving your hands toward your chest and back again. (30-second sets)
7. Knee to chest: Bend slightly forward. Put your hands together around your knee and pull it toward your chest. Hold for 15 seconds, then lower. (10 times each leg)
8. Forward bends: Place both feet on the floor and pull your abdomen in. Slowly bend forward and "walk" your fingers along your shinbone to your ankles. Hold for 15 seconds and sit up slowly.
9. Upper body stretch: Stretch both arms high over your head. With your right hand, grab your left wrist and pull slowly to the right. Hold for 15 seconds and switch.
10. Shoulder stretch: With your right hand, grab your left elbow and pull your outstretched left arm slowly toward your right shoulder. Hold for 15 seconds and switch.
11. Neck roll: Relax your shoulders, let your head drop to your right shoulder and roll your head to the front and then to your left side. Hold each position for 5 seconds. (Repeat 5 times.)    

Culled From KLM.com