Tag: Beneficial Effects

Oats And Celiac Disease

Celiac disease is a condition brought about by the accumulation of gluten. Gluten is protein preset in bread, pasta, cookies, crust and other food that is made out of wheat, barley or rye. Oats also contain the protein gluten. There are many controversies surrounding oats and celiac disease.

A person with celiac disease experiences vitamin deficiencies with the brain, nervous system, bones, liver and other vital organs and other illnesses. What happens is that the person with celiac disease who eats foods with the protein gluten experiences an immune reaction in the small intestine. This may lead to small intestine damage and malabsoption of certain vitamins and nutrients from the food. There is no cure for celiac disease but people inflicted with this manage their disease by removing gluten from their diet.

It is believed that celiac disease is a relatively rare disorder, it is now through to affect about one in 250 people worldwide. To manage their disease, patients with celiac disorder is advised to have a gluten-free diet, oats is one of the food that they take out of their list.

But there has been debates if it is acceptable for celiac disease patients to eat oats, since oat proteins are not the same as those in wheat, barley and rye. Even so, oats were believed to have toxic effects with people who are inflicted with this disorder that is why they are advised to avoid them.

Now, there are some celiac disease societies and medical centers who are advising their patients to eat limited amounts of oats which is said to even provide beneficial effects to them. There are studies with adults and children citing majority of patients with celiac disease who could tolerated limited amounts of oats. When they consumed no more than about half to three quarters of a cup of rolled dry oats per day for adults and a quarter of a cup per day for children, there were no abdominal symptoms. (Lapid, Nancy; Are Oats Safe for Patients with Celiac Disease?)

In an article written by Jefferson Adams entitled Effects of Various Kinds of Oats on Celiac Disease, he cited different kinds of study conducted by different groups of scientists and doctors about the relation of oats to celiac disease.

According to Adams, there were a team of Italian and Australian doctors who conducted tests on three kinds of oats: the avenins of the Italian variety Astra , the Australian variety Mortlook and the Austrlian Lampton variety. In the study conducted it showed that Lampton is much safer than either the Astra or Mortlock.

However, even if the Lampton variety is still safer it still has to be processes in a contamination free facility that tests oats if they are gluten free. For oat products to be considered gluten-free, they may show less than 220ppm of gliadin.

Even if there are patients who respond well to oats, there are still a small number of patients who could not tolerate oats. Even oats with low gluten content like the Lampton variety. With these patients, a protein in oats called avenin triggered an immune response similar to gluten. There was no way to tell in advance which patients would be sensitive to avenins.

Including oats in the diet of a celiac disease patient is of course a physicians call. Including oats in the diet should always be done under doctors supervision. Oats can provide the necessary nutrients, fiber and diversity much needed to a celiac patients diet. But it should not compromise the overall well being of the patient.

New celiac disease patients are not advised to eat oats until their symptoms or disease in under control. Patients who are eating oats are still advised to see their doctor regularly to monitor any abnormalities or symptoms. Besides, patients with celiac disease are still to consume oats that are pure, uncontaminated and gluten-free. Oats and celiac disease can still dance together.

Are Alternative Eczema Treatments Really Effective?

Anyone suffering from eczema will attest that not only the skin disease is a painful one, but it also very depressing. On cannot help but think about how other people react upon seeing those unsightly red, swollen and scaly patches on the skin. Because of this, those afflicted by the disease will try any available eczema treatment to help lessen the symptoms at all costs.

There is really no cure for eczema; however, there are many treatments available that help lessen the symptoms. Doctors often prescribe topical and oral treatments that will help in alleviating inflammation and itchiness, but these do not come without side effects. Some of them potentially include nausea, vomiting, hypertension, glaucoma, growth retardation and many others. With all these side effects in mind, someone with eczema cannot help but look at some of the alternative ways of treating eczema.

Herbal Medicines

There are hundreds of herbal medicines out there that claim to have beneficial effects to the symptoms of eczema. Basically, what they do is try to control the hyperactivity of a persons immune system, control inflammation and relieve itchiness. There are a variety of preparations and mode of applications for such herbal medicines. Some of them may be in the form of oils, lotions, soaps, infusions, teas and even pills.

Herbal treatments for eczema may include and may be derived from the following popular plants and plant parts:

– Aloe Vera gel
– Babul tree bark
– Burdock root
– Butea seeds
– Chamomile
– Linseed oil
– Madhuca leaves
– Oat straw
– Rosemary
– Walnut leaves
– Witch Hazel

Just bear in mind that herbal medicines are still medicines. Although they may not be potentially hazardous to your health, they may still cause side effects, no matter how minor they may be. Also, before trying out any herbal treatment, it is best to consult your doctor first. This is particularly important if you are currently on certain medications, as these natural remedies for eczema may interfere with the drugs.

Aromatherapy and Massage

Aromatherapy treatment for eczema may include massaging of the affected skin with essential oils that give off strong smell, this being derived from aromatic plants. Studies conducted among children have shown that massaging the eczematous skin with ordinary oil yielded the same positive results obtained using essential oils. In both cases, the children achieved relief from the symptoms, as well as improved their sleep.

It has been found out that stress plays a major role in the flaring up of eczema. That is why many doctors recommend anyone afflicted with the skin disease to relax, get rid of stress and have a positive outlook in life. This is where aromatherapy works: the scent of the essential oils used helps the person achieve relaxation better; hence, diminished flare ups.

Biofeedback

Although stress does not directly cause eczema, it does have an effect on flare ups, as discussed earlier. Some experts might use a device attached to the body of the person suffering from eczema which evaluates different body signals. These signals include muscular tonicity, heart and respiratory rates. The information the device gives is called biofeedback an eczema treatment which is helpful to many.

The goal of this method is to let you sense the changes going on in your body when you are stressed, and learn how to control them right away. With less stress, less flare ups are likely to occur.

REFLEXOLOGY MASSAGE

Reflexology Massage, which is also known as the zone therapy, is an alternative medicine technique in which massaging, stroking, squeezing, pressing, rubbing and pushing on very specific areas of the feet, hands, and ears is applied to promote or stimulate beneficial effects to other corresponding remote parts of the body such as the vital internal organs (heart, liver, brain, stomach, bladder, sinuses, spleen, gall bladder, pituitary grand, adrenal gland, pancreas, kidneys, ureter, colon, small intestines, thyroid, bronchial tubes, coccyx, lungs, and appendix) and other essential systems (voice, neck, throat, eyes, ears, armpits, shoulders, arms, breasts, solar plexus, sciatic nerve, diaphragm, and Peyers patches). The intent is to improve the subjects overall health of the body as a whole and the mind.

The American Association of Reflexologists claims that Reflexology Massage results in improved blood circulation, detoxification of metabolic wastes, reductions of tension and the facilitation of the bodys capability to heal itself. The Associations also claims that Reflexology Massage is effective for back pain, migraines, infertility, arthritis and a long string of other mind and body problems.

Since studies and research failed to reach clinical conclusions about the effectiveness of Reflexology Massage, medical professionals of the Western persuasion have repeatedly expressed concerns that the belief in this practice may dangerously delay treatments of potentially serious health conditions. They have even resorted to calling reflexologys claim to maneuver energy (gi) pseudoscientific as there is no scientific evidence for the existence of life energy, crystalline structures or pathways in the human body. In the United States, the same medical critics and others disapprove of the lack of medical training and the short duration of training such as it is. They further disparage over the fact that there exists no central regulation for accrediting and licensing Reflexology Massage therapists. Conversely, several European countries, among them Switzerland, require reflexologists to be trained and licensed medical practitioners with a thorough understanding of anatomy and physiology.

However, based on ancient Chinese healing, reflexologists claim that the human body contains an invisible energy field which is the life force or the gi and they insist that a blockage or an obstruction of this life force prevent or puts off the bodys natural inclination for self healing and the improvement of health and wellness.

Dr. William H. Fitzgerald, an ear, nose and throat specialist and his partner Dr. Edwin Bowers are said to have been the first to pioneer reflexology in the United States in 1913. Referring to their theory as zone therapy, Drs. Fitzgerald and Bowers claimed that, in fact, imposing pressure at some very specific sites of the body provides analgesic and anesthetic effects on other distant parts.

In the 1930s and 1940s, Eunice D. Ingham, a nurse and a physiotherapist, declared that the hands and feet are particularly receptive and proceeded to diagram the entire body into associated impulse or reflex points on the feet. By doing so, Ingham changed the previously spoken of zone therapy to reflexology or reflexology massage and his charted reflexes are still followed today.

Whether Reflexology Massage truly attains the exact results it alleges to attain is, in my opinion, not all that important. The more important issue here is the fact that a vigorous massage to the hands and feet feels so very good, especially after a hard days work, that it must be therapeutic in one way or another. Or maybe it just feels good and thats OK too.

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