Ayurveda for Longevity

Recognition and fame come with apparent glory and value, for which Ayurveda stands as the best exemplar. This ancient healing science has attained worldwide recognition because of its most glorious holistic healing methodology that makes one cohesive with nature. Most of them consider Ayurveda as the mother of all healing sciences since it soothes the mind, relaxes the psyche and makes us to self-realize the true value of ourselves, thus making life worth living. Bestowing humanity with infinite boons, this ancient medical science leads the path to ‘LONGEVITY‘, which is one of the prime crave of mankind.

Longevity – What Does It Mean??? : In the eye of a commoner, longevity simply means living a long life. But Ayurveda views it in a different aspect, as it precisely defines longevity as ‘ Slowing down the aging process with a well balanced mind, body and spirit without which one cannot taste the true essence of longevity that lies in purely enjoying a state of permanent peace and tranquility’.

Why Ayurveda for Longevity??? : In this fast moving world, irrespective of the nature of the problem, every individual is in search of a remedy that yields a very quick result at a rapid pace. It becomes so natural for one to even think about Ayurveda as a means to attain longevity. Even though enormous growth in today’s modern medical science may seem to increase the life expectancy of human beings, it fails to focus on the mental part of an individual that is teemed with stress, anxiety, depression and so on… thus losing peace, which is the main purpose of leading a long life. Nothing is worse like leading a long life without peace of mind!

Ayurveda plays a vital role in making one to taste the true spirit of a long life by bringing a balance between the mind, body and spirit of an individual thus helping one to experience the eternal solace of being one with nature.

Ayurveda provides a unique holistic individualized approach of healing based on the unique natural constitution of every individual, ‘Prakruti’. It increases the quality of life of every individual, which in turn leads to increased life expectancy.

Ayurvedic Regime for Longevity: Natural harmony is one single source of solution for all our woes. Ayurveda defines a pattern of procedures to safeguard and sustain natural harmony of every individual that is often impacted by physical, emotional and environmental factors. I’ve listed down ‘the trios’ of the heartening principles of Ayurveda that will help us to step-up elegantly in the ladder of life!!!

  • Panchakarma – Detoxify Your Body First! : Once human entity is stuck with natural imbalance, it gets loaded with toxins that target every single cell in our system. To rejuvenate the body and bring it back to its natural state, Ayurveda suggests Panchakarma, which is the process of detoxifying the human body, strengthening the immune system and restoring the constitutional balance of the doshas (Governing forces of the human entity).
  • Healthy Ayurvedic Routine for the long run: Today’s world of challenges has left people with less option to redefine themselves with some powerful holistic tools like Ayurveda. Ayurvedic routine comprises some simple yet most powerful day to day practices of everlasting outcome that will urge mankind to stick to it! ‘Following a healthy Ayurvedic diet that suits the individual’s unique constitution of psyche, an Ayurvedic lifestyle that comprises of stress-free physical exercises, mind nurturing practices like Yoga and Meditation, effective usage of Ayurvedic essential oils that best suits your needs , enjoying proper sleep, binding the mind with positive thoughts that cultivate self-awareness of who you are! And acting young to stay young’ are some of the secret ingredients of the scrumptious food called ‘Health and Longevity’.

These top 3 Ayurvedic regimes for health and longevity when followed with utter adherence and discipline will definitely degrade the ‘Markers of Aging’, most important of which are Stress and Improper Stress Handling and Cell Proliferation. Thus Ayurveda serves its sole purpose of leading mankind with its holistic approach of helping humanity to lead a quality life full of virtues, making you to feel younger from within by cutting down the numbers (Age) in a lustrous way!

Stick to the Ayurvedic command and discover the magic in you, which can transform every single speed breaker of your life into a stepping stone for success! Act Young and Stay Young!! Have a long Ayurvedic life!!!

Thought for the day:

Ayurveda is a sister philosophy to yoga. It is the science of life or longevity and it teaches about the power and the cycles of nature, as well as the elements.                                                                                    -By Christy Turlington

Suggested Reading:

  1. Ayurveda: Life, Health, and Longevity By Robert E. Svoboda B.A.M.S.
  2. The Ayurveda Encyclopedia: Natural Secrets to Healing, Prevention, & Longevity By Swami Sadashiva Tirtha
  3. Health Rejuvenation and Longevity Through Ayurveda By C.M. Ghai

Reference Links:

  1. Rasayan – The Ayurvedic Perspective by Mishra RN
  2. An Introduction To Panchakarma by Vasant Lad
  3. Ayurveda’s Longevity Secrets by Gerald Lopez

Ayurvedic Essential Oils for Adding Strength to Toddler’s Health

Babies who learn to walk are called Toddlers. What an awesome sight it is to see your little one take up his/her initial steps with interest and adventure!! We being adults have a lot to learn from toddlers who never give up even though they fail hundreds of times, while they are trying to walk. Every single day during this stage, generally when they are 1 or 2 years old, i.e. the time connecting infancy and childhood is incredibly imperative in a child’s life, as it gets to grow in a plenty of ways. What toddlers actually need at this stage is the love, strength and support from their parents along with certain healthy practices that make them grow with a sturdy foundation for their lifetime. Nutritious food, hygienic habits and an energizing massage with Ayurvedic essential oils can give them the real power in strengthening their muscles and nourish their skin.

Ayurveda and toddlers:  Ayurveda states that this is the phase for complete physical, emotional, social and intellectual development for children. A baby is considered as an individual in Ayurveda from its birth itself. Ayurveda treats every newborn as a unique creation with distinctive state of body and mind, known as doshas namely vata, pitta and kapha. Every one of us will have one or two doshas as predominant in our character with the remaining one as less important.

Vata babies are generally lean and find it difficult to gain weight, prone to colic and constipation with dry skin. These fearful babies do not sleep well and can be easily disturbed during sleep. They are extremely brilliant in learning new things.

Pitta predominant toddlers have a good appetite and they may tend to suffer from digestive disorders like diarrhea and heartburn, skin problems like eczema and rashes, due to the imbalance in pitta dosha. With a strong body, these babies have an average weight. Pitta toddlers have a tendency to get angry very easily and are really active during the day with a moderate sleep at night.

Attractive, chubby and mesmerizing babies, often under limelight are all the ones with high proportion of kapha in their constitution. These toddlers are really close and attached to their moms than anyone else. They share things with other babies and are the well-behaved ones unlike the toddlers with vata or pitta predominance. Kapha toddlers are often hungry and have a deep sleep with less response to noise and other disturbances. Kapha imbalance might end up in cold, cough, obesity, sinusitis, sluggishness, lethargic behavior etc.

Identifying the doshas in your children with their behavior will help you greatly for being the best parents in attending to your toddler’s health concerns wisely.

Ayurvedic essential oils for Toddlers: Essential oils are just the purest element of a plant just like a baby who is a purest form of innocence and love. These oils when used with care and precaution will help your toddlers in many aspects while they are still learning to grow in a multitude number of ways. The most appealing and the safest Ayurvedic essential oils for toddlers are:

1. Lavender essential oil: How can someone forget lavender oil, the therapeutic properties and its gentle healing remedies when it comes to babies especially? Diluting 2 drops of Lavender essential oil in 2 tablespoons of Almond oil or Jojoba oil can act as the best massage oil for toddlers. This blend helps in nourishing their skin and augments the strength of their muscles. It induces good sleep and it is a perfect choice for fuzzy toddlers with vata predominance, often having difficulties in sleeping. Few drops of lavender essential oil can also be added to the diffuser mainly before bedtime. Diaper rashes, skin problems, fever and sleep disorders especially during illness can be assisted with the help of lavender oil and its calming aroma.

2. Roman Chamomile essential oil: Most of the mommies might have come across this situation, where you might not know why your baby is actually crying and if it is going to be the nighttime then it’s gone, as it would spoil the peaceful sleep of the entire family. The best Ayurvedic essential oil that can help you in such worst case scenarios is Roman Chamomile essential oil. Add a drop of this oil to your baby’s pillow or to a cotton ball and place it inside your shirt, near your shoulders. When you try pacifying your toddler, the warmth of your body along with the gentle aroma of Chamomile oil will help them sleep peacefully.

3. Tea Tree essential oil: Tea tree oil is extremely good for toddlers, especially at times of treating cold, earache, tonsillitis and other pain related to babies of this stage. You can bank upon this miraculous oil for treating skin problems like itches due to insect bites, diaper rashes, healing bruises and cuts that are common among toddlers who are deeply vested with their journey excavating new things every day. With its effective anti-bacterial properties, one drop of tea tree oil added to baby wipe solutions can protect your baby from harmful germs, bacteria and other infectious bodies.

When your toddler steps ahead his/her life with 1 2 3…… you support them with these oils, 1 for Lavender, 2 for Roman Chamomile and 3 for Tea tree oil. Sounds great to me and it will be spectacular indeed to you also, when you start using these greatest gifts of nature to your loved little ones. Give my love and Muahhhhhhhhhhh…………To the little Princes and Princesses of your families.

Disclaimer: Consult with your Ayurvedic Practitioner before using Ayurvedic essential oils for your toddlers as pure essential oils are highly concentrated and may harm your babies if used without proper consultation.

Thought for the day:

What good mothers and fathers instinctively feel like doing for their babies is usually best after all.                            -By Benjamin Spock

Suggested Reading:

  1. Seven Secrets to Raising a Happy and Healthy Child: The Ayurvedic Approach to Parenting By Joyce Seyburn
  2. Perfect Health for Kids: Ten Ayurvedic Health Secrets Every Parent Must Know By John Douillard
  3. Aromatherapy For Babies And Children By Shirley Price

Reference Links:

  1. Ages & Stages – Toddlers by Urbanext, University of Illinois Extension
  2. Healthy Mother and Baby Through Ayurveda by Green Kiddie
  3. Essential Oil Care for Children and Babies by Abundant Health

Geranial

Geranial is an oily liquid aldehyde, also known as citral A and is an E-isomer of Citral. Citral is a pair or a combination of terpenoid which goes by the name lemonal or 3, 7-dimethyl-2, 6-octadienal.

Geranial cannot be characterized alone, and it goes hand in hand with the nature and qualities of citral. It has a rich lemon aroma.

Citral is widely available in natural form and can be extracted from several plant oils such as lemon(2-5%), Calypranthes parriculata (about 62%), Litsea lemon verbena (30-35%), lemon ironbark (26%), lemongrass (65-85%), cubeba (70-85%), Lindera citriodora (about 65%), lemon balm (11%), lime (6-9%),  petitgrain (36%), Ocimum gratissimum (66.5%), lemon myrtle (90-98%), Litsea citrata (90%), lemon tea-tree (70-80%), and orange.

As you can see that its derived from most plant that belong to the lemon family, and this makes it quite obvious where Geranial expresses its prominent lemon fragrance.

Due to this citrus effect, it is used in perfumery. Therapeutically geranial has a strong fragrance and is highly capable in keeping away insects, and also exhibits sedative and antimicrobial qualities.

Uses of Geranial:

Geranial in citral is seen to have a sensitivity effect on use, and as per the International Fragrance association, it has been advised that citral be used with desensitizing agents.

On the grounds of therapeutic usage, citral is seen to be effective in regards to genotoxicity and as a carcinogenic, though test claim that they have dose dependent effect on the kidneys. Geranial can also be used to treat infections in relation to the urinary tract and also in the treatment of kidney stone.

Effect of Geranial in Chemotherapy:

A study was conducted to understand the effect of ginger on chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting in cancer patients. The chemical constituents of ginger include neral, borneol, b-fellandren, sogaoles, gingeroles, geranial, sineol, bisabolen, oleoresin, zingiberen, diterpenes, lypids, protein, starch and vitamins.

During the study the participants were divided into 2 groups, one received the anti-emetic, and the other was given ginger. The results proved that the group receiving the anti-emetic was only 75% effective when compared to the group receiving only ginger which proved to have completely absence of nausea and vomiting.

Effect of Geranial attributes in Lemon Grass:

To understand the therapeutic qualities of lemon grass a study was carried out. The result proved that lemon grass with the constituents of lemon grass, Citral α, Nerol Geraniol, Citral β, Terpinolene, Citronellal, Myrecene, Geranyl acetate, and Terpinol Methylheptenone showed several therapeutic activities.

Lemon grass had proved hypoglycemic, antimutagenicity, antimalarial, antimycobacterial, antioxidants, neurobehaviorial, anti-amoebic, antidiarrheal, antifungal, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties.

Prophylactic & Antinociceptive effects of Geranial:

A study was carried out to understand the effects of citral when administered orally to treat conditions of inflammation, acute and chronic nociception, and gastric ulcers caused by the usage of NSAIDS.

The result suggested that citral repressed the pain responses caused by inflammation and the neurogenic effects caused as an effect of intra-plantar injection of formalin; it also displayed therapeutic anti-nociceptive and prophylactic effects towards mechanical hyperalgesia seen in plantar incision surgery.

Citral was also seen displaying gastro-protective effects towards ulcers caused by NSAIDs. All these effects prove the positive response of citral towards the treatment of pain.

Reference Links:

  1. Citral by Wikipedia
  2. Scientific basis for the therapeutic use of Cymbopogon citratus, stapf (Lemon grass), published in the Journal of Advanced Pharmaceutical Technology and Research
  3. Citral: A monoterpene with prophylactic and therapeutic antinociceptive effects in experimental models of acute and chronic pain, published in European Journal of Pharmacology