Tips on Health:Natural Bug Bite Remedies
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HEALTH TIP: Natural Bug Bite Remedies
Summer is here, the season of outdoor activities, and since
mosquitoes tend to multiply in hot climates, summer is also
the season of bug bites. Whether it is a mosquito bite or a
bee sting, spraying your skin sticky with offensive-smelling
bug repellants is only going to make you uncomfortable and
possibly keep humans away from you as well. When I was a kid,
my grandfather made my brother and I slather cotton balls in
regular yellow Listerine and rub it on every part of skin that
was showing before we were allowed outside. Thankfully, there
are other natural remedies that keep the bugs—or if you have
already been bitten—the sting and itch away.
Probably the safest way to keep bugs away from your home is
to prevent your yard from inviting bugs. You can plant little
repellent gardens all over your yard, front porch, or back
patio to ward off unwanted bugs. Using nature-friendly plants
like lemongrass (also known as Citronella, popular in mosquito-
repelling candles), lemon thyme, catnip, and citrus-smelling
geraniums which contain up to 60 percent of the power of popular
spray DEET along with other commercial products, you can reduce
your family’s bite ratio and reduce the amount of toxins they
are subject to.
Another option is lotions and sprays found at natural health
food stores or herbalists thar contain essential oils and herbs
that are used to keep these pests away (like eucalyptus, bay
laurel, thyme, or lavender). One of these natural oils, gaining
in popularity, is neem oil. Made from the neem tree, this extract
is used in Indian Ayurvedic cures; the oil is bitter and repels
bugs while still being able to keep your friends close by.
Although many of these lotions and essential oil-based solutions
should not be used on infants, children under 2, or pregnant or
nursing mothers, you can always spray their clothes or the area
around them for protection. A safe-for-children remedy is to coat
a stroller or toddler’s chair with pure vanilla bean extract or
add a few drops to their regular skin lotion for use on their
sensitive skin—or yours.
If you have already been stung or bitten, treating those bites can
be a chore. Anti-inflammatory remedies like peppermint oil dropped
onto the bite uses menthol to increase circulation and move the
chemicals around that the bug left behind to physically reduce
the sore. You can also use regular oatmeal on bites to pull any
remaining toxins out of the body. Let a tablespoon of oatmeal
marinate in water until a paste forms. Spread onto the bite until
a crust hardens and rinse off. An easier way to pull toxins out
of your body is to apply a slice of freshly cut eggplant on the
wound, while a fresh cut cucumber slice also works to reduce
swelling.
After the itch and pain are gone, unsightly bumps can still
appear on the skin. Cover with easy at-home tricks like calendula
and aloe vera to prevent against infection, which can be found
over the counter in sprays and gels. Redness associated with a
bug bite can be irritating in itself and again Ayurvedic medicine
comes to the rescue. Alum, found in the spice aisle, is in powder
form and can be dissolved in water takes away the unwanted physical
aspects of the bite and even helps with any lingering itch you
may have.
Don’t hesitate to call 911 if you suspect there is an emergency.
Allergic reactions to bug bites can happen, either from bees,
spiders, or other unknown insects that you may not realize you
are allergic to. People can go into anaphylactic shock from
certain bites or stings and they should be watched if any of
their symptoms get worse. Even though run-ins with bugs can be
annoying, they can also be dangerous, so don’t ignore the
warning signs: pain at the site for longer than a few hours,
nausea, vomiting, fever, unstoppable itching, muscle pain,
difficulty breathing, extreme swelling, or causes confusion
in the victim.
Enjoy quiet, summer evenings by eating dinner outside instead
of becoming something else’s feast.
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Fly gene may aid human brain tumor studies
SINGAPORE - U.S. and Singaporean scientists say a protein
found in a fruit fly’s brain, with a counterpart in mammals,
can apparently prevent brain tumors from forming. Researchers
at Duke University and the National University of Singapore’s
Graduate Medical School have found the fruit fly protein PP2A
suppresses brain tumor formation and controls the balance of
self-renewal and differentiation of neural stem cells, said
Assistant Professor Hongyan Wang. “Given that mechanisms for
stem cell division in flies and mammals are likely to be sim-
ilar, our study on fly PP2A may provide useful insights for
certain types of human brain tumors and possibly in a wide
variety of cancers,” Wang said. The study — supported by
Duke-NUS funding and by the Singapore Millennium Foundation
– appears online in the journal Development.
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New therapy found to prevent heart failure
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. scientists say implantable cardiac
resynchronization devices can produce a 29 percent reduction
in heart failure or death in heart disease patients. Univer-
sity of Rochester Medical Center researchers said the results
came from a 4 1/2-year clinical trial that involved more than
1,800 patients in the United States, Canada and Europe. Some
of the patients used an implanted cardiac resynchronization
therapy device with defibrillator and some were given only an
implanted cardiac defibrillator. The study, led by Dr. Arthur
Moss, ended last week. A prior study by Moss and associates
in 2002 showed implantable cardiac defibrillators were effec-
tive in reducing mortality. The new study sought to determine
if cardiac resynchronization devices with defibrillators
could reduce the risk of mortality as well as heart failure.
Moss said the results are very positive. “Now we can prevent
sudden cardiac death and inhibit the development of heart
failure, thus improving survival and outcome in patients with
heart disease,” Moss said. “There is a very large population
of patients with heart disease who will benefit from this
combined therapy.”
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Research team maps parasite genome
SAN ANTONIO - A research team in Texas has mapped the genome
of the parasite that causes schistosomiasis, a debilitating
disease that can impair childhood development. The work done
at the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research may lead
to a vaccine and better treatments, Timothy Anderson, the
research leader, told the San Antonio Express-News. “If we
can understand why parasites can be resistant to drugs, if
we can understand the biochemical pathways that are attacked
by these drugs, we can re-engineer those drugs so they do
work, or we can design new drugs,” The research was published
Tuesday in Genome Biology. Unlike the most common parasitic
disease, malaria, which remains a major killer, schistosomi-
asis, the second most common, is not usually fatal. But the
disease can damage internal organs and in children it hurts
both physical growth and cognitive development. About 200
million people are infected with schistosomiasis, most of
them in sub-Saharan Africa, and it causes about 200,000
deaths a year. The infection is usually caught by walking in
contaminated water.
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FDA to require warnings for Chantix, Zyban
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced
Wednesday it will require a boxed warning for the smoking
cessation drugs Chantix and Zyban. The FDA said the boxed
warning — the strongest warning the agency can require –
will appear on the package insert. It will highlight the
risk of serious mental health events, including changes in
behavior, depressed mood, hostility and suicidal thoughts
when taking the drugs. “The risk of serious adverse events
while taking these products must be weighed against the
significant health benefits of quitting smoking,” said Dr. -
Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Eval-
uation and Research. “Smoking is the leading cause of pre-
ventable disease, disability and death in the United States,
and we know these products are effective aids in helping
people quit.” Similar information on mental health events
will be required for buproprion, marketed as the antidepres-
sant Wellbutrin and for generic versions of buproprion.
Those drugs already carry a boxed warning for suicidal be-
havior in treating psychiatric disorders. Woodcock said
healthcare professionals who prescribe Chantix (varenicline)
and Zyban (buproprion) should monitor their patients for
unusual changes in mood or behavior after starting the drugs.
She added patients should immediately contact their health-
care professional if they experience such changes. Chantix
is manufactured by Pfizer Inc. Zyban is manufactured by
GlaxoSmithKline.
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Study may improve genetic counseling
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - U.S. scientists studying how some human
DNA mutations are involved in inherited diseases say their
findings may affect the way genetic counseling is offered.
Pennsylvania State University researchers said their study
has shed light on the processes that lead to human DNA muta-
tions implicated in such diseases as tuberous sclerosis and
neurofibromatosis type 1. The scientists, led by Associate
Professors Kateryna Makova and Francesca Chiaromonte, exam-
ined mutations in which small fragments of DNA are either
added or subtracted from the genome. They said they found
patterns in the DNA sequences immediately surrounding those
mutations. Chiaromonte said the study is the first to detect
patterns in the DNA sequences adjacent to insertions and
deletions of DNA fragments at the genome-wide scale. “We
were surprised to find that the patterns … are unique because
scientists previously have lumped the two types of mutations
together,” graduate student Erika Kvikstad said. “What’s
striking is that most insertions and deletions are thought
to occur by replication errors and, while this is a primary
source generating the mutations, we discovered that recombi-
nation also is very important.” The scientists said that if
it’s know that certain diseases are more likely to be caused
by recombination than by replication errors, physicians can
provide better advice to couples who want to have children.
The research is detailed in the July issue of the journal
Genome Research.
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Regenerating bones and Vertebrae
Vitamin D has in the news to an amazing extent in the last
year. That and the mineral calcium. Here’s another article
that focuses on a new form of Vitamin D that may, in time,
prove to be a panacea, particularly for individuals with,
or at risk, for osteoporosis.
A statistic contained in the article that really bowled me
over was the “25% improvement in the strength of their
vertebrae”. This was for nonhuman test subjects (rats), of
course, but if this benefit could carry over to humans…
the possibilities could be wonderful.
This is important not just for the sake of osteoporosis,
but also for lower back pain, which is typically tied to
degenerative disc disease, a condition that, in many
individuals can become disabling.
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Metabolism Myths
The most common myth about metabolism is that there is slow
metabolism and fast metabolism. Researchers have measured
the amount of calories healthy weight individuals and obese
individuals burn while at rest, and the studies have
consistently indicated that overweight individuals’ bodies
expend more energy.
However, even after considering body size difference between
slender and obese individuals, their metabolic rates are
similar.
So what is the difference? Why do individuals with similar
weight and age have different metabolic rates? It is quite
simple: basal metabolic rate is influenced by the ratio of
fat to muscle, consequently individuals who are fit and
have more muscle expend more energy.
Of course, physical activity uses energy as well. In fact,
our basal metabolism rate and physical activity are the
two components of total energy expenditure. If an
individual is to be successful in losing weight, they must
accept one brutal fact and that fact is you cannot consume
more calories than your body uses. If an individual accepts
this fact, they will be able to manage their weight over
their lifetime.
Many individuals are looking for a “magic pill” that will
eliminate weight gain with no effort on their part. The
truth is that there is no magic solution for weight control
or weight loss.
Weight loss or control is the result of calorie reduction
and physical activity. The most efficient way to burn
calories is to get plenty of daily physical activity, and
work on improving one’s body muscle to fat ratio (anaerobic
exercise is ideal for this). If an individual does this, it
will bring about modest but important changes in basal
metabolic rate that in turn will enable a person to control
their weight.