Archive for March, 2011

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Essential Oil for Impetigo Infection | Natural Remedies & Cures

Thursday, March 31st, 2011

Impetigo is a highly contagious skin disease characterized by fluid filled blisters on the face and hands. Although it can affect any person of any age, young children are most prone to be affected by this condition. Staphylococcus aureus and streptococcus are the bacteria responsible for impetigo. These bacteria usually affect younger children during summer season.

Impetigo infection can cause your child a lot of discomfort and uneasiness. Sometimes, itching is so severe that your child may scratch the blisters. Hence, you need to be very careful as scratching can result in the spread of the blisters to surrounding areas. For this reason, dressing of the affected area is important. The signs and symptoms of an impetigo infection are as follows:

  • Appearance of tiny fluid-filled blisters that appear around the mouth and nose but may also extend to the hands.
  • Irritation accompanied by an itching sensation on and around the affected areas of skin.
  • After a few days, the blisters eventually burst; thus revealing oozing, red skin.

Since impetigo infection is very contagious, you need to take utmost care while handling the patient. Take following steps in order to prevent the spreading of the infection:

  • The patient’s clothes should be immediately soaked in a microbial solution.
  • You should wash your hands often using an antiseptic soap.
  • Bandages and dressings should be burnt immediately after removal.
  • The environment should be kept clean and dry.

Although the treatment of impetigo infection is usually done by administering certain specific antibiotics; there are a number of natural remedies that help in the cures for impetigo. Aromatherapy is one of those natural therapies that can be used. In aromatherapy, certain essential oils extracted from herbal plants and are used for treating an impetigo infection. The most effective oils for the treatment of an impetigo infection are lemon grass essential oil, tea tree essential oil, lavender essential oil, and patchouli essential oil. You can prepare a blend by adding 3–4 drops each of these essential oils in 50 ml of carrier oil such as jojoba or olive oil. Apply this mixture on the affected areas using a cotton swab at least three times a day.  It not only provides relief from the pain and itching but also helps in the quick healing of the blisters and patches. You could also add two drops each of patchouli oil and tea tree essential oil to 50 gm of aloe vera gel, and apply the mixture on the blisters three times a day. This is also a great impetigo home remedy. However, since impetigo is a bacterial infection, it is always better to consult your doctor first and get proper medical treatment; alternative treatment methods can be used complementary to the medication.

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Essential Oils for Psoriasis | Natural Cures & Remedies

Thursday, March 31st, 2011

Psoriasis is a skin disorder in which the reproduction and division of skin cells takes place very rapidly. This condition results in dry and red patches on the skin. Usually, psoriasis affects the skin on the scalp, around the joints, ears and genital area. Although the specific causes of the disease are not yet known, following factors may lead to the emergence of psoriasis:

  • Some other prolonged infections of the skin.
  • Family history.
  • Suppressed immune system.
  • An abnormality in the skin growth mechanism.
  • Intake of certain medicines may also result in psoriasis.

The signs and symptoms of psoriasis are as under:

  • Dry and red patches on the knees, elbows, and ears.
  • Irritation and itching sensation on the patches.
  • Appearance of silver color scales on the affected areas of skin.
  • Bad body odor.
  • Emotional stress and headache.
  • Feeling of loneliness and helplessness.

Though there is no specific treatment for curing psoriasis, the effects and discomfort can be considerably reduced by using certain psoriasis remedies. In aromatherapy, there are certain essential oils for psoriasis treatment that greatly reduce the itching and spreading of the patches. The most effective and widely used essential oils for curing psoriasis are lavender essential oil, tea tree essential oil, Roman chamomile oil, sandalwood essential oil, and bergamot essential oil.

For best results, take two drops each of all these essential oil and mix thoroughly with 50 ml of jojoba or olive oil. Apply this mixture on the affected area three times a day with a cotton swab. Prior to applying this oil, do clean the affected area with a good antiseptic solution. This is a great natural treatment for curing psoriasis. You can also take aromatherapy baths using these essential oils. For an aromatherapy bath, add two drops each of the essential oils in your bath tub and immerse yourself in the warm water for about half an hour.

Some of the other great natural cures for psoriasis are mentioned below:

  • Extract a cup of bitter gourd juice and add one teaspoon of lemon juice to it. Drinking this concoction on an empty stomach for one week will give you considerable relief.
  • Mix equal quantities of garlic oil and aloe vera gel and apply it on the affected areas of your skin. Wash your skin after half an hour. Using this remedy twice a day will provide considerable relief from the skin problem.

It is advisable to consult your doctor before trying any of the above mentioned remedies Do seek medical opinion before attempting to self-medicate.

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Tea Tree Oil As An Antifungal Medication

Thursday, March 31st, 2011

There are various types of fungal diseases that affect the human body. Fungus is a type of microorganism that causes diseases like Athlete’s foot, ringworm infections, and facial fungus, among others. While there are a variety of antifungal medications, natural remedies are best recommended to treat fungal infections and diseases. One of the best known remedies to cure fungal diseases is to use aromatherapy in which tea tree essential oil uses are most popular.

Aromatherapy is the use of concentrated plant extracts like essential oils to treat various diseases related to both the mind and body for long-term effects with nil or minimal side-effects. Tea tree essential oil is a potent antimicrobial agent that helps fight fungal infections and diseases. Some of the tea tree oil uses as a fungicide are as follows:

  • Tea tree oil is useful in relieving Tinea pedis or Athlete’s foot, which is a fungal infection of the toes. Tea tree oil prevents the infection from spreading and helps curb the affliction.
  • The use of tea tree oil for scalp infection is also common. It helps fight the fungi on account of its cleansing properties. It is also useful for treating all kinds of skin conditions including acne, pimples, and various forms of microbial infections.
  • One can also use tea tree oil for dandruff. It helps cleanse the scalp and hydrates it, leaving your scalp free of dandruff and your hair nourished.
  • Another one of the Tea tree oil uses is that it also helps treat fungal infections of the vagina. One of the fungi that affect the genitals of women is Candida. Tea tree oil helps inhibit the growth and proliferation of various fungal species, thereby preventing and curing the affliction.

One of the causes of fungal infections is a fragile immune system. As such, it is important to boost and strengthen the immune system. Tea tree oil being an antimicrobial agent prevents various diseases caused by microbes. As such, it prevents the exhaustion of immune system, thereby strengthening it and preventing various diseases including fungal infections.

Tea tree essential oil is effective against fungal diseases. However, while using it for topical application, you must blend it with carrier oils like olive or coconut oil. Essential oils are highly concentrated, and its usage without dilution leads to adverse consequences like skin rashes, redness, irritation and inflammation. It can also lead to aggravation of the fungal infection.

Also, you must test tea tree essential oil on skin to check if your skin is sensitive to it. It is extremely important that you consult an aromatherapy specialist before using any of the essential oils to cure fungal diseases.

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Essential Oils for Dry Skin | Dry Skin Remedies

Thursday, March 24th, 2011

Dry skin is a common problem of the skin that occurs when your skin tends to lose its moisture. You might have experienced the problem of dry skin at some time or the other. The problem of dry skin usually occurs during the winter season when the environment is cold and dry. Persistent dry skin may lead to cracking and chapping of the skin and thus methods on how to get rid of dry skin are often sought after. Before learning about some dry skin remedies, let’s understand the factors that cause dry skin and how it can be prevented. The common causes for dry skin problems are as follows:

  • Excessive exposure to extreme cold conditions.
  • Prolonged exposure to sun can also result in drying and flaking of skin.
  • Inadequate secretion by oil glands, which are responsible for supplying oil to your skin.
  • Deficiency of certain nutrients and vitamins such vitamin A and vitamin B.
  • Certain skin diseases such as eczema and seborrhea.
  • In some cases, generic reasons may also be cause for dry skin.
  • Intake of certain antibiotics or other drugs may also result into drying of the skin.

Since the problem of dry skin occurs from lack of moisture, you need to keep your skin hydrated. One of the foremost things that should be done when dealing with dry skin is to drink a lot of water during the day. It is usually recommended that you drink around six to eight glasses a day. Secondly, you should maintain healthy food habits to prevent the skin from losing its moisture.

How to get rid of dry skin?

There are numerous dry skin remedies that can be used to treat dry skin, including various alternative therapies. Nowadays, aromatherapy is one of the most popular alternative therapies for treating the problem of dry skin. Aromatherapy uses essential oils extracted from plants, herbs, and flowers; these oils possess excellent medicinal properties. Since they are concentrated, these essential oils are very strong in nature and therefore should be used only after diluting with some carrier oils such as jojoba oil or olive oil.

There are several essential oils for dry skin treatment that form very effective dry skin remedies. Some of the most commonly used essential oils for dry skin are sandalwood essential oil, almond oil, lavender oil, the essential oil of ylang-ylang, germanium essential oil, chamomile oil, tea tree essential oil, hyssop essential oil, and rose oil. These oils when used on the skin along with carrier oils moisturize the skin, leaving it hydrated and supple. Although you can safely use any of these oils by diluting with carrier oil, you should consult your aroma therapist before using them.

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