Leftover fruits give you radiant skin

What do you do when you have a whole bunch of leftover fruitsand veggies in your refrigerator? As much as we try hard, these leftovers do not seem to get over.

Lemons, tomatoes, papaya, bananas, eggs are a few to name that top the list of leftovers in the fridge. Its time to stop fretting about wastage and the money spent.

We tell you a few ways of using it wisely... Lemons are very good for hair. Wash your hair with lemons. It is very good for oily and greasy hair. It has excellent nourishing properties like Vitamins B and A. This will take care of the dandruff and get rid of similar scalp problems.

Leftover bananas that changes colour to black are very useful in making your skin glow. Overripe bananas are very high in vitamin A, B and E, all of which benefit the skin. Mash a banana and put it all over your face till it completely dies up and rinse off after 15-20 minutes.

Papayas are good cleansers. It has Enzyme Papain which removes blemishes and rejuvenates an undernourished skin. Mash papayas and mix some honey to make a pack which you can smear all over your hands, neck and face. Wash after 15-20 minutes for a blemish free skin.

Eggs works wonders for skin and hair. Mix egg white with mayo and honey to make a thick paste. This can be applied to your hair as well. Egg has pure protein which will make your hair strong and honey that will bring out the lustre that was till now lacking in your tresses.

So, leftover fruits, vegetables and even poultry can contribute to your healthy skin and hair. Next time you spot something lying in your refrigerator unused, you know what to do.

How to keep your skin firm?

The skin is a mirror for the rest of the body. Bad habits can be revealed and stress may be disclosed. No matter what we do, it will eventually affect our skin. Our skin reflects the life we live and if there is a lot of imbalance, the skin loses its firm, healthy glow. It might be unnoticeable in early youth, but sooner or later it can't be ignored.

There are a number of factors that negatively affect the elasticity of our skin. Some of them are sun exposure, smoking, and wrong nutrition that destroycollagen and elastin, the fibers that keep it firm and elastic. Fortunately there are a number of ways to prevent the skin from losing its elasticity. Here are some simple secrets to keeping the skin firm and supple for as long as possible:

• Use Moisturizer: Moisturize your skin every day. Remember that some environmental factors such as sun, wind, and water can make it to lose its moisture. To prevent this, use special cream or oil right after bathing. Pay special attention to your face, neck, and hands since they are the parts of your body that are most vulnerable to the environmental influences. Organic, natural moisturizers with anti aging nutrients are best.
• Drink water: Drink a lot of water. Humidity is essential for our skin. It makes the biological cells to regenerate. Therefore, don't forget to drink recommended daily water intake, at least 8 glasses of water a day.
• Healthy diet: Citrus fruits help to keep the skin looking young. That's because the antioxidant Vitamin C found in citrus is involved in the formation of collagen a protein that binds cells and tissues together. In certain proportions, every food is good for the human body and therefore it is important to maintain a healthy diet.  A balanced diet is necessary to supply the body with all the vitamins and minerals that it needs.
• Avoid losing your weight too fast: When you lose your weight too fast, your skin cannot keep up with the corresponding change in your body. As a result, some wrinkles may be left. The wrong diet can also influence the condition of your skin leading to skin problems. Therefore, check carefully whether you are following the right diet that cannot damage your skin.
• Alternate showers: Try taking hot and cold shower by turns. This will allow the pores to open, skin to relax and make your skin elastic. Contrasting shower can also help in cases with cellulite.
• Exercise daily: Routine exercise keeps your skin elastic and supple. Your skin requires oxygen, and the amount it takes is reduced with age. Exercise provides it with more oxygen.
• Eat the Strings and Peels: There are more health reasons to add fruits and vegetables to your diet. Silica found in plant-based foods can help maintain the elasticity of your skin and improve your complexion. So if possible, enjoy the whole fruit and vegetable, like cucumber skin, onion springs and the strings of celery (ajmud) and asparagus (shatwar).
• Swap Your Carbohydrates: Replace refined carbohydrate foods like white bread, cookies, and pasta with their whole-grain cousins. Not only do whole grains provide a lot more anti-aging antioxidants, they also provide fiber which is the key element of a healthy skin diet.
• Use sunscreen: You may know that 15 daily minutes in a sun provides daily portion of vitamin D. However, an extended period can dry your skin and damage it by fastening aging process and causing various diseases. Therefore, don't spend too much time in the sun and use sunscreen to prevent skin damage from happening.
• Quit smoking and Drinking: Smoking and drinking alcohol does a lot of damage to the body.  They make the skin lose water and unwanted materials get in the body causing skin diseases.  The skin of heavy smokers also gets pale and therefore it is advisable to quit smoking and drinking alcohol.
• Balance your skin's pH: The pH refers to the balance of acid and alkali in your skin. That is, how acidic your skin is. Your skin needs a slightly acidic pH level (somewhere around 5.5) to protect your body from bacterial infections. The best foods to eat to keep skin pH at the right level are those that contain alpha-hydroxy acids. These include foods like apples, blackberries, any citrus food and tomatoes. You can also use a good, natural and organic toner to balance your skin's pH.

No matter what we do, it will eventually affect our skin.  If the skin is taken care of then it will look healthy and shine.  Proper nourishment of the body is vital in making a difference to the way our skin looks.

Keep your brain sharp with these simple tips

Every day you wake up, you can either "use it or lose it." Your brainpower, that is. Cognitive abilities such as concentration, attention, memory, hearing and motor coordination, and executive functions like planning and multitasking deteriorate over the time unless used regularly.

Scientist used to think that the brain stopped growing and developing after a certain age — that a person had a finite brain capacity — until it would eventually deteriorate once the person reached old age. We now know that’s not true. In fact, current scientific research shows that what used to be considered “normal” memory loss as a result of aging (called age-related cognitive decline) is not necessarily normal at all. You can actually stimulate the brain and increase your brain capacity, or at least not lose any gray matter, throughout your life.

The ability of the brain to change and form new connections is a concept called brain plasticity, or neuroplasticity. It is greatly influenced — for better and worse! — by the foods you eat, getting enough (and the right kind of) exercise, being engaged socially, limiting stress and challenging your brain intellectually to learn new things. 

Here are five simple things you can do to keep your brain sharp. 

1. Keep learning! Keep your mind motivated and your brain active in any field that makes you constantly learn: reading, problem solving, brain fitness exercises, learning a language, playing an instrument or a memory game.

2. Exercise your brain by exercising your body with challenging movements. Exercise boosts brainpower on multiple fronts: it increases heart rate which helps pump more oxygen to your brain and it releases hormones which both control stress and help stimulate new brain cells and the formation of new connections. Studies have shown that the exercises that benefit your brain the most are those that call on multiple skills such as coordination, rhythm and strategy.

Here are three moves that challenge your brain and motor network, the group of nerve cell connections that help you move. (Want more? Try these three brain-boosting exercises.) Do this circuit daily:

• Raise your left arm overhead while lifting your right knee up to your chest. Repeat with your right arm and left leg. Repeat the entire set 10 times.

• Clap your hands overhead while raising your right leg. Repeat, raising your left leg.

• Balance on one leg closing both eyes. Hold for 10 seconds. Then repeat with the opposite leg. (This works your proprioceptors — sensors that provide information about joint angle, muscle length and muscle tension, which gives your brain a sense of your body position in space.)

At the very least, make sure you get some cardiovascular exercise daily. Even just 15 or 20 minutes of brisk walking daily will help your brain (and your heart!).

3. Feed your brain. Eating can influence your brain in a powerful way. The best brain foods are those high in antioxidants and brain-boosting omega-3 fatty acids, and low in sugar and refined carbs. Make sure these five great brain foods are part of your diet: berries, salmon, walnuts, leafy greens and avocado.

4. Be a social butterfly. Keep yourself socially active and make sure you are surrounded by great friends. You can join a book club, walking club or a gym. Research has shown that maintaining strong, meaningful relationships not only helps fight off depression, which can impair cognition, but social interaction actually stimulates the brain.

5. Mediate daily. Chronic and acute, high stress, which most people today face in their daily lives, impairs memory and concentration. Meditation helps reduce stress and increase oxygen flow to the brain. Practice daily meditation to achieve a powerful, calmer mind and a more focused brain.

Life is about choices and choosing the right health program is really important for you. Your best days are yet to come!

Kiss dark circles goodbye

Source: Times of India

Try these simple natural home remedies to get rid of that oh-so-exhausted look on your face.

Dark circles are a common problem not only amongst hassled housewives but also anyone with hectic work schedules and erratic sleep hours. They are not a very grave problem but can make you look much older than you already are. And in today's age where the market is being flooded with anti-ageing, skin lightening creams, it is a considered almost a fashion crime to sport dark circles. Here are some natural home remedies to help to get rid of those ghastly-looking dark circles:

- Grate some raw potato and soak a cotton ball in the potato juice. Close your eyes and place these cotton balls on your eyes. Make sure they cover the dark circles under your eyes as well as the eyelids. Leave it on for 10 minutes and wash off with cold water.

- Applying a mixture of a teaspoon of tomato and lime juice, twice a day will help in reducing the dark circles.

- Drink a glass of tomato juice with some mint leaves, lemon juice and salt. Drinking this twice a day is another remedy.

- Prepare a paste of four to five almonds with some milk. Apply this paste over the affected area and leave for 10 to 15 minutes. This will lighten the skin around the eyes.

- A mixture of a few teaspoons of fresh pineapple juice along with a pinch of turmeric powder, when applied on the dark circles regularly will help clear them.

- Every night before sleeping, apply creams containing vitamin E and C around the eyes.

- Crush some mint leaves and apply them around the eyes. Doing this will also provide a cooling effect on tired eyes.