cause for hairloss

What causes excessive hair loss?

A number of things can cause excessive hair loss. For example, about 3 or 4 months after an illness or a major surgery, you may suddenly lose a large amount of hair. This hair loss is related to the stress of the illness and is temporary.

Hormonal problems may cause hair loss. If your thyroid gland is overactive or underactive, your hair may fall out. This hair loss usually can be helped by treatment thyroid disease. Hair loss may occur if male or female hormones, known as androgens and estrogens, are out of balance. Correcting the hormone imbalance may stop your hair loss.

Many women notice hair loss about 3 months after they've had a baby. This loss is also related to hormones. During pregnancy, high levels of certain hormones cause the body to keep hair that would normally fall out. When the hormones return to pre-pregnancy levels, that hair falls out and the normal cycle of growth and loss starts again.

Some medicines can cause hair loss. This type of hair loss improves when you stop taking the medicine. Medicines that can cause hair loss include blood thinners (also called anticoagulants), medicines used for gout, high blood pressure or heart problems, vitamin A (if too much is taken), birth control pills and antidepressants.

Certain infections can cause hair loss. Fungal infections of the scalp can cause hair loss in children. The infection is easily treated with antifungal medicines.

Finally, hair loss may occur as part of an underlying disease, such as lupus or diabetes. Since hair loss may be an early sign of a disease, it is important to find the cause so that it can be treated.

IODINE

The trace mineral iodine is well known for its crucial role in enabling the body's manufacture of vital thyroid hormones, but it is also important for the health of the immune system and for optimal brain function. It is widely believed by many authorities that iodine deficiency should never be seen in the affluent West, although this problem affects millions throughout the developed world.
Some nutritionists argue, however, that this conventional view is too optimistic, because the content of all minerals in foods is heavily dependent on the mineral content of the soil from which those foods are derived. The assumption must therefore be that the continuing de-mineralisation of farm soils has led to a reduction in the amount of dietary iodine commonly consumed.
Fish and other seafood, however, remain a relatively rich source because these ocean creatures concentrate the sea's iodine in their flesh. Though not commonly eaten in the West, seaweed, or kelp, is also an excellent source of iodine for this reason, and is readily available in the form of a dietary supplements. Dairy products and certain meats may also be a good source, particularly where iodine is routinely added to farm animal feed. But in countries, including most of Western Europe, where animals are grazing fields growing on iodine depleted soils, levels are likely to be much lower. So even in the West, those not including fish or seafood in their diets, and not using iodised or sea salt, may be at real risk of deficiency.
In an effort to compensate for low levels of dietary iodine, the mineral has been routinely added to ordinary table salt in the US for many years. But the practice is not as common in the UK and other European countries, where specially iodised or natural "sea-salt" has been marketed more as a luxury alternative. The problem of insufficient dietary iodine has been compounded on both sides of the Atlantic, however, by increasing concern about the possible adverse health consequences, particularly high blood pressure, of excessive salt intake. Many nutritionists, however, regard these fears as exaggerated, and believe that any such potential problems are far less serious than the consequences of an insufficiency of iodine, and may be easily resolved by the use of the low sodium salt alternatives available.
Iodine, however, cannot in any case be regarded as a luxury. Its essential function lies in the production of the vital thyroid hormones; thyroxine, sometimes known as T4, and tri-iodothyronine, or T3. And as is well known, these hormones are crucially important in ensuring a healthy metabolic rate and the release of energy from food; so an underactive thyroid gland is commonly the villain in cases of excessive weight gain, particularly where this of sudden onset, and in cases of difficulty in losing weight even when following a sensible reducing programme.
A healthy thyroid gland is also crucial for the optimal functioning of the immune system. But perhaps even more importantly, iodine deficiency is also known as a major cause of avoidable brain damage; a problem which the World Health Organisation has estimated to affect an astonishing 50 million people worldwide. Sadly, many of these cases occur in children whose mothers were iodine deficient in pregnancy, resulting in a condition of severely retarded brain development known as congenital hypothyroidism, or "cretinism". Even where such catastrophic consequences are avoided, iodine deficiency in childhood may also have serious effects on the developing brain, leading to low energy and motivation for learning, and measurable impairment of IQ scores.

ORGANISING THE KITCHEN

PANTRY OR FOOD SHELVES: Put like items together, soups in one place, and canned vegetables in another and canned fruits all together, pasta in one place—you get the idea. Everything has its place so when you need it you will save time and easily be able to see what you have. (It just might scream 'take out' pizza night.) If you haven't done this for awhile it is a good idea to make sure the cans or bottles are still good by checking expiration dates and check to see it is bulging. If it is, it is definitely spoiled and you need to get rid of it.
Snacks basket :Place them in a basket at a convenient level to grab and go. Or if you have family members that you don't want to get into them, hide them. Lids: Do you have plastic or glass bowls used for storing left-overs? If the lids are always all over the place, put them in a basket by themselves which makes it easy to match to the bowl and eliminates hunting for the matches. If you keep the lids on the container that takes up a lot of space in your cupboard.
DISHES: Do you have enough room for all you have? Get metal stacking shelves that can double the amount of space in your cupboards. They come in many sizes and there are corner ones as well as straight ones that are adjustable. It is a good time to determine if you like or need all the dishes you have. If you see you never use some as you don't like them or you have too many for your needs or space; then donate to a charity.
Silverware drawer: Place the silverware in a container made for that purpose. Larger serving pieces can be placed next to it. Does your container slide back and forth as you open the drawer? A simple solution is to use sticky Velcro on the underside of the container—works great for bathroom drawers too where containers tend to want to slide about.
Pans: Place the ones you use most frequently toward the front of your shelf (if you hang them you have no problem with finding the right size when you need it). If you have pans with a finish that can be chipped or scratched paper plates between the pans prevents this from happening. If you have medicines in the cupboards check their expiration dates and make sure little children can't get into them. Have vases become squatters under your sink? If they belong in a different place, move them to their home. Kitchens are often the hub of the home so a well organized one makes everyone happy. While you are waiting for Spring, or if you live where it is already Spring check out those cupboards, take an inventory and Get Organized now.

WAY TO RELEASE STRESS

A well balanced diet is crucial in preserving health and helping to reduce stress. Certain foods and drinks act as powerful stimulants to the body and hence are a direct cause of stress. This stimulation, although quite pleasurable in the short term, may be quite harmful in the long run.

As stress naturally increases cellular activity and reduces the effectiveness of the digestive system it leads to nutritional deficiencies and therefore a diet of nutrient dense foods needs to be followed.

The recommendation is a 60-75% raw food diet, full of fresh fruit and vegetables, which not only supply valuable vitamins and minerals, but are also rich in compounds called flavanoids, which help to counteract stress.

Eat a meal high in carbohydrates
Carbohydrates trigger release of the brain neurotransmitter serotonin, which soothes you. Good sources of carbohydrates include rice, pasta, potatoes, breads, air-popped popcorn and low-cal cookies. Experts suggest that the carbohydrates present in a baked potato or a cup of spaghetti or white rice, is enough to relieve the anxiety of a stressful day.

Eat food high in fiber
Stress result in cramps and constipation. Eat more fiber to keep your digestive system moving. Your meal should provide at least 25 grams of fiber per day. Fruits, vegetables and grains are excellent sources of fiber. For breakfast, eat whole fruits instead of just juice, and whole-grain cereals, and filling foods like upma.

Eat more vegetables
Your brain’s production of serotonin, is sensitive to your diet. Eating more vegetables, can increase your brain’ serotonin production. This increase is due to improved absorption of the amino acid L-Tryptophan. Vegetables contain the natural, safe, form of L Tryptophan. Meats contain natural L-Tryptophan also, but when you eat meat, the L-Tryptophan has to compete with so many other amino acids for absorption that the L-Tryptophan loses out. The net result is that you get better absorption of L-Tryptophan when you eat vegetables.

Micronutrients are important
The key nutrients for stress are those that aid the adrenal glands, which are the tranquilising mineral, magnesium (best taken in the evening) and all the B vitamins, in particular, Vitamin B5 to prevent adrenal atrophy. Urinary excretion of Vitamin C increases under stress so extra should be taken to support the cells and immune function.


A good diet is always important, whether you are going through a stressful period or not. However, there are a few things you can do to boost your diet when you are dealing with a lot of stress.

Reduce fats (recommended daily intake is 20 to 30% of total diet)
Avoid too much sugar
Limit your intake of salt
Eat a variety of foods
Eat more complex carbohydrates
Maintain your ideal weight
Limit caffeine intake
Limit alcohol intake
Take a multivitamin tablet each day
Drink more water (recommended intake 1.5 to 2 litres daily)
Follow these basic guidelines as a general rule and when you are going through a particularly stressful time try to couple it with some extra physical exercise

DIGESTION

An important physiological function performed by our body is that of digestion. The power of digestion determines the overall health of the body’s functioning.
We can always do a few things to improve our digestive powers. There are no strict rules that can bring on immediate effects but there are some sure practices that can streamline the digestion processes by way of converting them into good eating habits.
What really happens when you eat? After that burger disappears into your mouth, it makes its way down the esophagus, through the stomach and into the small intestine, where the major part of digestion takes place. Food is broken down into nutrients small enough to be absorbed into the bloodstream. The bloodstream carries the nutrients to all parts of the body and that is how you get the energy to do the things you do every day. Nutrition not only boosts the muscles you use, it also provides energy to keep up the things you do not think about: the building and repairing of cells and the movement of blood through your body.
To improve digestion, eat only when you are hungry.
The body can tolerate even wrong combination of foods in strong genuine hunger. But the fact remains that the digestive system should be handled with utmost care. Some experts are of the opinion that food like milk should not be combined with any other food. It should be taken alone as it is a complete and concentrated food in itself. It prevents the gastric juices from reaching out to the other foodstuffs, hence delaying digestion. Milk is best taken with light snacks like biscuits.
Melons should also be eaten alone. Melons digest more quickly than other foods and may even ferment sometimes. Also, as a law no liquid should be taken with solids. Liquids tend to rush through to the intestines directly taking away all the digestive enzymes thus inhibiting the digestion. Take one type of food or lesser varieties of foods at a time. More variety of foods puts great strain on digestive system since body can handle one food at a time more smoothly. It has no provision to secrete many juices and digest different foods at one time.
Hence many varieties of foods taken at a time result in delayed, imperfect digestion and fermentation and putrefaction. For example, having a beverage like tea, coffee or soft drink with food severely restricts the proper gastric secretions and therefore normal digestion is hindered. Milk and yogurt should not be taken together for the same reason. Fruits and vegetables too should not be taken together. Avoid eating fats with proteins as fat depresses the action of gastric glands and inhibits the release of proper gastric juices, which are required for protein digestion. It lowers the digestive tone by more than 50 percent. Unlike proteins, combination of carbohydrates with fats is tolerable. Applying butter on bread is acceptable.
For optimum usage of nutrients in meals, make it a point to consume natural raw foods to the maximum. Munch on an apple when hunger strikes in between meals. Having a carrot to assuage hunger pangs or a bowlful of pulse sprouts for breakfast or even a few almonds when the craving to munch is there, is a good idea as food such as these is light work for the digestive system.
As it is, these foods are fibre rich and fibre helps in weight reduction. Fibre makes a person feel full even though it does not contribute calories. This is because one has to eat this kind o food more slowly since the food needs more chewing. One will swallow more saliva also in the process to fill stomach. A high fibre diet is always a low fat diet and a high fat diet is always a low fibre diet.
Let us take a quick appraisal of tolerable combinations of foods that are ideally most often used in daily fare:
• cereals and pulses
• cereals and buttermilk
• rice and milk
• rice with fish/ egg curry/ meat
• bread and eggs
• sprouted pulses with lemon or tomato
• egg and milk
• nuts and milk
• yogurt and rice
• yogurt and bananas

MAKING CHILDREN SELF RELIANT

Most parents are trying to stay clear of the label "helicopter parents," because they don't want to be seen as the type of mother or father who hover and "overprotect." The most powerful parents have realized that when their children have the opportunity to make mistakes, they gain an invaluable opportunity to learn from those mistakes. It's developmentally appropriate for children to become more and more independent, self reliant and responsible as they age. It can be challenging for parents to know when to step back and let their children try something on their own. After all, from the time their children were babies, parents have spent years meeting many to all of their child's needs.
Striking a balance between allowing your children to do tasks for themselves and helping them when they seem to need or want is a talent of very powerful parents. This balance allows their children to thrive because they feel more confident in themselves while still feeling supported and properly mentored. How can we instill self reliance and responsibility into our children? (1) Allow your children to make some decisions: Even young children can make sound decisions if you give them a few select choices. Do you want to wear the red shirt or the blue shirt? Would you like a peanut butter sandwich or a cheese sandwich? As children get older, you can allow them to make more important decisions with little to no guidance. They can determine things like which Fall sport they'd like to play, if they need a tutor for math, and which friends they'd like to spend time with each day without needing much, if any, input from parents. While it's tempting to make these kinds of decisions for your older children, they need to stand on their own two feet—after all, their decisions are often correct!
(2) Encourage your children to try tasks on their own: While it's often quicker and more skillfully done when we do it for them, children need to engage in tasks on their own if they're ever going to learn how to do them well. Laundry, shoe-tying, and making the bed are great places to start with young children. Older children can handle more complicated tasks such as cooking, preparing their own lunch, and doing their own homework.
(3) Model responsibility and self reliance: Parents have many responsibilities—let your child see them and hear about them! Say out loud; "This screw seems a little loose, I'll go get the screwdriver and tighten it" or "I have to plan our weekly menu for dinner; let's see...Monday night we'll have..." When children see you making decisions, taking initiative, and displaying self reliant behaviors, they will engage in similar behavior.
(4) Be your child's coach rather than his sage: When your child asks you questions about how to do something or what to do in a certain situation, sometimes asking questions is more important than providing answers. "What do you think you should do? How would you feel if you chose X? What would happen if you did Y instead?" These questions can unlock the answers in your own child's brain so the next time he's in a similar situation he'll be able to call on his own experience and judgment to make a decision.
(5) Be a good support system: Sometimes this means cheering them on from the sidelines and other times it means encouraging them to try again. Of course, when children truly need your help, they should know that they can count on you. If you teach them to ask for help when they really need it (when something seems unsafe or too challenging), they should know that you will be there to assist them. Children who know that they can count on their parents when they really need it feel better about taking risks and the possibility of making mistakes.
(6) Provide them with responsibilities: Chores are great for teaching children how to be self reliant as well as how to work as a team. After teaching them how to do the chore properly, let them give it a try with some assistance, if needed. You can even work on a checklist together which helps to break down the task into easy, age-appropriate chunks. For example, (a) Take the clothes out of the dryer, (b) Separate the clothes by family member, (c) Match up all the socks...and so on. When we provide children with ways to help out the family, we give them opportunities to build responsibility, self confidence, and self reliance.
(7) Encourage healthy risk-taking: Assure your children that making mistakes is OK. The most important thing is that s/he tries! Most things are not done perfectly the first time—even when you're an adult. It doesn't mean "the end of the world" and there is no reason to be embarrassed. Watching our children make mistakes can be challenging. We may want to rush to their aid to shield them from impending failure or disappointment. However, when parents do this, they rob their children of some very powerful tools; self confidence, stick-to-itiveness, and of course, self reliance. Your children are relying on you to teach them how to approach the world. Sometimes that means they have to watch you to learn how to approach the task. But other times that means, you must watch them from the sidelines and encourage them to figure it out on their own.

HOME IMPROVEMENT.

Everyone wants to have a home like those featured in Architectural Digest, but if you're like most, your finances will not allow for it. There are, however, several approaches to decorating and designing that you can take without breaking the bank. A fresh coat of paint can do wonders for brightening up a room, or even changing it completely.
Having a room professionally painted can be pricey, however, depending on the contractor hired and the type of services provided. Rather than hiring someone, painting is a skill that is easily acquired and can even be fun to do. While it may be time consuming, it is not a difficult skill to master. A roller, pan and brush set will cost about $10.00, and a gallon of paint between $20.00 and $30.00. Add in some extra money for spackle to fill any cracks or nail holes, some primer or a base coat, drop cloths and paint remover. If you figure on two gallons of paint, depending on the room's square footage, you could have a white-walled room turn a beautiful hunter green for less than $150.00 all told! In the end, you will be left with a freshly painted, new look and the pride of having done it yourself.
Another way to save money decorating is to shop the yard sales. Sound silly? It's not. Springtime is a great time to do this, as many people are cleaning out their closets and putting things in the yard that they no longer want or they simply don't have room for. You've heard the saying "One man's trash is another man's treasure?" This can be your opportunity for treasure hunting! How many times while shopping have you stepped into an expensive boutique or gallery, just to window shop, and while browsing spotted the ‘perfect' oversized vase for your floor, or a really odd sculpture or ironwork that would be just right for your living room? Yard sales are full of these type items! Because proud homeowners re-decorate every few years, they put perfectly good (and pricey!) merchandise out for sale to the highest bidder. If you do not live in the suburbs, you can still take advantage of these type sales at your local flea market on a Saturday morning or the market on your block.
Want a completely FREE solution? Move some furniture! Not only can you change the look of your home by moving furniture within a room, you can even get creative and change the actual rooms themselves. Why not? If you have a large spare bedroom on the second floor that you have been using for a guest room, why not make this into your growing toddler's bedroom and convert his or her room to the less used, smaller guest room? If you have a family room and a living room that are approximately the same size but in opposite areas of your home, why not simply reverse the floor plan? You would be amazed at the difference this can make in livening up a house that has become stale in the decorating department. If this seems too drastic for you or you don't have the extra rooms, even moving furniture within a room can be a completely cost-free way to renovate.
Who says decorating has to be on the inside of the house only? The first impression you and your guests will have is of the outside of your home. Many people spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars in landscaping, when this cost can be cut significantly by doing your own outdoor gardening, planting and decorating. Rather than having a master plan scoped out by a professional, get creative and think of what colors and types of plants you enjoy looking at and what will grow well in your environment. It is then just a matter of buying the soil, plants, potters, and perhaps some decorative stones to lay around the new plants. This process will not be cost-free, but will be significantly less money to do it yourself than to hire a landscaper. It will also be a great excuse to get outside, enjoy the fresh air, and get some exercise! You can think of the colors you like most, and start with plants in those color schemes.
Consider whether you like low-lying plants, or whether you may need to shade certain areas of your property. If so, perhaps you can consider strategic tree planting, so that you have beautiful and mature trees down the road that otherwise would have cost a fortune to have put in. Stones can be relatively inexpensive depending on where you get them and what type they are, yet they can beautify a garden, walkway, path or planted area tremendously. This is something you can add to your landscaping creation as well.
Whether indoors or out, you don't have to break the bank to have a beautiful home. A bit of creativity and a few dollars can go a long way to making the home of your dreams if you take advantage of these few simple suggestions.