How to substitute Gluten and Casein in Autistic Child’s Diet

We are much more than what we eat. Often diet and nutrition is overlooked or dismissed. But it is a human fact that many of the symptoms present in autism are directly related to nutritional deficiencies, disturbances in nutritional imbalance, poor diet and negative effect of the specific food. Children with Autism respond very well to change in the diet and nutrition. If you choose carefully the food you give to an autistic child, it will help in optimizing brain and body functions. The child will respond to the all other treatments provided and give best possible outcomes. Diet and nutrition are critical components of overall treatment plan because they address underlying problems.
An autistic child can benefit from a gluten- and casein-free diet. Gluten and casein are the main offenders. Soy and corn can also be bothersome for some children. Casein, a protein, is mainly found in milk and other dairy product like yogurt, ice-cream. This is also present in baked goods and fish like tuna. Gluten, another protein, is found in wheat and other grains. The food containing Gluten, casein and soy are not properly digested. When they reach the intestinal tract, they form undigested amino acids chains called peptides and then further processed into basic amino acids. Some evidence suggests that in autistic, this process does not occur fully. The resulting peptides, which fail to break down completely, may have an effect on the body similar to that of morphine or other opiates. The peptides are absorbed into the blood-stream and they cross the blood brain barrier and negatively effect mood, mental and neurological functions and behaviors. There is another problem associated with the food containing Gluten and casein. Children may develop addiction to the food sources containing gluten and casein. Children crave to food which are actually harmful for them and begin to limit their food to gluten, casein and soy containing food only. This results in significant withdrawal symptoms when these foods are eliminated from their food. For this reason experts on autism recommend that people suffering from autism should avoid gluten and casein in their diets.
So, what to do?
You can use a number of substitutes for gluten and casein while preparing food for your child. These are easily available in the market.
Read the substitutes on: Continue Reading

Save Energy-Save Money-Save Environment

Consider an average American family: two adults, commuting 20-30 miles each per day in separate cars with average fuel efficiency, driving an additional 5,500 miles running errands and taking their child to basketball games and piano practice. The family takes one vacation trip per year, flying to visit friends and grandparents 1,450 miles away. Can you guess how much CO2 their house and cars produce? Around 60,000 pounds, or 10 tons for each family member! Isn’t it too much??!!

Switching to power saving practices will not only cut homeowners’ heavy electric bills but also save the energy. This will further reduce the pollution, greenhouse gases and global warming.
Here are a few ways you can save energy at home and outside:
Switch electronic devices off when you’re not using them.
Use a timer for your air conditioner that is automatically programmed according to your schedule. Rather than running it all day, the air conditioner can turn on just before you come home.
If you own a clothes dryer, try to use it only when you are pressed for time. If you have the time, dry your clothes in the ‘old fashioned’ way: by hanging them up either indoors or outdoors. You can purchase a drying rack or simply hang your clothes around your home. This can be one of the best energy cutting decisions, as dryers consume more energy than any other appliance.

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Your pets can bring Infection to you and your kids

Pet ownership is thought to be a key to heart health, social support, and long life, but have you ever thought that letting a pet dog lick your face, picking up its feces or allowing it to sleep on your bed could put you and your kids at risk of catching infection? Pets can pass germs to human beings. Transmission of germs from animals to humans can occur either by direct contact between a person and an animal or through an intermediary insect like a mosquito or a tick. Although many germs are species-specific–meaning, they can infect only one or a few closely related species–other germs are able to cross species barriers and pass from animals or birds to humans. Virus and fungi are less likely to be transmitted from animals to humans, whereas bacteria and parasites that are normally found in animals find humans to be suitable hosts as well. Thus, many of the of the animal-derived infections are caused by bacteria or parasites.
Read how dog, cat and other pets may be carriers of infection.
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How to buy Exercise Walking Shoes

How to buy Exercise Walking Shoes
You must be buying your dress shoes primarily because of the quality of leather, color, texture and decorative design but in exercise walking shoes it is what is under the foot that's more important. If you are a serious walker and looking for good shoes ,then you must understand the fact that the way the walking platform of a shoe is designed from the heel, where the walking motion begins, to the toe, where the foot must bend for toe off, determines how your foot will function. An issue of the University of California at Berkeley wellness letter observed “ ill fitting shoes,it is thought, cause 80% of all foot problems. Besides causing corns, bunions, nail deformities and other problems, painful shoes can alter gait and your outlook for the worse.” Anything which inhibits the natural motion of the foot will affect the foot's biomechanical efficiency. Your foot and the muscles in your legs will fighting the restrictions of the shoe. Thus, it is important to know what kind of exercise walking shoes should be bought.
A good exercise walking shoes platform should not be stiff at the forefoot, the ball of the foot, as many jogging and cross training shoes are. Rigid sole at the forefoot on exercise walking shoes interfere with toe – off, which is an essential part of the foot's contribution to your forward progress and speed. Some rocker type shoes, most cross trainers and jogging shoes are too rigid for the biomechanical juncture. They restrict the foot's ability to contribute to forward propulsion at the toe-off and cause the foot to labour against the stiff walking platform as it tries to bend in its natural manner. An exercise walker wearing such shoes and trying to accelerate beyond the brisk pace will experience unnecessary shin fatigue and stress in the leg muscles.
A good exercise walking shoe should have a comfortably wide toe box to accommodate the widening of the forefoot when the body weight is loaded onto it. The toe box should also be high enough to give the shoe adequate clearance. The platform of an exercise walking shoe should be essentially neutral. It should not try to manage the foot's biomechanics but should let it move from the heel plant to toe-off in its most natural manner. It should be just thick enough to protect the bottom of the foot, and provide a moderate amount of cushioning. The heel should be closer to half a inch because it is easier to walk at a fast pace with a lower heel.
But keep in mind that your buying decision should always be made on the basis of 'fit and comfort' over any technical features.
Things you should keep in mind while you go to buy exercise walking shoes :

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Why should you include Fermented food in your Food

We all know that there a large number of bacteria present in our gastrointestinal tract those are important to digestion. The beneficial bacteria present in our bowel try to protect us from the massive number of harmful bacteria those might have been ingested while consuming food and water. We need certain bacteria in our digestive system in order to have proper digestion. When bacteria are removed because of prolonged use of antibiotic , it creates breeding ground for illness. Our immune system weakens and we lose our ability to digest, absorb food and assimilate. The harmful bacteria get foothold in the colon because of our bad food habits. We consume less fiber and more refined carbohydrates. This slows down the bowel transit time and fuel harmful bacteria. Thus, we need to have fermented food and probiotic supplements to have good bacteria in our digestive tract.

In order to increase the useful bacteria in gastrointestinal tract, we can have fermented food like yoghurt and sauerkraut. Irritable bowel syndrome has become a great problem in the America because of our food habits.

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Air Freshners-Are they really fresh?

To watch television commercials for air fresheners, one could think them to be made from fresh cut flowers. We place them all around our homes. But these fresheners don’t freshen the air, but rather make our home’s air more polluted. Air fresheners used in a confined area, like homes, offices or cars create an intense amount of toxins in a small area.
Indoor air quality can be lower than the air quality outdoors. The fine particulate matter from outdoor air pollution comes in through doors and windows. Dust mites, mold, pet dander and fur, tobacco smoke and fumes from combustion appliances like gas heaters and stoves contribute as well, as do building materials that out-gas, such as paints, varnishes, insulation, particle board, plywood, carpets and furniture.
With all that already in the air inside, why make indoor air more polluted with air fresheners? The air fresheners emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs), like most paints do. In the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), the manufacturer admit that breathing high concentrations of vapor in excess of the permitted exposure level may cause following problems:

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We are living in the pool of Germs

We are surrounded by various germs. Many of these germs are harmful for human beings and find various routes to enter in our bodies. Inanimate things around us are also responsible for the spread of the infection in adults and kids. Free living germs like bacteria, fungi, and virus survive on the non living things like furniture,utensils, toothbrush, toilet seats, faucets etc. Bacteria and fungi survive on these inanimate objects for prolonged period than virus because of the fact that virus require living cells to survive. Moisture helps germs to hang around in the environment even for several days without drying off or drying up.

A study carried out in 2006, found that adults infected with rhinovirus who stayed over-night in the hotel rooms contaminated one third of the things in the room. The rhinoviruses survived on the objects they touched like electric switches, telephone, television, television remote devices etc for 24 hours. These objects might not receive routine cleaning , so these virus survived on these objects for a long time. Few other object like sharp things can be contaminated by blood also causing life threatening diseases. Everyday things like drinking glasses, toothbrush hats, hair brush, bed sheets, toilet seats etc serve as vector of infection.
The infection through these inanimate objects spread mainly because of sharing of objects.

Here is a list of the everyday things that can spread infection:
http://www.articlefit.com/We-are-living-in-the-pool-of-Germs/a8950_1

Benifits of Positive attitude in Life

The way to a healthy life begins with a healthy mind. How we think determines everything in our life. I am going to talk about the things which are not new but, the things that we all tend to forget and ignore altogether. All of us must try to have a control over our thoughts because they play a crucial role in deciding how our life is going to be. Too often we try to get things done in our way, get others to see things as we do them, seek to change the world around us and look to correct situations. We typically see problems and challenges happening to us only. We usually complain “ Why do bad things happen to me only?” or “Why its me only who is suffering?”. This is because we only tend to focus on what is going around.

We waste our energy in thinking and perceiving things in outside world. Rather than blaming things around us, we need to be more focused on what is going within us. Actually, its good to consider both the worlds - the inner one and the outer one. The world around us, where we have responsibilities, job, family, circumstances, emotions, habits, actions, hopes and dreams. But, how these things are perceived, how we take all these depends on the inner world. Many things in this world are out of our control.
Continue to read on: http://greenissues.today.com/2009/02/22/your-positive-attitude-in-life/

How to do thyroid test at home.

Do thyroid test at home. Please note that this not the final test. Check with your doctor for a confirmatory test.

Thyroid Self-test


One can perform a self test to check thyroid for hypothyroidism. Place an oral thermometer by your bed at night. Shake it down until it reaches approximately ninety-six degrees. As soon as you wake up next morning place thermometer under your armpit and leave it there for 10 minutes before getting out of the bed. Relax and remain still. Remove thermometer and record your temperature.
What next?
Read more on: http://greenissues.today.com/2009/02/24/do-thyroid-and-iodine-test-at-home/

Bid Adieu to panic attacks Naturally

Panic attacks or anxiety produce very real and painful effects in our lives, including physical symptoms that often mimic other health problems. It is difficult to compile a complete list of the physical symptoms of anxiety because of the fact that anxiety is a very personal problem, and the symptoms of anxiety vary from one person to the next. The mental or psychological symptoms of anxiety can be even more severe, including phobias of all types, social discomfort, poor memory or obsessive thoughts. However, there are a few physical symptoms that are much more common than others.

Treating panic attacks or anxiety
A “real” anxiety cure must be sustainable. It should not make your life progressively worse over time, creating a type of addiction that keeps sufferers feeling like helpless victims. A “real” anxiety cure is all about empowerment–taking back control over your life.
People generally seek traditional prescribed medications which can be addictive and even physically harmful. Some natural things those can be taken in case of mild anxiety.

For more information: http://www.greendivamom.com/2009/02/03/bid-adieu-to-anxiety-and-panic-attacks-in-a-natural-way/

How you Poison your morning with Personal Care Products

Let us look at a typical morning for many of us which starts with the alarm buzz. You sit up in bed, yawn and stretch and then glance at the clock. You wish to have a few more minutes of sleep. But, you know you can't stay in the bed longer, so you stagger into the bathroom. From here starts the whole process of poisoning our body with numerous chemicals.

The poisoning goes on till you get ready to move out of the house.

Read how you get toxic chemicals in you body: http://www.healthmad.com/Home-Health/How-You-Poison-Your-Morning-with-Personal-Care-Products.570841

Good Night Sleep Naturally

If you suffer from insomnia, several natural remedies may help relieve sleepless nights. There are ways which may be helpful in getting sleep easily and without any medications.

Find out how:http://greenissues.today.com/

The Right Exercise for You

All of us understand the importance of staying fit and the role played by the exercise in keeping us fit. We have many energy saver system like drive through fast food points, banks, cleaners, pharmacies, elevators, escalators, moving walkways, television and music systems with remote controls, automatic washers and dryers etc. Our inactivity has increased actually because of spending long hours in working on internet, watching television, playing video games etc.This kind of sedentary lifestyle puts our longevity and health at risk. If you have not included exercise in your daily routine then you are at a high risk of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart diseases, obesity etc. Obesity is further associated with other diseases like heart failure,diabetes, pulmonary hypertension, stroke, degenerative joints, many types of cancer, gall bladder diseases and many more. Many of these disease are life threatening and may lead to premature death.
We all have excuses and explanation for not doing exercise like lack of time, odd working hours, home, kids etc. But we must convince ourselves that the worldly possessions like money, power, status, image all are of no use if we do not have good health. Thus, it is very important to keep yourself healthy. Good eating and drinking habits and exercise keeps you fit for whole life.

Continue reading on: http://www.articlefit.com/The-right-kind-of-exercise-for-You/a8952_1

Beware of the Indoor Pollution

According to an estimate by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the quality of air inside our homes and offices is 2-5% more polluted as compared to outside. Americans those who spend 90% of their time indoors should find a way to reduce airborne pollutants and allergens that they breathe inside homes. Even low levels of indoor air pollutants might have serious effect on the respiratory system.

Some sources of air pollution inside home are:
Smoking
Pets
Carpets
Out gassing from furniture, insulation and building materials (especially particle board and plywood)
Cleaning and Personal Care Products
Paints & Varnishes

Indoor air pollution in homes can be reduced in following ways:

Controlling the source of pollution : This includes the use of the products those are non polluting and non toxic. For example use use low emission paints & varnishes, carpets and furniture .Similarly make use of natural and non toxic cleaning and personal care products. Instead of using synthetic carpet you can beautify your home with tiles or hardwood floors. Get your combustion appliances serviced regularly.

Read more:http://www.articlefit.com/Air-inside-your-home-is-more-polluted-than-outdoors/a8556_1

Get Beautiful nails at Home

Take a look at your hands. What do they say about you and what they convey to others? Are your hands rough, red or irritated? Are your cuticles ragged? Or have you cut or pushed them back? Or, are your hands smooth and pampered? Hot pink, French tips, or clear-coated–it’s not the color you wear that matters. What really matters is the condition of your hands and nails.

Who doesn’t want to have such kind of hands? Is going to some professional salon and spending money and time the only way out? My answer is NO. You can improve the state of your nails by taking a few simple steps at home. Read on to find out how:
Scrub your hands and nails and clean the dirt underneath them. There is nothing uglier than a woman with dirt and soil under her nails. It is unhygienic and it is also unladylike. Dip a cotton-tipped swab in hydrogen-peroxide clean under the nails, to whiten them.

Continue to read on: http://www.greendivamom.com/2009/01/31/getting-beautiful-nails-the-eco-friendly-nail-care-formula/

Green and Fun household Recycling

Solid waste generation has nearly tripled in the United States since 1960, increasing from 88.1 million tons to 229.2 million tons. Can you guess the reason for this upward trend? Is it just a result of increased population? Not quite. As the black line indicates, our per capita waste generation has also increased, from 2.7 lbs per person per day to 4.5 lbs per person per day.* A grand total of 246 million tons of trash was created in 2005 alone.

Read more on: http://www.greendivamom.com/2009/01/31/green-fun-household-recycling-putting-household-waste-to-use/