HOMEOPATHY IN DEPRESSION

Depression affects about 15% of the population at some or the other point in life. Although it is one of the most common ailments, it is also the most ignored, probably due to lack of awareness among us. Most episodes resolve within a few days, but when a depressed / irritable mood or a lack of normal interest or pleasure persists for more than 2 weeks or if such episodes occur too often, it needs treatment.
Usually, one or more of the following symptoms are seen* change in appetite plus change in weight* sleeplessness or excessive sleep* tiredness* feelings of sadness, wothlessness, guilt* inability ot concentrate &/or make decisions* repeated thoughts of death or suicide* vague physical aches, pains or other complainsOn the other hand, some people might show extremely maniac behavior like restlessness, physical overactivity, excessive talkativeness, excessive involvement in risky activities, delusions etc.
Though depression affects a large percentage of the population, the treatment is difficult because the drugs currently available are addictive & habit forming besides having a lot of side- effects. Here homeopathy offers the best solution because the drugs selected are based on a person's individual constitution & hence more accurate. Besides there is no addiction or side-effects. Recently some new homeopathic medicines / remedies made from flowers-the Bach flower remedies are being used to treat depression with better results.

HOMEOPATHIC TREATMENT HAIR FALL

Before we get on to the causes & treatment of hairfall, let us learn a few basic facts about our hair. As most of us know, hair grows from a structure called hair follicle which is situated in the skin of the scalp.So the number of follicles & the health of the follicles determines the health of our hair.Each hair follicle has it's own cycle. From the follicle arises a single strand of hair which grows for about 3-4 years after which it is shed. The follicle then rests for a few months after which a new strand of hair grows from it. We have millions of follicles on our scalp & the number varies from individual to individual which is unalterable with medicines. Also if the follicles have been destroyed, as happens if the hair is vigorously plucked or from vigorous combing no hair will grow from it & no medicine can revive a dead follicle. Medicines only help to prevent fast shedding of the hair or accelerate the growth rate if it is very slow in some people. Hair grows at the rate of about a millimetre each day & the growth is faster in summer & slower in winter. Also, it is normal to lose about 50-100 hair per day & should be no cause of concern.Among the causes of excessive hairfall, we can divide them into medical & non-medical causes.Medical causes could be certain hormonal diseases like thyroid, acute infections like typhoid, after-effects of antibiotic intake, scalp infections like lice, dandruff, ringworm, certain treatments like chemotherapy in patients of cancer etc.Among non-medical reasons, the most important of course is diet. Improper nutrition is the most common cause of hairfall. the present generation practically gorges on fast foods & junk food which do not provide enough nutrition. This is detrimental to the health of the follicles. Other causes are pollution, lack of proper scalp hygiene due to insufficient washing of hair, excessive washing of the hair, blow drying the hair, vigorous combing of the hair, use of harmful chemicals as in hair dyes, certain harmful shampoos, overexposure to the sun, lack of sufficient rest, stress etc.

HOMEOPATHY IN HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE (HYPERTENSION)

A blood pressure above 130/80 in any person needs to be invesigated & if necessary treated. The cause of high blood pressure cannot be traced in 95% of the patients. However in any patient with 3-4 consecutive readings above 130/80 within a span of 2-3 weeks needs to be investigated for the cause of high blood pressure especially if he/she is below 30 years of age. One also needs to know if the patient has been on any medication & whether there has been any significant change in weight in the last few months. Routine tests which must be done include an electrocardiogram(ECG), Chest X-Ray, blood tests for kidney function, diabetes & cholesterol. Then if felt necessary, some tests for some hormonal studies may need to be done though it is not very common. Patients whose reports are all normal & where the lower value of BP is below 100 salt restriction, exercises & weight reduction if necessary is often advised with the aim of avoiding medcation. This if done regularly often avoids the need for medicines. However for higher BP or for patients in whom the above measured fail to reduce the BP, medication is necessary. In patients who are on high doses of BP reducing allopathic medicines or in patients whose lower value is above 120, allopathic medicines may need to be continued with homeopathic medicines for sometime. Later as the BP lowers, the dose of allopathic medicines can be tapered.Commonly used homeopathic medicines / remedies for high blood pressure / hypertension are: Rauwolfia serpentina, Natrum Sulph, Crataegus, Aurum mur, Kalmia, Strophanthus, Cactus grandifolius etc.

HOMEOPATHIC TREATMENT OF ASTHMA

Bronchial Asthma is very simply, a hypersensitivity of the respiratory tract to a number of things.During an asthma attack, the windpipe (known as the bronchus in medical terms) goes into spasms causing it's narrowing & making it difficult to breathe.In a person who is a known asthamtic, an attack of asthma could be triggered off by many things like strong smells, some food items (especially refrigerated &oily food),mental stress, cold/wet weather,some medicines etc. Very often asthma is hereditary & in some females there also occurs something called pregnancy induced asthma, the cause of which is exactly unknown. Allopathic treatment of asthma is directed towards dilatation of the airway using bronchodilators.Besides, steroids are used which are excellent for immediate relief in very severe attacks, but their repeated or prolonged use could be extremely harmful.Homeopathic treatment is directed at first decreasing the frequency & severity of attacks.Then it slowly tries to wean the patient off allopathic drugs & finally aims for a permanent cure. The duration of treatment could be anywhere from 6 months to 2 years & the cure rate is 90-95%.commonly used homeopathic medicines / remedies for bronchial asthma: In case of asthma, individualisation of each patient by taking a detailed case history is necessary for treatment & cure.

What is Cancer?

Body cells die and are regularly replaced. This is a normal healthy process. Each cell contains a 'code' which instructs it how to multiply and when it should die. When something goes wrong with this process, cells can begin to develop abnormally. In the healthy body, the immune system works to identify these abnormal cells and destroy them before they proliferate. However, when abnormal cell growth is not controlled by the immune system, it may spread into surrounding tissue and damage organs, blood vessels, nerves and other body systems.
While research strongly supports a genetic component to cancer, it is also becoming increasingly clear that environmental triggers and circumstances are instrumental in whether or not cancer will develop. In other words, a genetic predisposition to cancer will only be translated into cancer itself if there is exposure to cancer-causing agents (carcinogens) or circumstances which precipitate the cancer. While the exact causes and dynamics of cancer are not yet fully understood, it is well known that exposure to certain toxins like tobacco smoke, industrial chemicals or to radiation and ultraviolet sunlight can play a major role. Risk of cancer may also be linked to certain hormones, stress and even to some well-known and commonly used food additives.

Just as there are many different potential causes of cancer, so are there many different types of cancer - from hormone related cancers like prostate cancer, breast cancer, cancer of the cervix and testicular cancer, to cancers of the blood like leukemia and lymphoma. There is no doubt that cancer is becoming a growing epidemic and has been identified as the second most common cause of death in the UK and USA.

A diagnosis of cancer can be a devastating blow. Even the word strikes fear into many hearts and may be seen as a death sentence. These days, however, this is not necessarily the case. As researchers find out more about how cancer develops and how best to manage it, many patients are being successfully treated and even cured of cancer.
How is cancer usually treated?

The three main options for treating cancer in conventional medicine are surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. The most appropriate treatment or treatment combination will depend on the type of cancer, the location, the stage of the disease and whether it has spread around the body.

Removing the tumor or affected area by surgery can prevent spread of the cancer and is often the option that will be most likely to cure the disease completely. Surgery isn’t always appropriate however, for example, if the cancer has already spread to different parts of the body or for certain types of cancer which are not localized, like leukemia (cancer of the white blood cells).

Radiation therapy may be used alone or after surgery in order to destroy any remaining cancer tissue that was not removed. This treatment is used locally. The radiation is focused on a specific area where it will kill cells which are dividing rapidly - like cancer cells.
Chemotherapy is the third treatment option. This is best suited for cancer that is present in several places in the body or types that aren’t effectively treated by surgery or radiation. Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill rapidly dividing cells (like cancer cells) and this is the reason for the numerous side-effects of this treatment.

While conventional medicine has made many advances made in the treatment of cancer, critics point out that while the treatment is often 'successful', the side effects frequently result in further damage to the system. The mortality rate of cancer patients due to the side effects of treatment as well as hospital acquired infections is seen by many as unacceptably high and there is no doubt that, while it can be successful at times, conventional cancer treatment is also unavoidably harsh and potentially harmful to the system. For this reason, medical research is ongoing in a search for more effective, yet less harmful cancer treatments. The role of traditional herbs, complementary therapies and natural remedies in the treatment and prevention of cancer is also increasingly a topic of research, often with very promising results.