(ARA) - Gardening is becoming more popular than ever, thanks to a number of converging circumstances, including the First Lady's planting of a White House organic garden. Because of the sagging economy, people want to save money anywhere they can, and vegetable gardening is a great way to save money on foods that can be costly. Additionally, more and more people want to live a "green" lifestyle, and you can't get more local than picking vegetables right in your back yard. Plus, when you start an organic garden, it's even more environmentally friendly.

When you start on your way to growing healthy garden fruits and vegetables, keep in mind that tending an organic garden has special requirements and poses some different challenges than conventional gardens do. However, the increased popularity of organic gardening has led to some great innovative products that can help you maintain your plot without adding harmful chemicals.

Whether you live within city limits or in a more bucolic setting, it's always fun to see wildlife - just not when they're munching on your zucchini or stealing your strawberries. For most organic gardeners, the goal is to get rid of overly curious garden guests, but without forcing them to ingest poisons or other chemicals that can hurt them.

One of the most trusted ways to keep a strictly organic garden free from unwelcome animal browsers is with the Swedish-developed, garden pest repellent Plantskydd (pronounced "plant-skid" - a Swedish word meaning "plant-protection"). Sweden's reputation as a rigorously green-minded country comes through in these non-toxic repellents, which were the first deer and rabbit repellents to be listed by the USDA-approved Organic Material Review Institute (OMRI), as "suitable for use in the production of food and fiber." Plantskydd's 100 percent organic ingredients make it safe to use around pets and children, but it's also effective in that it won't wash away in the rain, giving your garden longer-lasting protection.

Claude Boisvert, president of Tree World Plant Care Products, Inc., says Plantskydd does double duty as a garden pest repellent and fertilizer. "Because it's a blood meal-derived product, it provides the nutrients necessary for plants to grow strong and produce abundantly, in addition to repelling garden pests like deer and rabbits," Boisvert says. "It's been lauded for its repelling effectiveness by forestry experts, the National Home Gardening Club, as well as soil and water conservation districts throughout the United States."

Other ways to protect your garden include putting netting over the plants that birds, rabbits and other critters favor. Look for netting with small holes that you can spread over strawberry patches, or wire that you can circle around delicate vegetables.

When selecting solutions for feeding or protecting your garden, be sure to do your research and find out the true certification status of products you buy. As the move toward growing one's own organic food becomes mainstream, some repellent manufacturers, who use non-certified ingredients, use terms such as "all natural," or "environment friendly" on package labels in an attempt to associate their products with this "organic" trend. OMRI continues to be a good resource for learning about which products are truly safe and organic.

If you're concerned about your family's health and that of the planet, planting an organic garden is the way to go. You'll not only be able to harvest delicious, nutritive foods right in your backyard, but you'll also be doing your part to foster a healthier environment.

The Top Stress Busters

There are several different types of stress, and learning how to control them can make all the difference. You have physical stress (lack of exercise, illness, sleep habits, etc.), mental stress (how you deal emotionally with life) and chemical stress (nutritional and environmental). Here are a few straightforward ways to help you reduce all three stress factors.

Fed up from the side effects of the drugs, people are now shifting towards alternative therapies for the cure and treatment of common problems. Home remedies are one of the alternative methods that have been proven inexpensive and can be easily made at home without many efforts. Since ages our ancestors were using these home remedies for the treatment of diseases but the latest inventions and discoveries in the field of medicines darkened the benefits of these home made treatments. In the recent times the people have again shifted towards these home remedies.

Home Remedies for Acne, Arthritis, Asthma, Anaemia, Backache, Common Cold, Constipation, Eczema, Hair Loss, High Blood Pressure, Indigestion, Obesity, Sore Throat, Stress

Home remedies for some of the most common diseases and problems are:

Home Remedies for Acne

Application of cucumber leaves or grated pieces of cucumber to the affected areas.

Paste of fenugreek leaves applied overnight on the affected area and washed off next morning is also effective.

Mix one tablespoon of besan flour and one teaspoon of lemon juice till a smooth paste is formed. Apply on neck and face and wash off when it gets dry.

Home Remedies for Acidity

Drink a glass of cold milk to get quick relief from acidity.

Drink a glass of water with a teaspoon of baking soda for immediate relief.

Chewing bubble gum will also provide relief from acidity in few minutes.

Home Remedies for Arthritis

With an empty stomach take 3-4 walnuts (akhrot) or 1 fresh coconut.

Spread warm mustard oil on a madar leaf and apply to the affected area for a few hours .

Drink some radish juice with sugar added to it.

Home Remedies for Asthma

Drink a cup of black coffee, the warmth will break up the flem and the caffeine will help to remove tightness from the chest and throat.

Add 30-40 leaves of tulsi in one liter of water, strain the leaves and drink the water throughout the day.

Home Remedies for Anaemia

Eat 2-3 apples daily without peeling to increase the iron stores in the body.

Intake of beet juice is highly beneficial for the anemic person's.

Home Remedies for Backache

Drink some hot milk or water with powdered sonth, meetha soda, and salt.

Massage the back with turpentine oil.

For temporary and quick relief heat can be applied at the back with hot water bottle.

Home Remedies for Common cold

Drink a cup of water with a few drops of garlic oil and a teaspoonful of onion juice.

Rub the chest and throat with camphor water or oil.

Drink honey and lemon juice in hot water to get relief from sore throat.

Home Remedies for Constipation

Drink a tablespoon of corn syrup in a cup of water.

Drink a glass of prune juice to facilitate bowel movement.

Drinking a cup of coffee will also provide relief from constipation.

Home Remedies for Eczema

Mix one teaspoon of camphor and one teaspoon of sandalwood to form a paste and apply on the affected e areas.

Drinking Aloe Vera juice will help cleanse the system.

Home Remedies for Hair loss

Wash hair with peppermint or spearmint tea to prevent hair loss and to promote hair growth .

Wash hair with white vinegar periodically to prevent falling of hair.

Home Remedies for High blood pressure

Mix half onion juice and half honey. Take 2 tablespoons once a day for 1-2 weeks. 

Eat two cloves of garlic every early morning.

Eat one Papaya on an empty stomach daily for a month.

Home Remedies for High blood cholesterol

Drinking onion juice daily for a week will lower the blood cholesterol.

Eat a few garlic cloves every day to reduce blood cholesterol.

Home Remedies for Indigestion

Drink aloe vera juice, papaya juice, or chamomile, comfrey, red raspberry, or peppermint tea.

Drinking a glass of water with a tablespoon of baking soda will provide immediate relief.

Home Remedies for Obesity

Eat 10 fresh curry leaves in the early morning for three or four months.

Drink a cup of water with 3 teaspoons limejuice, one-fourth teaspoon powdered black pepper, and a teaspoon of honey every day for three months.

Eat freshly sliced tomatoes with onion and lemon juice.

Drink lemon juice with honey and warm water every morning.

Home Remedies for Sore throat

Gargle every hour with vinegar water or salt water.

Drink hot milk with honey at bedtime for immediate relief from sore throat.

A teaspoon of honey will provide relief from sore throat.

Home Remedies for Stress

Chewing 12 tulsi leaves twice a day, morning and evening is the highly beneficial treatment of stress.

Various seeds such as alfalfa, sunflower and pumpkin are highly beneficial in the treatment of stress.

The use of these home remedies is highly effective and causes no side effects on one's physical body.



About the Author:Know more about Simple Home Remedies, Home Remedy. Also read informative  Health Discussion Forum to discuss your health problems, share your own experience and get the most relevent Health Care knowledge here.

Dr John Anne
http://www.ayurvediccure.com

It's important for every dog owner to recognize dog health problems and symptoms as your furry pal relies on you to be his or her "first responder" when they have a problem.  You can tell when they aren't feeling all that well but do you really know what to do?  Listed below are the symptoms for some common dog health problems ranging from the everyday to the very serious.

Dog Diarrhea

The symptoms of this condition are pretty obvious.  Your canine buddy is probably going to express some pain when defecating because that strain is just magnifying the pain in his stomach.  The stool will be runny and may be an abnormal color.  The odor will be more intense.

Diarrhea in dogs is quite common thanks to a dog's complete lack of discrimination in what he eats.  If it smells okay and doesn't hurt his mouth then it is potential food.  As a result they eat stuff that makes them sick.

Symptoms Of Lyme Disease In Dogs

Lyme disease is a bacterium known as Borrelia which is transmitted to your dog through a tick bite.  Unfortunately, there are no symptoms until weeks after the infection and when they do show they are often mistaken for other ailments.

The most common symptom is one that appears to be arthritis.  Joints and lymph glands can become swollen making it very painful for the dog to walk or even get comfortable laying down.  Your pal will become listless, may refuse to eat because the effort hurts too much, and may revert to using the inside of the house as his bathroom rather than going outside.

The giveaway that this is Lyme's and not arthritis is that the affected limbs will change.  When arthritis develops it doesn't move around.  With Lyme's disease one side of your dog can be affected one week and then suddenly it heals and the other side is affected.

Symptoms of Distemper

Distemper is an airborne virus that is highly contagious and affects the dog's respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous systems.  Distemper will first show itself with cold like symptoms with watery eyes, runny nose, a cough and sometimes diarrhea.  Later in the development of the disease the dog will suffer from disorientation, twitching and even convulsions.  Unfortunately there is no effective treatment for this disease.

Symptoms of Ear Infections

These infections are fairly common particularly with dogs that have heavy earflap like Bassets and Dachshunds.  The infection is caused by bacteria or yeast that appear when there is a change in the dog's ear like an infestation of ticks or mites.  Symptoms of an ear infection include the shaking of the head, a pawing of the ears, pain and a foul odor coming from the ears.

Of course there are many more ailments that can affect your canine friend but the thing to remember is prevention.  It's really not so different from taking care of a kid.  Keep their shots up to date, keep them well fed and clean and provide clean bedding.  Parasites cause most of the problems and if you can limit your dog's exposure to strange dogs you are limiting the possibility of exposure to disease.  If you notice dog health problems that do not go away after a few days, take your pal to the vet.



About the Author: So now you know the symptoms of these dog health problems. Would you like to learn the treatment? You can find those and a ton more home remedies for common ailments like itchy skin, fleas, dog vomiting and other everyday dog health problems by visiting http://homeremediesfordogs.org right now

Over the years I've discovered that most things in life can be improved with a good spring cleaning. Your business is no different. After all, you choose to do a spring cleaning because stuff accumulates. Whether it's dust or dirt or junk mail or clutter or just "stuff" in general, it's good to take some time and get rid of it all. Then you can start fresh and clean.

Your business is the same way. Whether it's piles of old files that need to be thrown out or relationships that are no longer serving you, sometimes it's good to take stock on what's working and not working in your business, clean out what's not working so you can open up the space to more of what you DO want. And yes, this sounds sort of woo-woo, but it actually does work.So ready to get that "spring clean feeling" in your biz? Here are a few places to get started:

Environment --

1. Get rid of your stacks. File them, toss them, delegate them. Do something with them, but just get rid of them.

2. Clean out old client files. This works like a charm. The moment you clean out old client files, whether that means filing them into long-term storage or tossing them, you'll discover new clients starting to contact you. I first discovered this when I was a freelancer -- every time I wanted new clients one of the things I did (along with marketing and picking up the phone) was clean out my old client files. And it worked!

3. Get rid of the clutter in your office. Are there things that need to be mailed (for instance, books you borrowed from people and need to be returned)? Or do you have things you really need to donate? Box them up and ship them out!

Relationships --

1. Are you in relationships that are no longer serving you? Maybe you're in different places or one of you has changed and it's no longer a good fit. Be honest here. And be thorough. Look at your friends, associates, biz partners, JV or affiliate relationships, clients (yes even clients) and team members. If something isn't working (and yes, you know it's not working, your gut has probably already zeroed in the relationships you need to take a closer look at) then you probably need to move on. (Or at the very least, change the relationship.)

2. Difficult conversations. Are there some difficult conversations you've been putting off? Maybe someone owes you money or didn't live up to some other promise? Maybe they did something you don't agree with? Whatever it is, spring cleaning is a great time to get that cleaned up so you can move forward.

Habits --

1. Are there things you're either doing or not doing that you know would move you forward? Maybe you want to start exercising regularly, meditating, journaling, or just getting your ezine out each week? Or maybe you're wasting a lot of time on things that aren't serving you or moving you forward in your business? Take a look at what you're doing on a daily basis to see if that's helping you or hindering you.

None of these tasks are necessarily things you're going to enjoy, but once you do them, you'll be amazed at how good you'll feel (and how much energy it frees up for you). And don't be surprised if you start seeing a flood of things you want come pouring into your business.


About the Author: Michele PW (Michele Pariza Wacek) is your Ka-Ching! marketing strategist and owns Creative Concepts and Copywriting LLC, a copywriting and marketing agency. She helps entrepreneurs become more successful at attracting more clients, selling more products and services and boosting their business. To find out how she can help you take your business to the next level, visit her site at http://www.MichelePW.com. Copyright 2008 Michele Pariza Wacek.

E.F.F.s( Emily’s Fitness Freaks) Weekly Newsletter

Monday, May 3, 2010

Quote:

“You can have big plans, but it’s the small choices that have the greatest power!”

Word:

bleachorexia: a compulsion for ever-pearlier whites, which has led Americans to spend $343 million a year on at-home-teeth-whitening kits

Did you know?

What you eat can raise—or lower—your skin cancer risk. Research shows that adults whose diets were rich in red meat, processed foods, full-fat dairy products and sweet drinks had an 83% greater risk of squamous cell carcinoma, while those who ate more fruits, veggies, whole grains, fish and low-fat dairy cut their risk by 54%.

Food for Thought:

TOP 3 FOOD GROUPS for a FLAT BELLY:

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THIS WEEK AT GOLD’s GYM:

Special THANKS to all who participated in the Spin-a-thon this weekend and helped raise money for the ADA!!!  Way to go indoor cyclists!!!

NEW BODY JAM class: Starting this Saturday, the 8:10 Body Attack class will be changed to Body Jam!!!! No worry Body Attackers, Andrea would love to pick this class back up post-baby J But for now, we’ll be dancing!!!!! Come give it a try!! It’s so much fun and a great workout too!! Not coordinated???? Even MORE of a reason to come….improve your coordination, train your brain, tighten your waist, burn calories…step out of the box and into the cardio crazy dance world!! No experience needed…we breakdown the moves and call the patterns as we go…  Don’t like the music/ dance style??? No worries…we change styles, moves, and music every 3 months and keep mixing it up. See you on Saturday mornings!!!! (yep, still keeping the Body Step at 9:20 too)

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Keep up the GREAT work!  See you at the gym!!  Please let me know how I can help you reach your fitness goals!!! Blessings….. Emily J

Slow Food is…

: an international social movement that began with an awareness of few and has cultivated in the conscience of many.  An awareness of the importance of localization and the threat  globalization has on our environment and our selves.

:filled with members and volunteers, organizations and campaigns within a public sphere where individuals fight against mass production, mass consumption, fast food and fast life

:focuses on obesity at its root: children, the quality of cultural life including access to, and appreciation of, food and wine

:and asks us as individuals to slow down and think about not only what you’re eating, but what’s in it and where it comes from.

Our food choices affect the rest of the world, realize it.

This video was tied into my final Slow Food project for Rhetoric of Social Movements at the College of Charleston. Guerrilla Cuisine is a phenomenal underground culinary program here in Charleston that supports local farmers, chefs, musicians, artists, venues, and consumers– Carlo Petrini (founder of Slow Food) would eat it up… literally

If you would like to learn more about Slow Food and Slow Food Charleston, feel free to contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it