Acne free skin through Ayurveda

Acne is a very common skin problem which affects young people at their puberty and few adults till they reach 45. Acne are referred as Youvana pitikas (which means the eruptions of youth) in ayurveda. This shows the prevalence of acne from ages. Ayurveda has described the causes of acne and recommends the best natural herbal acne remedies too.

What causes acne?

A large number of oil producing glands called “sebaceous glands” are present under the skin on face, back, chest and shoulders. During puberty or menopause due to the influence of the sex hormones, which are produced in male and female, these glands become more active and produce an oily secretion called “sebum”. The sebum makes the skin more oily .The excessive sebum clogs the skin pore or the pit of the hair follicle forming acne.

The blocked pore or acne acts as an excellent habitat for bacteria. The bacterial infection causes inflammation (red, painful swelling of the infected area) of the clogged pore or hair follicle leading to eruption of pimples.
Vata and Kapha are two main doshas, which are involved in eruption of acne and pimples. Rakta dhatu or blood also plays an important role in formation of acne.

Vata when gets vitiated due to unhealthy diet and lifestyles affects other two doshas (kapha and pitta) to aggravate them. Aggravated pitta affects rakta dhatu or blood. The vitiated blood affects the skin and causes excess secretion of oil from sebaceous glands. Kapha has sticky property. The aggravated kapha imparts the stickiness to the oil produced by sebaceous glands of skin. Thus the thick sebaceous plugs are formed in skin pores and hair follicles leading to eruption of acne.

Acne worsens when

1. grease, dirt or other harsh chemicals accumulate on skin.

2. you have Increased stress levels.

3. you indulge in Squeezing or pinching of acne.

4. when there are hormonal imbalances during menstrual cycle, menopause and puberty.

5. you are under medications like steroids or hormonal therapy.

Precautions to be taken to avoid exaggeration of acne eruptions:

• Avoid foods which are spicy, dry and oily. These may cause indigestion and lead to vitiation of vata.

• Keep a habit of emptying bowels regularly this always normalizes vata.

• Avoid fast foods and soft drinks.

• Wash your face twice daily with mild cleanser.

• Put a hair band to avoid falling of hair on face. The sweat and dirt accumulated on hair may fall on facial skin through hair strands

• Avoid application of scrubs.

• Wash your hair regularly with mild shampoo to keep it clean and avoid dandruff.

• Squeezing and pricking of pimples cause scaring. Hence avoid this

• Avoid exposure of skin to severe climatic conditions.

• Avoid oil based moisturizers. Water based moisturizers are always beneficial.

• Drink plenty of water.

• Practice a regular exercise regimen

Natural Herbal acne Home remedies :

• Wash your face with lukewarm water and mild soap twice a day.

• Wash fresh methi leaves (fenu greek leaves) and grind it to make a paste. Apply it on face and wash it off with lukewarm water after 10 minutes.

• Grind juicy tender neem leaves with turmeric to a consistency of paste. Apply this paste on acne and pimples. Wash this off after it dries.

• Apply a face pack of ripe tomato pulp and wash it off as soon as it dries naturally (preferably after 45 minutes) .

• Do not keep the make up while sleeping. Cleanse it with a mild herbal cleanser.

• Mix besan flour (gram flour) with rose water and apply a face pack.

• Consuming fresh vegetable salads and fresh fruits keeps the skin healthy and resistant to blemishes.

• Drink plenty of water (15 glasses a day)

This article is copy righted. The author Dr.SavithaSuri is an Ayurvedic Physician and web master of Ayurveda help through ayurveda consultations and remedy for diseases Read more about acne remedy on Acne pimple natural remedy  

Kids and TV

It is vital that your child gets leisure time every day. Just relaxing, reading or even TV can be a good break, provided, it is controlled. Psychologists suggest, not more that one and half hours of TV viewing is good for kids. Today TV, the idiot box, as it is called, has encroached the children's world. More number of TV channels are unfriendly for them. Children watch TV for more than fours a day. It retards the mental development of minors, say psychologists. Satellite channels have made children prisoners in their homes. They start viewing TV in the evening after coming form school hours and continue till late night. They do not play games outside. They play video games sitting in one place. An average minor in India spends more than 25hours a week watching TV. They do not stick to better ways of using their eyes. They do not blink often. Ultimately they face problems with their eyesight. TV crazy children have poor memory as compared to those who watch TV for a short period of time. Because of TV watching for long hours, children do not concentrate on their studies. They lose interest in out door activities. The child grows unimaginative and dull. Also TV watching weakens a child's ability to concentrate. They get tired. Their minds do not work efficiently. Violence is so much in our movies, They try to imitate the thing they watch on TV. 

TV programs are for entertainment. Parents should see that they do not take them for real. Sometimes children try imitating mannerisms of screen personalities. They sing movie songs instead of poems from the books. All these snub their activities of physical and mental development.

Parents should control the children. They should tell the children how TV viewing affects their studies and also harmful to eyes. An all round balanced development of children's personality is essential. Let your children read books. Books are far more superior to TV. Especially fantasy stories are pictured lucidly in the child's mind. Fairy tales run into child's imagination. The child gets a fair degree of cerebral exercise. The children become creative minded. Apart from reading books, games are equally vital for children.

Playgrounds are like laboratories that enable children to relate themselves to the outside world. At times, while they play, children quarrel. But again they become friends. They understand each other.

Tips to the parents:
1. Reduce the TV viewing hours.
2. Put off the TV while children are studying their school subjects
3. Lock the channels that you don't want your children to watch.

What parents don't realize is that TV plays a big role in a child's life, too much negativity and violence on TV has the most daunting effects on them. The advertisements shown on TV tempts them. According to a study children who watch violent TV shows run the risk of learning to behave violently. The TV can be a way of showing children new things but only to certain extent. It is unfortunate that parents spend more time with their children watching TV.

This article is copy righted. The author Mrs.Deepa Manoj is web master of Kids world-for kids and teens. Read complete article at Kids and TV

Answer Kids questions

Curiosity is the human instinct. It is same with children as with the elderls. Usually children ask parents innumerable questions. Parents have to answer them patiently. Curiosities of children must be attended to on priority. They ask one or the other question.
Daddy why do you go to office?
Why sun shines in the morning only. Why not in the night?
why there is a big house (mosque, temple, etc.) just for only one God?

The questions are not like text book questions. They may be anything. Today's children are faster and wiser than ever before. They desire learning. If parents or guardians do not answer their questions properly, in desperation they may go to the extent of becoming their own guardians. They too have brains. If we do not satisfy them, they will be brought up with false notions and thereby their inherent talents cannot be improved. Today's children are more practical than us. We, the elders are always busy with our work schedules and we do not play with our children. Especially when both father and mother are employed, this sets for miseries. Many parents ignore questions put by their kids. They treat them as innocent questions. Even parents ask their children when they put up questions: don't you have any other work to do? Actually, many parents are not capable of answering questions. Hypocrisy mars child - parents relationship.

Parents should be diligent while answering questions. Half baked answers serve no good. Later, when the child discovers the truth behind them, he thinks poor of his parents. Sometimes, parents may not know the answer. In such a case they feel embarrassed in admitting ignorance. Do not pretend that you know all. Better, tell them that you do not know the answer or it is made known. Admit your ignorance.  There are parents who just say- "my child, grow up a little. Then you will come to know all these. Why do you hurry to know each and everything?" Try to find out the answer and satisfy the child. Never ask them to stop asking questions. Now a days we have good medium of communication like, mobile, internet, etc. You may contact the person who knows the answer and tell your child. Take some time, nothing wrong in it. But do not curb the curiosity of the child.

If we parents do not make our children to know things better, they may remain children even when they grow up. We may see the lack of maturity. Such children remain shy, do not mingle with others properly. They may even stammer in speech. All these certainly impedes unfolding of child's personality. There will be no exposure. As parents, find some time to sit with the children. Play with them, listen to them carefully. If you are very busy, at least tell them that you would be available after sometime and attend to him. Just beating or teasing won't help. In fact, it irritates the child. The child becomes averse. Working couple should invariably spend their entire holiday with children. They have to take them to a park or an exhibition, or a picnic spot. This keeps the children in peace and happiness.

This article is copy righted. The author Mrs.Deepa Manoj is web master of Kids world-for kids and teens. Read complete article at Answer Kids questions

Leadership Skills

Many kids show good leadership traits from an early age. Its the parents duty to develop these traits into proper directions and help the kids turn into better leaders of tomorrow The term leadership skills refers to a series of skills that allow a person to succeed in the top positions of a career. When it comes to learning leadership skills, kids are in a winning position, as they can be taught without pressure and guided through the process at their own pace. To make sure our kids develop the right kind of leadership skills, please go through the below tips.

Developing communication skills: Developing good communication skill is the most important factor in the making of a good leader, and this can be encouraged from an early age by working on reading and speaking. You can read aloud for the kids who still cant read themselves. Keep on conversing with the kids, by asking them questions, and making them answer those questions, as this means that they are listening and learning to interact.

Encourage independence: Try to make the child independent to some extent. When the child wants to something on his or her own, don't stop. If your children say that they can do something for themselves, let them do it. The attempt is more important than the result. This goes for almost anything, from setting up the table to cleaning up the bedroom. Even if the results are less than satisfying, praise your children and resist the urge to fix things yourself.

Problem Solving Skills:
Developing good problem solving skills is one of the important aspect for our potential leaders. One easy way to do it is to role-play with the child. In this role-play, present the child with a difficult situation he might encounter when playing with another child or sibling. Challenge the child to come up with solutions that will resolve the conflict. Encourage and help him come up with as many solutions as possible. Then, discuss the pros and cons of each solution. This will help structure how a child thinks about solving problems he encounters.

Encourage organization: Leaders need to know how to manage their time and guide others towards a common goal. You can encourage this by giving your children the power to make decisions. For example, older kids can take part in the planning and organization of a trip, deciding how to change or decorate a room or choosing their own after-school activities. You can also use these opportunities to help yours kid develop problem-solving skills, as they may have to make choices to meet budget, time or environmental constraints.


Instill confidence in your kids: When something new is accomplished, praise it, whether it is a new development at school, learning how to tie their own shoes or reading faster or with less mistakes. Small steps mean a lot at that age and kids will revel in accomplishments that may not seem all that important to you. Developing self-esteem is essential to achieving leadership skills.