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Recently I came across some tips on how to make it through
our brutal summers. Most of us have been made aware of these
at one point or another, but things can easily slip our
mind. Some of you who have recently moved to the Valley, may
have not heard these before.
- If you are outside for any length of time, keep
hydrated and wear sunscreen.
- Be careful with cigarettes and open flames - wildfires
can start with just the heat of the sun, we don't need to
contribute to igniting one!
- Be careful when you walk your pet on pavement. The
intense heat can easily and severely burn the pads on
their little paws!
- Park in the shade when possible and/or buy an auto
shade. Temperatures inside of a car in the sun can reach
over 200 degrees! (This also helps prevent items in
the car from melting...)
- NEVER NEVER leave a child or pet inside of a
car!
- Watch children around pools!! This
advice can not be repeated enough, yet every year we hear
about the tragic accidental child drownings.
- Don't be surprised if there is thunder and
lightening... but no rain!! Monsoon Season usually starts
in July and ends sometime late September. Be sure to take
the usual lightening precautions.
Enduring the hot summers is the price we pay for the best
weather of the country during the rest of the year! Keep
this in mind and it may make the summer somewhat more
bearable...
See you soon!!
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Avoid three relaxation roadblocks.
At close to $100 on average, a professional massage
should de-stress, not disappoint you. Next time you have
a rubdown scheduled, prevent potential problems with
this bliss-guaranteed guide...
Mishap:
Always the task juggler, you spend the first 30 minutes
mentally tallying your to do list instead of relaxing.
Make it right:
Start with a mellow mind by arriving
15 minutes early. That way, you can unwind a bit
prior to going into your session, giving your mind and
your body time to begin to relax. This will help
you to respond better to the massage.
Mishap:
The atmosphere is distracting. The music's too
loud, you're chilly, and the skimpy sheet is showing too
much skin.
Make it right:
When you are left alone to disrobe, make sure the sounds
are soothing and the temp is comfy; request any changes
when your therapist returns. If exposing yourself
stresses you out, keep your undies on and concentrate on
your breathing. "Inhaling and exhaling for four
counts each
induces relaxation wherever you are.
Mishap:
You wake up sore the day after your massage.
Make it right:
Next-day pain means the rubdown was too aggressive for
you. A deep-tissue treatment is too vigorous for
most; if you prefer it, stretch after your session is
over. Like yoga, this increases the blood flow to
your muscles, helping prevent discomfort.
As always, drink plenty of water before and after the
session to help your body rid itself of the toxins that
contribute to the muscle soreness.
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Odds are yes.
The skin care market is saturated with products
containing petro-chemicals and other toxins, such as
phthalates and parabens. Studies by US and Swedish
health authorities found phthalates in 80% of the US
cosmetics they studied. Phthalates are so strongly
linked to cancer and reproductive hazards that they are
now banned in Europe. Parabens are even more prevalent
and are suspected to be just as dangerous. According to
the Breast Cancer Fund Organization, there have been at
least 13 studies showing that various types of parabens
(methyl, propyl, butyl, ethyl) disrupt hormone function
by mimicking estrogen when applied to the skin.
One study, reported in the Journal of Applied
Toxicology, is particularly disturbing, finding
completely intact parabens in all of the breast cancer
tumors that were sampled.
These statistics are particularly alarming because
everything we put on our skin is absorbed directly into
our bodies. The skins is our largest organ, and
most people are covering it with chemicals on a daily
basis. It is commonly known that eating natural
foods is imperative to one's health, but most people
have yet to realize the importance of using natural
skincare. In fact, eating something that contains
parabens or other preservatives is actually less harmful
than putting it onto your skin. When you ingest
these chemicals, your body breaks them down during the
digestion process, when they are absorbed through your
skin the enter directly into your bloodstream fully
intact. This makes the fact that intact parabens
are found in breast tumors even more alarming because it
means they entered the body through the skin. Now,
just to be clear, the amount of chemicals contained in
one applications of lotion is not enough to cause
serious harm to one's health, it is the cumulated effect
of exposure to toxins that has researchers worried.
Less serious side effects from chemicals in personal
care products are also a concern. Millions of
people suffer from eczema and psoriasis and these skin
conditions are often caused by or exacerbated by
chemicals. Ironically, most topical treatments for
these contain chemicals, which is part of the reason why
they do not work on many people. Headaches,
fatigue, rashes, breakouts and other allergic reactions
can also be brought on by exposure to toxins.
So how do you protect yourself? You must become a
savvy consumer and start reading ingredient lists.
Unfortunately, seeing the word 'natural' on labels does
not guarantee anything. According to BeautyTruth (beautytruth.net),
an organization that reports on the link between
synthetic chemicals and health, a company can put
'natural' on its product even if it contains less than
1% natural ingredients. A good rule to follow when
reading ingredients is that if you do not recognize the
word, than it is probably not natural. To find
lists of safe products you can go to Breast Cancer
Action's site
ThinkBeforeYouPink.org and click on 'Avoiding
Parabens and Phthlates' or visit the Environmental
Working Group's site at
ewg.org.
Article written by Sabrina Posillico, Founder of
Healing Anthropology skincare.
www.healinganthropology.com
-Published in Holistic Provider Magazine, Summer 2006
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