The humble, easily available banana is not as humble when it comes to its contribution to your health. And once you learn how much good it can do to your body, you will be compelled to add it to your daily diet. This god of a fruit protects you from innumerable diseases, keeps your hair, heart and head well as well as fights chronic diseases - and the list has just begun. 

Here are just 15 reasons for you to have a banana every day-

1) This fruit is high in potassium and low in salt, it is your protective shield against blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke.

2) Iron rich banana is extremely good for anemic people.

3) The calcium-rich bananas are excellent for your bones and help in increasing bone density.

4) For people who exercise, bananas are an energy booster and sustain your blood sugar as well as protect against muscle cramps post workouts or leg cramps.

5) Bananas help beat depression due to high levels of tryptophan, which is converted into serotonin: the feel-good brain neurotransmitter.

6) It also enhances your moods and relieves PMS symptoms as well as stress levels in body and mind.

7) Due to high levels of vitamin B-6, bananas produce white blood cells and help in building immunity as well as strengthen nervous systems.

8) Weightloss - If you swap your junk foods with bananas, you might be inching towards losing weight. As an added bonus your energy will be become more steady and consistent.

9) Improve your mood and reduce PMS symptoms by eating a banana, which regulates blood sugar and produces stress-relieving relaxation.

10) Bananas reduce swelling, protect against type II diabetes, aid weight loss, strengthen the nervous system, and help with the production of white blood cells, all due to high levels of vitamin B-6.

11) Extremely caring about your stomach, Banana not only soothes your digestive tract to restore lost electrolytes after diarrhoea, it also helps in relieving constipation due to ts high fibre content.

12) Rich in pectin, bananas aid digestion and gently chelate toxins and heavy metals from the body.

13) Fever too? A banana can bring down your body temperature to cool your temperature off.

14) Bananas make you smarter! It makes you very alert. The high levels of potassium help your memory as well. Think about it before an exam.

15) Smoke? High levels of B-vitamins as well as potassium and magnesium in the fruit, help in speedy recovery from the effects of withdrawal.



15 Reasons Why Banana is Healthier Than Apple

6 Causes of hair loss you didn t know about and how you can combat this problem

In order to have healthy volume of hair on your head, the rate of hair loss and replacement should be in tandem. With age, your hair growth cycle shows signs of slowing down and factors like age, disease, and hormonal changes among others affect the pace at which an individual hair follicle moves through the 3 phases of the hair cycle. A disruption in your hair cycle can give rise to loss of hair that s rapid and unexpected. Hair loss or alopecia can affect both men and women. 
So what can cause your hair to fall at an alarming rate?

The reasons behind hair loss could be many, but here are 6 major ones: 
1. Lack of protein in your diet
When you exclude protein from your diet, your body starts to conserve the protein that it has by altering the growth cycle of your hair. In such cases, your hair enters into the resting stage, resulting in zero hair growth. 
In India, 9 out of 10 people are said to suffer from low amounts of protein in their diet, with 91% vegetarians reporting protein deficiency.

2. Iron deficiency 
Iron plays a very important role in the transportation of oxygen to the different organs of the body. Lack of iron in your diet (which is the principle reason behind anaemia) can give rise to several health problems including hair loss. Your body attempts to direct oxygen to important organs so as to support their functioning. As a result, your scalp witnesses a low supply of oxygen, which causes hair loss. 


3. Vitamin D-3 deficiency
Deficiency of vitamin D-3 gives rise to a type of hair loss called Telogen Effluvium (TE). This is a temporary hair thinning phenomenon that takes place when the all the hair on your scalp enter the resting phase at the same time, subsequently causing you to shed a large amount of hair later on. 

4. Smoking 
Smoking can also affect the health of your hair, especially the rate at which it falls and the number of strands lost in a day. A research carried out by the Harvard School of Public Health has revealed that smoking can cause a rise in a hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT).
An increase in DHT level prevents new hair cells from growing and causes hair follicles to reduce in size with each hair cycle. As a result, the area on your scalp that gets affected by DHT experiences a lack of hair growth.  

5. Use of testosterone supplements in gym
Intake of testosterone in the form of supplements and injections to build muscle mass can trigger hair loss in men. This takes place when the testosterone in these supplements gets changed into DHT, thereby affecting your hair loss rate and amount. 

6. Past illnesses (dengue, TB and typhoid)
Falling of hair can also be brought on by illnesses such as typhoid, TB and dengue as the hair growth cycle comes to a stop. Hormonal or metabolic stress that is experienced during the course of such diseases may cause hairfall. 

What are the treatments available to cure hair loss?

1. Hair transplant
Hair transplant is a minimally invasive surgical technique that transfers hair follicles taken from other parts of your body to the balding area. Known by the name of Follicular Unit Transplantation, this hair loss treatment can help to bring back the natural appearance of a fuller head of hair. Hair follicles are harvested using two procedures- follicular unit extraction and strip harvesting. Procedure can vary from 4-8 hours or more depending on the case. 

2. Platelet- Rich Plasma (PRP)
Platelet- Rich Plasma (PRP) is another treatment alternative that can reverse hair loss. It s a simple non-surgical procedure that lasts about 60-90 minutes. In this form of hair treatment, the patient s own blood cells, more specifically blood platelets are injected into the scalp. Usually 8 sittings are required with each sitting being 2 weeks apart for better results.

3. Low Level Laser (Light) Therapy (LLLT)
This form of hair therapy utilises light energy of a specific wavelength and threshold to stimulate cellular activity, thereby promoting hair growth. Various controlled clinical tests have revealed its effectiveness in encouraging hair growth in both the genders.  




 6 Shocking Causes of Hair Loss + How To Combat this Problem

5 Unexpected Triggers of Hair Fall

Your genes may be the most common triggers of hair fall, but in certain cases hair fall can be triggered by a host of other reasons you wouldn t have thought about. Sometimes these reasons can range from being simple and temporary (lack of essential nutrients in your diet for example) to something more complex and indicative of an underlying health problem. Read on...

1. Brushing wet hair

Detangling wet hair (easy at it may seem) is probably one of the most common triggers of hair fall. Wet hair is extremely delicate, and brushing wet hair causes the strands to break, leading to excessive hair fall. Repeatedly doing so can cause your hair to become thinner over time, which may result in visibly less hair on your scalp.

2. Food poisoning

Food poisoning can cause an abnormality in your blood circulation, which, as a result, can lead your hair to prematurely enter into a shedding phase. The hair loss that takes place due to this reason is known as  diffuse hair loss.  This type of hair loss usually lasts for a period of 3 months, after which, the hair follicles are replaced by new ones. Hair fall caused by food poisoning is only temporary, and is corrected on its own with time.

3. Car crashes or any other traumatic events

When you go through a car crash or any other traumatic incidence for that matter (divorce, death in the family etc), you may experience an extreme form of shock. This can lead to the development of small bald patches on your head, which is known as Telogen Effluvium. Usually, trauma triggers an autoimmune reaction, because of which the white blood cells attack the hair bulb. This causes the hair bulb to enter into the resting phase, which leads to mildly painful hair loss in particular patches. This type of hair fall is reversible.

4. Food allergies

Different foods (such as dairy, wheat, soy etc) can cause allergies in different people. Such an allergic reaction can cause your immune system to react violently, consequently making your immune system send signals throughout your body to ward off attacks. This, in very rare cases, can give rise to the condition of Alopecia Areata, as your immune system detects the growth of your hair as foreign attack and sends off signals to destroy hair follicles. This type of hair fall ceases once you stop consuming food(s) you re allergic to.

5. General Anaesthesia and Surgery

Hair fall triggered by general anaesthesia and a major surgery usually shows up 3 months after the surgery has taken place. The combination of general anaesthesia and a major surgery can put your body under heavy physical stress, which can cause alterations in the life cycles of the hairs on your scalp, consequently leading to excessive hair fall. Hair fall caused by this reason is temporary too, and usually your hair will grow back over time.
Now that you know about the possible triggers of hair fall, you may be in a better position to control your condition and prevent your hair from falling out. 



5 Unexpected Reasons Why You Might Be Losing Your Hair!

Hair health is not isolated from your overall health. If you are not very healthy overall, it will show on your hair as well. However, there are many lifestyle mistakes that also result in the damage of hair. If you are losing hair very fast and don t know why it is happening, watch out for the following mistakes you might be unknowingly doing-

1) Hot Water Shower:  Hot water damages your hair. It strips your scalp of the natural oils and dehydrates your hair, making them brittle. Use mildly warm or regular water for head showers.

2) Combing Wet Hair: Your hair is highly prone to breakage when it is wet. Combing or brushing wet hair weakens the roots and causes hair fall. To maintain healthy texture, it is safe to leave the hair to dry naturally. Also, don't brush your hair harshly.

3) Tight Tie-ups: Tightly fastened hair braids or ponytails cause tension to the roots and follicles. Pulling the hair too tight causes damage and must  be avoided, esp. at night.

4) Heat Treatment: Every time you blow dry your hair or use other heated styling tools, the scalp is subjected to undue heat. Such intense heat weakens the roots instantly. Switch to cool drying or stick to natural drying.

5) Using Styling Products: Hair styling gels and sprays make your hair stiff and sticky. A prolonged use of such products may cause major damage to the hair because the moisture has been drained out and there is friction every time you comb or brush the hair.

6) Not Oiling: Oiling your hair might be very unglamorous to look at but oils of coconut, mustard, olive, amla or sesame deeply nourish the hair follicles. Massaging your scalp with oil twice a week helps improve circulation thus contributing to overall hair health.

7) Bad Eating Habits: Skipping meals or taking improper nutrition has a direct impact on hair health. Healthy hair demand good consumption of proteins and other vitamins. Make salads, fish, lentils, beans, eggs, etc. a part of your daily diet.

Have any further questions on hair loss or hair care? Click on consult privately to ask me.

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Stop Making These 7 Mistakes To Prevent Hair Loss

Applying coriander juice to your scalp helps in boosting your hair growth and also fights hair loss. It is a natural and essential nutrient enabling good hair growth. To make your hair strong and long, apply coriander juice on your scalp and leave it for an hour before washing it off with shampoo. Also, you may also mix other natural substances to this juice to further enhance the benefits of this mixture. Based on your hair density, you must follow this procedure once a week to give that bouncy look to your hair.

Coriander juice for hair growth

Natural Homemade Recipe for reducing Grey Hair

Greying hair can be a concern, especially if it s premature. Causes of grey hair are many however the most common ones are stress, age, heredity, smoking, pollution, not enough hair care, hypothyroidism, albinism and deficiency of vitamin B12. Grey hair can be reduced with home remedies as well. Some of them are:

1. Take pure ghee on your finger tips and massage on your scalp. Do this twice a week.
2. Rubbing the juice of onions is a good way to reduce grey hair. It is also a good way to reduce hair loss.
3. Shikakai is known to be a good herb for our hair. You can soak about four pods of shikakai along with soap nut seeds in a jug of water. Soak overnight and boil in the morning. Strain and store the water in a bottle to be used as a natural shampoo. With this, you can use water in while amla has been boiled, as a conditioner.
4. We know that oiling the scalp is the best way to have healthy hair. Mustard oil is very good for our hair. In about 250 gms of the oil, add 60 grams of henna leaves and boil will the leaves are completely burnt. This infused oil can be applied on hair regularly to reduce grey hair.
5. Bhringraj oil is also good for hair. Bhringraj can be taken orally for the same desired effect.
6. A glass of fresh carrot juice is said to overcome the problem of grey hair.
7. Henna powder, along fenugreek paste, paste of basil leaves, mint juice, coffee and yogurt when mixed into a paste after being soaked overnight and applied on the hair and scalp, is a good way to treat unwanted grey hair.

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'Consult'.

Natural Homemade Recipe for Reducing Grey Hair

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