Arthritis is a disease in which the joints in your body swell. Inflammation or swelling can be caused due to body's natural response to injury or disease. It can cause discomfort in the form of pain, stiffness as well as difficulty in movement. Major types of arthritis are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and gout.

Causes of arthritis

Arthritis is generally caused by a combination of factors. It can happen due to genetic factors in case the disease runs in the family. Sometimes it can be caused due to injuries of the past; it can also be a by-product of your lifestyle. Some of the common causes of arthritis are:

1. Genetic makeup in which arthritis can be a hereditary trait
2. Physically taxing work life or injuries caused in an accident
3. Imbalance in the immunity system
4. Infections in the joint.

Risk Factors associated with arthritis

1. Family history - You can be prone to develop arthritis if it runs in the family. It can occur due to its hereditary trait hence making you more vulnerable to the environmental factors which contribute to developing arthritis.

2. Age - The risk of arthritis can increase with age. Types like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and gout are more common in the old age.

3. Gender - Your sex is an important factor as women are more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis while men are prone to suffer from gout.

4. Joint injury - Joint injury caused due to accidents or due to sports activities can trigger arthritis. People with previous joint injuries can develop arthritis in that joint.

5. Obesity - Excess weight can put a lot of pressure on the joints, on the knees and hips in particular. Hence, obese people have more chances of developing arthritis than fitter people.

Causes and Risk Factors Associated with Arthritis

Depression is a clinical, mental and emotional condition that may give rise to feelings of hopelessness and chronic sadness. It slows down the way people process everyday activities and leads the patient to a sense of constant gloom and doom. It is a disabling mental condition as per who and may be caused due to reasons like genetics, changes in the balance of hormones, stress, grief, trauma and prolonged, chronic physical ailments.

Symptoms of depression are:

    Sleep irregularity: It relates to either insomnia or oversleeping that is, either you sleep too much or do not sleep at all. This could be because of work or other stress in your personal or professional life.
    Irritation or unnecessarily getting angry: You start losing your temper easily and that too for silly reasons. You think you are losing control.
    Feeling hopeless and sad: The first signal or symptom is the feeling of hopelessness. In this, case the patient loses the hope in everything. They feel like being trapped in some kind of cage, from which they are not able to come out.
    Lack of interest in anything: Everything seems to be of no use or interest, even your daily work. You don't want to do anything; even the things, which you loved to do like your hobbies and passions, which you no longer find interesting.

Here is a comprehensive list of homeopathic medicines which most doctors are likely to recommend for treating depression:

    Sepia: This medicine is beneficial to women suffering from post-partum depression (sadness or emotional conflict after giving birth) and menopause. Feeling of solitude and hopelessness with no energy to continue with life are some common symptoms that can be reduced with Sepia.
    Arsenicum album: This medicine is prescribed to control the symptoms like diarrhea, gastric problems, indigestion which patients often suffer from as a result of intense anxiety. Patients, appropriate for this medicine tend to be fastidious and restless. It is made of white arsenic and should be taken in prescribed potency because an overdose can cause gastroenteritis.

The above mentioned medicines are just some of the medicines, which should only be taken only after consulting your doctor, as causes and symptoms differ for each person.

Can Sleep Irregularity be a Sign of Depression?

Myths about and treatments for arthritis

Arthritis is a medical condition which causes stiffness and inflammation in the joints. It can be extremely painful and should be cared for on daily basis.
 
However there are many myths surrounding arthritis that need to be busted.

1. Myth: every knee pain is arthritis.
Truth: the condition in which joints pain a lot, it is assumed that every type of knee pain is arthritis and there is only one type of arthritis. From gout to virus caused arthritis, to autoimmune arthritis, there are numerous different types of arthritis.

2. Myth: stop exercising to avoid straining your knee.
Truth: with the joints paining a lot, a lot of patients believe that they cannot exercise any more. The truth is that there are specific low-impact workouts designed for people with arthritis so that staying fit is never a problem.

3. Myth: arthritis makes you immobile.
Truth: arthritis does change your life since it affects your joints. But remember, it doesn't make you a handicap. It is false to believe that nothing can be done about the disease.

4. Myth: diet has no impact on the disease.
Truth: since it is a joints related problem, many people believe that dietary changes are not required if you are suffering from arthritis. It is in fact crucial since those suffering from arthritis are at higher risk of being obese, and in turn getting heart diseases and type2 diabetes.

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Busting The Myths Surrounding Arthritis

Heavy medication is often not required to treat fatigue. Homeopathy is an effective approch to deal with fatigue as it stimulates the body to heal itself. In most cases, simply replenishing phosphate cell salts in the body can have a beneficial effect and give you more energy. These salts help regulate disturbances in the constitution of a person at a cellular level. Phosphorus salts or phosphate compounds can be found in our body fluids, tissues and organs. These salts are essential for energy production, communication between cells and other regulatory responses. It is also vital for healthy bones, teeth and membrane structures. 

Take a look at these five cell salts and how they can revitalize you and help fight fatigue.

Calcarea phosphate: This compound is a building block cell salt. It is essential for the healthy growth of teeth, bones and blood cells. It helps with a number of conditions created by structural stress and helps fight tiredness and restlessness. It is also a beneficial tonic for children exhausted by long periods of mental exertion such as studying. 
Ferrum phosphate: This is an iron compound that is critical to the health of blood cells. By fighting cold, cough and slight fever in the initial phase, it keeps the body healthy and helps build up the immune system. When alternated with calcarea phosphate, the iron in this cell salt is absorbed more easily. Thus Ferrum phosphate can also help regulate the hemoglobin levels in the blood and reduce physical weakness and fatigue. 
Kali phosphate: This potassium and phosphorus compound is considered as a nerve nutrient cell salt. It can be used to treat agitation and depression by calming the nerves. It also fastens the healing of damaged nerve structures. It can also help treat insomnia that follows a day of excitement and physical strain.
Magnesium phosphate: This is an antispasmodic cell salt and is also known as the homeopathic asprin. It is essential for well structured muscles and their connective tissues. Magnesium phosphate helps muscles move smoothly and can be used to treat minor spasms, radiating pains and to relieve pen up tension and cramps. It can also ease painful menstrual cramps.
Natrum phosphate: The body depends on this compound to break down acids and help with the digestive system. Thus this is considered as an acidity cell salt, which also helps with issues like headache, muscle ache, stiffness and fatigue.

Battling Fatigue with Cell Salts

Cure insomnia with natural remedies


Insomnia is the situation where someone is unable to sleep, despite being tired or having had a tough day. It also applies when a person can fall asleep but is unable to stay asleep for long. Sleep apnea, chronic pain, indigestion, stress, medications, hormones, depression, chronic pain and restless leg syndrome are few of the symptoms of insomnia. Insomnia has become quite common and increasing ever so rapidly with our daily stressful lifestyle. There are some simple ways to combat insomnia:

1. Make Sleep a habit : 
There is a general practice to cut the sleep short whenever we go behind the schedule. Be it sitting for an important examination or preparing for a challenging assignment. It is always the sleep whom we sacrifice. This is a very bad practice. We need to remember that adults needs eight to ten hours of sleep for proper mental functioning. So make sleep a habit , try to follow a simple routine. It will help you establishing  regular sleep-wake cycles which will in long run prevent insomnia.

2. Add amino acids to diet: 
Include in your diet, foods that are high in the amino acid called tryptophan because they help calm the nerve. Chicken, tuna and turkey are such types of foods.

3.Drink hot milk: 
It has been an age-old custom to have a glass of warm milk before going to sleep. So, If you are not allergic to dairy products, you can drink a glass of milk before bedtime. It has sedative effect due to presence of tryptophan.

4. Avoid caffeine after noon and Limit alcohol and nicotine intake:
Avoid Coffee, alcohol and food with high fat content and foods which can cause allergies, at least a few hours before your bedtime. Drinking water or coconut water, after drinking alcohol is advisable. This increases the hydration level in the body and helps you sleep. You should also avoid nicotine  which is also a stimulant thus adversely affects normal sleep.

5. Pick magnesium rich foods: 
Foods which are high in magnesium are known to relax our system. Foods like oats, leafy vegetables, sunflower seeds and sesame can be included in your diet for best results against insomnia.

6. Stay away from your phone at bedtime:
It has been postulated that the blue wavelengths produced by your smartphone and other gadgets (and energy-efficient LED light bulbs) significantly suppress the production of melatonin, the hormone that makes you sleepy, according to University of Basel research. So it is better avoiding surfing the phone at bed. You have enough time with it during the whole day. Is not it? Let her sleep too.

7. Practice yoga:
Practice 15 minutes of simple, yoga-like poses (such as neck rolls, shoulder rolls, and arm and back stretches) to help your muscles unwind before hitting the bed. But you should go slowly. “The goal is to loosen your muscles to prepare your body for a good night’s sleep, not increase your heart rate,” 

8. Try aromatherapy:
Studies have shown that aromatherapy aids in sleep. Lavender oil is most commonly used, It's also an inexpensive, nontoxic way to slip into a peaceful slumber. Find a spray with real lavender and spritz it on your pillow before bedtime and it may help you go asleep better.
 
9. Adopt deep breathing exercises:
Practice deep breathing  and relaxation exercises. They are simple and can be performed lying on bed. This will help you let go stress and worries that are troubling you and will therefore calm your nerves.

10. Re-organise your bedroom:
Bedroom should be quiet and dark to have proper sleep. You can use dark window curtains which will cut the lights from outside. You can try using sleep mask. Try not to watch television for at least half an hour before bed. Make your bed comfortable with extra mattress, pillows that are not too soft or too hard. Doing these simple things will make a lot of difference in your sleep habit.
 
 



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Fight insomnia naturally. #SleepWell 

Our bones and joints make us functional on a day to day basis. It is, therefore, imperative that we should take good care of them at all times. There are many conditions that can affect our skeletal system and one of them is, Gout. While the link between the two may not be that obvious, gout happens to be a condition, which is sometimes related to arthritis. Therefore, it is sometimes known by the name 'gouty arthritis'.

While the issue may be severely painful, it does not mean that it cannot be reduced. And of course, when a person has the option and cutting the pain caused by gout drastically, his or her natural response is likely to be 'why not?'

Why Does It Happen?

The main reason for the occurrence of gout is too much uric acid being present in the body. The limbs of the body swell up, especially the extremities and this is known to be very painful. In many cases of gout, the swelling is especially evident in the big toe. Flare ups can last hours on end and may even get longer.

The people who wish to get the gout that is putting him or her through so much pain treated, there are quite a few options at their disposal. There are pain relievers that can be consumed under the advice of a medically qualified professional. While these pain relievers do not treat gout, but can reduces the intensity of the symptoms. Daily doses can be recommended as per the requirement and severity of the situation.

How to Get Rid of Gout?

While some anti-inflammatory drugs may have their effect, but no matter how bad the pain, aspirin is a drug that needs to be avoided. Intake of aspirin can make the problem even worse, which is the last thing a person would want!

The severe problems of gout can be dealt with the chemicals known as corticosteroids. Now, while these can provide some very effective pain relief, using them can be tricky due to certain side effects. One of these side effects is that since these chemicals are injected into the joints, they can significantly weaken them. The other side effect is that they slow the healing process of the wound. Both of these side effects are highly undesirable for any patients. These chemicals are usually prescribed by the doctors after a thorough analysis of patient's condition and history.

A person who drinks alcohol and suffers from severe condition of gout should look to scale back the amount which is consumed by him or her. This is because alcohol increases the amount of uric acid which is present in the blood.

Gout and Its Treatments

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