Origins of ObesityWritten by Bette L. Hall CMA, NHC
Obesity is a leading health problem in America. At least one third of American adults are obese. Obesity is defined as anyone whose body fat is above 25%. A sedentary lifestyle and modern conveniences are culprits that leads to obesity. Id days of old, men and women both worked land. Think about it - they churned butter, milked cows, chopped wood, bailed hay, dug wells, built their own homes, washed clothes on a scrub board, pumped water, and much more. In other words, people of our American society were physically active. Today, everything is instant and convenient. We have couch potatoes and couch tomatoes with their remote controls and sweet and salty snacks. At end of great depression of 1930's, many modern conveniences were introduced into our society to make our life easier. All for what? I'll tell you, it's so we don't have to work so hard. All so we can take it easy. All so we can sit down and do nothing. We think all labor saving devices are saving us time and effort. In reality, they are making us lazy. In our laziness, our bodies are deteriorating, our muscles are diminishing, our bowels don't function properly, we don't think clearly, and we are more nervous than ever.
| | Stress-Relieving Holistic Blends for DogsWritten by Francoise Rapp
Happiness, sadness, anger, fear, love -- emotions play a pivotal role in our lives. But are these types of feelings an integral part of an animal's world as well?In past, scientists questioned whether emotions affected lives of animals. These days, however, emotional and spiritual health-consciousness has moved from being exclusively for humans and has advanced into animal world. Now more than ever, veterinarians realize that aromatherapy offers more than just fragrance and provides immediate, profound and long-lasting results that may positively affect an animal's overall health and emotional well-being. Today, veterinarians are turning to osteopathy, homeopathy, acupuncture, flower essences and most recently aromatherapy, as holistic solutions to common ailments in animals. Stress is one of most common causes of physical illness in animals. While animals are sensitive to their physical and emotional environment, their reactions manifest in ways that must be interpreted correctly by humans in order to be properly diagnosed. For instance, leaving an animal alone for a long period of time, lack of sufficient affection, unhealthy food, an insufficient amount of exercise, stress of owners, and abandonment are most common causes of stress in animals and may lead to particular health problems such as fatigue, excessive itching or shedding, panting and even aggression. Dogs specifically are a bit more emotionally dependent on their owners and require more attention than do cats or other animals. They are in tune with our moods, and seem to show more difficulty in coping with emotional stress and loneliness. Hyperactivity, fatigue and other physical ailments can be interpreted as stress-related symptoms in dogs. The following recipes are easy stress-reducing aromalchemy blends for dogs. As faithful friends, dogs bring affection, pure joy and loyalty into our lives. Most breeds thrive in outdoors, running and playing in freedom of nature. Historically, dogs have been able naturally purge their system of illness in wilderness, by carefully choosing specific plants their systems need, such as blackberries, raw carrots, etc. Now a domestic animal, most dogs have lost this natural instinct, and are becoming less resistant to illness, yet still face daily causes of stress. **We do hope that these recipes help alleviate some of common stress-related symptoms your loving pet may be experiencing. Beyond these aromatherapy blends, flower essences have been found to be helpful holistic remedies for animals as well. Be sure to consult your veterinarian if stress-related symptoms persist in your pet.
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