2009 December
MODALITY MINUTE:
“How frequently should I get massages?”
Here’s an analogy…After cooking a big Italian dinner your stove top is covered with splatters and drippings. You decide to give everything a good cleaning: you soak drip pans, you get out Soft Scrub and a new Scotch Brite scrubby, you shine it all with vinegar and water, and you dry it with a clean kitchen towel. 15 minutes later your hungry teenagers come home, pull out all the leftovers, and fire up the stove. Your stove may not be a grimy as it was before you cleaned it, but chances are, it will need to be cleaned again.
Massage is like that. Depending on what happens to your body between “the cleaning of the stove and the cooking of the leftovers” determines how much you need to come in…and the “neatness of the your teens’ reheating”…well, that matters too!
Everyone is different. And life happens. Massage is a way to unleash day to day traumas from your muscles so that you feel better. Strengthen your health so you can better handle crisis by getting regular massages.
RESEARCH: Cinnamon is Key in Anti-Mold Wrappers
The Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry August 13, 2008, 56 (15), 6364-6369
Researchers harnessed cinnamon’s anti-microbial property developing an anti-mold wrapper. Mold-tainted bread wrapped in wax paper made with 6% cinnamon essential oil experienced 96% less mold growth and prolonged freshness up to 10 days. Another study in International Journal of Food Microbiology found that a few drops of cinnamon essential oils in carrot broth inhibited bacteria growth for 60 days. The researchers called it a viable ‘alternative to traditional food preservatives’.
Cinnamon is also anti-fungal and anti-viral. Use it to disinfect against infectious diseases in airports and hospitals, act as an alternative to the flu vaccine, fight off Candida, and flavor meals.
Cinnamon’s most impressive health benefit is its impact on blood sugar. 1/2 teaspoon a day was shown to significantly reduce blood sugar levels, triglycerides, LDL and total cholesterol levels in people with type 2 diabetes. Another study found that it increased glucose metabolism by about 20 times, significantly improving the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar. Researchers have even found that cinnamon contains a bioactive component with “insulin-like” effects.
A word of caution: cinnamon is a ‘hot’ oil and should never placed directly on the skin.
GENTLE REMINDERS: Super Cinnamon Facts
For those still believing that everything good for you tastes bad and feels painful, whelp, you have found your match! Cinnamon:
-Has anti-inflammatory compounds that may relieve arthritis
-Helps prevent UTIs, tooth decay, and gum disease
-Supports the digestive function
-Relieves congestion
-Relieves pain and stiffness of muscles and joints
-Relieves menstrual discomfort
-Has blood-thinning compounds that stimulate circulation
THE MAILBAG: Lavender Essential Oil Helped
I put some lavender on a hangnail that I should have left alone and didn’t and it worked!!! Doesn’t hurt at all. So now I will have to get more lavender oil. -D. Bracey (Celebration, FL)