Coconut Oil For Beautiful Skin and Hair

Coconut oil is a natural and highly beneficial oil for healthy, youthful, disease-free skin and hair. When coconut oil is applied topically or taken internally, it helps to keep the skin soft and smooth and gives hair a beautiful shine, whilst at the same time reducing the effects of aging and preventing infections from entering the skin. Unlike conventional lotions and body care products, coconut oil is a natural product and is therefore free from harsh, potentially toxic chemicals and other additives. Protects the Skin
The chemical structure of coconut oil consists of medium-chain fatty acids, which are small molecules, making it easily absorbed into the skin and hair.
The skin consists of an outer protective layer that acts as a barrier, stopping harmful organisms from penetrating the skin. This is an oil called sebum, and is very important to skin health. Like coconut oil, it contains medium-chain fatty acids, and helps to lubricate the skin and hair, and prevent fungal and bacterial infections from entering the body.
This protective layer can be washed away by bathing or through broken skin. Applying coconut oil to the skin quickly re-establishes this natural chemical barrier, by increasing the number of antimicrobial fatty acids on the skin and therefore protecting it from infection.


anti-aging
Oils have a visible effect on all tissues of the body, especially connective tissues. These tissues are found in the skin, muscles, bones, nerves and internal organs, and support the framework for all body tissues, holding everything together. These give skin strength and elasticity. As the skin ages however, these tissues are attacked by free radicals, which cause it to sag and wrinkle.
The only way to fight this free radical damage is with antioxidants, therefore it is essential to have plenty of antioxidants in our cells and tissues to protect them. The number of antioxidants in our tissues is largely determined by the nutrients in our diet. However, coconut oil has also been found to be the ideal lotion for protecting it against damage, promoting healing and giving it a healthy, soft, youthful appearance.


Moisturizing
Pure coconut oil is an excellent natural skin moisturizer. It prevents free radical formation and the damage it causes. It helps prevent the skin from developing blemishes causes by aging and other factors. It is absorbed into the skin and keeps connective tissue strong and supple so that skin doesn't age prematurely.
This wonderful oil also makes an ideal ointment for the relief of dry, rough and flaky skin. It helps to remove the layer of dead skin cells on the outer surface of the skin, leaving it smoother, evenly textured and moisturized.

Healing and Repair
Coconut oil has been found to help stimulate healing and repair. Some of its reported health benefits for skin include helping with:

• Inflammatory conditions like psoriasis
• Acne
• Fungal infections like athlete's foot
• Sunburn
• Healing cuts, bruises and sprains, and reducing scarring
• Insect bites

How to Use coconut Oil
To use coconut oil on the skin, massage in a small amount and reapply it often. The oil is quickly absorbed into the skin and doesn't leave a greasy film like commercial lotions and oils do. Coconut oil will gradually soften the skin with regular use, removing dead layers, and encourage the growth of new, healthier tissue.
For severely dried or cracked skin, apply a liberal amount of coconut oil to the affected area, wrap it loosely in plastic or a towel, and leave it on overnight or at least a few hours. Repeat this process until the condition improves.
Coconut oil can be used on the entire body. Massage it into the skin for best results. It can also be used on the face to improve complexion and smooth out any blemishes.


Hair Care
Coconut oil makes a great hair conditioner. It gives hair a healthy shine, is great for the scalp and helps to control dandruff. It helps to reestablish a healthy skin environment by replacing natural oils that may have been washed away.
Studies have shown that using coconut oil on the hair can help prevent combing damage and improve its overall health and appearance. One study, in particular, found that compared to sunflower and mineral oils, coconut oil was the only one that reduced protein loss for both undamaged and damaged hair when used both pre-wash and post-wash. The authors explained this difference was due to the composition of the oils. coconut oil, being rich in medium-chain triglycerides is able to penetrate inside the hair shaft, protecting it from protein loss as well as giving it body. The other two oils have a different composition and therefore have no positive impact on protein loss. Only coconut oil can protect the hair and prevent hair damage, so it is clearly the best oil to use for hair.
To use, massage warm coconut oil into the hair, leave in on overnight, and wash it out in the morning. For a more intensive treatment, soak the hair thoroughly in the oil for an hour or two, before washing.


Types of coconut Oil
There are two types of coconut oil: processed and virgin. The difference between the oils depends on the amount of processing the oil undergoes and the type of coconut used. Processed oil is made from dried coconuts and has usually undergone extensive processing such as refining, bleaching and deodorizing, and is the type typically used in foods and cosmetics.
"Virgin" signifies an oil that has undergone less refining with lower temperatures and without chemicals. It is also made from fresh coconuts, and retains its naturally occurring phytochemicals (plant chemicals). Virgin coconut oil usually has a mild coconut flavor and aroma compared to more refined oils, which have less taste, smell and are colorless.
Regardless of the method of processing, however, both oils contain essentially the same amount of health-promoting medium-chain fatty acids. These fatty acids are very resistant to heat and are not harmed by processing, even at high temperatures. Therefore, all types of coconut oils are considered healthy oils.
Pure coconut oil should be a crystal clear liquid in warm conditions, and becomes a hard, white solid in cooler climates. This process does not affect the quality of the oil, and solidified coconut oil quickly becomes liquid when the container is immersed in hot water or warmed in the hands.

Source: www.healthymuslim.com

Mother's Diet Affects Newborn Allergy Risk

Eating lots of vegetables and fruits during pregnancy is associated with lowering the chance of having a baby with certain allergies, study findings from Japan suggest. The study found that babies born to women who ate high amounts of green and yellow fruits and vegetables, and those rich in beta carotene, had a reduced risk of being born with eczema, a condition that cause the skin to become itchy, dry, reddened and cracked.

Furthermore, foods high in Vitamin E, found in some green vegetables, were similarly found to lessen the risk of having a wheezy infant.

Study Details

Researchers evaluated vegetable and fruit intake during pregnancy of 763 women and their offspring's early-age eczema or allergic wheeze.

The women were 30 years old on average and about 17 weeks pregnant when they reported personal and medical history. When their babies were between 16 and 24 months old, the women provided birth and breastfeeding history, number of older siblings, and exposure to smoke.

The team found that 21 percent of the youngsters wheezed or had a "whistling in the chest in the last 12 months," and fewer than 19 percent had eczema.

According to the investigators, moms who ate greater amounts of green and yellow vegetables, citrus fruits, or beta carotene while pregnant were less likely to have an infant with eczema.

For example, after allowing for other eczema risk factors, eczema was more common among infants of moms who ate the least versus the most green and yellow vegetables - 54 and 32 infants, respectively.

Likewise, higher intake of Vitamin E during pregnancy was associated a reduced likelihood of having a wheezy infant.

The researchers said that increasing intake of green and yellow vegetables, citrus fruits, and antioxidants such as Beta-carotene and Vitamin E among pregnant women "deserves further investigation as measures that would possibly be effective in the prevention of allergic disorders in the offspring."

This study supports previous and on-going research that eating foods rich in vitamin and minerals, like those found in fruits and vegetables, during pregnancy can go a long way in preventing children from developing allergies.

Breastfeeding is another way to ensure your baby receives the most wholesome nutrition possible. Breast-fed babies are typically born with fewer or no allergies when compared to their formula-fed counterparts. Breast milk contains all the required nutrients crucial for healthy growth and offers protection against infections and diseases, which bottle-feeding does not provide.

Research Paper Details:

Miyake Y, Sasaki S, Tanaka K, Hirota Y. Consumption of vegetables, fruit, and antioxidants during pregnancy and wheeze and eczema in infants. Allergy 2010. 

Source: www.healthymuslim.com 

Vitamin D Protects the Health of Mother and Baby During Pregnancy

Maintaining optimal vitamin D levels is one of the most important strategies pregnant women should implement to keep both themselves and their new babies healthy.
Researchers in Britain have concluded pregnant women should be advised to take vitamin D, saying that there is a "strong case" to support the vitamin's benefits.
The paper says there is growing evidence linking vitamin D deficiency to health problems for pregnant women and newborn babies, and it will reduce the risk of diseases such as infantile hypocalcaemia and rickets.
An author of the study, said: "The incidence of vitamin D deficiency in pregnant women in Britain is unacceptably high, especially during winter and spring. "This is compounded by a lack of exposure to sunlight and the limitations of an average diet to meet the optimal need.
"In the most severe cases, maternal vitamin D deficiency can be life threatening to a newborn. We believe that the routine provision of a daily supplement throughout pregnancy would significantly decrease the number of mothers who are clearly vitamin D deficient, reducing related serious risks to their babies."
The study found that:

• Mothers who took 4,000 IU's (ten times the RDA of 400 IU) of vitamin D during pregnancy had their risk of premature birth reduced by half;
• Premature babies born to women taking high doses of vitamin D were reduced by half at both 32 and 37 weeks;
• There were also fewer babies who were born "small for dates";
• Women taking high doses of vitamin D had a 25 percent reduction in infections, particularly respiratory infections such as colds and flu;
• The "core morbidities of pregnancy" were reduced by 30 percent in the women who took the high-dose vitamin D (including diabetes, high blood pressure, and pre-eclampsia - a potentially deadly increase in blood pressure and fluid);
• Babies getting the highest amounts of vitamin D after birth had fewer colds and less eczema.

As a result, the researchers recommended that all mothers optimize their vitamin D levels during pregnancy, especially in the winter months, to safeguard their babies' health.
Vitamin D Is a Super-Nutrient
Vitamin D is an essential nutrient not only for healthy bones and teeth, but high levels of this nutrient in the body also strengthen the immune system and lead to substantially fewer colds, flu, and other viral infections.
Insufficient levels of vitamin D are linked to virtually every degenerative disease including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, chronic inflammation, as well as depression and autoimmune diseases.
Vitamin D is produced in the skin when it is exposed to sunlight and is also found in some foods like oily fish, liver and eggs.
People with dark-colored skin synthesize less vitamin D on exposure to sunlight than those with light-colored skin, therefore they will need more time in the sun to produce the same amount of vitamin D. The risk of vitamin D deficiency is particularly high in dark-skinned people who live in northern latitudes where there is less sunlight, and on the elderly, because they have reduced capacity to synthesize vitamin D in skin when exposed to sunlight.
Research Paper Details:
Hyppönen E, Boucher BJ. Avoidance of vitamin D deficiency in pregnancy in the United Kingdom: the case for a unified approach in National policy. Br J Nutr. 2010 Aug;104(3):309-14. 

source: www.healthymuslim.com