Foot Spa! Need to have little care...

Protect Your Skin!

1. Microorganisms in foot spas can enter through the skin; so broken skin (e.g., cuts and abrasions) should not come into contact with foot spa water.
2. Do not shave, use hair removal creams, or wax your legs during the 24 hours before receiving treatment in a foot spa.
3. Do not use a foot spa if your skin has any open wounds such as bug bites, bruises, scratches, cuts, scabs, poison ivy, etc.

Identifying an Infection

Open wounds appear on the skin of feet and legs. Initially they may look like insect bites, but they increase in size and severity over time, and sometimes result in pus and scarring.

Cause of Infections

Some incidents of foot spa infections have been caused by Mycobacterium fortuitum. This organism can occur naturally in water and soil. Other organisms have also been found in footbath systems. The screens and tubes of foot spas are particularly good places for the bacteria to collect and grow, often forming dense layers of cells and proteins called biofilms, which can be very hard to remove.

Know how the salon cleans and disinfects foot spas.

1. Ask salon workers how the foot spas are maintained and how often.
2. A foot spa should be disinfected between each customer, and nightly. The disinfectant needs to work for the full time listed on its label, typically 10 minutes, depending on the type of disinfectant.
3. Proper cleaning and disinfection can greatly reduce the risk of getting an infection by reducing the bacteria that can build up in the foot spa system.

All About Spa

The term spa is linked with water treatment which is traditionally used to mean a place where the water is believed to have special restorative properties. Spa towns or spa resorts offering such treatment; Spas are loyal to attract your overall comfort.

But there are many different types of spas:

Day spa:

A day spa is somewhere you go for the daylight hours to get massage, facial and body treatment, like sea salt scrubs and mud wraps. They are called day spas, you don’t spend the night.

Destination spa:

Its exclusive point is to help you lead a healthier each day life through spa treatments, exercise, and educational training you stay at least two nights. Some have bare minimum stays of three or seven nights. Spa cookery is served exclusively.

Resort/hotel spa:

It is placed within a resort or hotel. It offers spa services, fitness classes and spa cookery at the side of less health choices like steaks and burgers. It's a good choice when one person wishes spa and the other golf.

Medical spa:

It offers treatments that require a doctor's care, such as laser resurfacing and Botox injections. It is a hybrid between a medical clinic and a day spa.

Airport spa:

It is located in an airport and specializes in short treatments designed at the travel, like 15-minute chair massage and oxygen therapy.

Gommage Treatement

Gommage is a highly efficient way to exfoliate the face or body, leaving skin feeling silky soft. The term `gommage` is a French name that means "to erase". Gommage treatment offered in spa, but it went by the wayside in many locations when other options in exfoliants like alpha hydroxy acids came along.

Working of gommage

It is a cream or paste that is lightly applied to the skin until it gets dries slightly. The dried particals from your body are removed by the spa therapist.
It rolls up off the skin as it is rubbed, picking up outermost dead skin cells for your skin with slightly sticky ingredients like xanthan gum. It may also contain a cellular dissolving agent, like an enzyme.

Don't use gommage,

If you have older, thinning facial skin.
If you have sensitive skin, broken capillaries or pimples.
Together with other exfoliates like body polishes

Ayurvedic Medicine in Srilanka

Sri Lanka is a country of rich heritage, one of which is its indigenous system of Medicine, which has been practiced by the people since time immemorial. The Ayurveda system of medicine from North India, the Siddha system of medicine from South India and the Unani system of medicine of Arabs enriched with contributions from the traditional system of medicine called Desheeya Chikitsa is popularly known as the Indigenous system of medicine in Sri Lanka.

Simple tips to avoid wrinkles

We all know that it is impossible to avoid wrinkles all throughout our life; still it is possible to stay wrinkle-free for a longer period. There are some simple steps which will help us to delay the signs of aging are listed below:

1- Healthy Eating: Avoid added sugar and refined flour, and include all food groups.

2- Eating fresh: Fresh foods are not only delicious they also have more nutrients.

3- Worriless: Always be happy. as stress and unhappiness makes us aged soon..

4- Use sun block: And avoid the sun at peak hours. Bright light of the sun can do enormous damage to the skin. But you do need a little bit of sun for your body to make its own Vitamin D. Therefore, take a light sunbath preferably in the morning, or whenever it is convenient to you. If you live in a sunny, warm area and have a long commute, polarize your windows to reduce sun exposure. Use sunglasses. This will protect your eyes and avoid wrinkles between them.

5- Don’t use straws: Cosmetics experts have told that using straws for drinking may also cause us wrinkles around our mouth. Hence while drinking sip directly from the bottle or a glass.
6- Sleep on your back head. While sleeping don’t pressure on face during the night as it has negative effect. Some models will not sleep with cotton pillow instead they sleep with silk pillows to avoid harsher wrinkles while touching their face.

7- Maintain your weight constant: If our weight keeps on fluctuating of more than 15 pounds then it will cause our skin to lose its elasticity and this is will result in wrinkles.

Old and golden advice: General and necessary thing to follow is not to smoke, drink only in moderation and sleep well.

Bitter Orange

Introduction

This fact sheet provides basic information about bitter orange—common names, uses, potential side effects, and resources for more information. The bitter orange tree is native to eastern Africa and tropical Asia. Today, it is grown throughout the Mediterranean region and elsewhere, including California and Florida. Bitter orange oil is used in foods, cosmetics, and aromatherapy products. Bitter orange oil from the tree's leaves is called petitgrain, and oil from the flowers is called neroli.
Common Names—bitter orange, Seville orange, sour orange, Zhi shi
Latin Names—Citrus aurantium

What It Is Used For

• Bitter orange has been used in traditional Chinese medicine and by indigenous people of the Amazon rainforest for nausea, indigestion, and constipation.
• Current uses of bitter orange are for heartburn, loss of appetite, nasal congestion, and weight loss. It is also applied to the skin for fungal infections such as ringworm and athlete's foot.

How It Is Used

The dried fruit and peel (and sometimes flowers and leaves) are taken by mouth in extracts, tablets, and capsules. Bitter orange oil can be applied to the skin.

What the Science Says

• There is not enough scientific evidence to support the use of bitter orange for health purposes.
• Many herbal weight-loss products now use concentrated extracts of bitter orange peel in place of ephedra. However, bitter orange contains the chemical synephrine, which is similar to the main chemical in ephedra. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned ephedra because it raises blood pressure and is linked to heart attacks and strokes; it is unclear whether bitter orange has similar effects. There is currently little evidence that bitter orange is safer to use than ephedra.

Side Effects and Cautions

• Because bitter orange contains chemicals that may speed up the heart rate and raise blood pressure, it may not be safe to use as a dietary supplement. There have been reports of fainting, heart attack, and stroke in healthy people after taking bitter orange supplements alone or combined with caffeine. People should avoid taking bitter orange supplements if they have a heart condition or high blood pressure, or if they are taking medications (such as MAO inhibitors), caffeine, or other herbs/supplements that speed up the heart rate.
• Due to lack of safety evidence, pregnant women should avoid products that contain bitter orange.
• Bitter orange oil used on the skin may increase the risk of sunburn, particularly in light-skinned people.
• Tell your health care providers about any complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care.

Bilberry

Introduction

This fact sheet provides basic information about bilberry—common names, uses, potential side effects, and resources for more information. Bilberry is a relative of the blueberry, and its fruit is commonly used to make pies and jams. It has been used for nearly 1,000 years in traditional European medicine. Bilberry grows in North America, Europe, and northern Asia.

Common Names—bilberry, European blueberry, whortleberry, huckleberry

Latin Names—Vaccinium myrtillus

What It Is Used For

Historically, bilberry fruit was used to treat diarrhea, scurvy, and other conditions.
Today, the fruit is used to treat diarrhea, menstrual cramps, eye problems, varicose veins, venous insufficiency (a condition in which the veins do not efficiently return blood from the legs to the heart), and other circulatory problems.
Bilberry leaf is used for entirely different conditions, including diabetes.


How It Is Used

The fruit of the bilberry plant can be eaten or made into extracts. Similarly, the leaves of the bilberry plant can be made into extracts or used to make teas.

What the Science Says

Some claim that bilberry fruit improves night vision, but clinical studies have not shown this to be true.
There is not enough scientific evidence to support the use of bilberry fruit or leaf for any health conditions.

Side Effects and Cautions

Bilberry fruit is considered safe. However, high doses of bilberry leaf or leaf extract are considered unsafe due to possible toxic side effects.
Tell your health care providers about any complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care.