Smell the wellness

I had always assumed that its just tradition that you buy flowers for somebody that is ill.  Speaking as a woman who loves flowers, its always nice to receive flowers but I had underestimated their power.

Research completed by the American Society of Horticulture Science discovered that surgical patients exposed to flowers or plants in their recovery rooms have

  • lower blood pressure
  • lower heart rates
  • less pain
  • less anxiety
  • less fatigue

When compared to patients who whose rooms have no foliage, flowers or plants.   In fact, patients who had plants in their room even reported more positive feelings and satisfaction about their rooms than those without plants.

So clearly there is a lot of wisdom in the tradition of buying flowers for people when they are ill.

Reference

https://journals.ashs.org/horttech/view/journals/horttech/18/4/article-p563.xml

Related Posts

  • Can acupressure improve chronic lower back pain?

    A recent randomised control trail looked at the impact of on acupressure on people with chronic lower back pain.  Researchers randomly assigned 67 participants with chronic low back pain into three groups

    1. relaxing acupressure
    2. stimulating acupressure
    3. usual care
    Participants in the acupressure groups were trained to administer acupressure to certain parts of the body for 30 minutes daily over 6 weeks.  Stimulating acupressure consisted of six acupoints, with four of the acupoints performed on both the left and the right sides of the body (total of 10 points). The acupoints were Du 20, Ren 6 (Ren 6), Large Intestine 4 (LI4), Stomach 36 (ST36), Spleen 6 (SP6), and Kidney 3 (K3). Participants in usual care group were told to continue with whatever treatments they were currently receiving. Researchers found that compared to the usual care group those who performed stimulating acupressure experienced pain and fatigue improvement. So if you have been strugling with chronic lower back pain why not book one of our deep tissue massages? Reserach https://academic.oup.com/painmedicine/article/20/12/2588/5522931

  • Headaches – Introduction

    Headaches are one of the most common complaints. Yet despite this, the precise mechanism and cause of certain types of headache remains unclear. The three main types of headache are

    • Tension
    • Migraines
    • Cluster
    Tension headaches – are characterised by constant pressure or tightness that affects both sides of the head accompanied by contraction of the neck muscles. They are the most common type of headache. The exact cause is unclear, but tension headaches have been linked to things such as stress, poor posture, skipping meals and dehydration. Migraines – are typically characterised by a throbbing or pulsating pain. In addition you feel worse for physical activity and there often additional symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, increased sensitivity to light, sound and/or smells. Cluster Headaches – are characterised by being very severe but generally lasting less than one hour. One characteristic of cluster headaches is that the pain is often centred on the eye, which may water.   They are called cluster headaches because they can occur up to eight times in one day, for a few weeks or up to two months. Their cause is unknown but there is subjective evidence to suggest the triggers may include alcohol, strong smelling substances or extreme rise in temperatures. Identifying which type of headache you have can be very difficult as tension headaches and migraines share many of the same traits. Treating and preventing headaches depends on the individual and type of headache. It is often advisable to keep a diary in order to identify which type of headache(s), they experience and if there are specific triggers that can be avoided.

  • Natural ways to boost fertility through diet

    In my previous post, I shared tips on how to change your lifestyle to boost your fertility.  In this post, I wanted to share some tips on nutrition to boost your fertility based on scientific evidence. 1. Take a multivitamin Women who take a daily multivitamin take 5% less time to conceive than those taking a placebo. 2. Supplementation Take supplementation to correct any nutritional deficiencies.  A study showed that magnesium deficiency is associated with female, infertility, increased miscarriage rates, and increased incidences of premature and low-birth-weight babies.  When magnesium supplements were given for four months to six magnesium deficient women with unexplained infertility, all six conceived within the following eight month and produced healthy babies.  In men, low levels of zinc have been linked to poor sperm quality and infertility. 3. Optimise your diet. Researchers found that an optimal diet for fertility was one with:

    • a lower intake of trans fats with a greater intake of monounsaturated fats (found in olive oil, avocados and nuts)
    • a lower intake of animal protein with a greater intake of vegatable protein (found in peas, lentils and beans)
    • a greater intake of plant-based iron (from sources like whole grains, leafy green vegatables, nuts and seeds)
    • a preference for high-fat diary products (like full-fat cheese and milk)
    References Czeizel AE, Metneki J, Dudas I 1996 The effect of preconceptional multivitamin supplementatoin on fertility Int J Vitam Nutr Res 66(1):55-8 Howard JM, Davies S,  Hunnisett A 1994 Red cell magnesium and gluthathione peroxidase in infertile women -- effects of oral supplementation with magenesium and selenium Magnes Res Mar;7(1)49-57 Colagar AH, Marzony ET, Chaichi MJ 2009 Zinc levels in seminal plasma are assocaited with sperm quality in fertile and infertile men Nutr Res 29(2):82-8 BV Rossi et al 2014 Modifiable risk factors and infertility: What are the connections? Americal Journal Lifestyle Medincine; 10(4), 220-231