Monday, May 30, 2011

Coeliac Foods

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder characterized by the inability of the small intestine to digest peptide contents found in gluten. An individual may show signs of diarrhea, muscle wasting, vomiting, extreme lethargy and abdominal distention. A classic sign of the said disease is steatorrhea, a pale, foul-smelling feces, usually floats on water since it contains mostly of fat.

Coeliac food, on the other hand, is the recommended diet for people with celiac disease. It is totally gluten-free diet (yeast - free diet) as a lifetime therapy, since even the tiniest traces of gluten in the food may trigger inflammatory responses in the bowel. The diet allows the intestinal walls to heal itself from previous damages caused by hypersensitivity reaction to gluten. However, if it's left untreated may cause scarring of the intestinal walls and may lead to other complicated conditions like ulcerative jejunitis, adenocarcinoma and lymphoma of the small bowel.

Foods that are included in coeliac diet are fresh, unspoiled fruits and vegetables for it contains most of the nutrients that your body needs to cope with the disease. Pork, chicken and beef are safe to consume for as long as you prepare them by yourself so as to avoid purchasing processed meat products which usually contains gluten. Other foods such as wine, gluten-free cheese, eggs and oats (those that do contain wheat, barley or rye) can also be safely consumed by people suffering from celiac sprue.

On the contrary, grains, breads, pastries, mushrooms, vinegar, pie, pasta, wheat, barley, rye, grains and cookies are contraindicated in a coeliac diet.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Settling Your Baby to Sleep

A sound of an infant's sudden shrill cry at night may break a mother's heart at first, but when it becomes a regular scenario, it becomes irritating. Scolding or shouting at your baby wouldn't be a great idea of calming him down. Talking with your child in a low, soft voice would be a better way to settle baby. A parent's voice is soothing enough for babies to feel safe and secured.

During the first year of life, the little tots are solely dependent on their primary caregiver, usually the parents. The infant is very much fragile and therefore requires constant caring and touch. If these needs are properly met by parents, the child will be able to develop "trust" among the people around him and may feel that the world is not scary after all.

In contrast, some experts may encourage moms to allow their babies to cry at some time during bedtime until the child eventually gets tired of crying and falls back to sleep. Others claim that it may foster child independence. A baby may usually cry whenever he feels that he is alone and scared. This feeling of abandonment may lead to disappointment and "mistrust" to the people around him especially his loved ones. If the child constantly feels deserted, he may develop depression later in life and may cause him to take his own life.

As parents, we should know the importance of parenthood by giving meticulous care on babies' most basic needs - love and support. A special caution should also be given to methods we use to settle baby as it may indicate behavioral dilemmas in the future.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Growing Greenhouse Orchids

Orchids were inhabitant to rain-forest climates because they usually grow and thrive there before they were cultured and people tried to home grow them that is why sometimes many people would wonder if greenhouse orchids growing can be possible. What most people forget is that there are already many studies conducted with regards to these issues and there are already people who have tried to grow orchids in their greenhouses, so it is definitely possible. The number one thing to consider is the temperature of the region or area that the chosen orchid came from.

Different types of orchids comes from different climate conditions and the three main climate types are cool, intermediate and warm. The temperature must be kept accurate in order for the orchids to cope well with the new environment. Ventilators and extractor fans are available in order to regulate the temperature inside the greenhouse.

It is important to maintain the humidity inside the greenhouse. Water sprayers needs to be installed inside the greenhouse in order to maintain humidity, and these sprayers needs to water the orchids at least once a day and must be often used during summer or hot season. Direct heat or direct sunlight needs to be prevented, so heat blocking items such as roller blinds are needed especially during hot summer weather.

Growing greenhouse orchids is easy if you know what you need to do in order for the orchids to bloom and prosper. Growing orchids inside a greenhouse is great because you can control the temperature and climate conditions inside the greenhouse to meet the orchids needs.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Baby Sleeping Problems

Baby sleeping problems has always been the dilemma of most parents, especially those who are working and at the same time parenting their children. Usually, the child is having a hard time to fall asleep or doesn't want to sleep at all because he's too busy playing all day or has a fever. Sometimes, sleep problems may be a symptom of a more serious underlying problem like sleep apnea.

Here are some great tips on how to avoid sleep problems at night:
  • Kids may have trouble sleeping through the night due to oversleeping during the day. A child's nap in the afternoon should only take about 1 - to hours of rest periods. This may allow him to take time off in between play activities. In addition, nap time should be early in the afternoon, and not early evening.
  • Avoid giving foods and beverages with caffeine content, especially a few hours before bedtime. Foodstuffs like, tea, soda, chocolates and the like may cause children to go to hyperactive mode throughout the night.
  • Train your little tots to wake up early in the morning so that he would be able to do as much fun activities during the day and will eventually fall asleep early in the evening. This may also be a good time to train him to rise early in the morning in preparation for his preparatory schooling.
  • Baby sleeping problems may be triggered by the child's separation-anxiety issues from their parents. During this age, toddlers mostly seek their parent's cuddling arms and loving attention. The child feels safely secured when his parents are around him as this may aid him to want to go to bed and sleep soundly.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Settling Baby to Sleep

Helping to settle baby for a good night's sleep is daunting especially when at times they want to stay up all night and party like a rock star. So the question goes, how to settle your baby to a soothing sleep? There are lots of tips available that you can find and you just have to choose what's best for your baby. One of the techniques that most experts would recommend is by creating the right environment so falling asleep comes naturally for your baby. But you actually have to help your baby in doing this and understanding that sleeping is associated with something.

Sleep associations involves many things, including yourself (parents) like feeding, rocking your baby, pacifiers, etc. Your baby thinks that they need them to fall asleep and you just need to choose the best association that suits for your baby to have a restful night sleep. Establishing a sleep association from day one is a key factor. Creating a regular bedtime and consistent bedtime routine will set your baby's internal clock, creating a circadian rhythm. This will help them distinguish between day and night and that night time is bedtime.

Using other method to settle baby to soothe himself to sleep is worth doing for a long term goal. Or you can make it in a gradual process and this will help them develop the ability to fall asleep by their own. However, we should bear in mind that consistency is very much important and necessary for it to effectively work.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Solving Baby Sleep Problems

Solving baby sleeping problems is not an easy task at all but it's not as difficult as it may seem to be and understanding their sleeping pattern could be the answer, especially to new parents. Just remember that there's no single approach that will work best for your baby and the guides are there, but there are no hard and fast rule. Don't persist if it doesn't work with your baby yet be open to trying other styles and technique.

Typically, baby's sleep cycles are quite very irregular in the first 3-4 months and they don't stay asleep for more than 2 to 4 hours at a time over 24 hour period. So expect that you're going to be up several times during the night to feed, change and put them back to sleep. The last part is what causes the major problem for parents. Putting baby back to sleep is difficult and could be a struggle for parents but that is just the way it is and it is just temporary.

By the time your baby reaches 5 or 6 months old, most infants sleep for a long stretch at night and some continue to wake up in order to feed. You may be able to stop your baby sleeping problems if you figure out the signs that your baby is tired. Rubbing his eyes and pulling on his ear are some of the common signs that your baby is tired so don't wait longer in putting them down before your baby become overtired then they'll have trouble falling asleep. But then again, you know your baby best than anyone else and follow your maternal instincts.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Beekeeping for Dummies

Beekeeping can be a hobby or a business or it can be both. But, a person who might want to try beekeeping must keep in mind that he needs to know more about the said hobby or business before trying it out through reading different articles about beekeeping for dummies.

Honey is the main product that can be harvested from beekeeping, and it is probably the main reason why a lot of people venture into this kind of business. Before cane sugar was discovered as a sweetener, honey was the leading sweetener available.

But aside from this, pollination is another important value of the bees for the beekeeper. Commercial crops will suffer without the bees help and having bees bring more yields to farmers with regards to their crops. Pollination plays a vital role in the life of plants and most of them require effective pollination for their survival. Proper pollination brings more and larger harvest of fruits, vegetables and crops; therefore the yield increases when bees are around.

Bees or beekeeping also helps in relieving stress in a persons life; though there are no scientific studies that could prove such claims, beekeepers feel that their personal stress levels are lessened just by watching bees coming in and out of the bee hives.

The benefits that a person can gain in beekeeping are bigger than the cost that a person pays in order to be in one. So, if you or a friend of yours is interested in trying this hobby, grab that laptop or book about beekeeping for dummies and instantly become a beekeeper.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Indoor Orchid

Knowing that orchids can be cultivated in the comfort of your own home makes you want to try growing orchids indoor. But there are a lot of things to consider when doing these because growing orchids needs extra care especially if it is to be put indoors. Even though it is inside your home, orchid pruning still needs to be done.

First things first, a person needs to choose an orchid that is suitable for indoor growing because not all orchids are the same; each specie has different character and thrive in different conditions. Before buying that orchid of your choice you must check the orchid seedlings if it is healthy. Inspect the leaves, roots, and flowers of the orchid. If the leaves have brown or black patches, it means that the orchids have a disease. Yellow leaves indicates poor health. Firm and whitish roots are healthy, so you must check for it.

The next thing is to learn how to take care of the orchid indoors. Most plants need sun light in order to grow so as the orchid, but remember that it is inside the house so the orchid needs to be near a window in order to have its share of sunlight. But direct afternoon sunlight is not good; a curtain can be used to filter the heat that the sun emits directly to the orchid. Humidity also plays a vital role in the orchid's life. A humidifier can be used or a keeping dish with moist gravel under the plant can be a substitute.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Apiculture

Bee keeping is regarded as one of the well-established traditional methods of food production. A beekeeper is the one who maintains and takes care of the bees' needs. The beehives of honeybees are placed and kept in bee yards or Apiary. The size of apiary may vary accordingly, depending on the bee specie.

Also known as apiculture, beekeeping is the process of propagating insects, such as bees primarily for honey and beeswax production. Honey is widely used for medicinal and nutritional purposes. Whereas, beeswax is used to make furniture polish, candles, cosmetics and for modeling. Nowadays, it is used for crop pollination services where beekeepers obtain most of their profits.

In contrast, special considerations should be observed in starting beekeeping like wearing the proper attire and using the proper tools when caring for these little creatures, so as to avoid accidents and, most especially, bee stings.

Beekeeper's suit consists of protective clothing including hooded suit or hat, a veil and a pair of gloves. However, amateur beekeepers are advised to wear light colored clothes since bees are highly attracted to dark colors. A pair of white or khaki pants with white socks is the appropriate outfit as you get closer to the apiary. Likewise, socks should be securely pulled over the folded pant legs to prevent bees from getting into your pants. A light-colored shirt tightly zipped or buttoned may also be necessary.

Beekeeping smoker on the other hand, is the most valuable tool amongst other equipment for apiculture. The smoke it produces calms the bees, thereby allowing the beekeeper to open and examine the hive without getting stings. Some beekeepers prefer to use sumac as fuel for it emits large amounts of smoke but doesn't have any foul odor. However, a liquid smoke may be used as an alternative for soothing the bees.

Beekeeping Advertising Partner; Matthew Lee Digital Marketing Agency - New York


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Get Rid of Yellow Leaves on Orchids

There are two types of orchids. First is the one that has thick and leathered leaves which dwells in places that are not wet and parched. They are usually taken care of by sunlight. Last is the species that are placed in more conducive areas. They grow long and their leaves are thin.

The life span of the leaves of orchids are usually for a couple of years only but then, there are some which sheds and falls annually to pave way for the growth of new leaves.
  • Do you know the indications being shown by your orchids?
  • Can you see orchid yellow leaves?
  • Do they fall right after they turn yellow?
  • Are the leaves now watery and black?
Generally, one of its disorders is the occurrence of orchid yellow leaves. This could mean that something irregular is happening to your plants, or maybe it had already come to its elderly age. Very often, leaves become the determinant of how well our plants are doing. They become the indicators whether our orchids are still healthy or not. One of the uncommon things in our orchids leaves is the presence of yellow spots. This is called fungal infection but remember this doesn't make the whole leaf yellow.

Too much exposure from the sunlight can produce spots on the leaves. To avoid this, place the orchids to a more shaded area. It might take some time for the orchid yellow leaves to recover, but once they do, new grown leaves will now be in color green which is known to be the healthy and right color.

Cold temperature could also make the leaves yellow. And to prevent this, keep in mind that when the temperature drops down to 50 degrees Fahrenheit, its time you spare your orchids from such coldness. And as the whole plant needs humidity, too much of it can also cause fungus. The idyllic ranges of temperature for orchids are: at daytime it should be between 75 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit while it should not go below 55 degrees Fahrenheit during night time.

Unlike this one type of orchid- Vandas, others do not need constant watering as they may produce yellow leaves or Black Rot. If the plants dry out even after you watered it, skip this method for one week or two and cure it with a fungal fighting procedure.

Other ways to make sure that the leaves wont turn yellow is the absence of toxin in the surroundings. You should also feed enough nitrogen to the orchids and to enable this, you can replace the pot you have for your plants. In this way, new roots will conjure up.