Holistic Beauty from the Inside Out (6 page)

Another great stress-reducer is garlic. It is especially useful if you think that your anxiety or jittery mood is due to sugar cravings, or ups and downs in your blood sugar levels. Garlic acts as a mop for substances that deactivate insulin, so that you enjoy increased available insulin and, as a result, more stable blood sugar levels. In people with diabetes, garlic improves blood sugar regulation and energy balance, but if you do not have diabetes, you can also put these amazing qualities of garlic to your own health use. You can make garlic bread (make sure to use whole wheat loaves), or add some fresh garlic to your pasta sauce (by the way, tomato in your pasta is a powerful scavenger of free radicals and can even help protect from sunburn and premature aging). Asian stir-fries also call for large quantities of garlic. You can take garlic as an infused oil in capsules—this is perhaps the least smelly way to add more garlic phytochemicals to your diet.

With proper use, herbs can be a godsend when we are at our most tense and harried. By calming down your nerves, antistress herbs slow down the release of stress hormones, which, in turn, diminishes the chronic inflammation and normalizes skin functions, so it’s not dry, itchy, or flaking anymore.

To achieve a Zen state of peace and calm, some of us need a natural boost, and some need a natural soother. When it comes to calming your nerves, the sweet-smelling chamomile (
Matricaria recutita
) is extremely helpful. Chamomile can be a miraculous mood balancer for young and old—it can even be used on newborn babies suffering from colic and digestive problems. The best way to enjoy chamomile is to sip a golden-hued herbal tea prepared with whole flowers or tea bags. You can also add chamomile to your bath for whole body relaxation.

Valerian (
Valeriana officinalis
) is a traditional mood-balancing and calming herb, but unlike chamomile, its effects take about two weeks to become truly visible. Once you feel the calm, it can be quite lasting. Valerian root extract is sedative and calming, but when we are feeling low and tired, it can act as a natural stimulant without the blood pressure-raising effects of caffeine.
Valerian is very useful if you suffer from ongoing anxiety or stress, perhaps at work or in the family. It can also be used to treat insomnia. The common dosage is 300 to 500 mg, but of course you should always seek the advice of a physician when in doubt.

THE MAGIC OF ADAPTOGENS

If the stress is ongoing despite all your efforts to clean up your diet, it’s time to take the helping hand that Mother Nature is always ready to offer. Instead of turning to pills, you can try supplementing your diet with adaptogens, natural substances that help the body adapt to stress. They are very effective general body tonics that strengthen the immune, nervous, and glandular systems and bring the body into the much-needed balance. The especial benefit of adaptogens is, like garlic, their ability to rebalance blood sugar. During a stressful event, stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol cause a rapid increase in blood glucose. Once it peaks, the blood glucose rapidly falls to lower than normal levels. Adaptogens help keep blood sugar levels stable.

Siberian ginseng (
Eleutherococcus senticosis
) is a resilient arctic herb with a potent antifatigue, antistress, antiallergenic, and immune enhancing effect. It works exceptionally well if you are constantly tired and under a lot of pressure at home or at work. Beauty-wise, Siberian ginseng acts as a potent antioxidant and stimulates collagen production.
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For best results, Siberian ginseng should be taken in two courses, thirty days each, with a two-week interval between them.

Rhodiola (
Rhodiola rosea
) is yet another hardy herb from the Northern hemisphere with a potent immunity-boosting activity. It boosts vitality and energy, enhances resistance to stress and fatigue, and improves the condition of your skin and hair. During a 2012 study, rhodiola was given to people suffering from chronic stress. Scientists noted that the visible therapeutic effect occurred after only three days of treatment.
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Rhodiola extract is safe and generally well tolerated.

One of the most delicious ways to add rhodiola to your diet is to use it in a Himalayan Health Smoothie. In a blender, combine three or four apricots (pits removed) with two cups of green tea, one teaspoon sea buckthorn extract (in
Appendix B
you will find some useful online resources to shop for natural ingredients), and a half teaspoon rhodiola tincture. Process until smooth and drink in the morning for a daylong positive mood boost.

Ashwaganda (
Withania somnifera
) is classified in Ayurveda, the ancient Hindu system of medicine, as a rasayana, a group of plant-derived medicines reputed to promote physical and mental health, improve immune function, increase longevity, and revitalize the body. Dubbed “Indian Ginseng,” ashwaganda helps enhance energy, achieve a positive state of mind, improves memory and mental performance,
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and promotes restful sleep—another powerful anti aging tool.

HERBAL NERVE SOOTHERS

There are many herbs and flowers with a proven reputation for effective stress busting. Lime flowers (
Tilia cordata
), skullcap (
Scutellaria lateriflora
), hops (
Humulus lupulus
), passionflower (
Passiflora incarnata
), lemon balm (
Melissa officinalis
), valeriana (
Valeriana officinalis
), and oats (
Avena sativa
) can be taken as teas, tinctures, and tablets. Not only do they help you calm down, but they also help promote a luminous complexion and even improve hair growth.

GET FIT TO RELIEVE STRESS

If you feel tense just thinking about that pair of spandex hot pants you planned to wear at the gym, relax. Exercise is one of the best ways to ease stress and anxiety while giving you a sense of confidence and control over your body and emotions. Physical activity saturates the body with oxygen, so you feel more energized, head to toe. Plus, you are likely to lose a little weight (or not too little, if you stay on track), your skin will regain a lovely glow, and you
may begin to enjoy compliments that you look younger and more upbeat.

Some exercise routines are better suited for stress relief than others. One of the best types is interval training, which involves low-to high-intensity exercise interspersed with periods of rest. When you work at a higher intensity even for a short period of time, your body produces ample amounts of feel-good endorphin hormones, which boost your energy, metabolism, and mood. Interval training is extremely easy to do: First, you choose the activity you like—for example, running or cycling. After a short warm up, you increase intensity nearly to the maximum for thirty to sixty seconds, and then reduce intensity allowing your body to relax for two to three minutes. Then repeat the intense stage, following by the relaxing bit. If you jog, try sprinting at your highest possible speed for thirty to sixty seconds, then switch to walking for two to three minutes. Try this routine for twenty to thirty minutes and you will be at astonished how refreshed you will look and feel. Since you do not need to maintain a high intensity for more than a minute at a time, it is easy to stick with this method, and a great way to start a routine.

Other great stress-relieving types of exercise include martial arts, kickboxing (great to let the steam off without actually harming anyone!), circuit training, and of course yoga and pilates. Any sport that gets you closer to the nature such as Alpine walking, mountain biking, skiing, or simply walking in the countryside will bring you into a peaceful, Zen-like state of mind.

Walking is a great way to enjoy a stress-busting power of a workout without the need of expensive gym membership or special equipment. All you need is a pair of walking shoes that are truly multifunctional and some good weather (call me crazy, but I enjoy a brisk walk on a rainy, cold autumn day, with yellow leaves covering the sidewalk, streetlights glowing through the rain, and windows gleaming—you learn to love this kind of stuff when you walk with your child a lot in England).

To me, walking is the ultimate stress-relieving exercise. First,
you can truly let you mind wander. You adore the sky, the sunset, the stars; you mind the ground, you smell the flowers, or the freshly cut grass. Breathe in the fresh air using a deep-breathing technique. You look into other people’s windows, guessing what kind of joys or troubles are behind those walls and gates. Get away from your problems with a daily walk.

MEDITATE YOURSELF BEAUTIFUL

There is a powerful mechanism that can stop the destruction caused by stress right in its tracks and bring back the calm and peace your body and mind are craving. This mechanism is called meditation. The seemingly simple process of slowing down and breathing deeply activates our body’s own natural healing abilities, invigorates the sluggish hypothalamus, and restores pituitary, pineal, and other endocrine glands stymied by chronic stress. In both clinical and nonclinical populations, mindfulness-based meditation has demonstrated benefits for chronic pain,
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anxiety,
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depression,
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fibromyalgia,
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binge-eating,
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and psoriasis,
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as well as improved psychological wellbeing, immune function, and glycemic control in people with diabetes.
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This wonderful holistic medicine costs absolutely nothing and is free of any negative side effects.

Roots of meditation can be traced back to prehistoric times. Primitive hunter-gatherers were probably the first practitioners of meditation, as they entered a trancelike state while staring at the fire. Over thousands of years, meditation evolved into a structured practice. Indian scriptures mentioned meditation techniques five thousand years ago, while Buddha became the major meditation guru in 500 BC .

Western Christian meditation stems from the early practice of Bible reading among Benedictine monks called Lectio Divina (“divine reading”) and requires no specific postures, although incense and rhythmic repetitions contribute to the deep calming effect on body and mind.

Meditation started to gain popularity in the Western civilization in the 1960s and 1970s as part of “flower power” culture. Very soon, two distinct schools of meditation gained popularity in the West: mindfulness meditation and concentration meditation.

Mindfulness meditation is based on a Buddhist tradition called
vipassana
, one of the world’s most ancient meditation techniques. Originally introduced by Gautama Buddha, mindfulness meditation takes your attention inside yourself. You focus your attention on a ll things passing through the mind but do not a llow yourself to judge these things or experience any positive or negative emotions—you simply register the presence of your thoughts and let them go. This meditation technique helps calm anxiety and gradually reroute negative thinking patterns. Transcendental meditation, which is gaining popularity today, requires only twenty minutes of daily practice to achieve a deeply calm, stress free state of mind.

Focused meditation
is part of nearly all religious and spiritual practices. During focused meditation, you focus your attention on a sound, an object, a word, or a body sensation. For example, breathing. Whenever your mind wanders away from its focus, you bring it back to attention on the chosen object.

In the 1970s, the first medical studies confirmed the profound effect of meditation on stress reduction, relaxation, and self improvement.
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Since then, the practice has been l inked with many long-term psychological and physiological benefits.

Meditation and stress
: Meditation literally melts the stress away. Scientists have found that meditation results in lower oxidative stress levels,
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lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol,
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and higher melatonin levels.
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Diaphragmatic breathing is the most helpful element of meditation that lowers stress hormones. It is relaxing and therapeutic, reduces stress, and is a fundamental part of yoga, transcendental meditation, and other meditation practices.
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Meditation and sleep
: Many people who regularly meditate feel improved energy and tranquility of mind. Researchers have found
that people who meditate have higher levels of melatonin compared with people who do not meditate. Scientists found that levels of melatonin in men and women who performed Chinese Original Quiet Sitting, an ancient form of meditation that involves comfortable sitting with hands on one’s knees, were “significantly higher” than average.
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The boost of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate sleep and also has anti-inflammatory and anticancer activity (you can read more about this important hormone in the next chapter), helps the body to lower the levels of the stress hormone cortisol, as well as dissolve the chemicals that are closely associated with everyday stress. Melatonin is currently used as a sleep remedy, but meditation boosts levels naturally and safely.

Meditation and healthy weight
: Stress-relieving exercise and meditation may be more efficient in reducing cholesterol and glucose levels than diet, or exercise alone. During a 2012 study in India, a group of teenage girls with polycystic ovarian syndrome practiced yoga and meditation for one hour per day each day for twelve weeks. Compared to the group who practiced regular physical exercise, the yoga group had lower levels of “bad” cholesterol, and improved glucose, lipid, and insulin values.
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