Happy "Early" Christmas!

>Merry Christmas everyone!

This wonderful event is already knocking at our doors. And I know everyone is very excited to let it in. Christmas is all about giving, right? Now, for all of you kind-hearted people out there, all I want for Christmas is this:

Thank You whoever you are that is going to help me get my long-time Christmas gift. Well, of course, all of us should not forget the real essence of Christmas, which is:

Yes. We should not forget that Christmas that has been celebrated every 25th of December every year is for the birth of our Saviour. Let us always be thankful to the one who has and is still guiding us all - Jesus Christ. Be good everyone for it is Christmas. Don't forget to share every single bit of your blessing to the people around you. Continue to be a blessing to the ones around you. Merry Christmas and have a good one!

Pity

Yesterday, I went to a store to buy something. The store was near our house and can be reached just by walking. So, I went there wearing a sleeveless shirt and plain old pants. By the time I reached there, an old lady thought of me as a worker of that store. She was not an ordinary old lady, she was skinny, wore tattered clothes, hair undone and was carrying a large black plastic cellophane. Inside it were things which we, average people, consider as trash, and for her, treasures. Around her belly, she tied an old open can where she puts her money.

That lady said, "pula lang ug itom palihug"[Translation: Red and black ones only please]. I did not knew what she meant and after all, I was not working there, so I just gave her a quick smile and went back to my business.

A real worker arrived. The woman wanted to buy a yarn with colours red and black. Still, I didn't mind them. I paid for the item I had bought and went out the store.

At the same time, the old lady took her can and turned it upside-down and all her coins dropped to the ground. She was counting and counting to pay for the yarns she bought. This was the time I felt so much pity for the old lady. I walked away from the store thinking how unfortunate that woman is for having that life. I inserted my hand inside my pocket and reached for money. Gradually, I stopped, thinking that I should go back and sacrifice this little amount of money for that poor old lady. And so, I went back and asked the employee waiting for the lady's payment,"Pila diay ang iyang bayrunon kuya?"[Translation: How much should she pay?]. The lady answered me, "pun.e ug singko dong palihog beh"[Translation: add 5 pesos please]. This time, I really felt that she was worried. She was short in money. I felt, so much pity for her. Her eyes were sad, with tears, that almost fell because of worry. I immediately handed her a 20-peso bill. "Salmat kaayu. God Bless Dong, Merry Christmas ug Happy New Year"[Thank You. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. God Bless]. She was happy, and I was too. I felt her relieved. I felt her happiness. We both smiled.

I immediately walked away hiding my smile.

Disasters and Realizations

Last month, disaster visited our city. A fire broke out and burnt two entire village. It was said that the fire started within a house that has a lighted candle. The candle fell out of balance and the flame spread quickly. Many families had lost their home because of the unfortunate incident.

The fire incident was really a few blocks away from our house. Since the fire started during 2:00am, fire men were not able to help immediately. It may be because they were having a good night sleep while the fire was spreading. Houses on the village were built side by side and mostly made from wood which made the flame spread faster. As seconds, minutes pass, the fire was gradually coming towards us. I watched the fire from our roof top. It was a very good view there.

I really pity those who had their house burnt. They were having a good night sleep and woke up just to know that a fire was coming their way. Luckily, firemen came and were able to control the fire few hours pass when the fire broke out.

Good thing though, they do know how to recover things up. They built again their houses and had their home back.

It's really amazing how a simple lighted candle can make two entire village turn to dust. Lesson? Do not ever leave a candle or anything that could start a flame, unattended.

Supplements for a Sharper Mind

Everybody wants to have a sharper mind. A mind that has a memory cabinet ten times larger than a genius. A mind where a student can store all that is needed to be memorized to have a perfect score for tomorrow’s quiz. Who would not want that?

Many scientists have discovered or created many supplements to enhance the functionality of our brain. This can either be the brain’s memory capacity, thinking skills, reasoning skills, solving skills, moods and others. There are many ways to aid the brain, may it be natural or supplementary. This article will tackle some supplements that can help us achieve a sharper mind.

First is Gingko Biloba. This supplement is a pure extract from an ancient tree which is said to give excellent benefits to the body. Also, many researches about this supplement have concluded that it can actually enhance or increase the metabolic rate of glucose in our brain, our main source of energy to do our daily activities. It then gives an additional blood and oxygen to our brain which will eventually increase our mind’s memory capacity and also the mental alertness.

Secondly, Lecithin. This supplement will serve as the main source of structural materials that every cell in our human body need, especially the ones needed by our brain and nerves.

Thirdly, Phenylalanine. This supplement is an important amino acid that will produce neurotransmitters. These substances are the main ingredient in order for the brain to produce norepinepherine which helps increase the brain’s mental alertness, vigour, and will also help in the learning process. It also helps in aiding the memory process of the brain.

Lastly, L-Glutamine. L-Glutamine is an essential amino acid that functions mainly as the fuel for the brain. It contributes greatly on how the brain is able to work. This supplement contains the ability to pick up excessive ammonia. Ammonia is not beneficial to the brain since it inhibits or restrains the brain to function greatly. In fact, L-Glutamine is a successful medication to treat schizophrenia and senility.

There are still many supplements out there to help us humans to increase our brain’s functionality. Also, many scientists are still studying or researching for more supplements to support the brain’s sharpness.

“Super Foods” for Increased Brain Functionality

Everybody wants a sharp mind. And some of us would want it in a safe way. This includes the natural way of consuming foods that could contribute to the functionality our mind. Below are list of some foods which we call “super foods” that can help us achieve a sharp mind. These Super Foods are consist of Vitamins B12, B6, C and E, also with folate, calcium, potassium, magnesium and betacarotene. Foods which consist of any of these will improve the brain’s memory.

Firstly is water. As what our doctors say, we should drink eight to ten glasses of water every day. Our brain is consist mostly of water. To be more precise, eighty five percent (85%) of our brain tissue is composed of water. If we do not consume enough water, a possibility of dehydration might occur. Thus, might affect the functionality of the brain. Thus, we must drink enough water to maintain of even enhance the brain’s functionality.

Secondly is honey. A 2007 research concluded that diets including honey can lower the chance of having anxiety and may improve the brain’s memory even when ageing. Honey is consist of antioxidants which helps in preventing free radicals. These free radicals damage cells in our body. Honey having antioxidants will help prevent free radicals.

Thirdly, is mango. Mango is a fruit. You do not need to cook it which means it is fresh and the nutrients inside it are well naturally preserved. Mangoes are also rich in glutamine acid. This acid is very essential protein which helps on concentration and for memory capacity.

Another one is spinach. Spinach is consist of 11% vitamin B6. 5% of vitamin E. A 33% of folate, calcium with a consistency of 12%, 20% magnesium and 12% of potassium. These essential nutrients will be very helpful in improving you brain’s functionality.

Other Super Foods are milk, black – eyed beans, acorn squash, kidney beans, pink salmon, orange juices, papaya, bock choy, baked potato, broccoli, wheat germ, banana, vegetable juice and tofu. There are still many super foods available out there that can be bought at the market, as long as you know which food would be helpful to your brain

The effects of stress on our Health

Stress is defined as a normal physiological response of an individual’s body to the situations which are alleged to be risky to the body. Anyone can be affected by stress at any point of their life.

Stress has both helpful and unhelpful effect. When we are going through hardness, or we encounter problems through our journey in this life, one reason that causes our improvement is stress. On the other hand, if stress becomes crucial like enduring a very long period of time without relaxation or rest, very serious psychological problems will occur to the individual. This article covers the negative effects of stress regarding an individual’s health.

Firstly, stress can cause a Depressive Disorder or more commonly known as Anxiety. Anxiety is defined as the uneasiness about future uncertainties. When an individual is experiencing a chronic stage of being stressed, he will forget how to enjoy life, do things to accomplish his goals, and how to maintain healthy relationships.

Secondly, stress can cause Heart Diseases and Stroke. Studies show that there has been a connection between acute stress, the heart and the circulatory system. Somehow, stress can increase the heart rate which will sooner restrict or forbid the functioning of the arteries. Thus, this will later cause cardiac events or cardiac accidents such as heart attack.

“I eat when I’m stressed” – this is the most common statement we can hear from different people. Humans can do anything just to cope up with stress. Likewise, research shows that the stress hormone known as Cortisol can cause an increase of abdominal fat. In some serious cases, some individuals ended up having disorders suck as anorexia, binge eating disorder and bulimia to help them cope up with stress.

Another negative effect of stress on an individual’s health is that it helps in developing Gastrointestinal Disorders. Stress somehow causes problems such as irritable bowel syndrome, ulcers, and inflammatory bowel disease. People going through a lot of stress experiences mild to moderate feeling of nausea, stomach ache, stomach discomfort, constipation or diarrhea.

Even if it is likely impossible to relax or de-stress oneself, it will still be very important to maintain physical, mental, spiritual and social balance to avoid the development of problems caused by stress.

Effects of Positive Thinking on Health

Positive thinking or what we call, being optimistic, helps us in overcoming stress and could even help u improve our health. Positive thinking simply means being able to approach the ugliness of life in a useful, productive and a more positive way. As an individual, we should not waste our time struggling on the unpleasant things of life. Instead, we should think on how to make that bitter situation into something that will be useful to us.

Self – talk is the unlimited river of thoughts running inside your head every second of the day. Self – talk can wither be positive or negative. These thoughts are acquired from logical and reasoning. Also, these thoughts can be acquired through the misinterpretation that we make from the lack of information and facts.

If the self –talk running inside the head are mostly negative, then our life will run in a pessimistic way. People like that are called pessimist. Approaching life in a negative way. On the other hand, if the self –talk are mostly positive, then our life will run optimistically. People this way are called optimist.

There are studies relating to the effects of positive thinking into an individual’s health. These studies shown that positive thinking can provide the following effects.

Lower rates of depression. Obviously, if an individual is too much busy thinking about how hopeless life is, his mind will then be in a state of stress and would not be able to function properly. Stress can also cause depression. Unlike an optimist, being able to approach life in a more productive way without thinking how it is hard to survive, he’ll then start to think of ways on how to encounter it and eventually, be able to overcome hardship which could help him in a major way.

If an individual is an optimist, he can live his life up to his 150’s. Positive thinking can be likely compared to the Law of Attraction. According to that said law, one way to attract the most you want for life is by wanting or needing it. The more you want something, then the more you attract its energy. Likewise, if an individual thinks positively, he’ll be able to attract positive energies that will help him greatly.

Positive thinking can contribute much to our health especially when it is positive. Thus, always think positively to be able to live life happily and more lively.