Hair System: Fact Sheet

November 12th, 2008

The hair system is known the pilosebaceous system.  It consists of four main parts

 

1.   Follicle  - the hair canal 

2.   Papilla  - the organ that feeds hair growth

3.   Sebaceous Gland  - the associated oil gland

4.   Hair  - shaft or structure which has been hardened (keratinized)

 

Follicle

A hair follicle is an indention in the skin. The inside of each follicle therefore is much like the skin’s surface being an inward fold into the skin with a mechanism for producing a hair. The lower portion of the follicle has an expanded shape and is called the follicle bulb where there is an area of actively dividing cells called the hair matrix.

This is the source of hair production. The follicle and the hair it produces continue through repeated cycles of growth and rest. 

Herbal beauty products are a combination of dried powders, flowers and roots in an oil base. They contain no preservatives, and are ecofriendly. They are not tested on animals and can be used on any skin type. The most sought-after herbal products are those that contain aloe vera. It is an essential ingredient in most herbal preparations.

 

Papilla

At the base of the follicle lies a tiny structure made of skin-related cells called the dermal papilla which feeds the newly formed hair cells from its blood supply. 

These newly formed hair cells grow continuously and die continuously, forming a hardened or keratinized structure - the hair shaft.  The hair shaft continues to grow outward from the follicle base.

Other well-known herbal products include cleansing agents made from spearmint and lime, moisturizers made from lavender and ginseng, and exfoliating scrubs made from the seeds and pits of fruits, and cleansing grains like oatmeal, corn meal, and tapioca. In addition, herbal moisturizers containing cucumber and cantaloupe are mild, light, and equally effective against dry skin.

Sebaceous Gland

The sebaceous glands or oil glands are located close beneath the surface of the skin over the entire body. There are a large number concentrated in the facial area. The oily material secreted is called sebum. Sebum lubricates the hair shaft and the skin.

Some herbal products help with mild conditions such as color patches, wrinkled skin, dull skin, and acne. These herbal products have their origin in flower and plant extracts.

Hair

The papillary region is often referred to as the “hair root,” the portion which grows below the surface of the skin which is contained within the follicle canal. The hair shaft is the portion of the hair that grows above the skin surface.

For those who would prefer to make their own herbal concoctions at home, a wide variety of recipes are available on the Internet and in book stores. Some of the simplest recipes include two to three ingredients such as sage and sea salt, or apricots and water blended with skim milk powder, which can be easily found in stores. 

Which do you think is the best buy?

November 12th, 2008

That’s right! Product #3 is the best product by far because it’s got the least concentrations of harmful ingredients and is predominately made of Aloe, a wonderful ingredient for the skin.

Carbohydrates Before Bed - The biggest challenge many people have with carbohydrates tends to be their decision (or indecision) about when to eat carbs and when NOT to eat them. The truth about this is; If you eat loads of carbohydrates before bedtime, your body has an insulin spike and will begin ’storage mode’. Since you are not exerting any energy while you sleep, this can mean that you’ll store fat.  

So let’s review all three products at once:

November 12th, 2008

Product #1 has four bad ingredients, two in heavy concentrations, and is water based.

Thought is a great force; it moves; it creates. You can  work wonders with the power of thought. You must know the right technique of handling and manipulating a thought.

 

Product #2 has six bad ingredients, most in medium to low concentrations, and is water based.

Carbohydrate foods are a part of a nutritious human diet. Everyone needs them to survive and there are some things that all of us should be aware of when we eat carbohydrate-rich foods.

 

Product #3 has two bad ingredients, both in low concentrations, and is Aloe based.

WARNING: Learning to change your beliefs around commonplace myths can be a difficult process. Proceed reading only with an open minded approach if you want to lose some serious flab.

 

And finally we’ll review the 3 product:

November 12th, 2008

Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract (Stabilized Gel), Sorbitol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Squalane, Passiflowa Incarnata (Passion) Flower Extract, Ascophyllum Nodosum (Sea Algae) Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile) Flower Extract, Arnica Cordifolia Extract, Juniperus Communis Fruit Extract, Panax Ginseng Extract, Retinyl (Vitamin A) Palmitate, Tocopheryl (Vitamin E) Acetate, Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12), Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Allantoin, Glycerul Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Stearic Acid, Cetyl Alcohol, Carbomer, Botanical Essence, Tetrasodium EDTA, Triethanolamine, Hinokitiol.

Search for the true purpose for your practice, and strive to rediscover the intention behind each action you make.” Directions such as these help students slowly but surely come in contact with the Spirit within.

 

Any ingredients you recognize?  There are just two: Tetrasodium EDTA and Triethanolamine.  Underline them both and look at where they are located on the list.

Every thought that you send out is a vibration which never perishes. It goes on vibrating every particle of the universe and if your thoughts are noble, holy and forcible, they set in vibration every sympathetic mind.

 

These two ingredients are third to the last and second to the last ingredients in this product.  Yes, we would probably prefer that they not be included at all, but with the concentration as low as it is, this is still a good product. 

Every thought has got weight, shape, size, form, colour, quality and power. A Yogi can see all these thoughts directly with his inner Yogic eye.

 

Look at the first ingredient: it’s not water!  This is an Aloe based skin care product.  The ingredient list is so long because so many botanical extracts have been added.  Notice that these extracts are included in pretty significant concentrations too. 

Thoughts are like things. Just as you hand over an orange to your friend and take it back, so also you can give a useful, powerful thought to your friend and also take it back

Let’s look at the second list again:

November 12th, 2008

Ingredients: Water, Sesame Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Acetylated Lanolin, Polysorbate 60, Panthenol, Dipotassium Phosphate, Dimethicone, DMDM Hydantoin, Fragrance, Disodium EDTA, Tocopherol, Allantoin, Propylene Glycol, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Yellow 5, R ed 4.

You don’t have to disrupt the flow of the class to do so; sometimes all it takes is one well-timed question or a single quotation at the right moment. For example, if you see some students striving too hard while others are hardly striving, you might say to the class, “Yoga teaches us the middle way. If we work too hard, we burn ourselves up, and cannot manifest our dharma.

 

Any chemicals or ingredients you recognize?  I see: Water, Acetylated Lanolin, Fragrance, Disodium EDTA, Propylene Glycol, and the color pigments: Yellow 5 and the very toxic Red 4.  Underline each of them and look at where these ingredients are located.

If we work too little, we stagnate, and cannot manifest our dharma either.” Use your life experiences to inspire your students to open their minds, break their habits, and search for their life’s purpose. It is not enough to loosen tight muscles — our job is to loosen constricting thoughts and stifling beliefs as well.

 

This product is largely composed of water and oil – not particularly bad for you, but this is supposed to be a hand cream.  Do you think this will effectively moisturize your skin?

If asking such questions of your students makes you feel uncomfortable, then perhaps it’s your turn to ponder a question: “Do I just want to teach asana, or is it my dharma to be a true teacher of yoga?” Either answer is acceptable, but it’s good to know.

 

The location of lanolin also lets you know that this product will probably do one thing: clog your pores.  With the addition of Fragrance, EDTA, Propylene Glycol, and toxic pigments, even though these ingredients are listed last, I’d say this product is worse than the first. 

Start each class with a time of quiet reflection, thus giving your students a rare opportunity to become introspective and receptive to deeper sources. As they become still, tell them, “Move your mental energy into your Heart Center and look inside yourself.

 

Let’s look at the first product in detail :

November 12th, 2008

Ingredients: Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamindopropyl Betaine, Cocamide Dea, Sodium C hloride, Fragrance, Citric Acid, Bensophenone-4, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Red 40, Red 33, Yellow 5, Blue 1.

Ideally, ask questions when your student are sitting quietly. The beginning of class is an auspicious time, or after Shirshasana, Sarvangasana, or whenever your students are sitting and feeling the effects of the pose just completed. Of course, a perfect time is at the end of class during Shavasana - when the mind is quiet and the heart is being explored.

 

Do you recognize any chemicals that make this product bad?  I see: Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Fragrance, and the color pigments: Red 40, Red 33, Yellow 5, Blue 1.  Underline each of them and look at where these ingredients are located.

Many commonly held notions do not serve our quest for dharma, and in fact run contrary to the journey of self-exploration that is yoga. For example, we believe that “being number one” will make us happier, but is this so?

 

This product is largely composed of Water and Sodium Laureth Sulfate.  The location of fragrance as only the 5  ingredient is worrisome as well.  Remember that Fragrance canth really mean over 2,000 different chemicals.  As the 5 ingredient the concentration won’t  th be huge, but still more than I would be comfortable with.  Once you add all this together you can easily see that even though the ingredient list is short and sweet looking, it’s really disguising a cheap, harmful product.

We believe that the acquisition of things defines success, but is this so? I encourage you to ask deep questions and weave yogic philosophy into the fabric of your class. Ask people to question these often harmful assumptions foisted upon them by unscrupulous advertisers and well-meaning family members.  

I listed them just like you would find them on the back of a bottle or tube (though my font size is going to be much bigger than anything you will ever see on the product).

November 12th, 2008

Management of weight by the reduction of excess body fat has a vital role to play in our ability to maintain good health and fight disease. Researchers have repeatedly found a strong link between excess body fat and major physical problems like diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

 

I know the initial reaction you might have is to go with #1 because it has the least number of ingredients. It used to be a safe bet to go with the product with the shortest list, but not anymore.

A majority of the American population is overweight and it has been reported by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey that every year three out of every four Americans die either from cancer or heart disease.

Hand Cream & Face Cleanser

November 12th, 2008

Hand Cream

Ingredients: Water, Sesame Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Acetylated Lanolin, Polysorbate 60, Panthenol, Dipotassium Phosphate, Dimethicone, DMDM Hydantoin, Fragrance, Disodium EDTA, Tocopherol, Allantoin, Propylene Glycol, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Yellow 5, R ed 4.

Yoga is indeed an amazing tool for fat loss as well as general well being. The use of yoga for balancing the mind and body are pretty well known to be recounted here.

 

Face Cleanser 

Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract (Stabilized Gel), Sorbitol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil, Squalane, Passiflowa Incarnata (Passion) Flower Extract, Ascophyllum Nodosum (Sea Algae) Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile) Flower Extract, Arnica Cordifolia Extract, Juniperus Communis Fruit Extract, Panax Ginseng Extract, Retinyl (Vitamin A) Palmitate, Tocopheryl (Vitamin E) Acetate, Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12), Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Allantoin, Glycerul Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Stearic Acid, Cetyl Alcohol, Carbomer, Botanical Exxence, Tetrasodium EDTA, Triethanolamine, Hinokitiol.

Before going into the details of how yoga can help in losing fat let us first be clear about the need for fat loss, because without proper motivation you may not be able to stick to a fat loss or weight loss program, whether it is yoga exercises or some other fat loss program. 

So What Do I Do Now?

November 12th, 2008

Let’s put our new knowledge into action! Here’s an ingredient list for three different products. I want you to pick the one that is the best for your skin and body based solely on the ingredients:

Meditating on sound gives you the ability to control your consciousness, instead of being dominated by random negative thoughts and emotions, which come to you externally. The ability to create your own heaven on earth can be found in mantra, but the ability to control your consciousness can also be found in prayer and positive affirmation.

 Bath and Shower Gel

 

Ingredients: Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamindopropyl Betaine, Cocamide Dea, Sodium C hloride, Fragrance, Citric Acid, Bensophenone-4, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Red 40, Red 33, Yellow 5, Blue 1.

On this earth, we the have the choice to enjoy life or live a miserable existence. Your awareness and consciousness are a viewpoint of life itself. A materially rich man can be just as miserable as a poor man,because they both can influence internal awareness and consciousness.

 

Who makes money off healthy people?

November 12th, 2008

 

Keeping a population healthy and happy should be the government’s prime goal, but it isn’t.  It is a very sad and unfortunate fact that many people are greedy and have found that more money can be made off of sick people than healthy.

If you listen to the world around you, there is a background hum. This explains why many people go to Yoga, meditation, or spiritual retreats. A retreat gives the practitioner time to focus on the mental and spiritual planes of existence, which are not easily noticed when living in fast-paced industrial societies.

 

In her book “The Secret History of the War on Cancer,” Devra Davis uncovers the truth about cancer, its real causes (chemical exposure), and the lack of action our government has taken to protect it’s citizens.  I’d really advise reading this book if you’re interested in learning more about these issues.

Om is a mantra, which exists all around us, without having to produce the sound within. Om is “pravana,” which weaves its way through the fabric of life. Between the sharp sounds made by humans, machinery, nature, and other animals, the sound of Om is always there. Many of us have heard of “mantra,” it is an overused word, which is often over simplified.   

 

Head to  www.leahday.com/waroncancer.htm  to read my full review of this book.

Mantra is a sacred sound, or phrase, which is repeated to expand our awareness and consciousness. At the same time, mantra has the ability to protect our minds from pessimism, stress, anxiety, and negativity. 

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