Tag: Congestion

Here are Quick Ways to Break Up a Cold

We all have experienced colds all too well. The changing of the seasons is often not welcomed by many because it brings about unwanted colds or the flu. We start getting scratchy and sore throats, and then we have a hard time breathing because of our stuffy noses.

With each sneeze and blow of the nose, we can’t help but think about how often we take our once decongested nose for granted. Although we do our best to have a healthy immune system by exercising or eating healthy foods, there are just times that a cold finds its way in.

That is why we look for ways to get better quickly. Here are some natural remedies you can do at home to know how to get rid of a cold overnight without medicine.

Remember to Stay Hydrated

Drink a lot of water as much as you can so you can flush out the cold. This will also break down congestion and keep your throat lubricated, as stated by Hello! Herbal teas and other hot liquids are also great with colds and stuffy noses. Teas such as sage, ginger, or chamomile, among others, help ease sore throats and nasal congestion. A helpful tip that you should also know is that you can drink fresh turmeric tea for its anti-inflammatory properties.

Soup for the Soul, Body, and Mind

As most people would say, soup is good for the soul. When we have colds, we often remember eating soup to make us feel better. There is actually a science behind it. Soup with ingredients like garlic, ginger, onions, or lemongrass help to ease the congestion you get when you’re sick. Its broth, helps thin out mucus.

Make Use of Garlic but Don’t Forget Breath Mints

Eating food with garlic might leave you with smelly breath, but it is known for having antiviral, antimicrobial, and antibiotic properties. Thus, it can help with decongestion in colds and the flu. A study was conducted where during the cold season, people who took garlic supplements for 12 weeks had fewer colds than those who didn’t take them. If you don’t like the pungent taste and smell of raw garlic, you can try smearing it on toast with a bit of olive oil or honey or another dish like sautéed vegetables with garlic.

Get Your Beauty Sleep and Feel Rejuvenated

One of the obvious remedies you can do to fight off a cold is to get some much-needed rest. Don’t force yourself to do anything and let your body heal itself. Get adequate sleep because this is the time that your immune system is enhanced. During sleep, your body fights infections, which means the more sleep that you can get, the higher the chance that you’ll cure your cold in no time. It is also understandable that with stuffy sinuses, sleeping might be hard. What you can do is to put extra pillows under your head to help drain the sinuses. Also, make sure that your room climate is humid to further thin the mucus in your nose.

So, try out these natural remedies and see the results for yourself. Of course, if it is not getting better and keeps getting worse, it is better to go right to a doctor for professional help.

The Man with the Healthiest Lungs!

Our lungs play a huge role in keeping us healthy and well, but we do not see the relevance until we experience problems with breathing. That is why, just like the rest of our body, the lungs need daily care and attention.

When we breathe, we feed oxygen to every cell in the body. Because of this, you aren’t prone to health problems such as respiratory illnesses, heart diseases, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, among others. For this reason, if you want to have healthy lungs, you need to be more attentive to its overall condition.

Who has healthy lungs?

The man with the healthiest lungs is probably Constantine Karnazes.

People who have never had any issues with their breathing, or those who have never inhaled air in polluted places have healthier lungs than those that grow up in polluted areas. The man with the healthiest lungs is probably an ultramarathon runner who spends hours and hours training his lungs while running. By working the muscles that contract and expand the lungs, you can train your lungs to be strong. It isn’t too late for anyone to build healthier lungs. You just need to know the things that you should and shouldn’t do. Here are some of the do’s and don’ts that you can follow:

Do’s:

Diaphragmatic Breathing

If you’re thinking of how to keep lungs healthy naturally, then the breathing technique that you can use is diaphragmatic breathing. This is often used by people who experience lung problems such as asthma and chronic bronchitis.

Diaphragmatic breathing makes use of the diaphragm muscle by concentrating on it as you breathe in. It will result in a much deeper inhale.

You can see this technique also being used by professional singers to increase their lung capacity.

Exercise As Much As You Can

Regular exercise will take you closer to the path of someone having healthier lungs. When you exercise, the heart beats faster, and the lungs work harder—according to research, breathing increases from at least 15 times a minute to 40 to 60 times a minute. This will mean that your lungs will definitely be having a workout and would quickly exchange oxygen for carbon dioxide.

Counting Your Breaths

Another simple way to improve your lung capacity is by increasing the length of your inhalations and exhalations. It can be done by counting how long your natural breath takes. After knowing the count for the average breath, you’ll add one more count to each inhale and exhale. This will conveniently extend the length of time that it’ll take to fill and empty the lungs, resulting in stronger lungs.

Don’ts:

Smoking

It is widely known that smoking is the major cause of lung cancer and COPD. It narrows the air passages and causes swelling in the lungs. As you smoke continuously, the lung tissue would be destroyed over time and may trigger effects that can result in cancer.

So, if you smoke, this is the time to stop now and let your lungs breathe in clean air.

Exposure to Indoor Air Pollutants

Many indoor air pollutants can result in lung

problems. From dust, VOCs, mold, secondhand smoke, and radon, all of these will prevent you from achieving your goals of having healthy lungs. That’s why make sure to have filtered and ventilated rooms for easier breathing.

Exposure to Outdoor Air Pollution

Air pollution is something that we often experience every day. The air quality outside is usually unhealthy to breathe, be it due to traffic congestion or factory buildings spewing up smoke. These things are bad for our lungs. That is why one of the ways to avoid them is by wearing face masks, which can minimize the risks that they bring.

Thus, remember all of these do’s and don’ts, and you will be on the right track to successfully being a man or woman who has the healthiest lungs!

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The Rush Hour Effect and the Worst Times to be Out on the Street

Rush hour - we’ve all heard of this phrase and perhaps we do every day. Indeed, it’s something that a lot of us avoid and that’s mostly so that we don’t end up late to work, school, or appointments.

Most of the times, it’s usually “Leave the house early so you don’t get stuck at rush hour,” or “Let’s leave for the mall after rush hour so we won’t be late.”

Indeed, rush hour is a hassle all over the world and it’s a day-to-day occurrence, especially during the weekdays. Here we outline how rush hour affects our lives.

A Common Problem

On an average, the rush hours all over the world are at 7am - 9am in the morning. This is usually the time where people drive going to work or school. Since most jobs and schools also open at this time, it’s no wonder that there are a lot of vehicles on the streets and roads. For the afternoon, it’s also usually at 3pm - 5pm, a common time work and school also end and where commuters rush to get home or to their after-work or after-school appointments. Traffic is now worse than it's ever been as the number of vehicles on streets at any time has drastically increased over the years.

Almost Everyone Has Cars

One of the biggest contributors to rush hour are personal vehicles. Imagine, there’s a single company with around 100 employees. Let’s say around 80% of those employees have their own vehicles. That’s bound to contribute to the traffic congestion. Let’s take LA for an example, in a 2017 study, it was found that 84% of commuters chose to drive going to work. Your vehicles are costing you more money than you think just sitting around in traffic. The average commuter wastes around 60 liters of fuel a year just sitting in traffic.

The Bigger the City, the Bigger the Congestion

Evidently, the bigger the city, the more businesses, schools, and companies there are. And that means more residents, more commuters, and more traffic congestion during rush hours. Congestion builds through the week from Monday through Friday. Traffic on Thursday is almost as bad as traffic on Friday! The bigger the city, the more traffic there is to get stuck in. In cities of over 1 million people, they spent an average of 71 hours stuck in traffic. These cities also experienced a road network that was congested for approximately 6 hours of the average weekday. According to the INRIX 2018 Global Traffic Scorecard, the top 10 most congested cities in the world are:

  1. Moscow, Russia – 210 hours lost in congestion
  2. Istanbul, Turkey – 157 hours
  3. Bogotá, Colombia – 272 hours
  4. Mexico City, Mexico – 218 hours
  5. São Paulo, Brazil – 154 hours
  6. London, United Kingdom – 227 hours
  7. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 199 hours
  8. Boston, MA, United States – 164 hours
  9. Saint Petersburg, Russia – 200 hours
  10. Rome, Italy – 254 hours

Not Just About Being Late

While we’re mostly concerned about punctuality when it comes to rush hour, there’s also another aspect where it creates a negative affect and that’s our health and the environment’s too. As more cars congest in the streets, the more we exposed we are to pollution from the exhausts that many vehicles emit. Bad driving behavior like driving and braking too fast can cause even more traffic buildup behind you. This is due to chain reactions.

The next time you get into rush hour, don’t just think about your appointment. Think about your respiratory health too! It is best to drive at a steady pace. Try to avoid rush hour by driving at other times, using apps like Waze to avoid traffic, and use public transport as much as you can. Vehicles and sitting in traffic is also very expensive. What are some of your opinions on rush hour?

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