General Wellness

We all want to be healthy, right? Nobody wants to be sick, or down, or lacking something in their life. But often times, in our hectic and fast-paced society, we look for things with instant results, rather than long-term effects. In terms of our body, overall health and fitness, and general wellness, there is no magic cure-all. These things are aspects of our lives that we must strive to maintain and improve, even with small steps, so we can have a healthier future. You've got to really decide that you want to make a change for the better, plan ways to make that a reality, and then stick with it. Again, as nice as it would be, there is no magic pill that you can take once, or a workout you can do for only a day, that will give you the lasting effects of a gradual, lifestyle change. 

There are a few simple things you can gradually incorporate into your life that can have a big impact on your health and wellness over time. 

• Get active! If you've been living a pretty sedentary life and generally spend most of your time sitting down, adding some activity to your days can greatly increase your health over time. Even if you just start with a daily walk or stretching, building up to a few short workouts a week, to maybe even daily workouts or runs, you can begin to see the increased energy and improved mood in yourself in no time. J  
• Eat healthier! Even if you don't think you eat unhealthy as it is, you can just start by monitoring what you eat for a week - keep a food journal or list on your phone, or use one of the many health apps that lets you log in food and drink as you consume them and monitors calories and nutritional value. After doing this for a little while, you may become more conscious when putting things that really aren't the best for you into your system. You can also try simple things like decreasing your sugar intake, or trying to eat more fruits and vegetables (and fewer desserts). 
• Drink more water! I really can't stress enough how important it is that we all drink more water. A lot of us don't really feel dehydrated because we consume liquids in other forms, such as soda or coffee, but these have negative components as well and sometimes do more harm than good. Your body needs adequate supplies of water to maintain a healthy metabolism and keep all of your organs functioning their best. 
• Be aware of your emotional health! Being stressed or angry for long periods of time can have a very negative impact on your ability to keep your fitness goals, and your overall physical health and immune system. Trying to be more aware of the things that cause you stress and anger, and finding healthy ways of releasing these feelings can help your overall feeling of well-being immensely. It's also equally as important to realize when you are depressed or sad, and strive to find ways to not feed into those feelings, but to battle them and discover ways to find happiness in the day and yourself (even if it's only a tiny amount J ). Always remember that your mental and emotional health are just as important as your physical health! 

Lice: Prevention and Detection

It's that time again! The kids are back in school, and with that comes the greater likelihood of catching a whole bunch of colds, diseases, and also - lice! Nobody likes to think about it, those itchy bugs living on your head, but we've got to talk about it! There are ways to minimize the likelihood of becoming infected, let's start with those first. 

Lice cannot fly - they can only jump or crawl. Therefore, the only way to contract head-lice is by being near someone else with them. Common places for lice transmission are places where people are often in close proximity: playgrounds and classrooms for sure, as well as within families or in tight-knit workplaces. It is also possible to transfer lice through sharing of objects, like hair brushes or accessories, headphones, hats, jackets, pillows, towels, etc. You can minimize the risk of you or your kids getting lice by telling them the importance of not sharing these things, and by storing these things apart from each other (keeping all the jackets in a classroom together is another excellent way for lice to infect multiple people).  

Regularly check your kids (and yourself, if you're concerned) for lice! Many schools will have regular lice checks of all students, and doctors will often do it too at regular checkups. Using a fine tooth comb, you can check all over your child's scalp and base of the hair follicles for live nymphs (immature) and adult lice, as well as the eggs, which are attached to the shafts of the hairs, approximately 4mm from the scalp. 

If you do find evidence of lice - don't worry, it's not the end of the world! Lice don't carry any viral or bacterial infectious diseases, but they do feed on blood from the human scalp. These tiny bites can cause the head to become very itchy and uncomfortable, so it is important to treat as soon as identified. If you scratch too much, you can open sores and scratches on the scalp, which can allow for other infections to enter the body. But there are many simple ways to combat the itchy infection. There are several over-the-counter treatments such as shampoos and lice combs, to help rid the infected head of these little buggers. 


MOBU Herbals also has a preventative treatment available: Buzz Away Lotion. This lotion is simple and easy to use! To help prevent head-lice, all you have to do is rub the lotion in along the hairline at the back of the neck and near the ears. This product is also great for repelling other insects, such as mosquitos! 




Once treated, it is possible that there will still be some dead lice remaining in the hair, but they are no longer going to be feeding or causing the itching and will go away with regular washing and brushing over time.