Baking Soda - Its uses in solving everyday health and beauty issues

Did you know that a simple ingredient in your kitchen can help in solving a number of health and beauty issues? Be it indigestion, gas, acidity or a pimple on your face, it works wonders in all these cases.

What is sodium bicarbonate or baking soda?

It is a soluble white powder called Nahcolite. It is a part of the natural mineral called natron that is found in different parts of the world as well as naturally occurring mineral springs. It has natural cleansing properties because of which it is used in most of the household cleaning products, but it has a number of amazing medical benefits too.

How does sodium bicarbonate in solving health issues?

It is important for the human body to maintain its acid-base balance to remain healthy. The bicarbonate in soda is found in all the fluids in the human body and also in the organs to help maintain its pH balance.  When taken orally, sodium bicarbonate turns into carbon dioxide in the stomach after reacting with the organic acids in it. This results in an increase in the carbon dioxide level of the blood and tissues, which in turn also increasing the level of oxygen in the blood. A gain in one gas does not result in the loss of the other. Carbon dioxide helps in forming the bond between the oxygen and haemoglobin and results in release of oxygen from haemoglobin.

Some doctors give their patients oral, intravenous and aerosol doses of sodium bicarbonate to treat diseases like prostate cancer, breast cancer etc. Cancer cells multiply rapidly and result in the breakdown of sugars and the production of organic acids in the vicinity of the tumors. This acidic environment around the tumor in turn helps the cancer cells to spread rapidly. Thus, by raising the pH level around the microenvironment of the tumor prevents the cancer from spreading by starving the cancer cells. It also protects the organs from the harmful effects of chemotherapy and other cancer drugs.

What are the other everyday health and beauty benefits of sodium carbonate?

Treating cold and flu: One of the first uses of baking soda for medical purpose was to treat cold and flu. Consuming it with water helped in prevention of cold and flu, and also its treatment by reducing its symptoms in a day or two.

Treating heartburn and indigestion:  To treat heartburn and indigestion, you can stir half a teaspoon of baking soda into half a cup of water and drink it an hour or two after meals. Avoid drinking this alkaline liquid too often as this can also weaken your gut and the digestive system in general.

Reducing allergic itching: Baking soda can be applied as a topical antiseptic agent that helps in reducing itching caused by allergic skin reactions. It helps in balancing the pH balance of the skin and sooth itching.

Preventing blisters and scarring: Since blisters are tender areas on skin that are filled with fluid, application of baking soda on them can help in drying them out. Since it sooths itching, it also reduces your desire to scratch and pick at scabs and thus helps in avoiding scars from forming. A paste of three parts of baking soda combined with one part water can be used as a scrub to remove dead skin and lighten scars.

Treating pimples: A teaspoon of baking soda can be mixed with a little water and applied directly on the pimples. It can be kept on for about 15 minutes and should then be rinsed off with water. The paste can be applied and kept overnight too but with precaution as it quickly dries out skin. You must apply moisturizer to the skin after the application of baking soda to keep it hydrated.

Removing splinters: Baking soda can be mixed with a few drops of water and applied to the affected area and kept for a few minutes twice daily. After a few applications, the splinter will come out on its own.

Busting plaque and stains from teeth: A mixture of six parts of baking soda to one part of sea salt can be stored in a container and used to clean gums and remove plaque from teeth. This mixture can also be used with a few drops of lemon and applied to remove stains from teeth. This should be done just once a week as using it more often and keeping it too long on teeth can damage the tooth enamel.

Deodorizing feet and underarms: You can add one-half cup of baking soda to bathwater to sooth your skin and also remove bacteria from it to make it odour free. You can also mix a little of baking soda and water to form a paste and apply it on your feet or on the underarms to deodorize them.

I’m sure that by now you are convinced to bring out the unused packet of baking soda lying in your kitchen drawer and try it out to see its magical properties work wonders for you!

Tabulating data easily - Creating a table in Ms Word

If your have a lot of data that needs to be put in form of a simple database or you just need to list different but related things together, you can create tables using Ms Word.

To create a table in Ms Word:
1. Click the Table menu on the Standard Toolbar and then select the Insert option.
2. Select the Table option to display the Insert Table dialog box.
3. Select the number of rows and columns required and whether the cells in the table should be of fixed size, should fit the size of the text inserted, or should fit the window size.
4. Click OK to create the desired table.

You can now proceed with entering your data into the table. You can further enhance how your table looks by selecting different borders and shadings. You can also add or delete the number of columns and rows in the table.

Cropping an image in Adobe ImageReady

If you have a picture in which you look very pretty but something in the background does not look that pleasing, you can crop the picture to highlight only that part and cut out the rest of the background. You can do so very easily with the Adobe ImageReady software.

Open the picture you want to crop and then select the Crop Tool icon on the Toolbar. Notice that the mouse pointer turns into a crop tool now. Start from the top of your image and highlight the part that you want to highlight. Keep your mouse pointer pressed as you select the desired part of the image. Once the area to be cropped is selected, double click it to crop the image. Now you only see the part of the image you wanted to show. Save this version of the image and you are ready to share it with your friends.

Scintillating Beauty of Cayo Guillermo

Cayo Guillermo is one of the most beautiful islands of the Jardines del Rey archipelago, with only 13 square kilometres of surface. It has three beaches out of which Playa Pilar is the most scintillating. It has a total length of four kilometres The greenery and stunning beauty of this sandy island has been described in the work of Nobel laureate Ernest Hemingway, the ‘Islands in the Stream’. The sand dunes of this cay, that can be as high as 15 meters, are one of the natural elements that make it beautiful.

Natural Beauty of the Cays

Cayo Guillermo and the Santa Maria National Park are a part of the Sabana-Camaguey group of cays, situated to the North of the Ciego de Avila Province. The beauty of these cays is especially alluring to nature lovers as they have a very rich fauna and flora that is similar to that of the Bahamas. Numerous colonies of pink flamingos add to its scenic beauty. Apart from its endemic bird fauna, it also flaunts a large population of migratory birds that seek these cays for nesting. Hence, the best way to appreciate the nature of these places is by taking walk or horseback tours, or excursions.

Scenic Places Neighboring Cayo Guillermo

Tourists can select from different trips that the tour operators have on offer. These are mostly one-day or two-day trips. A one-day package tour to Havana offered by Thomas Cook would cost around £250 for two. It would include a coach transfer to the Cayo Coco airport and flight tickets to Havana. It would also include a tour guide, a walking tour of the place, part coach or driving tour and lunch. For the return trip it would include, the return flight tickets and a transfer to the hotel. In case you don’t have enough time to visit all the places that Havana has on offer in a single day, you can visit various tourist websites that are available on the internet and view its pictures.

Adventure Trip Options

To get your adrenaline pumping, this cay offers the Le Guillermo jungle tours and underwater snorkelling. The jungle tour is a two-hour trip where you get to explore the mangroves on self-driven speedboats travelling through a web of channels.

If you fancy swimming in between colourful fish, then snorkelling in the blue waters of Cayo Guillermo is a better option for you. During this trip, you follow the guide in a convoy until you reach the starting point. Once you are there, the guide swims deep into the water to annoy the fish so that they swim up to the surface and show their vibrant colours to you. So do make sure to carry your camera when you decide to take this trip. Another good part of this trip is that you get to keep the snorkel as a gift.

These trips can cost you around $39 USD daily and can be booked through the hotel you stay in. These trips take about 3 hours of time.

Attractions Offered by the Hotels

The packages offered by the hotels in the Cayos are all inclusive, with some entertainment activities, kayaking and pedalos in the day time and cultural shows every night. These hotels also provide you with pool and lobby bars, and night clubs.

These activities and the picturesque locales should be enough to keep you occupied during your trip. If not, you can also take various excursions on offer by the local tour operators to swim with dolphins or to visit neighbouring places.

For the Nature Lovers

If you are a nature lover, a horse ride around the island is highly recommended during early morning or late afternoon. It costs you around 5 Convertible Cuban Peso or CUC and takes about an hour. If you book it through the people at the Melia Resort it may cost you around 10 CUC.

Banana Boat Ride

At the beach, you can take a banana boat ride that will cost you around 5 CUC.

Catch Them Fresh

The Melia Resort has a pier extending 100m into the water that is used for fishing. The locals at this spot catch fish with only a wire and hook, so you need to carry a fishing rod with you. The rod need not be of the highest quality since the locals may ask you for it once you are done with fishing. If they respond to you in a friendly and helpful manner you may not mind giving the rod away.

Up, Up, Up in the Air

To get an aerial view of the island, you may take a flying boat trip of 10 to 15 minutes. It also has an operator onboard to guide you. It may cost you around 30 CUC. You can find the boat operators at the Cayo Guillermo beach.

Sun, Sand and Food

You can travel to the Playa Pillar beach from Melia CG by either train or taxi. It costs around 5 CUC each. You can book your travel from your Melia hotel or take the bus or train from a nearby place to the Melia and then get a taxi to the beach.

Since there is so much to see and experience at the beach, you must spend at least a day at this beach. Though there are huts available to take shelter from the sun, the recommended time to visit the beach is around 9 to 10 am. You may want to take a lounge chair for 1 CUC at the beach to relax. The beach also has a snack bar at which beer is available at 1 CUC and snacks such a as fillet of shrimps, fish and lobster are available.

You can go snorkeling around the Media Luna or the half moon island on a boat or a catamaran for 11 CUC. The island has the second largest barrier reel in the world and has an amazing display of aquatic life. You must get some bananas or bread with you to feed them. You may spend around an hour at the island.

Global Warming

Global warming is the change in the climate all over the world due to the rise in temperature of oceans and the air near the surface of the Earth. This in turn is impacting ecosystems, agriculture, and the spread of disease. Evidences prove that this global rise in temperature, in a matter of a few decades, could result in melting of the snow in the Polar Regions and glaciers all over the world, and could submerge many islands and low lying areas. It is a real threat to life on Earth that cannot be ignored by just wishing that it goes away.

NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies show that average temperature all over the world has already risen by 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit or 0.8 degree Celsius since 1880. Arctic Climate Impact Assessment report collected between 2000 and 2004 states that the average temperature in Alaska, western Canada, and eastern Russia has risen at twice the global average. It is being predicted that by 2040, the Arctic might become completely ice-free. This will also have an adverse effect on the existence of Polar bears and similar species that need sea ice for their survival. Rise in the temperature of ocean waters also poses a threat to survival of coral reefs. In 1998, a large number of coral reefs experienced bleaching or death due to stress, as they are highly sensitive to changes in water temperature. In some areas, there was a loss of over 70 percent of coral reefs. Another alarming change that will happen as the years pass by is the increase in the number of wildfire, heat waves and tropical storms.

Of the factors that are causing global warming, some of the most dangerous are human activities like industrialization, deforestation, and pollution. These activities increase the content of water vapours, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide in the Earth’s atmosphere resulting in the green house effect that trap sun's heat in the atmosphere and cause a gradual warming of the Earth. These gases remain in the Earth’s atmosphere for many years and hence, even if the emission of thee gases is stopped immediately, global warming will not stop immediately. The other factors contributing negligibly to global warming are solar variation and volcanoes.

To save our planet and ourselves from extinction, we have to make ourselves and everyone around us aware of global warming and take concrete steps to curb it. The first step in this direction should be to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas, and make efficient use of electricity and water. Another simple change must be to start using compact fluorescent bulbs rather than the incandescent ones. Although the cost of compact fluorescent bulbs is more than incandescent ones, their cost is quickly recovered as they consume less energy, resulting in the reduction of electricity bills. Another startling fact that most people do not know about is that any appliance or electronic equipment that has a remote control, AC adapter plug, instant-on feature, battery charger, internal memory, permanent display, or sensor uses electricity even when it is switched off. Thus, the only way to stop the wastage electricity through these electronic items is to unplug them. Yet another simple method of saving energy and water, that has been mentioned innumerable times, is turning off the tap while brushing teeth or shaving. Likewise, fixing a leaking tap, dripping water every three seconds, can save as much as 110 litres of water a month.

My opnion about the movie Ghajini

As far as I am concerned, no matter how hyped the movie Ghajini is, I didn’t find the story convincing at all. After coming out of the movie theatre I kept thinking of the loopholes in the storyline and even in the direction of the movie.

To start with, it is shown that Aamir’s character, Sanjay Singhania is being interviewed by a TV channel. It is also said that his articles are published in a financial newspaper, then how come no body ever saw him or recognized him as the business tycoon.

It’s shown that Asin or Kalpana, calls up Sanjay and gets him assignments for advertisements. They are in the same industry and keep meeting regularly. Then how come she never wanted to see any of his ads in newspapers or magazines. She still very much believes that he is a struggling model.

When Kalpana’s firm hosts a New Year party and invites Sanjay as the Chief Guests, pictures are clicked by the press but aren’t they ever published anywhere for the public to see?

When Kalpana travels to Goa for an assignment, she is shown going alone, without any colleague or friend accompanying her. She is travelling in an almost empty, third class train compartment. Very daring I must say.

Once she rescues the group of under-age girls from the crooks on the train, she doesn’t realise that she is getting into some dangerous situation and keeps going to the hospital all alone at the beck and call of the lady constable. She doesn’t feel the need to seek police protection or someone’s company for her safety.

When she is visiting the hospital to find the missing girls, Ghajini himself appears there to give an explanation to her, and then plans to kill her as she now knows the truth. Instead, he could have easily misled her and bribed the police some more to bury the matter, like he was already doing.

When the crooks are shown waiting for Kaplana in her apartment, and the lights go off, she doesn’t realise then that there is a staircase exit in her apartment that leads directly outside.

When the crooks finally nail her down and are waiting for Sanjay in her apartment, the look on Kalpan’s face, when she sees Sanjay in her apartment, should be that of fear. She should be signalling him like crazy to leave the apartment at once as he too is in danger. But she is shown as calm and placid, walking towards him as if nothing has happened.

Coming out of the flashback, when they show Sanjay’s room, there are sentences like ‘find him’, ‘kill him’, and ‘who is Ghanjini’ all over the walls. His manager, doctor and other people close to him visit him there but never think about warning the police of his intentions.

From being a gentleman he suddenly goes on to become a super fighter who can fight a person of any proportion and size. Instead, it would have been a good idea to show him with a confidante, someone who would have known him long, who would have trained him and helped him remember the sequence of events every time he forgot something. This would have been similar to what was shown in earlier movies like ‘First 50 dates’, which dealt with a similar medical problem. I think showing Jiah Khan as an accomplice comes too late in the movie.

The next striking thing is that the police officer who comes to nab Sanjay while investigating a murder case is the only brave and honest police officer in the city. No one ever follows up with the investigation later or shows any interest in Sanjay’ whereabouts thereafter. When Sanjay is later found in the medical college lift and is taken into custody by the police, no one is alarmed over the things written on his body. They accept the story of Ghajini being a friend of his and leave him without any further clarification about his intentions of finding and killing someone.

Jiah Khan’s character has again been shown as extremely brave. She goes with Sanjay’s to help him find and kill Ghajini although she knows that the place they are going to might be dangerous.

All these loopholes in the story make Ghaniji a disappointing movie. It is not as convincing or flawless as Lagan, Rang de basanti, or Taare Zameen Par. It’s another disappointing movie from Aamir like Fanaa. The only good things about the movie were Aamir’s body, and his and Aasin’s acting.

The Mumbai Carnage of 26th Nov 2008

How safe do you feel in a city which gets attacked by terrorists every year in events that take the lives of innocent people by hundreds? Mumbai seems to have become a favourite target of terrorists because of its huge population and popularity as the financial capital of India. It has always been labelled as the most lively and financially successful city in India, which bounces back from adversities almost instantly. But this time the sentiments of Mumbaikars are different. They are angry and want the administration to take some serious steps towards securing their lives in the city they deeply love. They refuse to forget the incident and just get on with their lives as usual.

Even for the people who have been watching this tragedy over the television, it is an unforgettable incident, feeling the helplessness to get in control of a dangerous situation for over 50 hours and to rescue all the hostages safely.

Even when the Mumbai police stays on highly alert all the time, terrorist attacks have been made yet again, and this time through the ports of Mumbai. Terrorists planned this attack on Mumbai very meticulously and chose a new inroad to the city through its waters. A fishing vessel from Pakistan was chosen as the entry vehicle this time. They came in this fishing vessel till a convenient point and from there on travelled in inflatable rubber boats to the shore of Mumbai. They had pre-planted people in Mumbai who had in advance arranged for arms and ammunitions, and the maps of the buildings that were to be attacked.

According to the sources, their actual plan was to attack the symbols of economic success of Mumbai, the Taj Hotel and the Oberoi Hotel, cause as much damage to life and property, and then escape unharmed by distracting the armed forces by planting bombs at nearby places. They had also planned to blow up the Taj Hotel by planting a huge amount of explosives there, but this plan was foiled by the quick and efficient response of the staff of the hotel and the armed staff. If this plan had been successful, it would have been all the more damaging to life and property. The other places that were targeted were the Nariman House and the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. The latter being the bustling train station from which both local and long distance trains leave, and from where thousands of people commute everyday.

It is horrifying to even think about the scene at the places that were attacked. The terrorists had opened fire at everyone in sight. There were huge casualties in the banquet halls, hotel rooms, lobbies, restaurants, and even the kitchens of the hotels. It is difficult to imagine the scene at these places, dead bodies of the victims lying strewn all over the place, even in the hotel swimming pool, rotting for more than 50 hours before they were removed. It would have been such a horrifying experience for the NSG commandos who had to carry out the rescue operation at these places and then later the medical team who sanitised these places. The damage to life and property at these places is simply mind-numbing.

From the investigations that have been made so far, names that have come up for being responsible for this attack have links to Pakistan. Since this has been made certain, there is an air of bitterness for Pakistan in India. Ridiculously, some media channels even had a poll asking its viewers to vote through SMS and suggest if Pakistan should be attacked in response to this terror attack. They fail to understand that even discussing such things at such a sensitive time can be devastating.

Since this terror attack, we have seen three things happening. Firstly, people raising their voices over the current political condition in India. The inefficiency of our politicians, the overall state of law and order in our country, and corruption in general.

Secondly, the praise for the armed forces, the protest over their meagre remuneration, and the sad state of facilities and equipments given to them.

Lastly, the politicians trying to salvage their remaining pride by resigning at the drop of a hat, and people at important positions promising stringent action to be taken on the people responsible behind these attacks.

How far these promises will hold good is the question now. Since the casualties include people of different nationalities and from different walks of life, this attack has been condemned internationally. There have been innumerable meetings among the political circuits and various debates on media channel suggesting different actions that can be taken.

Since the terrorist caught from the Mumbai attack has confessed to be a citizen of Pakistan and trained in the terrorist camps there, even the USA has been strict with Pakistan to take some action. The Pakistan government on the other hand has been saying that it itself has been a victim of terror attacks in past and has not given shelter to any terrorist group. What it fails to promise is that it will take some action against the terrorist groups, ban them, and help in eliminating their training camps. The Pakistan government is helpless in front of various forces within its boundary which help in sheltering these terrorist groups. It is in no condition to take action against these forces or terrorist groups and promise some concrete solution. It seems that in near future Pakistan Government itself will fall prey to these internal forces and terrorism, and become a lawless state.

So what we now have to see is that after such hullabaloo over not forgetting this incident, learning something from it and taking stringent steps at conquering terrorism, what is actually done by both the governments of India and Pakistan. For how long are we successful at keeping our guards high before falling victim to another terrorist attack, this time probably through the air-route.