You’ve heard the rumors before – wine is good for you. But is this really true? New scientific research proves it is. Below we list some of our favorite benefits of the beverage of our ancestors.
Promotes longevity. When compared to drinkers of beer and liquor, wine drinkers have a significantly lower mortality rate of about 30%.
Promotes heart health. Those who indulge moderately and suffer from high blood pressure are significantly less likely to suffer a heart attack than their nondrinking counterparts. Additionally, wine contains procyanidins which protect the heart from disease.
Reduces risk of Type II diabetes. Wine drinkers have a significantly lower risk of developing diabetes than their nondrinking counterparts.
Reduces risk of stroke. Moderate drinkers have a 50% less chance of stroke than nondrinkers. The risk of suffering a blood-clot is reduced significantly.
Reduces risk of colon cancer. Red wine in particular has been shown to cut the risk of colon cancer by almost half.
Promotes brain health. As we age, decline in brain function is inevitable. But studies have shown that brain function declines faster in those who don’t indulge in a drink than those who do.
Reduces risk of cataracts. Those who drink wine are less likely to develop cataracts than other drinkers, and both groups are significantly less likely than nondrinkers.
If you are considering drinking wine to improve your health benefits, make sure you stick to 1-2 glasses at a time. The key to these health benefits is wine in moderation.
The science behind why wine has so many health benefits is not yet fully understood. Researchers are continuing their studies to try and discover the why behind the wine.
Tag Archives: healthy hair
Do you deep condition your hair?
Do you deep condition your hair? If not, you could be missing out on some great hair benefits. Deep conditioning involves soaking the hair in a serum treatment for a minimum 5 minutes up to overnight and can be done every time you wash your hair or just once a week. It’s a flexible, tailorable way to restore your hair’s luster, shine, health, bounciness, and hydration.
Deep conditioning your hair is the latest trend to keep your hair shiny, hydrated, and healthy. It’s simple and tailorable to your needs. Deep conditioning methods range from in-shower conditioners to leave-in’s to overnight treatments. You can even make your products at home by utilizing stuff in your kitchen (products like coconut oil, butter, eggs, and avocado make great deep conditioning mask ingredients!). Deep conditioning should be done as needed. For some, this is 5 mins in the shower every time they wash their hair, for others, this is a leave-in treatment overnight once a week. Deep conditioning can be done as much or as little as you need.
Below are some benefits to deep conditioning your hair on the regular.
Damage prevention. Deep conditioning your hair regularly helps prevent split ends and keep hair healthy and moisturized. The only way to treat split ends is to prevent them from occurring. So don’t skip out on the deep conditioning! It’s a crucial part to your hair care routine.
Moisturizing. If your hair has been feeling the heat or dryness lately, a deep conditioning mask could be just the thing you need. Due to the hair-loving ingredients and the extended soaking time, your hair is able to soak up the much-needed nutrients.
Adds shine and luster. It’s no surprise when your hair is hydrated it looks better. Giving your hair the nutrients it needs shows; your hair will be shinier and more lustrous.
Give deep conditioning a try today!
Is your hair asking for a fattier diet?
Dietary fat is actually a healthy component of a balanced diet. In fact, it’s necessary for some rather important and relevant body functions, especially if you’re concerned about the health of your hair, skin, and nails.
Dietary fat comes in many different forms. There are healthy fats and unhealthy fats. Unhealthy fats are those found in fried foods and vegetable oils. Healthy fats are derived from avocados, olives, nuts, and consist of omega-3’s like those from salmon and other fish. Healthy fats are also available in supplement form and are known as EFA’s (essential fatty acids). Like the name implies, fatty acids are essential to proper health and body functioning.
In a diet lacking healthy fats, your hair, skin, and nails, may reap the consequences. Healthy fats are like nature’s moisturizing oil. They allow skin to remain soft and supple, hair to retain moisture and luster, and nails to remain healthy and strong.
As diet trends come and go, fats have been blamed and praised. They key is a healthy balance. Too much fat (even the healthy kind) can cause unwanted weight gain. Too little and your hair, skin, and nails may become dry, brittle, and damaged.
While some individuals (read: men) may not think dry skin, hair, or nails is of much concern to them, this is likely because they haven’t gone long without EFA’s. Anyone who’s tried a no-fat diet is familiar with the repercussions. Dry skin means itchiness and irritation, which can occur on the scalp as well. Dry hair means breakage, split ends, and lack of hair growth (under-nourished hair follicles means no hair growth).
Take a look at your diet and evaluate how much EFA’s you’re incorporating.
Aloe for healthy hair
Looking for a natural way to get healthy hair? Pure aloe may be your best friend.
Pure aloe vera comes from the aloe vera plant. It’s an all-natural resource that has a multitude of benefits. From calming skin irritation and sun-burns, to aiding digestions, aloe vera is a great natural remedy.
Recently, aloe vera has shown to have hair benefits as well. When applied to the scalp, aloe promotes hair growth, nourishes the hair follicle, reduces inflammation and swelling, and calms scalp irritation.
Why is aloe so beneficial?
Aloe contains amino acids, proteolytic enzymes, antifungal, anti-viral, and anti-inflammatory properties, as well as a plethora of nutrients. This nutrient concoction stimulates hair growth, improves overall scalp health, and helps hair grow longer and stronger.
How can you reap the benefits of aloe?
Pure aloe vera can be found at your local health foods store in plant, extract, or supplement form. While all methods benefit the body, you’ll want to use the pure plant or bottled extract methods to reap the hair benefits.
Once you have an aloe gel concentrate, you can combine it with other hair-healthy oils to create a super-hair concoction. Great oils for your hair include castor, avocado, and sunflower oils. Combine the aloe and oil of your choice and apply to the scalp. For added benefit, try warming the oil using the hot water submersion method, and massage the aloe-oil serum into the scalp for 3-5 minutes. This warmed serum massaged into the scalp increases blood-flow and circulation, which improves hair health and stimulates growth.
How often should you use aloe?
Aloe is safe and effective so it can be used as much or as little as you like. To see desired hair results, you should utilize aloe at minimum once a week. To see faster results, apply the aloe serum before every wash.
Saw palmetto for hair loss
Saw palmetto is a plant with small berries found in nature across the U.S. For years, it was used by Native Americans as food and medicine. It is believed that saw palmetto treats hair loss, bladder infections, and enlarged prostates.
Evidence on the effectiveness of saw palmetto for hair loss is limited. But the initial research and reviews are promising.
So how does it work?
Saw palmetto may block the enzyme that converts testosterone to DHT. If you are unfamiliar with DHT, DHT is responsible for scalp hair loss in many individuals. You can read more about DHT here.
Saw palmetto works similarly to prescription medications that work to block DHT, such as finasteride.
If you are interested in trying saw palmetto, you can find it in four different forms: whole dried berries, tablets, liquid extract, and powdered capsules. The research studies that have been done used tablet and capsule forms of the natural medicine in their patients.
Due to the increased research on saw palmetto for treating hair loss, there are now some shampoos and conditioners that contain the plant extract.
Because of the side effects of saw palmetto, you should be cautious of drug interactions. Because the natural remedy acts similarly to finasteride, therefore the two should not be taken together. Additionally, saw palmetto may cause the blood to thin which causes increased bleeding. Make sure to inform your doctor before any procedures or new medications are prescribed.
Should you use it?
Saw palmetto may be a great natural remedy option to halt hair loss and promote hair growth. This plant extract works similarly to finasteride but is not as strong as the hair loss prescription drug.
Don’t expect a miracle. If you have just recently begun noticing hair loss or thinning, then saw palmetto may be a good option for you. But if you’ve been experiencing hair loss for some time, the plant extract is unlikely to be beneficial. Remember that once a hair follicle dies, there is no bringing it back to life.
For those with prolonged hair loss, you may need to take a more aggressive course of action. Read up on alternative methods of hair restoration here.
8 things you should never do to your hair
There are some things that should just be plain avoided if you’re wanting to have healthy, strong, beautiful hair. Certain behaviors, products, and habits you do every day may be causing your hair to become damaged, dull, frizzy, and to stop growing.
Below is a list of 8 things you should avoid to keep your hair growing, healthy, strong, and beautiful.
- Sleeping in your hair products – sleeping in your hair gel, hairspray, or mousse can irritate the scalp and cause buildup. Buildup on the scalp means clogged pores and suffocated hair follicles. Make sure to wash or rinse the hair products out of your hair before bed.
- Hair ties – have you ever noticed fly-aways or hair breakage about halfway down the hair strand? This is caused by tight hair bands. When you wear your hair in a tight hair tie it causes delicate surface strands to break, leaving you with a frizzy, damaged ‘do. Try hair clips instead. You get the same look with less damage.
- Towel-drying hair with cotton towels – tying your hair up in a towel post-wash is a very common practice. But it may actually be causing hair damage. Cotton bath towels are rough on our locks. The fibers grip and pull on the hair, contributing to frizz and breakage. Your best bet – go for a microfiber towel instead. You’ll notice your hair will dry faster and look better.
- Hot styling tools on damp hair – hot styling tools like straighteners and curling irons should never be used on damp hair. After washing our hair, the cuticle is open. This means your hair is in an extremely fragile state. Applying hot tools on it will cause damage deep into the cuticle. This means dullness, frizz, breakage, and split ends. Practice patience and wait until your hair is dry.
- Direct, unprotected sun exposure – this one is extremely important for those with dyed hair. Not only will the sun change the color of your hair, it will contribute to dryness, which means brittle, straw-like feeling hair. Consider changing your products to ones with SPF in them. And if you plan on spending time in the sun, wear a hat to protect your locks and color.
- Sleeping with hair in a ponytail, bun, or tight braid – your hair needs rest to. Give it a break and refrain from tying it up tight in a ponytail, bun, or braid. As you move around in your sleep, your hair is being stretched and pulled. This tension, also known as traction alopecia, can cause breakage and hair loss over time.
- Weaves – weaves are another tension hair loss culprit. Weaves are sewn into the tightly braided natural hair. This tension lasts for an extended period of time and wreaks havoc on the hair follicles. With continued use, you will experience hair loss known as traction alopecia. For which, there is no cure or reversal method, only hair transplantation.
- Over-styling hair – our hair needs a break sometimes too. Constantly using hot styling tools and products on our hair can quickly cause damage, breakage, and dullness. Every few days let your hair go au natural to give it a break from styling and products.
How to prevent chlorine from damaging your hair
As the summer season approaches, many people find themselves spending more time in the pool to cool off. While swimming is fun, family-friendly, and a great work-out, it’s no secret it wreaks havoc on your hair.
This havoc is caused by the chlorine in the water. Chlorine is a chemical used to kill bacteria in the pool, keeping it clean and safe for use. Unfortunately, a side effect is that the harsh chemical irritates our skin, eyes, hair, and even clothes.
Chlorine harms your hair by stripping the natural oils from it which act as a protective barrier. This in turn causes hair to become dry and brittle.
Enduring a hot summer without the relief of a pool is not the life any of us want to live. So, what can you do to protect your hair from the damage cause by chlorine? Below is a list of easy ways to maintain your hair’s health while also enjoying your pool day.
- Apply hair product prior to taking a dip in the pool. Coating your locks with an oil-based product will not only add shine but will also hydrate your thirsty hair. More oil on the air means more protectant from the harmful chlorine.
- Rinse hair in the shower prior to swimming. Your hair can only absorb so much water (similar to a sponge). If your hair is wet prior to entering the pool, it will absorb less chlorine-filled pool water. This in turn means less damage.
- Apply a protective cap. While swim caps aren’t the most stylish of pool-side swimwear, they do offer protection.
- Try a specialty shampoo post-pool. Thanks to some crafty hair-care companies, there are now shampoos that can help rid your hair of chlorine deposits that like to stick around.
How often should you wash your hair?
There are a lot of differing opinions on this topic for both men and women. There are many factors that contribute to how often you should wash your hair. For example, if your hair is curly vs straight, long vs short, thin vs thick. Further, how often you sweat and what products you use can also play a role in how often you wash your hair.
There are benefits to washing your hair everyday as well as washing your hair less frequently. If you are using gels, hairsprays, and other products, washing your hair everyday can be beneficial. Letting these products sit on your scalp can cause irritation and dryness since they clog your pores.
If you sweat often or exercise daily, you may also want to wash your hair daily. Sweat contains lactic acid and DHT which can cause hair loss in some people.
If your hair is naturally oily, this would also be ideal for daily washing. Oils or ‘sebum’ can build up on the scalp and clog the pores. Sebum also contains DHT, the potential hair-loss causing hormone.
The type of hair you have (curly, long, thick, etc.) can determine how sebum moves through and builds up on your hair. Straight, thin hair often shows oil more significantly.
So now we know when we should wash our hair, but can washing it too frequently be bad for us?
Yes. The oils our hair secretes are our body’s way of naturally conditioning our hair. If we’re constantly stripping our hair of its natural oils it can dry out and appear frizzy and unhealthy.
Additionally, if we’re not using quality shampoos, we can be stripping our hair of its nutrients. Many cheap shampoos contain harsh chemicals such as sulfates. These chemicals are known to cause hair and scalp problems.
If you are experiencing any hair loss, considering investing in a good shampoo and washing more often. Ease up on the gels and products that can clog our pores and constrict the hair follicles. Here at Modena, we stand by prevention as the best way to fight hair loss. If you have begun noticing hair loss or thinning and would like to learn more about ways to protect your hair and prevent future hair loss, give us a call for a hair loss management consultation.
