Beat the Heat and Covid 19

Summer is about to end in the Philippines but the heat is still on and the temperature here in the City of San Jose Del Monte, Province of Bulacan reaches 36 degree Celsius or 97 degree Farenheit. As we are struggling to beat Covid 19, many of us who stay at home are also beating the wave of summer heat.

As some people say that summer heat is good to beat covid 19, but do not be comfortable with that as this heat may also bring some disaster towards our health such as heat stroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, fainting and heat rash. It is said that the elderly, infants and young children, the obese, out door workers (front liners such as the Police, Military and Barangay Tanod at check point), and those with chronic medical conditions are prone to be affected with heat related illness or Hyperthermia.

So what are the signs and symptoms of having hyperthermia?

Elevated Body Temperature
Headache
Nausea
Weakness
Dizziness
Fainting
Muscle cramps
Siezures
Confusion and
Coma

How to prevent Heat Related Illnesses?

First is to drink a lot of water. Water is a cooling agent that will refresh your body. It is advised that with in an hour you have to take at least 2 to 4 glass of water. Pure water or fresh fruit juice are okay and avoid hot and alcoholic drinks as it will warm up your body.

During hot season the summer heat makes a person to sweat a lot and excessive sweating may consume all the minerals in your body that may cause you to have muscle cramps. With that at least eat a least a pinch of salt or drink sports beverages such as Gatorade. By the Way, Kefir water is a probiotic drink can also help to prevent muscle cramps as it has minerals that is similar to salt. Some of the Water Kefir Grains are being fed not only with sugar but also with a little bit of salt. Aside from Water Kefir as Probiotic Beverage you can also take the LAB from rice water. Watch the Video below in order to learn to make home made probiotic using rice.

Aside from Drinking of course taking a cool bath is the best way to beat the summer. And after that wearing light weight and light colored clothing to cool us down. Staying at Home is the best way to avoid the scorching heat of the sun and cooling down with native abanico fan or pamaypay, electric fan or AC unit. As much as possible plan your activities outdoor and limit travelling specially now that we are all under quarantine. Remember it is not only the heat wave we are trying to beat here but also the pandemic outbreak of Covid 19.

If ever that it occurs to you that you get a Heat Rash, Prickly heat or any skin illness condition due to summer heat it is advised that you apply aloe vera gel on it.

Galing: Our own ability to heal

In the Tagalog language of the Philippines, there are one word that can be spoken about that has multiple meaning such as the word that we are going to discuss today that has important relevance in Healing. If you are going to take the Hilot Binabaylan Certification class, one of its first lesson is about the definition of terminology that you are to encounter while practicing hilot as we all the true meaning of our Craft which is Hilot.

The first meaning that we are going to discuss about the word “Galing” will pertain to the place of origin.

For example:

“Galing ako sa Bahay para kumuha ng makakain.” in English it is translated as: “I went home to get some food to eat.” In this sentence , we can see that the word “Galing” describes the speaker’ where about which tells that S/he went home. Now. let us see another meaning of this word through this sentence:

Tagalog: “Ang Galing mong Magluto ng Adobo.”

English: “You are great in cooking adobo.”

At this sentence the word “galing” describes the persons ability to cook, thus the meaning of the word “Galing” here pertains to the level of mastery of our ability which is on its highest level. The next definition of the word “Galing” will be described on the following sentence which can be found with a Suffix:

Tagalog: “Magaling na ako. Wala na akong Sakit!”

English: “I am better now. I am not sick anymore!!

On our last sentence, the word “Galing” describes the persons health condition. It shows that in this sentence that the speaker has recovered or relieved from illness.

In hilot, it is important to us to know the persons place of origin and its ability. The illness that the person has limits its ability as his/her souls wonder. As Manghihilot, it is our duty to restore back the persons ability and retrieve his/her soul back to the body.

As a General Principle, we firmly believe that an individual has their own ability to heal themselves. As practitioner of the healing arts and science, we are just a catalyst and facilitator of healing. We integrate the healing wonders of nature that can be found in our surroundings from the 8 directions of the world. We use this gift of nature to make the sick person whole again thus we say: “Magaling ka na!” or “You are now Healed!”

Keeping our Immunity Strong

It was September of 2019 when Jeremy Pascal and his wife Gerone of Grenoble, France became our Student here in the Academy. As they spent days of training with us, it is through Jeremy that we have received and important gift that we still enjoy today or even on the days to come and it is the water Kefir Grains.

What is water kefir grains?

Water kefir grains are clusters of good bacteria and yeasts living in a symbiotic relationship. They are held together by a polysaccharide (dextran) that produce Lactobacillus Hilgardii. These clusters of bacteria, yeast and polysaccharide look like crystals or grains of jelly that makes the kefir water work as probiotic drink. Water Kefir Grains is also known as Tibicos, Japanese Water Crystals, and California Bees. There is a speculation that Water Kefir Grains originated in Mexico, however, there are stories that it originates in Tibet, the Caucasus Mountians, and the southern peninsula of Ukraine.

What are the Health benefits of drinking Water Kefir?

Water Kefir is a probiotic beverage linked to various health benefit including improved immunity and even protection against cancer.

Probiotic are a type of beneficial bacteria found in your gut or microorganism that lives in our intestine. It plays an integral role in almost every aspect of health, from cancer prevention to immune function and beyond.

In this time of Pandemic of the Coronavirus Disease, everyone of us must have a strong immune system because it is our body’s natural defense system. It’s an intricate network of cells, tissues, and organs that bands together to defend our body against invaders. Those invaders can include bacteria, viruses, parasites, even a fungus, all with the potentials that can make us sick.

Aside from drinking Probiotic Drinks as Immune Booster food supplement, there are other natural ways we could strengthen our Immunity and they are the following:

Get enough sleep.
Eating Green Leafy Vegetables
Eating more healthy fats
Eat more fermented foods or take a probiotic supplements.
Limit added sugars
Engage in moderate exercise
Stay hydrated by drinking a lot of water
Manage our stress level
Take food supplement wisely

By taking this steps in maintaining your immune system strong may prevent you from having illness.

Healing with Plant Medicine: Lagundi aka Vitex Negudo

I remember as a kid when we have cough and fever, my mother will pick up some lagundi leaves, oregano and ginger. She will pound it together and extract the juice of the combined herbs and make us drink the juice. She will add little amount of sugar so that it may taste good.

Lagundi or Vitex Negudo was known in English as the 5 leaves chaste tree. It is one of the 10 Herbs that the Philippine Department of Health approved to be known as Herbal Medicine. Though there are lot herbs can be found in the Philippines that shows potency as medicine but only 10 were approved to be classified as medicine and one of it is Lagundi.

Lagundi has been tested clinically to be effective in treatments of cold, flu, bronchial asthma, chronic bronchitis and pharyngitis. With the rise of Coronavirus Disease we have seen Caloocan City is distributing Paracetamol and Lagundi as part of their help to the citizen in battling Covid 19. Though there is no record that it has been used to treat the disease but it plays role in the prevention of the spread of the virus. As a herbal medicine that been recognized to treat respiratory problem, this might be a promising herb that also has a potential relief or even cure to the Coronavirus Disease.

Though at this moment, the role of Hilot in the Philippines works on preventive and promotive health care, taking lagundi as tea will protect an individual from having the symptoms of the disease as long as the guidelines on social distancing, hand washing and physical fitness is observed. Healthcare professionals can also consider administering this herbs to treat the symptoms as it is used to treat colds, fever, flu, chronic bronchitis, pharyngitis, rheumatism, dyspepsia, boils, diarrhea and certain skin and digestive complaints.

Below are the list of traditional use of Lagundi:

Expectorant/Cough Remedy
Sore throat relief
Anti-asthma/Bronchodilator
Antioxidant
Anti-inflammatory
Diuretic
Antinociceptive/Analgesic
Anti-allergy
Antihyperglycemic
Antimicrobial
Anthelmintic /Antiparasitic
Promotes wound healing
Hepatoprotective
Improves digestion
Carminative
Relieves anxiety
Promotes relaxation
Insecticidal
Reduces risk of cancer

As Traditional Medicine Practitioner, we recommend you to see your healthcare professional or Certified Manghihilot before taking any herbal remedy. It is good to identify the symptoms first in order to have a proper treatment that will result to a successful cure of any ailments. Self Medication is discouraged and right procedure of herbal administration is required.

For more information on Philippine Traditional Hilot and Healthcare, you may contact me at +639952467040 or connect with me at Facebook at Rolando Gomez Comon.