One of the commonest diseases that affect the uterus is fibroids. A fibroid [also called fibromyoma or leiomyoma] is a well-defined tumour of muscle fibres. It arises from the wall of the uterus or the surrounding blood vessels.

A fibroid could be present outside the uterus [attached to the wall], within the uterine cavity, or even in between the muscle layers of the uterus.

Are you at risk?

The exact cause of fibroids is not yet known, but there are some common traits linked to its occurrence. These include:

• Injury to the uterus due to trauma, accident or surgery for abortion
• Family history of fibroids
• Prolonged usage of oral contraceptives
• Puberty before 10 years of age
• Uterine infections, hypertension, alcohol consumption—these increase a woman’s tendency to develop fibroids
• Pregnancy—it increases the size of pre-existing fibroids. The size regresses post delivery and in menopause.

When to suspect fibroids?

Fibroids can go undetected for years since they often don’t display any symptoms. However, if you get abnormal periods—a sudden heavy flow, painful spotting between periods or iron deficiency anaemia with heavy periods—it may suggest fibroids.

Depending on where they are located, fibroids can cause pressure or pain symptoms. These include difficulty in urination or increased frequency of urination; constipation; blood stained discharge [in case of an infected fibroid]; infertility due to pelvic inflammation or abortion, especially if the fibroid is inside the uterine cavity; and abdominal lump, that could be painless. Such a lump slowly grows in size.

How are they diagnosed?

Fibroids are diagnosed with ultra-sonography of the pelvis. Haemoglobin levels, pelvic examination, and hysteroscopy for diagnosis of fibroids within the walls of the uterus, are other tests required to chart the treatment plan. Intra-uterine hysterosalpingography: A dye is introduced in the uterine cavity. Then X-rays of the pelvis are taken to check for location of the fibroid and rule out infertility.

Allopathy treats fibroids using small doses of hormone supplements. The treatment goes on for a minimum of five months and the results may be variable. The side-effects are hot flushes, sleep disturbances, giddiness, vaginal dryness, mood swings and osteoporosis [in the long run].

How homoeopathy treats fibroids

Homoeopathy can be called designer medicine; it varies with each individual and has to be custom-made to get the right results. A homoeopath understands your symptoms and based on the sum total of these, arrives at the best remedy for you.

Since each individual’s constitution is different, a treatment plan of every person can only be ascertained by a qualified homoeopath.

As per homoeopathy, each disease falls under a specific category [miasma], which helps in deciding the remedy. Fibroids principally feature under the sycotic category or miasma, which is responsible for ailments in sexual and urinary organs and mucous membranes producing growths or tumours.

Homoeopathic medicines work by reducing blood supply to the fibroid. Deprived of fuel, they start shrinking. Finally, they get expelled during the menstrual flow as pieces of tissue/clots.

Aurum muriaticum metallicum, caulophyllum, calcarea carbonica, calcarea iodata, calcarea fluor, hepar sulphuris, medorrhinum, myrristica sebifera, pulsatilla, phosphorus, sepia, silicea and thuja act like a surgeon’s knife and safely help in terminating fibroids without surgical intervention. A high dose of antimiasmatic remedy prevents recurrence.

Aurum muriaticum metallicum: It is generally prescribed in large uterine fibroids that are accompanied with depression and suicidal tendency in the patient.

Calcarea carbonica: It is prescribed for fair, fat and flabby women who sweat profusely and suffer from repeated attacks of cough and cold. The menstrual history shows profuse menstrual flow lasting several days.

Hepar sulphuris: It is given to hypersensitive women who feel cold easily.

Medorrhinum: It is given to women with dark, clotted periods that are profuse and accompanied with frequent urination.

Pulsatilla: It is prescribed when menstruation is delayed or absent. These women weep easily and are peevish. They often also complain of backache.

Phosphorus: It is indicated in tall, slender women with narrow chests and delicate skin. Periods last too long but are scanty. And women who suffer from nose bleed instead of periods.

Sepia: It is for women with a yellowish complexion. Women in this category have a tendency for abortions. They tend to sit often as there is a constant bearing down sensation and they cross their legs while sitting.

Silicea: It is for women who bleed between periods. The periods are heavy with icy coldness of the body. It promotes expulsion of growths.

The remedies mentioned above, work very well for fibroids if prescribed correctly. However, they are NOT to be taken over-the-counter. The doctor needs to know a lot about you to be able to prescribe the correct medicine. That’s why it’s important that you are forthcoming with the information. Even if it seems unrelated, factors such as sleep pattern or food cravings guide the physician in selecting the best remedy for you.

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Health benefits

• Lemon detoxifies the system and flushes toxins. It contains citrate, which prevents the formation of calculi/stones.
• It helps ward off sea sickness [a boon for sailors] and prevents scurvy due to its anti-emetic [preventing nausea and vomiting] property and high content of vitamin C. Pregnant women use it to reduce morning sickness and nausea.
• The high amount of vitamin C makes it a potent antioxidant and reduces free radicals.
• It prevents constipation and cleanses the digestive system.
• Lemons come to the rescue in urinary infections as they offer the alkaline medium the body needs. The alkaline property also helps reduce deposition of uric acid in gout.
• Lemons work as an expectorant [when beaten well with egg white and taken at bedtime].
• Lemons reduce the oiliness of the skin and help clear acne marks.
• Athlete’s foot can be treated by applying a mixture of lemon and papaya juice.
• A mix of lemon juice and olive oil helps in reducing eczema.

Culinary benefits

Lemon is known as a ‘flavour catalyst’ in the culinary world as it contains citric acid and enhances the taste of the other food. It is a great appetiser; it’s no wonder then that restaurants serve lemons and lemon pickle before serving you food.

It can be used as a tenderiser for meat as it breaks down the connective tissue to render meat softer and easier to cook. It also acts as a preservative in home-made jams and pickles and assists in setting of jellies.

Not only is the juice of lemons beneficial, its peel/rind is useful too; it is an important ingredient in several bakes and cakes.

Other benefits

• It acts as a deodoriser in microwaves and refrigerators and can also be used as a bathroom freshener.
• When mixed with salt, it acts as a good cleaning agent to remove tarnish from brass, copper and aluminium vessels. However, use it with caution to remove stains from marble tops as excess contact can cause damage.
• It acts as an insecticide when added to water used to clean floors.
• Lemon juice when squeezed in nooks and crevices keeps ants and cockroaches at bay.
• Lemons can be used as a disinfectant on wounds and to clean smelly hands.
• Lemons add gloss to hair, minimise dandruff and act as an astringent and bleach for the skin.

Take note

When buying lemons, choose the smaller and heavier ones. Lemons are best used freshly squeezed. The ready-made variety of lemon juice contains citric and sulphuric acid and should not be used for medicinal purposes.

However, you can use it on occasion as a replacement for the real lemons while cooking. People with gastric reflux need to limit or avoid the consumption of lemon as it increases heartburn. People with sensitive teeth too should avoid eating it. Breast-fed babies sometimes refuse milk if the mother has consumed lemon juice.

Try this

• To prevent cracking of eggs when boiling, add lemon juice to the water. It will also make the egg peeling easy.
• To maintain the colour of vegetables and fruits, add lemon juice while cooking.
• To retain the crispness of lettuce, add a little lemon juice to a bowl of cold water and refrigerate for an hour.
• To prevent rice from turning sticky, add a few drops of lemon juice to the cooking water.

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What is asthma?

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of airways characterised by a widespread narrowing of the air passages, leading to breathlessness and suffocation in extreme cases. Cough and wheezing often accompany an attack, which aggravates breathlessness. Attacks are short-lived, lasting from minutes to hours. In cases of chronic asthma, the attack can come more than once daily. Severe attacks result in increased morbidity and have an adverse effect on the quality of life. In general, symptom-free phases alternate with periods of acute attacks.

Asthma is of allergic origin and often patients or family members have a history of other allergic disorders such as rhinitis[running nose] or urticaria[also called hives, a kind of skin rash notable for dark red, raised, itchy bumps].

Potent anti-inflammatory agents like corticosteroids and bronchodilator provide instant symptomatic relief but may be habit forming, often requiring the dose to be increased. For long-term remissions, limited options are available.

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