40 Amazing Uses for Aloe Vera!

Yesterday, I blogged about how you can easily cultivate your own aloe vera plant. Today, I bring you forty fabulous uses from this "plant of immortality," as affectionately dubbed by the Egyptians 6,000 years ago. That's right; the spiky, green gem has a rich history of various cultures and personalities who used the plant's moist middle in a plethora of practical uses. Like Cleopatra who applied the gel to her body as part of her beauty regimen, the ancient Greeks who used it to cure everything from baldness to insomnia to the Native Americans who called aloe vera the "Wand of the Heaven." It doesn't hurt that aloe vera produces at least six natural antiseptics, which are able to kill mold, bacteria, funguses, and viruses. In fact, the plant is so powerful that researchers and scientists are looking into its potential as an AIDS and cancer-fighter. From all-around health elixirs to simple beauty aids, learn about the various ways to put your little plant to maximal use after splitting the leaves lengthwise down the middle. If you decide to take aloe vera orally, seek out commercial, certified organic juice. And as for both topical and oral applications, it's always recommended to consult your doctor beforehand. I am not a doctor—just a huge, huge fan of amazing, miraculous aloe!
40 Ways To Use Aloe Vera Topical Aloe Uses
1. Pamper yourself to a soothing body rub. Slice aloe leaves lengthwise and use the inner sides as a biodegradable body scrub in the shower.
2. Treat burns from minor mishaps in the kitchen—from grease splatters or hot utensils.
3. For more major kitchen mishaps like a scald, mix some aloe gel and vitamin E oil into a little jar for a homemade burn healer.
4. Banish black and blue bruises by swapping on the good goo.
5. Soothe and heal sunburns the feel-good way. Aloe contains cooling properties similar to menthol.
6. Take the sting or itch out of insect bites.
7. Reduce tissue damage from frostbite.
8. Alleviate mysterious rashes.
9. Make feet baby soft with an exfoliating foot mask by mixing together a half cup of oatmeal, a half cup of corn meal, four tbsp. of aloe vera gel and a half cup of unscented body lotion.
10. Help heal herpes outbreaks.
11. Fight Athlete's Foot.
12. Swab over blisters for quick relief.
13. Use as an antidote to allergic skin reactions.
14. Replace creams and lotions as a general moisturizer for dry skin. Aloe is fast absorbing!
15. Prevent pesky pimples and treat acne.
16. Soothe Psoriasis.
17. Prevent scarring and stretch marks.
18. Help rid of Rosacea. 19. Shrink warts.
20. Reverse signs of aging skin and wrinkles. Cleopatra did!
21. Help eliminate Eczema.
22. Brighten skin. Aloe can decrease pigmentation and dark spots.
23. Make skin new again with an exfoliating, organic sugar scrub by mixing together two tbsp. of aloe vera, 2 tbsp. of organic brown sugar and 1 tsp. of organic lemon juice.
24. For rougher patches mix together an organic salt skin scrub using two cups of sea salt, one cup of aloe vera, one cup of organic coconut oil and two tbsp. of local, organic honey.
25. Speed up hair growth by massaging aloe into the scalp, letting it sit for 30 minutes, and rinsing.
26. Reduce hair dandruff by mixing aloe vera juice with coconut milk and wheat germ oil. Massage into scalp and rinse.
27. Replace aloe with conditioner for silkier, smoother hair.
28. Remove eye makeup.
29. Treat minor vaginal irritations.
29. Treat minor vaginal irritations.
30. Drink aloe vera juice to relieve gastrointestinal disorders like indigestion.
31. Sip it to aid in elimination. Many times, it's recommended for its laxative effects.
32. Take a swig to reduce symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome including bloating and discomfort.
33. Take aloe orally to relieve heartburn, arthritis and rheumatism pain.
34. Boil leaves in a pan of water and breathe in the vapor to alleviate asthma.
35. Drink to lower blood sugar levels—especially for diabetics.
36. Strengthen gums and promote strong, healthy teeth by taking orally or use toothpaste with aloe vera ingredients.
37. Drink to help ease congestion, stomach ulcers, colitis, hemorrhoids, urinary tract infections and prostate problems.
38. Take orally to reduce cholesterol and triglycerides for a healthy heart.
39. Sip to minimize inflammation and infection of the eye and ear.
40. Toast to its general detoxifier and health boosting qualities!

Ginger Better than Drugs for Pain?

New research in the Journal of Pain reports that ginger is an effective natural anti-inflammatory that helps reduce pain and inflammation. Both raw ginger and heated ginger were used in the study with similar effectiveness. The scientists specifically explored ginger's effects on muscle pain. Ginger has been used medicinally for thousands of years in Ayurvedic medicinein India as a natural anti-inflammatory food. Dr. Krishna C. Srivastava, a world-renowned research on the therapeutic effects of spices, at Odense University in Denmark has also conducted extensive research into the anti-pain effects of ginger. In one study, Dr. Srivastava gave arthritic patients small amounts of ginger daily for three months. The majority of people had significant improvements in pain, swelling, and morning stiffness by eating ginger daily. Dr. Srivastava also found that ginger was superior to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like Tylenol or Advil because NSAIDs only work on one level: to block the formation of inflammatory compounds. Ginger, on the other hand, blocks the formation of the inflammatory compounds-prostaglandins and leukotrienes-and also has antioxidant effects that break down existing inflammation and acidity in the fluid within the joints. I regularly use ginger to address muscular or joint pain and inflammation. The amount used in Dr. Srivastava's study was 5 grams of fresh ginger or 1 tsp of dried ginger, in divided doses throughout the day. Fresh or dried ginger can be added to stir-fries, curries, soups, or made into tea. I chop a two to three inch piece of fresh ginger, add it to a quart of water and boil on the stove for 30 to 60 minutes. Add one to three drops of stevia to sweeten each cup of tea. Drink three cups daily for arthritic or muscle pain. The above information is provided for educational purposes. Always consult a health practitioner before using herbs, particularly if you take pharmaceutical drugs. At Care2, we believe that individual actions can collectively make a difference. Whether you start making differences in your home, your community, or across the globe, we are glad to help you on your journey. Join us today! With more than 11 million members, Care2is the largest online community of people making a difference in healthy and green living, human rights and animal welfare.

5 Ways to Eliminate Back Fat You won't miss it at all.

This article was written by Lizzie Fuhr and repurposed with permission from POPSUGAR Fitness.
Back bulge around the bra area or a pesky muffin top aren't fun to deal with. But you can feel more confident in your own skin with just a little extra effort. Sure, targeting specific body parts to burn fat doesn't work, but these healthy tips can help you get the results you want faster! Turn Up Your Cardio If you're serious about getting rid of fat, you've got to start getting serious about cardio. According to the USDA, you should perform 60-minute sessions five times a week. For even more intense cardio, opt for interval trainingthat alternates between periods of pushing your body and recovery, since it offers an "afterburn effect." This means that after exercising, your body can burn more calories— an extra 200 calories throughout the dayeven at rest or sleep—than you would after completing a steady-paced workout. Focus on Toning Add moves that sculpt your back, shoulders, and obliques to reveal the strong muscles that lie beneath. Posture-improving exercises can also do wonders! This five-minute back workoutand these body-balancing back exercisesare great ones to try! Practice Yoga Quality strength training and cardioare key, but yoga can help you take off back fat, too. This heart-pumping yoga routineis just what you need! Eat Smarter Choosing healthier foods and cooking up cleaner recipes are essential in your battle against back bulge. Check out the best fat-burning recipesfor breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even snacks that can support your goals. Shop Your Shape Okay, this won'treallyget rid of fat, but it'll certainly help you feel more comfortable in your skin. If you're concerned about the bulge around your bra or a muffin top, it simply might be time to go up a size in your bra or jeans. Flattering clothes will help you feel more confident so that you feel less stressed while dressing. Instead of getting caught up in the size you're wearing, always focus on how you feel in the clothes you're in.

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. (born September 27, 1982)

Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. (born September 27, 1982), better known by his stage name Lil Wayne ( /ˌlɪl ˈweɪn/), is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included rappers Juvenile, B.G., and Young Turk. Hot Boys debuted with Get It How U Live! that year. Lil Wayne gained most of his success with the group's major selling album Guerrilla Warfare, released in 1999. Also in 1999, Lil Wayne released his Platinum debut album Tha Block Is Hot, selling over one million copies in the U.S. Although his next two albums Lights Out (2000) and 500 Degreez (2002) were not as successful (only reaching Gold status), Lil Wayne reached higher popularity in 2004 with Tha Carter, which included the single "Go D.J." Wayne also appeared on the Destiny's Child top ten single "Soldier" that year. In 2005, the sequel to Tha Carter, Tha Carter II, was released. In 2006 and 2007, Lil Wayne released several mixtapes and appeared on several popular rap and R&B singles. His most successful album, Tha Carter III, was released in 2008.

Amber Rose Files for Divorce From Wiz Khalifa

Amber Rose has filed for divorce from husband-of-1-year Wiz Khalifa ... and she's gunning for full custody of their kid ... TMZ has learned.In the divorce docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Amber says they split on Monday and cites irreconcilable differences.Amber is asking for full legal and physical custody of their 1-year-old son Sebastian. She's willing to give Wiz visitation. And this is interesting. Amber acknowledges there's a prenup, which you would think would work in Wiz' favor, but she says it's valid ... presumably, she's not challenging it. The docs say the prenup provides spousal support.As for why they split, there's been a buzz over the last few days of infidelity, but there's no mention of it in the papers.We got video (below) of Amber with some guy Tuesday in Bev Hills. Our photog asks her if Wiz is keeping a close eye on Nick Cannon -- there are rumors they've hooked up, but she's mum.Sources connected with the couple say the split is bitter.

No More Ebola Virus In Nigeria, Health Minister Declares

The Minister of Health in Nigeria, Onyebuchi Chukwu has revealed that Nigeria is completely free of active Ebola cases, adding that all contacts of the deadly disease have been released from surveillance. Chukwu made this disclosure on Tuesday, 23 September, 2014, at the United Nations General Assembly holding in New York, USA. Th UN meeting, comprising of all 193 members of the UN meet in New York to among other things discuss on ways to halt the spread of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease ravaging West African countries.This is more than two months since the index case, the late Patrick Sawyer, a Liberian-America imported the deadly virus into Lagos while on a trip for a meeting of the Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS) in Calabar on 23 July. According to the minister:“Presently, there is no single case of Ebola virus disease in Nigeria – none. No cases are under treatment, no suspected cases. There are no contacts in Lagos that are still under surveillance, having completed a minimum of 21 days of observation. “None of them are showing any symptoms. Monday (22 September 2014) will mark the end of their 21 days of observation and the plan is to get them discharged from surveillance yesterday (Tuesday 23 September 2014). Nigeria will be as clean as any other country as far as Ebola virus disease is concerned.” Prior to Chukwu’s revelation, Rivers State had been home to over 400 contacts under medical surveillance. As of Monday night, only 25 contacts remained. The deadly disease was contained in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial hub and Port Harcourt. Nigeria suffered only 21 Ebola cases with seven deaths recorded after the late Sawyer imported the deadly virus into the country. Meanwhile, Chukwu added that as Nigeria has been able to successfully contain the virus, preventing stigmatization of Ebola survivors is still a challenge. “Three terms became part of our lexicon: surveillance, quarantine, and isolation. Surveillance is sort of like house arrest. You don’t criminalize them. The person is actually a victim, not a criminal. We monitor their movements, the rest of the family are counselled about what contact can and can’t be done. We have contact with them every day. You can imagine what this effort must have been like when we had 300 in Lagos and over 400 in Port Harcourt. “That is the first time we are denying that individual the comfort of his own bed. We put him in separately from the isolation ward from those who are confirmed. If malaria, we discharge them to their doctor to be treated for malaria,”the minister explained. Chukwu also praised the Director General of the World Health Organisation, WHO, Margaret Chan for sending physicians to Nigeria. “We only knew about Ebola virus through our medical books. We’ve never seen a single case of Ebola virus until this year. So we needed someone with practical experience who had seen the virus to come and train our doctors what to do and the rest, and then we took over. “It is important that we let the world know that WHO did well in sending us doctors with practical experience. But we also worked with the CDC, UNICEF, and MSF in managing the disease,”he said. Also speaking on the matter, the Special Assistant on Media and Communication to the minister, Dan Mwomeh confirm the cheery news on his official twitter handle@DanNwomeh . Below are some of his tweets: Nigeria no longer has any #Ebola contacts under surveillance. All contacts have completed 21 days of observation and discharged — Dan Nwomeh (@DanNwomeh) September 24, 2014 Minister of Health: Remaining 25 #Ebola contacts in Nigeria located in Port Harcourt area have been discharged from surveillance — Dan Nwomeh (@DanNwomeh) September 24, 2014 Few weeks ago, the Federal Government of Nigeria announced that it has been granted $1 million by African Development Bank, ADB, to support its fight against the deadly Ebola Virus Disease.This good news was announced by the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, while speaking during the agreement-signing ceremony for the grant on Tuesday, 16 September, 2014. In a related development, two leading public-health agencies on Tuesday issued dire warnings about the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, estimating that the number of cases could grow exponentially unless measures to tame the outbreak are implemented on a large scale soon. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that from 550,000 people to as many as 1.4 million people could be infected by mid-January in Liberia and Sierra Leone. The UN had some weeks ago requested the sum of $1billion about N165 billion to help fight the outbreak of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease EVD, in West Africa. The UN’s Ebola coordinator, David Nabarro, made this known on Tuesday, at a briefing in Geneva, United States.

Sales/Business Development Executive

in a firm in LagosFull-time IndustryConsulting SpecializationMarketing / Advertising / Communications, Minimum QualificationHND Required Experience1 - 3 years Salary Range₦50,000.00 to ₦150,000.00 per month Application Deadline2014-10-06 STEEPLUM CONCEPT seeks to employ a qualified candidate to fill role a Sales/ Business Development Executive JOB SPECIFICATIONS: *.Sales/marketing/ business development *.Highly Fluent in spoken English with high skill for business presentations & intelligent *.Oral English listening skills, Chinese English listening skill, Indians English listening skills e.t.c ‎can be an added advantage *.Internet marketing experience and must be Internet savvy *.Must be able to generate new leads clients for our products and services *.Must be able to generate up to 50 million sales within a month. *.Must have a very good calculating skills *.Must be a good writer with an effective use of Microsoft words, Excel, PowerPoint and corel draw *.‎Must able to writer reports, develop memos, product manual developments, product catalogs update and website pictures upload. *.The ability to promote business online *.Ability to receive calls with careful reasoning with clients technical request and instant bills method email reply *.Must good be looking, classy, eloquently dress and intelligent APPLICATION QUALIFICATIONS: *.Minimum of BSC in business administrations, Sales/marketing or Economics *.With minimum of 3 years working experience in related fields *.With certification in costumer relations or negotiations or related training. Apply Now

Maheeda Tells Rihanna To Leave The indecency Scene To Her

Just a couple of days ago, we all heard of the hacked unclad pictures of Hollywood celebrities featuring Rihanna, Kim Kardashain West and others. Well, Maheeda who is definitely the acclaimed queen of anything indecency and er*tic in the Nigerian social scene has spoken on the issue. First, Maheeda has decided to compare her b*tt with that of Rihanna by sharing a picture of her b*tt and Rihanna’s b*tt with the caption,‘Riri leave the unclad thing for me now haha nawa o! Copy copy’.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale celebrate after the Portuguese scored his second in the 5-1 victory

Cristiano Ronaldo scored hat-trick number 25 of his Real Madrid career as Carlo Ancelotti’s side made it 18 goals in three games with a thumping win over Elche. It was Ronaldo’s eighth goal inside a week and after the game he was asked if he was still happy at Madrid. He said: ‘Things are going well for more on a personal level the team is scoring goals, winning matches and playing well.’ Asked about Jose Mourinho’s recent comments about the pair no longer having a relationship, he added: ‘It’s not for me to talk about things like that I’m just concentrating on what we are doing on the pitch.'
Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale celebrate after the Portuguese scored his second in the 5-1 victory Elche forward Edu Albscar (R) scores a controversial penalty past Keylor Navas to open the scoringBale wheels away in celebration after bringing Real Madrid back on level terms at the Bernabeu Ronaldo scored in his 13th consecutive home game after another controversial penalty Ronaldo sends a kiss to the Bernabeu after completing his hat-trick from thepenalty spot.

Russian student covers her Mercedes in one million Swarovski crystals

21 year old Russian student Daria Radionova spent £20,000 to cover her £25,000 2011 Mercedes CLS 350 with one million Swarovski crystals. After blinging her car, she parked it outside the Levin Hotel near Harrods in Knightsbridge, London for the world to see it. Explaining why she did it, the business student said “I wanted to have something unique and do something special. The people who did it came over from Russia and worked for 12 hours a day for two months on the car. I am really happy with it and I am looking forward to driving it around. It has only just been finished and everywhere I go people stop to have a look at it. It gets lots of attention from people walking by and in cars. Sometimes I think they might crash. Everyone is taking pictures of it. When I sell the car I will give the money to charity.”
See more pics of the car after the cut…