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Make It Last Forever...

Before Mariah reaches the part that says, "Make it last forever", earlier lyrics had already taken me into nostalgia lane. Am seated in a Matatu and a song that combines three of my all-time favorite artists begins to play. An old enough song to now graduate into the "ol-skull". A song I used to love so much until I copied it ten times into the same CD. I would insert the disc into player and listen from song number one to the last one. The same song.

A classical seductive song. There is a part that Nas raps, "You taste like banana cake, you shaped like the number eight". Then enters Joe with his refined voice-overs that puts you in an eerie melancholic moment of lyrical recall. Music, my ultimate opium, stole my moment and unearthed old, fond memories.

"Make it last forever, make it last, make it last...

Natural Cure For Acne.

You are luckier and safer right now if you suffer from acne, than Adam and Eve would've been in the garden of Eden, searching for the right herbs in the midst of unfamiliar vegetation, inside God's own natural pharmacy. This article, just like God probably did to the first couple, will direct you to the right natural cure for acne.

Acne can manifest itself on your face, chest or at the back in different forms, but the cure works out the same way across all the versions. Let's do a Cause/Remedy approach for better understanding.

Acne results from the following causes:

1. Propionibacterium acnes, (P.acnes): This is a bacteria whose residence in the hair follicles on the skin can cause blockage of the follicles and inflammation of acne nodules.
2. Hormonal Imbalance: Acne could just be a symptom of inherent psychological problems. Stress, low self esteem and depression, or the use of anabolic steroids can lead to excessive production of androgen and high Testosterone levels in the body that can enlarge the sebaceous glands, which then end up increasing their production of sebum, (which is a cocktail of naturally occurring oil, fatty acids and dead skin cells) that block skin follicles and constitute the major contents of acne nodules.
3. High levels of toxins: This could arise from an over-loaded liver, reactions from allergies or feeding on too much junk food continuously like a pig, without giving the body enough time to digest and rest! The body then regards these excess foods as toxins and could lead to inflammation of the skin, hence acne.

So far, we are well on track with our approach to understand the causes of acne and their respective remedies. Let's now open up our minds, reason together and find out how the following natural cures have stood the test of time.

1. Honey: This is a natural antibiotic that contains anti-bacterial properties that can combat P.acnes if applied on the affected skin of a non-allergic sufferer, and later rinsed in periodic intervals like twice or thrice a day.
2. Water: The proverbial eight glasses of water per day is a cure for acne, selectively prescribed according to age, sex and the levels of activity of a person. Water flashes out bacteria and prevents the build-up of bacteria by acting as the medium of excreting them out.
3. Relax. Get enough sleep and avoid acne: This reduces physical and psychological stress associated with hormonal imbalances.
4. Aloe Vera: Other than a sexy name, its leaves can be squeezed to produce a fluid that when applied on affected skin can help fight the bacteria, reduce pains and heal acne scars permanently.
5. Olive oil: This natural lotion contains anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory agents that can effectively put an end to acne and leave no scars behind.
6. Vegetables: A vegetarian diet rich in vitamins A,B and C helps the skin tissues to regenerate and supply the much needed neutralizers of testosterone.
7. Natural anti-androgen e.g: Green tea, pumpkin seeds oil, nettle, spear mint tea, dandelion roots e.t.c. help to cleanse the liver and puts it in perfect shape to be able to process all the toxins and have them excreted through the normal digestive system, instead of having them accumulated on acne nodules. Dandelion roots also help in hormonal balance which is still a task of the liver. Failure to achieving the balance can lead to the excess hormones stored in the skin cells to catalyze excess sebum production leading to acne forming in the hair follicles.

You must have noticed how all of them revolve around fighting bacteria, achieving hormonal balance and combating toxins. These in a nutshell, are some of the most common and accessible natural cure for acne.

Of Honey And Sour Grapes.

Here are two shots of one beehive. It conjures up the bad memories that ended my 2012. I did not sustain any stings however – (In case you are beginning to think along those lines!) – it was a different kind of a ‘sting’. It was more of a sting in my wallet than on my flesh.

Here’s what happened.

I entered into an agreement with a neighbor for the supply of a beehive. All sweet-talk and juicy promises crowned our discussion and, duly convinced on the worth of the project, I honored my side of the bargain with the payment of the full amount of the beehive price. I had played my ball and it was now Ndoro’s (the neighbor) turn. That was on the evening of the last Thursday of last year, 2012.

My new year was ushered in with this pending ‘con-man’ case to deal with. And I started working towards getting hold of him. If by any chance I happen to find out that he misappropriated the money, he will be forced to surrender to me one of his two beehives (see it in photo). At least he told me they belonged to him- and somehow I believed him. I believed him because as I walked with him in the village paths on that day we sealed the deal, he answered to quite a number of requests for honey from people he told me were his previous clients.

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