Nails – the beauty of your hands

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra

Are you taking good care of your nails? Nails are the beauty of the once hands. However, it is important to be informed about how to take good care of our nails and to remember few do’s and don’ts.  

Your fingernails — composed of laminated layers of a protein called keratin — grow from the area at the base of the nail under your cuticle. As new cells grow, older cells become hard and compacted and are eventually pushed out toward your fingertips.

Healthy fingernails are smooth, without pits or grooves. They're uniform in colour and consistency and free of spots or discolouration. Sometimes fingernails develop harmless vertical ridges that run from the cuticle to the tip of the nail. Vertical ridges tend to become more prominent with age. Fingernails can also develop white lines or spots due to injury, but these eventually grow out with the nail.

Not all nail conditions are normal, however. Consult your doctor or cosmetologist or dermatologist if you notice:

• Changes in nail colour, such as discolouration

Stay fit and glow this season

HT City

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra

Is it possible to have the best festivals & holidays and not gain weight? Yes it is. Here are few tips that you can start today, to help you stay fit this Diwali and upcoming festivals.

1. Never go anywhere hungry or empty stomach - You can have an apple or any small serving of food as it fills you up and you will not feel hungry. Always have a little snack before going out for a party or anywhere these days. You can also have yogurt, cottage cheese and homemade trail mix (raw sunflower and pumpkin seeds, dried cherries, raisins, dark choc chips etc) 

2. Stay hydrated – No matter what; always stay hydrated even if you are super busy too. Keep your fluid level high; drink water throughout your day. Staying hydrated will help to prevent any headaches or exhaustion you might normally have during festivals.

3. Remember your CTM rule - Cleaning, toning, moisturizing never ever forget this rule.Moisturize your skin as regularly as possible. Oil protects skin and retains more moisture than a cream. A good body scrub and facial exfoliate can help remove dead skin cells. You can add a few drops of any essential bath oil to your bath everyday for nourishing your skin..

4. Have your Joy Foods - Aim to eat whatever you truly enjoy. Don’t ever eat anything you don’t love. Whatever you’re eating, stop as soon as you stop loving it.

5. Always have opportunities to move - Forget formal exercise routine if it doesn’t work for you & move. Even a simple 10 minute walk in the morning or in the middle of the day in your pencil heels counts. Instead of coming up with excuses, turn them into strategies to work for you. Connect with family & friends, move, shake a leg, play & have loads of fun.

6. All this smoke and pollution from crackers can irritate your skin, especially if you have sensitive skin. Cover your face with a cotton cloth while watching or burning crackers. Wash your face after you are done.

7. Last but not least try the following home made packs: You usually gets busy in preparations and attending guests but take out 10 mins for yourself to look all glowing this diwali. Try these home made packs.

Tomato mask is for oily skin. Mash up a ripe tomato and leave it on your face for 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water.

Banana mask is for dry skin. Again mash up a ripe banana, add some honey and apply it on your face and neck. Keep it for 15 minutes and rinse with water.

One can also use honey mask. Apply pure honey on your face and neck. Allow it to set until dry, say, for 15 minutes. Rinse with lukewarm water.

Care of your coloured locks

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra 

Colouring hair is very much in today. First of all it is very important that you use good shampoos and conditioners on your coloured hairs. Coloured hairs need extra care and attention follows these simple tips to maintain them:

1. Use good shampoo and conditioners that are made for colour treated hair to help retain your colour that are designed to care and boost for your exact hair colour. Lots of big brands have hair product lines of shampoos and conditioners designed especially for blonde, brunette and redhead shades.

2.  Do not wash your hairs at least 48 hours after colouring so that your hair colour has time to settle and grab onto your hair strands. This is a mandatory step if you wish to keep your hair colour lasts long.

3. Use SPF hair products: Look for SPF or UV filters products or serums to protect your color from being faded by the sun and to also help you protect your scalp from sun damage.

4. Avoid touching your hairs often: You may feel like getting your hands off often on your newly treated hairs but try not to do it. As by often touching you could be damaging the cuticle the outermost part of the shaft or unconsciously harming your scalp.

5. Refrain yourself from dryer: Using dryers, curling tongs, or strengtheners etc. makes hair more spongy and spongy hair doesn't hold the colour so well  so let it dry naturally.

6. Trim regularly: Maintain your ends well the healthier your hair, the longer the colour will last, so make sure you take a trip to the salon every six weeks for a regular trimming.

7. Deep conditioning required: Use a weekly hair treatment or a deep hair conditioner to keep your colour in top condition. Moisture locks are especially important for redheads as well nourished locks will keep your colour vibrant.

Revenge Surgery the expensive one..!!

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra 

The pain of getting over an ex is never easy bit now days it seems to be well pricey too.  The trend has been on the rise in the west but it seems to have taken over in India too also. In India the culture of Medical Beauty started long ago when men and women go for Botox, fillers or chin lifts in order to look admirable but the concept has been changed to revenge now. 

Revenge becomes sweet when you look much younger than your spouse who has left you for someone who used to look better than you. Men and women are choosing to go under the knife, sometimes for extreme procedures, and come out as New U and that to make their ex jealous. Having the jilted feeling of losing one’s boyfriend/ husband or girlfriend/wife due to their bad appearance can now leads to take revenge in fact opting for revenge surgery. 

A study has revealed that Personal appearance can be so important to some people that they will go to great lengths to maintain a youthful look. From luring your girlfriend to look young in your son’s marriage to kitty parties every month to corporate lobby parties; Medical Beauty is readily in use everywhere. 

With increasing financial independence and disposable income, women now seem to be going under the knife to move on from that jilted feeling and boost their sense of confidence and self-worth. 

Patients who come to me for such surgeries are often bitter, angry, and jealous over their spouse’s behavior towards them because of their looks. These patients are to be really counseled well. 

The Asian Age

Cosmetic clinics in India are often gets such clientele who wish to undergo cosmetic surgery for such reasons but the patients will reveal such things only when they gets close to the doctor. 

Extramarital affairs are also one such cause for such demands and not only because the husband is seeing someone younger or better looking woman than his wife

Take a Rain Check

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra

During the rains, both the skin and hair suffer due to high humidity. Sweat and oil deposits make the skin and hair really dull. So, adjust your skin and hair care routine according to the season. Oily skin and scalp, open pores, dull skin, hair fall, dryness and dandruff are the problems that crop up during the monsoon. 

The change in weather has a direct impact on the skin, which makes a good maintenance regime very important. To keep Fungal infections, sickly, dull, oily-looking skin is common during the rainy season at bay- please follow the following daily skin regime.

• Cleanse your skin: Washing the impurities away from our skin allows it to breathe. Clean your skin by washing thoroughly with soap and by removing impurities. But to protect the skin's natural oils, avoid anti-fungal and perfumed soaps. Instead use a non-soapy cleanser that ensures deep pore cleansing. Splashing the eyes with cold water also provides great relief.

• Don't rub your face while drying it: The facial skin is very delicate so rubbing it with a towel can cause hyper-pigmentation. Gently pat it dry avoiding any kind of friction.

• Go for comfort wearing: To avoid fungal infection, allow air circulation around your feet. Wear sandals or floaters as far as possible. Use plenty of dusting talc to prevent accumulation of sweat and moisture in skin folds. Those prone to repeated fungal infections can use medicated powders like Absorb, Mycoderm etc.

Deccan Herald

• Go for fruit based face packs and Chemical peels (skin treatment performed by skin experts) These are also an excellent way to freshen up

Skin analysis camp by Cosmetic Skin and Homeo Clinic

 

Our camp got featured in The Hindu 

Dr. Karuna Malhotra

Cosmetic Skin and Homeo Clinic has organized a free skin analysis camp. Around 150 men and women had undergone this health check up camp. 

Around 150 men and women had undergone this health check up camp. The camp included free check ups, skin analysis and consultation and prescribed treatments on various skin issues like acne, under eye dark circles, scars, pigmentation etc and also provided treatments like thread lift procedures, laser hair removal sessions at a concessional rate.

From youngsters to middle aged now a day’s everyone is very conscious about their skin and not only women but men are also very sensitive towards their skin care routine. During this camp we have answered and treated many queries related to acne, scars, under eye dark circles, complexion/colour of faces, fine lines on face, pigmentation, wrinkles, tanning etc.

This camp is conducted with the only objective to help people know their skin type and opt for the right treatment. It will be a pleasure for us to do as many free skin analysis as possible.

Earlier also we have organized the skin analysis camp and gave huge discounts on skin treatments like laser hair removal, 50% off on thread lift procedures, PRP sessions buy 1 and get 1 free and many more. So, keep following my page for more such offers. 

Happy Summers with Sunscreen

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra

The sun is the ultimate culprit for skin ageing and excessive exposure can weaken the skin’s immunity to the sun and lead to skin cancer. According to WHO, nearly 30 million people in India suffers sun tanning every year; out of which two to three million of them are teenagers. More than 90% of the visible changes commonly attributed to skin ageing are caused by the sun.

Using sunscreen lotion or cream is a must factor during summers.  Sunscreen concept was originally created by Austrian scientist Franz Greiter. Sunscreen also commonly known as sunblock, sun tan lotion,  sunburn cream  is a lotion, spray, gel or other topical product that absorbs or reflects some of the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation on the skin exposed to sunlight and thus helps protect against sunburn. 

Taking care of your skin can protect you from the harsh rays especially ultraviolet rays of the sun and lower your risks of developing skin cancer. It doesn't matter if you are male or female; you need photo protection every time you step out in sun.

Homeopath care during Pregnancy

Dr. Karuna Malhotra

Pregnancy is a major physiological change and a major change in our bodies.  As soon as a woman becomes pregnant, the body begins to change so that it can support both her and the unborn. Homeopathy is the ideal form of medicine to treat symptoms associated with pregnancy. Any physiological change in your body disturbs the whole pattern or immune system; homeopathy helps here as it carries no side effects. So, to take homeopathy remedies during pregnancy is best suited.

Medication during pregnancy:

1. Homeopathic treatment can include treating acute ailments such as morning sickness. This can include headaches, digestive problems, interesting food cravings, muscle aches and much more. Actea Racemosa is the medicine which should be taken from the beginning of the third month as it relives pain till the end. It is very important for a pregnant working woman to opt for homeopathy treatment as the stress during pregnancy is at peak and so the pain is
2. For Breech babies - A breech position means that your baby is in a bottom-down position inside your womb. To avoid breech birth pulsatilla should be taken.

Therapies and Massages:

Aroma Oils are aptly suitable in this condition. They are very good source of stress buster.

1. To remove stretch marks – A pregnant woman should have a massage of Wheat Germ oil, Lavender oil and Frankincense oil. Massage it around breast, thigh and abdomen.
2. To avoid Swelling and cramps – Massage the area with Ginger oil, Cypress oil, Lavender oil and til oil.
3. Mostly women complaints about

Natural Hair Conditioners

Dr. Karuna Malhotra

Great-looking hair is something everyone desires, and it is not difficult to achieve. If you eat a well-balanced diet, drink plenty of water and get plenty of rest, it will automatically show on your skin and hair. Although proper hair care and conditioning are vital and is the most important thing you can do for your hair is to keep it clean and well nourished.

Although the market is flooded with expensive options of hair conditioners and masks, we know they are loaded with chemicals. When you can achieve the same effect by using natural ingredients available in your home, then why buy those expensive products.

Here are few good masks which you can try at home and gets fantastic and better results than those expensive ones.

Henna is an herbal treatment with good conditioning abilities.

Egg mask: 

Courtesy, its high protein content, egg masks work best for damaged and dry hair.  Egg yolk protects the hair from the negative effects of chlorine; pollution and UV rays. Eggs are good for every type of hair. Be it oily, normal or dry.

Mix one whole egg with one tablespoon of curd or baby oil and work through your hair. Leave it on for 20 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and use a mild shampoo afterwards to get rid of the eggy smell.

Egg white is a good conditioner for hair. Deep condition with curd, beer and egg. Mix a little vinegar in warm water and rinse your hair with this solution.

Color safe this holi

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra

The festival of color brings along the plethora of skin ailments so please make sure that it doesn’t do

any sort of irreplaceable damage to your skin or hair. Harsh chemicals in these colors can cause itching and rashes which can lead to eczemas upon scratching.

Earlier people use natural gulal or scented flowers for holi. Now-a -days colors are made up of acids, mica, glass powder and alkalis which cause serious injuries like eczema, redness, blisters, extreme redness and flaking of skin. To minimize the potential effects of these on the skin and hair, it's best to take precautions.

Some colors are highly toxic and can even cause cancer. People who handle colors or play Holi are often complain of conjunctivitis, visual impairment, asthma and skin reactions

Dry skin leaves a lot of scope for these harmful chemicals as the skin layer allows the color to penetrate easily so it’s always good to moisturize your skin well with oil or moisturizer before started playing holi.

CHEMICALS FOUND IN MOST COMMONLY USED RANG ON HOLI

Red is obtained from mercury sulphite - may cause skin cancer or Minamata disease (mental retardation, paralysis, impaired vision) 

Green color is obtained from copper sulphate -which may cause allergies in eye or even temporary blindness.

Shiny Colors are a result of powdered glass being added to the colors. 

Purple is obtained from chromium iodide - which may cause bronchial asthma or other forms of allergy

Silver is obtained from aluminum bromide - a known carcinogenic.

Black is obtained from lead oxide - may cause renal failures or learning disability. 

Protect your skin and hair by these handful tips:

• You should oil your hair well before you start playing. Coconut oil and olive oil are fine options to protect your hair from harsh colors.

• Also apply some oil behind your ears, ear lobes and nails as these are points were the color easily settles.

• Avoid sitting in the hot sun, with the colors still on your face or body, after playing Holi, especially if you have used chemical colors. This makes the colors stronger and difficult to wash off. Sit in a shade even if you are outdoors.

• Use more of red or pink colors, which can easily be taken off. Gaudy ones like purple, green, yellow and orange have more harmful chemicals in them and should be avoided.

• Don’t forget to wear waterproof sunscreen before you step out for a day in the sun.

• Wear clothes that cover most of your body. Avoid heavy fabrics like denim that don’t dry easily.

• Cover your head with a thick scarf or bandana.

• Don’t wear lenses when you go out to play. While Holi colors cause irritability, lenses have a tendency to absorb the color, thereby making things worse. Wear glasses and keep wiping them clean from time to time.

How to remove color after playing Holi:

• Hair should be deep conditioned after the wash. Make sure your hair is clean. Apply hair mask after 2-3 days to cure the damage.

• Cleaning the skin and hair after playing with colors is very important. Do not rub the skin vigorously with soaps to wipe the face of gulal, instead opt for a cleanser. Follow this up with lots of moisturizer, especially ones that are meant for sensitive skin.

• Avoid scraping off colors with your finger nails as they will leave unpleasant marks. Gently apply a granular scrub on the body and face to get rid of the colors

• Do not bleach, shave, wax or go for facial or clean ups the following week. Give your skin and body some time to recover from the damage.

• Avoid using kerosene, petrol and spirits to remove stains, as they will make your skin dry.

• Rejuvenate your skin with a mixture of sea salt, glycerine and a few drops of aroma oil have anti-bacterial and anti-fungal effect and can take care of removing chemical colors.

Fight ageing naturally

By Dr. Karuna Malhotra 

The process of ageing cannot be stopped but it can definitely be delayed. Here are the list by which you can delay the ageing process.

Drink Plain Water: Hydrating will help beat that groggy feeling and make your skin looks and feel glowing best (both now and later in life), Water helps in digestion, absorption, transport of nutrients and elimination of the body's wastes. It detoxifies the body and improves skin's turgidity to keep wrinkles at bay.  

Time for some Vitamin C: Bite on some juicy oranges or sweet lime or amla that come loaded with isoflavones. Isoflavones are known to reduce hot flashes in women and increase the bone mineral density. Citrus foods also retain the skin's freshness and glow by acting as sun blockers.  

Have Green tea: Green tea has much anti oxidants. It kick-starts metabolism and can help fend off breast cancer. It slows down the formation of dark circles and wrinkles and also acts as a natural antibiotic that helps in building immunity to