Top tips for holiday health

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School’s out for summer which means many of us are packing up and taking off for a well-earned holiday. With swimming, eating, sight-seeing and partying to do, the last thing you need when you go away is to be ill.

We have put together some top tips that will hopefully keep you healthy so you can chill out and get the break you deserve

Pre-holiday prep
Before you even get in the car, we would strongly suggest you have the following ticked off your to-do list:

Check if you need to have any travel vaccinations and get them done in plenty of time, the last thing you need is to get sick because you aren’t protected.

You might think travel insurance is a cost you can avoid, we think it’s something you can’t be without. Do an online search, find a policy that is right for you and you have the peace of mind knowing that if illness strikes, you can get care.

If you are on regular medication, make sure you have enough to take away with you, and a couple of days supply for when you get home.

In case of minor accidents, be sure to pack basic first aid items such as antiseptic gels and wipes, painkillers, creams, energy tablets, plasters, anti-histamines, and rehydration mixes.

Nip travel sickness in the bud
One of the first things that can go wrong on holiday, is when travel sickness kicks in. Cars, planes, trains, and ferries can all cause that horrible nauseous feeling and even lead to sickness, but you don’t have to suffer. Travel bands and over the counter medicines are one way to deal with this problem, as well as sipping on cooled ginger or peppermint tea. Sit somewhere away from strong smells in the fresh air and take deep breaths to help calm the symptoms.

Keep deep vein thrombosis away
Deep vein thrombosis is rare, but if you are taking a long-haul flight, remember to walk around the cabin and stretch your legs whenever you can. Drink plenty of water, avoid alcohol, and wear loose, comfortable clothes when you travel and if you are worried, there are special socks you can buy before you fly.

Stop stomach bugs before they start
Warmer temperatures, more people, differing cleaning standards and food being left out for longer than usual, are all reasons why stomach bugs can be rampant on holiday and they spread quickly too. The most important thing to remember is to wash your hands, or use an antibacterial gel, after going to the loo, as well as before and after preparing and eating food. Talking about food, while it might be tempting to try something new from a stall or market, this is where germs can lurk and as for the hotel buffet, just be careful about what you choose as you don’t know how long things have been sitting around.

Another really important thing you need to do if you want tummy troubles to stay away, is to only drink bottled water, try to avoid ice cubes from bars and if you’re going for salads and fresh fruit and veg, check they have been cleaned with bottled water.

If problems do strike, you will need to get some rest will the bugs and bacteria pass through your system. This really is the time for bottled water and while we would suggest keeping away from anti-diarrhoea pills, you might want to use rehydration salts. You can try drinking cooled chamomile or peppermint tea as this can be soothing and help you to sleep. If you can keep food down, plain toast and biscuits are a good idea – dairy products are not. If you can’t get things under control and are worried about dehydrating, find a local doctor and seek medical advice.

Mosquitos are not your friends
We know that you have to wear suncream, but you might also want to use an over the counter spray to keep mosquitoes away from your skin. You can also use a few drops of citronella: mix a little with your moisturiser, or use in a burner at night time (but keep an eye on this to be safe). However hard we try to keep safe, bites do happen and if they happen to you, go for an antihistamine tablet or try a cream as these will help to reduce annoying itching and redness, but also remember that aloe Vera products can help soothe bites. Try not to scratch as this can make things worse, and also leave you with scars.

Do not burn
When it comes to sunburn, prevention really is better than cure. Use a suncream that offers your skin the best protection, stay out of the sun between 11am and 3pm, and wear a hat for your head and glasses for your eyes. If you get burnt, take a shower to cool things down and wash away creams, sand, dirt, and chlorine, then apply an aloe gel to cool, calm and hydrate your skin. If things really have got out of hand, think blisters and sores, see a doctor, and don’t go out in the sun until things have cleared up.

Be protected
Coming back from a holiday with a tan is great, arriving home with an STI is not. By all means, go away and have fun, but take protection with you and use it!

Team Pure Beauty

Get the party started at Pure Beauty

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awake, bag, bar, beautifully natural golden glow, bounce, Clary Sage, conditioned, conditioning cleanser, dance, dead skin cells, Decleor Body Firming Oil-In-Cream, Decleor Gradual Glow Hydrating Body Milk, delicate fragrance, Dermalogica Conditioning Body Wash, Dermalogica Daily Cleansing Shampoo, Dermalogica Daily Conditioning Rinse, Devils Apron Seaweed, diary, drinks, dullness, elasticity, Elemis Devils Mint Body Scrub, Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Body Cream and, essential oils of Tea Tree, eucalyptus, events, exfoliation, Extracts of Vanilla, firming oil-in-cream, floral scent, foaming lather, fresh, gentle massaging movements, glows, gorgeous moisturiser, gorgeous products, Grapefruit Essential Oi, healthy and sun kissed, infuse softness, January, lavender, lemon, light, little black dress, look your best, Magnolia Essential Oil, manageability, natural moisturisers, New Year celebrations, nourishing, occasions, office Christmas lunch, orange, parties, party season, Peppermint Essential Oil, perfect dress, purify, quick shower, rich, robust, rosemary, Sandalwood, shiny hair, shoes, showering, silicon-rich sea plant particles, skin firmness, smell, smooth, soap free, soft and silky, sulfate-free shampoo, sunbeds, Tahiti, travel sizes, wash bag, wash your hands

Have a look in your diary and we are pretty sure that from now until January you will have a whole host of festive parties and events to attend. From the office Christmas lunch and drinks with the neighbours, to nights out with the girls and New Year celebrations, this is a busy time of year and it is only natural that you want to look your best.

As well as choosing the perfect dress, finding shoes you can actually walk in and a bag that works for all occasions, you want your skin to look great too. At Pure Beauty, we sell a range of gorgeous products which can help do exactly this.

If you only have time for a quick shower before heading out to a party, may we suggest you use the Dermalogica Conditioning Body Wash. This rich, conditioning cleanser is soap free which means it leaves your body feeling soft and silky every time you step out of the shower. Essential Oils of Tea Tree, Lemon, Eucalyptus and Rosemary purify without stripping natural moisturisers, while Sandalwood, Lavender, Orange and Clary Sage leave your skin conditioned, smooth and smelling great. With travel sizes on sale too, you can pop it in your wash bag, get ready after your last meeting and still look fresh and awake when you arrive at the bar.

If it is smooth skin you want, look no further than the Elemis Devils Mint Body Scrub . Packed with silicon-rich sea plant particles, Devils Apron seaweed and Peppermint essential oil, using this scrub will not only clean your skin, but take away the dead skin cells that cause dullness too. Use in the shower and follow with the Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Body Cream and your limbs will feel satin soft, look silky smooth and you will smell amazing and you dance the night away.

For fresh, shiny hair, look no further than the Dermalogica Daily Cleansing Shampoo. Suitable for everyone, this nourishing, sulfate-free shampoo has a robust, foaming lather that is packed with moisturising oils which infuse softness, and manageability. Follow with the moisture rich Dermalogica Daily Conditioning Rinse for an added bounce, shine and delicate fragrance.

If you want skin that glows, without the damage caused by sunbeds, why not try the Decleor Gradual Glow Hydrating Body Milk? This gorgeous moisturiser not only offers socks into the sink and offers intense nourishment but it builds a beautifully natural golden glow that is perfect for the party season. Extracts of Vanilla from Tahiti have been blended with Magnolia Essential Oil to create a rich, softening lotion which sinks into your limbs and helps them look healthy and sun-kissed. This body milk is best applied to dry skin after exfoliation and showering, using gentle massaging movements evenly over the body and do remember to wash your hands after use.

If you want to firm up your skin before slipping into that little black dress, you might want to consider trying the Decleor Body Firming Oil-In-Cream. This light, firming oil-in-cream helps improve skin firmness and elasticity. It has a fresh, floral scent with hints of Grapefruit Essential Oil, and when used morning and night skin appears smoothed, soft, supple and toned which is just what you want when you are out with friends celebrating Christmas.

If you have any questions, or would like to try out a sample or two, get in touch and we would love to help you find something that works perfectly for you.

Team Pure Beauty

Natural ways to deal with a cold

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When your nose is running, your throat is on fire and you can’t sleep for coughing, being told you just have a cold is little help.

People with a weak, low immune system as well as infants and children, are most prone to catching a cold and the most common kind is known as the ‘rhinovirus’.

When you contract a cold, for the first day or two you will feel fine, but the germs that escape your immune system, start to incubate and replicate in your body. Around day three, you will start to sniff and feel congested and this will be followed by a runny nose, headache, sneezing, as well as muscle aches which will all get worse, before they get better. After about a week, things will ease up and symptoms will disappear so you feel human again.

Most people find over the counter medicines, as well as lots of fluids and rest, help them to feel better, but natural products and remedies can help ease the pain, and we have had a look at a few ideas you might want to try if you do get sick.

A spoonful of honey
The nursery rhyme suggests that a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, but we think that should be honey. Whether you take it straight from the spoon, add it to hot water or milk, honey is well-known for having natural healing and antiviral properties and can be a gentle way to treat a cold and sooth a nasty sore throat. It is thought that the antioxidants help the immune system deal with a virus or cold causing bacteria, and it is believed to be even more true of raw and organic honey.

Epsom bath salts
This might seem old fashioned, but adding one mug of Epsom salts to a bathtub of warm water and soaking in it for around 20 minutes, can help you feel soothed when you have a cold. Keep the water as hot as you can, and it is thought that this natural mineral will go some way to easing those uncomfortable muscle aches and also help you to sleep which can in turn lead to a faster recovery.

Apple cider vinegar
Mix one tablespoon of apple cider vinegar with a glass of warm water and then drink it down, adding some honey to taste. Drinking this mixture two or three times a day, can help to re-balance your body’s pH levels making it harder for the virus to survive.

Essential oils
Mixing a few drops of peppermint and eucalyptus essential oil together and applying a little to your chest, neck, and forehead, can help when you have a cold and are feeling under the weather. You can also put this blend into your bath, or add to a bowl of hot water and breathe the vapour in through your nose and benefit from this natural decongestant!

Go for ginger
Sipping ginger infused water, with a teaspoon of honey, might sound like a basic approach, but it’s a popular one that works. The reason ginger offers relief from cold symptoms, is that it warms up the body, the potent natural anti-inflammatory properties sooth and it’s spiciness helps to clear congestion. Simply crush up a thumbnail of ginger and let it seep in hot water for five minutes before straining and then adding to honey in a new cup. You can also add ginger to warming vegetable soups and super green smoothies and let all that natural goodness help your body bounce back from the germs that are attacking it.

So, wrap up, eat well, drink plenty of water, wash your hands often, carry an antibacterial gel in your bag, and if you do get sick, try some of these ideas to help you on your road to recovery.

Team Pure Beauty

The Smart Guide to University Health

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anti-depressants, antibiotics, antiseptic cream, be careful, big day, booze, cans of baked beans, chips, coffee, contraception, daunting, diabetes, epilepsy, exciting, Exeter, February half term, first aid, free and single, Fresher’s Flu, Fresher’s Week, fun, germs, halls, hangovers, health, Ibuprofen, ice, immune system, inhaler, laptop, life changing journey, long-term relationship, measles, meningitis, mum, mumps, new people, next of kin, NHS Website, NOK, Paracetamol, parties, pizza, plasters, plasters and antiseptic, pregnancies, red book, regular medication, research, safe, say cheese, shared house, St. Andrews, STIs, Student Union, taking out insurance, teeth, tetanus, UCL, University Medical Centre, Vaccinations, vitamin supplement, wash your hands, yoga mat, young

Whether it’s UCL, St. Andrews or Exeter, leaving home to go to university and making it on your own can be exciting and daunting in equal measures.

As well as taking out insurance, packing your laptop, cans of baked beans and yoga mat, we think it’s just as important to take a look at your health before you get in the car and start this life changing journey.

Life in halls or a shared house can be fun, but with mum not there to tell you to wash your hands (we know she still does) or your best mate to remind you to ‘be careful’ when you go on a date, things can soon slide, but we are here to make sure they don’t.

Vaccinations
Your red book will probably be safe in the loft, but before the big days arrives, do some research and just check that your tetanus, measles, mumps and meningitis jabs are all up to date. While you’re at it, the NHS website gives some pretty good advice on what to look for when it comes to symptoms for these illness, so grab a coffee and have a read, just to be on the safe side.

First Aid
Yes, we know this is boring, but packing a mini first aid kit might be a good idea. Paracetamol, ibuprofen, plasters and antiseptic can all be added to the family shop before you go away and you can store them in a biscuit tin and use when the need occurs.

Let’s Talk About Sex
Whether you are in a long-term relationship or are young, free and single, it is worth having a chat with your practise nurse about contraception for when you are away. There will lots of parties, and booze, when you hit Fresher’s Week and while hangovers go away STIs and pregnancies will last for longer, so be safe.

Regular Medication
If you take any other regular medication, maybe anti-depressants or you have an inhaler, make sure you get a supply of these before you leave and then find out who your local GP is or sign up with the University Medical Centre and store their numbers in your phone. Now, if you do have a long-term condition, such as diabetes or epilepsy, you don’t need to broadcast it to the world, but it might be worth giving your flatmates the low down and letting them know where any vital medicines are kept.

Say Cheese
Your teeth are important so have a check up and get any treatment done before you go to uni. You can also use this as a chance to book your next appointment for February half term and if you don’t think you’ll be back, ask your Student Union about local dentists and register, fast, and do the say with the local GP or

Get the Digits Down
Keep a number for next of kin in your mobile phone under NOK or ICE (‘next of kin’ or ‘in case of emergency’) and find out where the local A&E and drop-in health centres are and make a note of the numbers because you never know when you might need them.

Fresher’s Flu
You’ve probably heard the rumours about this one but many freshers go down with a cold type virus in the first half term simply because they are coming into contact with lots of new people and their germs. Try to eat a good diet (not just pizza and chips at midnight), drink plenty of water, take a vitamin supplement and if you can, do get some sleep as all of this will help keep your immune system strong. If you fall ill with a virus, antibiotics won’t help, so wrap up, get some rest and head to that first aid box you thought we were making a fuss about.

Whatever else you do, have fun and enjoy!

Team Pure-Beauty

Celebrate World Chocolate Day

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World Chocolate Day, also known as International Chocolate Day, is here once again on 7th July and it is a great reason to ditch your healthy eating plan and enjoy the good stuff, guilt free.

With so many bars and brands out there, just where do you start when it comes to chocolate?

‘I love nothing more than a Double Decker and quite like Rolos too.”
Jane

“I love dark chocolate and have a couple of squares everyday.”
Danni

“For me it’s chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce.”
Vicky

“I wish I could stop at one chocolate but no, I can eat an entire tray of Thornton’s in one go.”
Annie

Whilst you can go out and buy a Mars Bar, Twix and family bag of Maltesers to enjoy on 7th July, why not make this amazing fool-proof chocolate cake that is bang on the cocoa money.

For one delicious cake you will need:
225g of plain flour
350g of caster sugar
85g of cocoa powder
2 teaspoons of good quality vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons of baking powder and the same of bicarbonate of soda
2 large free-range eggs
125 ml of vegetable oil
250 ml of full fat milk
250 ml of boiling water
For the top of the cake you will need
200g of good quality, dark chocolate
200 ml of double cream
1 large bag of Minstrels or similar

In preparation for baking, wash your hands then preheat your oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 then grease and line two 20cm sandwich tins.

To start making your cake, put all the ingredients, except the water, into a mixing bowl and beat the mixture until smooth and lump free. You can do this using a wooden spoon or an electric whisk.
Next add the boiling water a little at a time, until you have a smooth liquid – don’t worry this is how it is meant to be.

Divide the mix in two and pour into the sandwich tins and bake for around 30 minutes, or until the top of the cakes are firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

When ready, take the cakes out of the over and allow them to cool on a rack before you add the icing.

To make the icing, you will need to put the chocolate and cream in a pan and let them melt over a very low heat. Once they have melted, take away from the heat and whisk the mixture until it is smooth and thick then cover and let it rest for around an hour.

When ready, spread the icing onto the base of one cake, add the second cake then ice the top with the reminder of the mixture.

You can then get creative and add an extra chocolate hit with the Minstrels or sweets of your choice.

Serve as it comes or with ice cream and enjoy!

Team Pure Beauty