Why You Should Not Have To Shave Your Newborn Baby's Hair Until Bald

Baby's Hair Cut Ceremony.
Photo credit: ummu uswah.

In Javanese culture, shaving a newborn baby's hair until bald, after the age of 35 days, is a common thing. Back then, I was experienced the same thing as in Javanese culture, had my hair shaved until bald by my late grandmother.

But, I was not doing it to both of my children. My first daughter had a thick and black hair when she was born. It seemed a little bit weird, if I had to shave her hair until bald. Unlike me when I was a baby, I only cut a little bit of my children's hair after they aged 35 days.

The Javanese Culture of Selapanan

The Javanese ritual of cutting newborn baby's hair aged 35 days, or called as selapan age, exactly at the baby's Javanese weton day of birth. For example: If a baby was born in Sabtu Legi, June 1, 2013. Then the baby's selapanan ceremony will be held in Sabtu Legi, July 6, 2013.

The second Javanese ritual is for a baby aged seven lapan, or 245 days is called tedak sinten, which means to get down in the ground ceremony. Based on the book of Primbon Betaljemur Adammakna by Kanjeng Pangeran Harya Tjakraningrat, the ritual ceremony may not only be held when the baby is at the age of 245 days, but also at the age of 70 days, 105 days, 140 days, 175 days and 210 days. The book is also not mentioned that the newborn baby's hair should be shaved until bald.

The Moslem Tradition of Akika

90% of Indonesian people are moslem, and shaving a newborn baby's hair until bald is a must thing to do, while performing aqiqah, or akika, within seven days after birth, according to the hadith of Ashabussunah (HR: Imam Ahmad, Ashhabus Sunan, and At Tirmidzi).

Is it true that shaving a newborn baby's hair until bald, will make the hair grows thicker?

Indonesian people, especially the Javanese believed that shaving a newborn baby's hair until bald, will make the hair grows thicker. Just like when grasses or leaves are cut, to grow them faster.

The fact, hair is different from grasses or leaves. Hair grows from the follicle beneath the surface of the scalp. The hair growth rates are different in every people. The genetics play a key role in the hair growth. The average rate is about one and a half inch per month. So, whatever we do to the hair on the outside, will have no effects on the hair that is growing in the follicle. Both my children's hair from they were born with, had lost all them, a little by litle, until the age of a year old.

Fontanel, The Door of The Soul

If the eyes are the window of soul, the Javanese people believed that human's ubun-ubun, or fontanel, the crown of the head, is the door of the soul. When a man die, his soul is came out from his fontanel to be taken by the death angel. And so is when a three months fetus in the uterus is given a life by The Lord through its fontanel.

Based on my children's experience, both of them were more immune to diseases, and only sufferred from a light cough, cold or fever, that should not have to stay in the hospital to receive intensive medication. I believed that their immunity had to do with their fontanel, in which was still covered with their hair.

My second son had a thin fontanel in his bald hair since birth. Until he was at the age of four months, his fontanel was still softer than his elder sister when she was at the same age. Because it, I grew my son hair until he was at the age of three years old, and only cut it once when he aged selapan, or 35 days old. Back then, everybody always thought that my son was a pretty girl, due to his long thin hair.

Why do I say that fontanel is the door of the soul? Have you ever been with a person who is at the end of his life? Did you notice the temperature of the his body? The cold of his body rise up from the feet to the head?

So, the Javanese ritual was different from the Moslem tradition, in doing the shaving of a newborn baby's hair. Nowadays, most Indonesian people are combined both ritual, not just in seven days, but after the baby aged 35 days old, whether it will be until the hair is bald, or just a little bit.

Cardioprotective Effects of Kudzu

The Flower of Kudzu.

Kudzu, or known botanically as Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi, are considered as noxious weeds, which harmful to some living things. For more than 2000 years, traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM), have been used kudzu root as folk medicines for the treatment of fever, acute dysentery, diarrhea, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Kudzu are also believed to possess antiarrhythmic (cardioprotective), hypotensive, hypoglycemic, and anti-Alzheimer's disease properties.

Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the world, though more than 80% occurs in low-income and middle-income countries. A case-control study of acute myocardial infarction (heart attack), in 52 countries, 15,152 cases and 14,820 controls, had found that, abnormal lipids, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, abdominal obesity, psychosocial factors, habits (consumption of fruits, vegetables, and alcohol), and regular physical activity, explained for the risk of myocardial infarction in the world. (Yusuf S, et al. 2004)

Cardioprotective Effects of Puerarin

Puerarin, an isoflavone isolated from the root of kudzu, had been observed its effect on heart function and serum oxidized-LDL (ox-LDL) cholesterol. Ox-LDL is LDL cholesterol that has been bombarded by free radicals, a marker of lipoprotein associated oxidative stress, which plays a key role in the progression of diabetes complications, and atherosclerosis, or arteriosclerotic vascular disease, a condition in which an artery wall thickens, as a result of the accumulation of fatty materials such as, cholesterol and triglyceride.

The study of puerarin in 78 patients with chronic cardiac failure, suggested that puerarin may improve the clinical heart function, increase the left ventricular ejection, and decrease the level of ox-LDL. (Duan S, et al. 2000)

A study in Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China, to determine the mitochondrial mechanism of puerarin cardioprotective effect against H202-stress in rats, had found that puerarin protects cardiomyocytes (cardiac muscle cells) against H2O2-stress. (Yang B, et al. 2008)

The Circle of Sudden Death

The main predictive factors of silent myocardial infarction, in which I call it as the circle of sudden death, are hypertension, history of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes duration. A diabetic patient often has a high blood pressure, and has potential risk on getting a silent heart attack.

A study which aimed to investigated the myocardial protective effects of puerarin, on streptozotocin induced diabetic rats, had resulted that puerarin could improve the left ventricular function of diabetic rats and showed protective effects of myocardium (heart muscle tissue). (Pan ZY, et al. 2009)

Kudzu as Herbal Supplement

Kudzu are sold as herbal supplements in Amazon.com and other online shops. But, kudzu products are promoted only to support liver health, to treat hangover as anti-alcohol, and detoxification. There are no products description that promoted kudzu as natural cardiovascular drugs.

Even though kudzu are considered to be noxious weeds, or toxic to some living things, but in human, kudzu could be used to treat cluster headache, one sided head pain that may involve tearing of the eyes and a stuffy nose.

Two kudzu herbal supplements which are sold on Amazon.com:

Vitacost Kudzu Root Extract	Planetary Herbals Kudzu Recovery

What Makes You To Have Cajuput Oil in Your First Aid Kit

Photo credit: arnistm.

Cajuput is derived from the old Bahasa Indonesia spelling, kaju putih, which means white wood. In old Bahasa Indonesia spelling, the letter of J is read as Y, while DJ is read as J. Cajuput (Melaleuca leucadendra Linn.) has many synonyms such as Melaleuca cajuputi Roxb., Melaleuca cumingiana et lancifolia Turcz., Melaleuca minor Sm., Melaleuca saligna B., Melaleuca viridifolia Gaertn., Myrtus leucadendra Linn, and Melaleuca saligna Gmel.

There are also many common names for cajuput, such as, ai kelane, bai qian ceng (白千层), bru galang, cajeput, cajeputol, cineol, elan, eucalyptol, gelam, ghelam, ilano, inggolom, irano, irono, kayu gelang, kayu putih, lren, ngelak, nggielak, sakelan, swamp tea tree, waru gelang, and white tea tree. Cajuput, Tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia Linn.) and Gum tree (Eucalyptus obliqua) are from the same family plant of Myrtaceae. Their leaves can be distilled to make an essential oil, in which have similar effects and smell.

Cajuput can grow on a barren land, heat resistant and can sprout back after a fire. Cajuput can be found from the lowlands up to 400m asl. Cajuput can grow near the coast, behind mangrove forests, in a boggy ground, or forming a small forest on dry land until wet.

Cajuput tree is 10-20 m high, multi-layered leather stem, white with grayish colored of its irregular exfoliate skin surface. Small stem with branching that hang down. Single leaf, quite thick like leather, and short stalk. The leaves when squeezed, or crushed will smell of cajuput oil. (Sentra Informasi IPTEK)

Cajuput Oil

Cajuput oil is a volatile oil from the fresh leaves and twigs of cajuput. It used as a stimulant, rubefacient in rheumatism, muscle and joint pain, flavoring, stimulant, antiseptic, expectorant, and anthelmintic. Precautions to use by pregnancy women, breast feeding mom, and a person with hypersensitivity to tea tree plant. (Medical Dictionary)

Minyak Kayu Putih Cap Lang

An Indonesian original product manufactures, in Jakarta, Indonesia, which is found in 1963, has been exported through out the world, and is found to be sold online on Amazon.com.

Cajuput Oil vs. Insects

I had described how I used Minyak Kayu Putih Cap Lang to get rid of head lice naturally on my previous post.

Though in the bottle of Minyak Kayu Putih Cap Lang is only said to help relieve muscle aches, abdominal pain, flatulence, nausea, and itching from insect bites. But, I managed to use it to treat eczema, and itcy rashes that I often suffered.

So far, I could not find any referrences on scientific evidence which indexed in PubMed. Only a study by Malaysian scientists who demonstrated aerosol spray of cajuput oil effects against dangerous mosquitoes. But, this 2012 study explained to what I had been experinced in my early post, on how a louse died from a single drop of cajuput oil.

An aerosol spray of cajuput oil was evaluated against the dengue vectors Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus, at low cost housing flats, in Section 10, Setapak, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The study suggested that extracts of cajuput essential oils possess an adulticidal effects (the ability to kill adult heartworm as distinct from that used to kill the microfilarial, or larval stages), and could be considered, as well as to be utilized for future dengue vectors control. (Abu Bakar A, et al. 2012)

Cajuput Oil to Awaken from Unconsciousness Seizure

Back in May 28, 2011, after I watched Champions League Final football match between Barcelona vs. Manchester United, in local TV channel, my three years old son, Michael, experienced an absence seizure, due to high fever.

Absence seizures involve an interruption to consciousness, where the person experiencing the seizure seems to become vacant, unresponsive for a short period of time, usually up to 30 seconds, and slight muscle twitching may occur.

To avoid a tongue biting by my unconscious son, I used cajuput oil to awake him, by rubbing the oil all over to his nose and lips, because his mouth is blocked by his teeth. Not less in five seconds, he was awaken. Then, I took a warm water to compress all of his body. After that, I left him with my wife at 4 am, in the morning, to get an anti fever drugs in nearest pharmacy.

My mom always told me that seizure may be dangerous, if the kids were not being awaken first, before being taken to the hospital. In a case of tonic clonic seizures, death may occur on the way to the hospital, due to tongue biting, urinary incontinence, and the absence of breathing. My mom was experinced in dealing with seizures, because I often got seizures, when I was below the age of five years old.

Can I Drink Cajuput Oil?

Even though all cajuput oil manufacturers forbid the products for internal use, and only for external use. But, according to dr. Adji Suranto, SpA, an Indonesian pediatric, a member of Perhimpunan Dokter Indonesia Pengembang Kesehatan Tradisional Timur (Indonesian Doctors Association of Advanced Eastern Traditional Health), in Jakarta, cajuput oil can be used as an oral medication to treat colds, throat infection, worms intestine, cholera, colic and as a gargle for mouth cavity infections.

For internal use, one to ten drops of 100% cajuput oil, mixed with a grain of sugar cubes (about 4 grams), and dissolved in a glass of drinking water. When used as an oral medication, it should be dissolved first to pay attention on the proportion. But, if the oral medication is used excessively, it might lead to an increasing of heartbeat and excessive sweating. (Majalah Anakku)

Cajuput to Treat Diabetes and Obesity

A study is indexed on Journal of Natural Medicines, April 2013, Volume 67, Issue 2, pp 264-270, by Azis Saifudin, Shigetoshi Kadota, Yasuhiro Tezuka, from the Institute of Natural Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan. The study demonstrated the water and methanol extracts of 28 Indonesian medicinal plants, in which among them were cajuput, for their protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP-1B) inhibitory activities.

PTP-1B is a negative regulator of the insulin signal transduction cascade, initiated when insulin binds to the insulin receptor. PTP-1B is used as a target for the treatment of impaired glucose tolerance, and type 2 diabetes. PTP-1B deficient mice are more sensitive to insulin, improved glycemic control, and resistance to diet induced obesity, than wild type control mice. (Liu G, et al. 2002)

With four other plants water extracts, the water extracts of cajuput at 2.05 μg/mL, exhibited strong inhibitory activity. The results suggest that, all 28 Indonesian medicinal plants may contribute for the treatment, or prevention of type 2 diabetes, and obesity through PTP-1B inhibition. (Saifudin A, et al. 2013)