Commonly known as a natural treatment of depression St John's Wort (botanical name hypericum perforatum) has many more joyous beneficial properties to celebrate.

You see it contains an active ingredient called hypericin which has anti-inflammatory properties. It is believed to reduce eczema symptoms and soothe swollen areas or abrasions of the skin. It is perhaps for this that it can be used in its extract form as an ear drops for ear infections, ear pain, or tinnitus. Also the chemical constituent hyperforin found in St John's Wort has antibacterial and antibiotic properties.

Studies are being undertaken to measure how effective it inhibits a part of the brain that may alleviate the symptoms of attention ddeficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). But the herb that elevates serotonin and energy levels in the body is not without its side effects when taken internally. Dizziness, dry mouth and constipation are the main ones though these are far less extreme than standard pharmaceutical antidepressants and many studies have found just as effective for some types of depression.

Two calming skin care products that contain St John's Wort are the Almond St John's Wort Body Oil by Dr.Hauschka and the Aaag! Herbal Bath Bags by Hedgerow Herbals for stress, sadness and tension.

Anyone who has spent a long day sitting in front of a computer will likely know the feeling of Computer Eye Syndrome. Even if you don't have eye sight problems your vision feels a little blurry when you look away from the screen, your eyes feel tired, dry or watery, sore and sometimes itchy. As many of us spend a entire working hours in front of computer it's important to look after our bodies if we want to avoid long term associated illnesses with too much energy zapping computer time.

Sitting at least an arm's length away from the screen, taking regular breaks and avoiding glare on the screen from surrounding light source by positioning your computer or lamp at a suitable angle will help reduce eye irritation. As we generally stare more, i.e. blink less frequently, when looking at a computer it's important to keep eyes moisturised. Do this either naturally by remembering to blink or using mild eye drops.

Taking a moment to freshen up the skin around the eyes will also help. A spray toner or nourishing eye cream can help to cool down tired, burning and sensitive skin around the eyes.

Eating plenty of foods rich in lutein and zeaxanthin will help prevent loss of vision by reducing the risk of muscular degeneration that naturally occurs as we age. Foods like Spinach, sweetcorn, kale and orange peppers are high in these nutrients. Also bilberry extract is believed to improve both normal and night vision so supplements of this may help computer eyes in the long run.

Organic body butter is to the skin what luxury organic chocolate is to the taste buds - divine. A body butter is one of the most natural ways to restore suppleness and moisture to the skin virtually in an instant. So thick and intensive is it's effect it actually creates a protective barrier to help dry or cracked skin heal itself.

Cocoa, shea and mango butter are three of the best ingredients used in organic body butters. Cocoa is very rich and high in antioxidants; best for sunburn, scars, stretch marks and wrinkles. Shea is rich in vitamins A, E and F and enhances skin renewal and increased circulation. It's good for eczema, dry skin and nappy rash. Mango butter is high in essential fatty acids and antioxidants. Incredibly moisturising mango butter is good for stretch marks and restoring skin elasticity.

Some of the best organic body butters and lotions available are the Geranium & Orange Body Butter (with shea butter) by Neal's Yard Remedies, Rescue Me Face & Body Cream S.O.S (with shea butter) by Barefoot Botanicals, Rose & Geranium Body Lotion (with cocoa butter) by Neal's Yard Remedies and Combination Skin Balancing Cream with Calendula (with mango seed butter) by Lavera Faces.

Carrots, you may have noticed, are in quite a few organic beauty products. To some it sounds a little odd that a vegetable they're used to boiling with the spuds or grating for the salad at dinner time would be useful for the outside of the body as well as in.

Carrot seed oil is high in beta carotene and vitamin A. These help to maintain skin elasticity and reduce the appearance of wrinkles (not to mention improve poor vision if a person is lacking in the vitamin). This is why carrots are found in many anti-aging products.

The carotenoids in carrots help to protect the skin against the damage caused by ultra violet rays. The pleasant irony of this is that it also provides a natural tanning boost when applied (hypercarotenemia, the over consumption of carrots, is the condition that turns the skin orange but is in no way dangerous).

Some popular organic skin care products you will find carrots (botanical name Daucus carota) are Carrot Cream by Lavera Basis, Eye Cream for Night by Green People and Cream Cleanser by Trilogy.

Rich in minerals and antioxidants, when drunk as a juice, carrots give the skin a natural glow and helps to remove indigestible fibre. The root vegetables can be used to treat intestinal parasites, tonsillitis, constipation and other digestive problems.

A World first in Organic Hand Sanitizers for Bentley Organic...

Bentley Organic, the family-owned Yorkshire personal care products company, has launched the first organic hand sanitizer proven by the UK Government's Veterinary Laboratories Agency to kill the H1N1 Influenza A virus, more commonly know as swine flu. The 'Anti-bacterial Moisturising Hand Sanitizer' is made with 90% organic ingredients and contains Aqualin, a product which replaces synthetic preservative systems such as parabens and phenoxyethanol, with natural fruit acids and plant derived surfactants.

Several hundred thousand pounds have been put into developing the formula and tens of thousands spent on the necessary testing to ensure that the product becomes the market pioneer in hand sanitizers.

The Bentley Organic Hand Sanitizer, which The VLA identified as being non-toxic to the test system as well as killing the H1N1 virus, also kills 99.9% of other germs and can be used in the absence of towels or water, with no stickiness or residue to the user.

It has also been certified by the Soil Association as have other personal care, household cleaning, and baby care products in the Bentley Organic Range.

The products are sold widely in the Independent Health Food sector in the UK, Europe and the US and the range has also been recently awarded a national listing with a large US retailer.

Jamie Bentley, chief executive of Bentley Organic, said: "I am extremely proud, as the founder of Bentley Organic, to have developed a retail product that is the market pioneer worldwide"

"We are launching it at a time when swine flu is coming back into the spotlight, with the winter months fast approaching, we hope that people we use the new product, confident in its abilities to kill the H1N1 virus whilst also being gentle on the user"

"After a culmination of years of work, we have developed a product that is affordable, organic, moisturising, and really works"

"As the CEO of  Bentley Organic, I am delighted that here in Yorkshire we are able to develop a world class product that not only benefits the employees of the Bentley Organic, but puts Yorkshire manufacturing where it should be - at the forefront of technical innovation."

Buy Bentley Hand Sanitizer at www.SoOrganic.com for £2.99 for a 125 application bottle. Save £1 when you Buy 2.