A Christmas meal often comprises of roasted turkey, honey glazed ham, roasted goose, rack of lamb, or even classic roast chicken. Finish it off with desserts, and you will have a grand satisfying holiday feast. To get the best out of such a delish meal, you can start off with some light appetizers to keep those hunger pangs at bay as well as save a lot of space for the huge Christmas dinner. Here are some light and savory appetizer recipes for Christmas:

• Marinated beet toasts with yogurt: This toast with a twist makes for a great appetizer as well as side dish. To make this Christmas recipe, you will need 1 pound precooked and vacuum-packed beets (sliced into 1/4-inch wedges), 1 small shallot (finely chopped), 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 4 tablespoons olive oil (divided), 1 teaspoon kosher salt (divided), ½ teaspoon black pepper (freshly-ground and divided), 1½ cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish, one 1 pound loaf of whole-grain bread (sliced into ½ inches, toasted, and halved), 1 small bunch of radishes (thinly sliced), and 2 tablespoons of chopped chives. In a large bowl, mix the shallots, beets, vinegar, three tablespoons of oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and pepper. Toss it once and set it aside. In a medium-sized bowl, mix the horseradish, yogurt, 1 tablespoon oil, and the remaining salt and pepper. Spread yogurt over each toast and top it with the marinated beets, chives, and radishes.
• Pears with blue cheese and prosciutto: This simple appetizer needs barely 10 minutes to be whipped up. You need 2 pears cut into 8 wedges, 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice, 1 cup arugula, 3 ounces of blue cheese cut into small pieces, and 6 ounces of thinly sliced prosciutto cut in half, lengthwise. Toss the pears and the lemon juice in a large bowl. On a piece of prosciutto, layer a slice of pear, an arugula leaf, and a piece of cheese. Roll this up and serve.
• Tender greens with champagne vinaigrette: Made with fresh greens, this salad is a colorful addition to a Christmas meal. This Christmas recipe needs 2 ½ teaspoons of Dijon mustard, ¼ cup Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, 1 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 large shallot (finely chopped), 1 head Boston or Bibb lettuce, ½ cup fresh dill sprigs, ¾ cup fresh whole flat-leaf parsley leaves, 1 ½ tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves (roughly chopped), ¼ cup fresh chives (chopped), and ¼ cup fresh whole chervil leaves. To make the vinaigrette, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, and honey with 1 ½ tablespoon of water. Slowly, add oil to this while whisking. Combine the fresh greens in a large bowl and serve with the vinaigrette on the side.

Apple is the leading brand, which always provides the latest technology to their customers. The apple products are known for the amazing quality and latest use of technology. When it comes to the popularity of this company, the apple iPhones are the best example of it. The apple iphone comes along with great features, which always amaze people and make them crazy.

When it comes to buying an iphone, people always ready to buy the latest model of iphone. As we all know that iphone is a big investment of money. These phones never come at a cheap price. But, after launching the new model of iphone series the price of old model drops and people get an advantage of a price drop. But, the new iphone price remains same for a long time. The high price of iphone put people in confusion and plays a role of a barrier.

Apart from the high rate, the crazy of iphone always high in all age people and the company breaking records by selling more and more products. If you are the one who is strongly willing to buy a new iphone, then you need to look few things. Yes, buying an iphone is the most exciting event in the life of every person. But, you should consider few things for enjoying a new iphone without any issue.

So, do you know what you need to look before buying an iphone model?. In this article, we are going to discuss all the considerations that you have to look. So, read more to know.

The popularity and demand of the new iphone always remain high in the people. So, the first thing, which you have to look, is availability. Yes, you will find iphone model at many stores. But, it is not sure that a store has stock at all the time. In the starting month, the sales of new iphone stay at the top and it is the most demanding time. People like to get the latest model as soon as possible. It may be possible that you can’t get the stock of iphone in the stores at all the time. So, always check the availability of iphone at a store. If you want to buy the latest model after the launching, then do contact with a store to know when the stock will come. It will help you to get an idea of availability and you can make your purchasing easy.

Apart from this, most of the time, the latest model of iphone can’t reach soon at stores. In this case, you have to look the online websites as well. Yes, the online portals are one of the best options, where you can get the latest iphone at the surprising price. The online stores didn’t add so many taxes including a store and directly purchase the model by manufacturing contractor. That is why a store provides the new iphone at a lower price as compared to the retailers.

It is better that you always do good research before buying an iphone. It will help you to get the latest model at a discount price and you can keep your savings in your pocket. So, take the decision wisely and always go with the reliable service provider. After all, you are going to spend money. And, it is better that you spend your money at the place and get the best model without any complaints. Just keep these two things in your mind while planning for an iphone. Both will help you to have an iphone with a hassle-free way.

Wet food is messy, especially for cats. So, you can get dry food for your pet cat. But you need to choose the best dry cat food. This will ensure that the pet is getting all the required nutrition.
Cats are generally known to be messy eaters. If you offer wet food to it, you may find it all over the room. To prevent this, you need to offer dry food to cats. But dry foods are not as attractive to them as wet foods. Moreover, wet foods are high in nutritional content. If you are substituting wet food with dry food, you need to have the best dry cat food. This will ensure that the animal gets enough nutrition. However, dry foods are also notorious for their adverse effects on cats. Therefore, you need to be selective and choose the best.

Let us go through a list of ingredients that should not at all be present in the best dry cat food.

Potato

Dry foods already have a notoriety for stoking diabetes. Potato is a high glycemic food, meaning that it can precipitate a spike in blood sugar. Like human beings, cats too are prone to diabetes and blood sugar, if you offer it potato or food containing potato regularly. So dry foods containing potato is not at all good for your pet cat. However, you can proceed with sweet potato. Though it is sweet, it does not stoke diabetes or blood sugar.

By-products

Many companies in the pet cat food business prepare the food from byproducts of other industries such as poultry. But these are not good. Pet foods containing byproducts of other industries may cause a variety of health problems in your cat. It may suffer from allergies, stomach irritation, diarrhea, vomiting etc. If it has a sensitive stomach it can often exhibit these symptoms. So, the best dry cat food should not at all contain byproducts.

Gluten

Corn contains gluten, and most pets like cats and dogs are allergic to it. So you must see that the cat is not given a food which contains grains like wheat, corn, and soy. The best dry cat food must not contain glutinous substances.

High-carb content

Foods containing high amounts of carbohydrates, such as white rice, can precipitate blood sugar. Since pets are not used to much activity, high carb food can easily stoke diabetes. Moreover, pets don’t digest carbohydrates well. So, the best dry cat food should not have a high carb content.

Artificial preservatives and colors

Most cats don’t tolerate artificial preservatives and colors. Some of these elements are even harmful to the cat. Vitamin K3, which is produced synthetically, can be a dangerous food for your pet cat. This particular synthetic product may be toxic to the liver, kidneys, and heart of the cat. So the best dry cat food should not at all contain artificial preservatives and colors.

Artificial sweetener

While sugar is not good for pets, artificial sweeteners are the worst. Artificial sweeteners like Xylitol can lead to sudden fall in blood sugar level. These products may cause a sudden release of insulin leading to a drastic fall in sugar levels in the blood. All this can happen within half an hour of eating. It is also harmful to your pet’s liver. Such artificial sweeteners are usually present in candy, gum, mouthwash etc. However, some low-quality foods may also contain these substances. The best dry cat food does not contain any of these substances.

Contents of the best dry cat food

The best dry cat food must be balanced in all respects. A cat needs nutrients like various vitamins, amino acids, minerals, proteins, and fat. It needs meat since there are some nutrients which it can obtain only from meat.

So, the best dry cat food must contain meat but should not contain any grain. There are a number of such brands in the pet food market.

Cold sores or fever blisters are caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV-1). As per studies carried out by the World Health Organization (WHO), it affects almost 65% adults over the age of 50.

Cold sores, which are often mistaken for canker sores, appear on the upper part of the body or in the areas surrounding the lips and mouth. However, it can appear in any part of the body.

There is no foolproof cure for cold sores, but there are various cold sore treatments to help reduce the intensity, length, and frequency of a breakout. The top five home remedies that you can use for cold sore treatments are:

• Ice packs: Though ice may not reduce the duration of the breakout, it will surely ease the discomfort and reduce the inflammation. It is one of the easiest and most accessible methods of cold sore treatments, which will give you instant relief from pain and itching.
• Aloe vera: Whether you use the gel form or apply it directly from the plant, aloe vera is one of the most effective and soothing cold sore treatments. Applying aloe vera will soothe the skin and its anti-inflammatory properties will help reduce the breakout.
• Lemon balm: The anti-inflammatory properties of lemon balm are well known as it helps in reducing redness and swelling of the blisters. It also has soothing properties that give you comfort from the itchiness and pain of cold sores.
• Lemon tea: Drinking lemon tea at frequent intervals cleanses the body internally and reduces breakout and the frequency of cold sores. Lemon tea and green tea have powerful antioxidants and Vitamin C, which help in boosting the immunity of your body.
• Vitamin E: Vitamin E found in green leafy vegetables, nuts, whole grains etc. help in repairing damaged skin cells and should be included in your diet so that it can heal the skin, which has been infected by cold sores.
• Reduce stress: Hormones can flare the occurrence of cold sores. So reducing your stress level can surely control its breakout.

Training your horse is not the easiest thing to do, and certain aids can make this task a whole lot simpler. They can help break bad habits, achieve the perfect outline, and even help the horse better understand instructions. But choosing the right horse training can be a difficult and time-consuming task. To make it simpler, here are a few aids that are essential for every beginner.

Halter
Halters are commonly used training aids that allow the rider to manage and control the horse. It is typically made of a long nylon rope and is knotted in a specific way that makes it a halter. You may also find rope halters that are made out of leather. The rope halter comes with loops at the bottom that allow you to connect your reins to it. The knots on the halter are also tied in a manner where they rest over the pressure points of the horse’s face. This allows the rider to communicate pressure as well as release to the horse during the process of training. It is also very important to apply just enough pressure and not too much since the halter is placed on the horse’s face. It is important to remember that the halter is used for communication and not to hurt or punish the horse in any way.

Lead rope
A lead rope, also known as a lead, is another essential piece of horse training aid. It is attached to the halter and can be either integrated into the halter or added as an external training aid. When attached externally, the lead rope is connected by a large and heavy clip. This allows you to remove and use the lead as and when required. The lead rope is great when it comes to laying the groundwork for day-to-day training activities. What many do not know is that the longer the lead rope the better. This is because a longer lead rope allows you to easily maneuver the horse. It also makes communication easy as the horse can be at some distance from the ride rather than being directly next to them.

Lunge whip
Another vital horse training aid is the lunge whip. This is a long whip that is typically over 4 ft in length and is used to lunge the horse in a circle around you. Aside from this, the lunge whip can be used for desensitizing and communicating with the horse. It is very important to remember that the lunge whip merely exists as a way to educate the horse rather than to punish them. Use them carefully as you do not want the horse to be afraid of them.

An inflammation in the meninges is termed as meningitis. The spinal cord and brain are covered by the three membranes of meninges. The fluid covering the meninges gets infected and that condition is called as meningitis. A person with meningitis will have a stiff neck, headache, and fever due to the swelling. These are some of the early symptoms of meningitis. There are different types of meningitis and each one of them is caused due to different infections. They may get cured in just a few weeks without any kind of treatment, but some of them can be life-threatening and one will need to see a doctor.

Causes of meningitis
The most common form of meningitis is viral meningitis. This is followed by bacterial meningitis. Fungal meningitis is a very rare infection.

• Viral meningitis: Viral Meningitis is very mild and it does not have major symptoms. The symptoms go away on their own in a few days. However, there might be extreme cases when herpes virus, mumps, HIV and West Nile virus cause this problem. This form of meningitis is not generally contagious. For example, viral meningitis caused by mosquitoes is not contagious.
• Bacterial meningitis: When the bacteria enters the bloodstream and travels to the spinal cord and brain, this results in bacterial meningitis. Streptococcus pneumonia, Haemophilus influenza, Neisseria meningitides, and Listeria monocytogenes are the common causes of bacterial meningitis. Skull injuries, ear infection, post-surgery infections, and sinus can also cause this kind of meningitis.
• Fungal meningitis: Fungus is a very rare cause of meningitis. It is something similar to bacterial meningitis and it is definitely not contagious and does not spread from person to person. Cryptococcal meningitis is one of the common forms of fungal meningitis. It is caused when the immune system becomes weak due to disease such as AIDS. One needs to take antifungal medicine or else it can get life-threatening.
• Chronic meningitis: Fungi is a slow-growing organism and can affect the fluids that surround the meninges of the spinal cord and brain. This is called chronic meningitis. It develops in a span of two weeks or more.

Is meningitis contagious?
Usually, bacterial and viral meningitis is contagious and the other types of meningitis do not spread from person to person. But it is always good to take a little extra care when around a person with meningitis.