A Pill for Every Ill (how to cure yourself from anything)

I wanted to do a section on Disease because my youngest brother had to deal with a pretty nasty one growing up, and it kills me to think about all of the people out there expecting the doctors to cure them. The reality is, there is no cure, there is no magic pill.

Everyone who is sick is having a malfunction in their body, just like a car might have issues with its mechanics. That malfunction can take years to manifest as symptoms or it can happen in days. However the malfunction shows, the root of it is that your body isn’t getting what it needs to function properly. Your DNA contains all of the blueprints to keep you alive and healthy. Either some toxin is blocking nutrients from doing their job, or there are not enough nutrients for the body to do what it needs to do. Whenever you have a health concern, you have to view it from this perspective.

If you have an issue with toxicity and you go to the doctor and he gives you a pill, you are just adding to the toxic load on your body. If you are missing a nutrient, sure, supplementing it can help, but only if it is given through an IV. Most of the issues with lack of nutrients are a result of  complications in the digestive system. Taking a supplement orally during times of poor nutrient absorption, your body will just flush it all through.

This brings me back to the idea of Cleanses. The first step in most healing processes is going to be to Cleanse the intestinal tract and detoxify the liver and kidneys. Any Nutritionist or Naturopath can guide you in this first step. The next step is to figure out what is the main first health concern in your body. If it is poor nutrient absorption in the intestines, you have to focus on a diet that balances that system out. “Breaking the Vicious Cycle, Intestinal Health Through Diet”, GOTTSCHALL, is an amazing resource for anyone with Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn’s, Leaky Gut, Celiacs, Fibromyalgia, and Gluten and Lactose intolerance. Almost everyone who eats a Western diet full of processed foods and refined flour and sugars, has some issue of toxicity and partially digested food matter that lingers in the gut. A colonic and cleanse are the best way to give yourself a chance to absorb the most nutrients from your food.

This leads into the next major step on your journey to health, food. You have to start thinking about what is in your food and where it came from. You have to consider, is this going to provide nutrients or is it going to feed the bacteria in my gut? Is it real whole foods like plants and animals, or is it a processed, preserved, chemically tainted illusion? Was it grown in nutrient dense, healthy soil, or fertilized and sprayed with toxic chemicals? Is it living or dead?

That last question is super important. Most people are not aware that cooked food is not what our bodies want. We developed cooking in order to preserve foods and break down seemingly inedible things into more inedible parts. Our body views this sub par organic material as an intruder and actually floods your intestine with white blood cells. On top of creating and immune response, cooking kills or denatures most of the active enzymes in plant matter. Those enzymes help in breaking down and absorbing the nutrients from the plant once it in in your body, so cooking them out means you absorb even less of the useful vitamins and minerals.

The BEST possible food is Local Organic Plant matter. Why? It takes the least amount of time from soil to your body, meaning it has the most nutrients possibly available. Most produce in the grocery store has traveled at least 5 days or more and in that time has lost up to 40% of its available nutrients. Eating locally and seasonally allows you to boost your immune system naturally as well. Every plant that grows organically and is allowed to face the bugs and pest and diseases of nature, makes these things called Phytochemicals as a response to them. Basically they are plant made natural antifungals and antibacterials and antivirals that perfectly match the germs and micro-organisms that exist where you exist. When you eat them, your body has an instant boost to its ability to fight whatever is existing in that community with you and the plants. In the past, people ate locally and organically by necessity, and were happier and healthier for it. It was really access to cheap fossil fuels and Government Subsidies that forced food away from the people eating it. Now you have a choice as a conscious adult to do what you need to do for your body and the community.

It is also really helpful to learn about plant biology. Learn about what makes a seed different from a leaf, or roots different from flowers. Once you delve into this crazy world, plants become extremely powerful sources of life. Your eyes become open to the SUPERFOODS, or foods which have an extremely high amount of nutrient density. There are plants out there that can provide incredible amounts of antioxidants and useful vitamins and minerals that you can even grow yourself, like kale. A major issue with most people is that they consume a diet very high in seeds. Historically, people and animals have eaten a high amount out leaves.  Seeds have a very different chemical and nutrient composition than leaves because they serve different roles. The leaves have many defense mechanism compounds they produce called phytochemicals, along with antioxidants, Vitamin D,  A and E. Leaves are also the only source of Omega 3 fatty acid. It is produced only in the Chloroplasts or green parts of the plant that turn light into energy. Omega 3 fatty acid helps stabilize the body’s inflammatory response, if there is too little present, the inflammatory response can get out of control. As we shifted to eating more grains, autoimmune and inflammatory disease rates have risen.

As long as you keep putting good nutrient rich foods into your body and try to avoid toxins, your body will eventually balance itself out. People have cured themselves from everything from Cancer and Tuberculosis to Diabetes and Multiple Sclerosis by creating an environment of health in their bodies. They had to let go of the illusion that someone “out there” could take responsibility for what was going on “inside”. Once they did, they were empowered to make changes and view the choices in their lives differently. The most important vote you can ever make is with their fork. The choices you make as far as what you ingest affects your body , community and the planet. Make a decision to hunt down the best food possible and support the people growing it.  So many people say “I can’t afford to eat healthy”…. but really, can you afford not to?

Once you have a grasp on food, consider Yoga as a way to personally help your body move nutrients and stretch tensed areas. Stretching allows blood to circulate, bringing in useful nutrients and carrying out toxins. Find a Chiropractor, Masseuse and an Acupuncturist. Get a good support network set up for yourself and for once in your life, prioritize yourself and your health over the job, kids, chores, phone, whatever it is that keeps you from it, because without your health, you can’t enjoy anything else.

Hope  to hear some success stories soon!