ARE YOU BAILING OUT A BOAT THAT IS UNDER A WATERFALL? Many people are confused about the causes of disease and how to prevent and treat it naturally. Moreover, it seems that for every one natural remedy that works there are ten that don’t. It’s no surprise since information is often reported in a piecemeal way that ignores the big picture. The result is that when it comes to health and fitness many people repeatedly do the equivalent of trying to bail out a boat that is under a waterfall. “I tried not eating 3 hours before bedtime and I didn’t lose weight.” “My grandfather was vegetarian and he still died young of heart disease.” “I drink orange juice every day and I still get sick easily.” Do statements like these sound familiar? Have you heard them used to justify the idea that disease is out of our control, and natural remedies don’t work? Have you read articles citing scientific studies proving that pharmaceuticals are the only way to treat disease? Sometimes disease is out of our control, sometimes a natural remedy is only a myth, and sometimes pharmaceuticals are the best treatment. However the latest research is revealing more and more cases in which the opposite is true. The truth, though, is that few things will work if you don’t get out from under the waterfall – the overall lifestyle that contributes to disease. Sadly, a typical Western lifestyle literally causes disease. This is not the least big controversial or exaggerated. In fact, the entire scientific and health care community agrees on this. How many people do you know who go for years without getting sick and can’t remember the last time they took even an over-the-counter medication? How many people live into old age without ever getting heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or dementia? Of course one explanation is that the human body is weak and susceptible to disease. Yet some societies have shown extremely low levels of sickness and disease. If this were due to genetics the disease rates would not have skyrocketed to American levels when the American lifestyle was adopted by those societies. Clearly we are doing something very wrong. According to experts, we are doing many things wrong. We eat the wrong foods, are way too sedentary, don’t sleep enough, maintain high stress levels, and often lack sufficient high-quality social connections. This is like anchoring your boat under a waterfall. Trying to bail yourself out with one small measure at a time will make little or no difference. There are many foods that help prevent disease, many workouts that rev up your metabolism, and many supplements that can be helpful, but if you continue to live a damaging lifestyle their effects will be negated. For example, mushrooms have been shown to help prevent cancer. However, they will not prevent cancer if you are eating a diet full of processed foods while living in a smog-filled city and getting four hours of sleep per night. They will, however, help to prevent cancer if you live a healthy lifestyle and combine them with plenty of other foods that help to prevent cancer. The confusion usually comes when people expect a natural solution (e.g. ginger tea) to work the same as a pharmaceutical solution (e.g. Pepto-Bismol). Natural solutions tend to be more subtle and have a cumulative effect. Understanding this concept will help you to be a wiser consumer of health and fitness information. Rather than blindly trying every new tip one at a time hoping that something will work, you can put the information in context. If a reputable, researched-based source tells you that a single food, supplement, or exercise will prevent disease, flatten your belly, or build strong muscles, you know that it will probably work if combined with a healthy lifestyle and other measures that work toward the same goal. One food alone will not prevent inflammation, but having anti-inflammatory foods, herbs, and spices at every meal will. A single exercise will not turn you into an Olympic athlete, but it might be the perfect new challenge to help you break a plateau. The fish oil supplements your doctor recommended will not provide immediate mental clarity, but combined with a brain-healthy diet and more sleep you will notice a difference. Most non-pharmaceutical solutions are cumulative and used TOGETHER provide a huge benefit. Before you try the newest miracle food, or supplement, or workout, consider how far you are under the waterfall. Use your energy to break damaging habits first. When you are living as healthy a lifestyle as you can given your circumstances (economic constraints, newborn baby, etc.), then it makes sense to fine-tune your approach with foods, workouts, or supplements geared specifically toward your concerns. Once you are out from under the waterfall, removing any remaining water one bucketful at a time will be effective.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Feb 2014 01:58:24 +0000
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