Recently I overheard this question asked of a student naturopath nearing the end of her qualifications. “What is the best thing for protecting your knees against arthritis?” She gave an instant reply. “Glucosamine. Get glucosamine from your practitioner as it will have higher potency and a much better quality than what is available over the counter.” This advice satisfied the person asking as it matched the widely touted reviews of glucosamine across the media but in fact is misleading, outdated and a “one size fits all” approach.
This confirmed my long held belief that the courses and curriculum provided by the traditional colleges are churning out graduates that are limited in scope, with safe and conventional views, and are not kept up to date with the leading edge research on health. They perpetuate the notion that people should address or suppress their symptoms using the products of the multi billion dollar industry of sickness, whether naturopathic or allopathic.
Although it wasn’t appropriate to contradict, I pondered afterwards why this was a poor and inadequate answer. Glucosamine is just one product amongst many that have been found useful for improving the symptoms of arthritis but it has its limitations and not the solution for everyone. As a naturally occurring component found in the body, glucosamine production can be improved by improving the overall health. The most common glucosamine supplements are commonly derived from shellfish, an allergenic trigger for many, and is not appropriate for vegetarians although there are alternative sources from grain available. The glucosamine supplementation has a limited action targeting the cartilage and tendons of joints, is not necessarily the best help for arthritic conditions and mainly benefits by increasing synovial fluid and the lubrication of the joint. It certainly has given many people some relief but is not a cure nor the answer for all sufferers.
It would have been a more advantageous response if the naturopath had made further enquiries into the issue and steered them toward a highly nutritious diet, increased water intake and regular exercise rather than the easy, quick, “one pill fixes all” reply. When encouraging or advising how to achieve and maintain lifelong good health and finding the cause of the problem is the basic and simple solution to every issue.
Lateral thinking, an enquiring mind and comprehension of the holistic approach are the prerequisites of a good healer/therapist. Learning by rote a traditional standardised curriculum and graduating with a piece of paper that declares you have been adequately indoctrinated does not guarantee a good result.
“Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” Chinese proverb.
There are 3 causes of ill health:
1. Deficiency.
2. Toxicity
3. Combined deficiency and toxicity.
The trillion syndromes we hear about are all labels that describe these three things in a complicated language so that you, as a patient / consumer / victim, feel powerless and must go directly to the “Gods aka Medical Association” for assistance. Such difficult complex matters indicate you shall surely die a horrid and painful death and only by their knowledge and treatments might you improve. Of course they don’t promise any miracles, just in case you sue them for false claims, only solid, irrefutable science and we all know that is never wrong. If you live one or two years more but die shortly thereafter according to their parameters that is a positive outcome however, your quality of life in those one or two years has no bearing. The fact is that people live longer and healthier lives without their medical intervention excluding the need of First Aid ie fixing broken parts, in which they really do excel. After all, our body as complex and intricate as it is, is actually quite simply a system of tubes that when blocked or damaged malfunctions occur.
Reverse engineering can unravel the mystery of defeating deficiencies. Understanding that the Universe and Life is perfectly designed to sustain and nourish itself, what would a person eat in nature to survive? Simply, seeds, nuts and other plant foods, insects, animals and their natural by products, fish and molluscs, some dirt,clays and fungi - there is nothing else to choose from.
Therein lies the foundation of a healthy diet and anything that falls outside of that is toxic to the human system to varying degrees. Seasonal and environmental variables determine that a fruit naturally available will be more optimised to the human system also residing in that time and location. Some studies that found traces of certain elements from food, ie apple, grown and consumed in one season, actually last within the body to continue to be utilised until the following season when it will be replenished. An eskimo in winter would not receive adequate nutrients to survive and thrive in his environment by eating a pineapple grown in summer on the other side of the planet, unlike a person living in the tropics, for example.
A satisfactory modern diet is still based on these simple rules. The advent of travel, discovery and the internet now provides us with the benefits of super nutrient foods and medicinal plants that were not previously available and they can be added to the diet to take us another step further toward optimising the body. The other necessary “nutrients” not found in diet include sunshine, clean air, sufficient protection from the elements, a temperate climate and quality restful sleep.
The epidemic deficiency of the western world is dehydration. The common diseases of our elderly like Dementia and Alzheimers are the result of a chronically dehydrated and calcified brain and clearly demonstrate the 3 fundamental causes of illness. The brain, our driver, needs moisture to conduct its electrical circuits and resides in a sea of salty fluid. With our bodies predominantly made up of water, and without continual replenishment, a deficit is created. The skin, the cells, the organs all dry up and cease to function properly.
Wrinkles are a great example of dehydration. I dare you to try a “before and after” experiment. Look at your face in the mirror. Do you see wrinkles, lines and creases? Now go and drink a litre of water or even a large glass, allow a moment of absorption then look in the mirror again. They will have noticeably reduced. A cheap effective beauty treatment with so many other instant benefits. Water is the only hydrating liquid our body utilises. We might survive for weeks without food but only a matter of days before we perish from a lack of water.
Water is energy and fuel for our body. Fatigue, depression, inflammatory response, aches and pains, digestive and malabsorption disorders, constipation, respiratory illness, fluid retention and so on, are all symptoms of dehydration and will all be improved with an increased water intake. Even when we feel we must take the prescribed pharmaceutical drugs but find they are not working, a glass of water or two will improve the efficacy as our body can absorb the components through their dissolution in the liquid that travels by osmosis through the system. In the same way when a child (or adult) is constantly hungry and their food doesn’t satisfy, a glass of water will give the nutrients the vehicle to take them where they are most needed and whence provide the sensation of being adequately fed.
Salt is bad for you, right? Wrong. Salt is an essential nutrient. If you have the misfortune of needing hospitalisation for a serious illness, the first thing they will do is hook up a saline drip and feed salt water directly into your veins. Remember that. That iodised white stuff in the “No Name” tub is bad for you. It has been adulterated and all benefit leached completely out. The mineral sea salt, Himalayan pink salt or even a rock salt that you purchase from the Health food shop is best taken on a daily basis. A quarter of a teaspoon added to your water bottle (not enough to make it taste undrinkable) is a great way to increase your levels. Salt softens the surface tension of the water making it more readily absorbed -providing better hydration.
But then you say, “I don’t like the taste of water.” The secret of success lies in the quality of the water. Needless to say that a purification system or a filtered spring water is the obvious choice for water that contains life energy and an inviting taste.
It is sad but true that our world is a toxic toilet now. We live in an environment flooded with chemicals. They are in and on our food products, in our personal products, in our cleaning products, in and on our clothes, in the air, on the ground, in our houses, in our water, in our medicines, there is nowhere that they are not. The only defence is minimisation and to build a strong natural immunity. Again, water is a natural solvent that can help to purify and detoxify our bodies by washing away some of this crap although not the definitive answer. Our innate elimination system does not function effectively without the adequate intake of water, our organs need water, water, water and more water. If you haven’t grasped my point here - go and have a drink of water, your brain will function better in understanding you need to drink more water!
“You are what you eat”. We hear it often enough and it is so absolutely true. An ingredient that has a number is not food, a chemical name that can’t be pronounced without a degree in chemistry is not food, a product that does not decay over time is not food so if you are consuming these things then you are taking in toxins. Rat poison tastes good to rats but we know what happens next. Toxins accumulate in the body and are stored in cells, joints, organs etc. Inflammation, irritations, infections, tumours, allergies are all symptoms of toxicity and an immune system that is struggling to do its job.
Reiterating on “arthritic knees” as a model to illustrate the concept of how to minimise or maintain a level of health that allows pain-free, strong mobility into a ripe old age we look to the various components that need enhancement. The elimination of inflammation in the joints through systemic detoxification, by building the nutrient levels to strengthen the cells and tissues of bone, tendon, cartilage, muscle etc, by maintaining softness and elasticity through hydration and nutrient levels, by assisting a full and adequate circulation of blood and oxygen to the area through regular usage, movement and strength building exercises.
Again, we must concur that nature, the Universe and its workings are perfect. Our bodies have their own built-in healing system that runs 24/7/365 if only we give it the energy to do so.
