Key Takeaway: The human body has – and even is – its own natural healing system, something that Western medicine takes for granted. This is ultimately rooted in amino acids, of which we need 20 different kinds to stay healthy. Amino acids are best found in food. Stay healthy therefore by eating a balanced diet and eating rightly!
To respect one is to know one.
This was an insight I developed yesterday, when I attended “The Human Body’s Natural Healing System” – a talk hosted by Human Nature Marikina in what seems to be a now-weekly Saturday activity (a talk, I meant, not necessarily a talk about the aforementioned – though that would be nice!). The talk discussed some taken-for-granted facts about the human body, and even gave insight to how Western science and medicine only relatively recently started discussing what ancient Asian cultures have known for thousands of years – qi, or ki, or prana is real and scientific – our innate electromagnetic fields, sometimes dramatically or fantastically translated as aura. That was one first key point that only preceded the actual topic.
The Daily Aloy is on the one hand all about respect – and that includes respect for yourself, which by extension includes respect for your body. It takes knowledge to develop a healthy, genuine respect for someone or something – by getting to know them or it more, we develop a deeper appreciation, which is then translated into respect. And to respect our body, we ought to know it more.
“You have to listen to your body.” (Frank Regis, Uncle Frank’s Green Honey)
Truly we are a masterpiece of God, with our 1 trillion cells, each of which is intelligent and autonomous – yet all of which work in perfect harmony. This masterpiece was also equipped with its own defense mechanisms – a basic fact of life (pun intended) that I am afraid may have been taken for granted nowadays.
My mother always says that Western medicine “cures one but kills another”. Too true. Even Western medicines themselves acknowledge it: check the pamphlets and many do indicate that there are potential (or certain) side-effects, that certain individuals with so-and-so cannot take them, etc. While they are effective in fighting off diseases, they are manmade weapons that also damage the battlefield the war between Medicine and Illness takes place in – our bodies. A depressingly common (relatively) example is cancer – chemotherapy makes you weak and lose hair.
Indeed, so much have we relied on synthetic things – personal skin care items included – that without knowing it, we are slowly poisoning ourselves and/or the environment. The balance of and with nature is being disrupted – and, in some cases, we fail to see that nature herself has what we need already. We only need to step back and take a good look at nature to see the many gifts God, through her, has given us.
Luckily, doctors firmly believe that food is the catalyst for medicines to work – my auntie’s doctor last week told us that medicine will not work if a patient does not eat. Food is recognized as the main – and best – source of nutrients. This especially applies to fruits and vegetables (though not exclusively; you don’t have to starve yourself to death or deprive yourself of other good things created to eat), and we will see why shortly.
The immune system is the body’s Armed Forces – it is what helps us fight off disease. It is also, however, very pampered: there are so many things that can take it down and therefore expose us to more and worse illnesses (more on that next time). But one crucial thing that can weaken it is a lack of amino acids, which are the body’s actual building blocks. Amino acids are responsible for the formation and empowerment of proteins, of enzymes, of minerals, and all of the weapons our body needs to function – that is, to be healthy. The body needs exactly 20 different kinds to stay healthy, according to a scientist named Dr. Peter Plitcha.
As Franklin Regis, proprietor of Uncle Frank’s Green Honey Processing Enterprises, puts it, amino acids are our bodies’ “ammunition” – without them, those weapons are useless. Amino acids may also be compared, as he teaches, to a linguistic alphabet, where the 20 different acids form different “words” (or “phrases”, if you want to get highfalutin) that are the various good things our body needs. If a certain “letter”, or “acid”, is missing, then the “word” needed to power one of the weapons is incomplete and thus useless.
The health benefits in food lie ultimately in their amino acid content. This is connected to the reason why some diets advocate eating so-and-so only, or such-and-such only at this time or that (again, more on that next time). And this is why, ultimately, a balanced diet is the key to living healthy.
There is so much more to say about the natural healing system of the body. For now, let it suffice to say that we should always listen to our bodies, and watch what we eat and intake. You don’t have to go purely vegan or organic to live healthfully – again, moderation is the key – but if you’re always eating junk foods or sweets, or feeling weak, or gaining weight, you might want to step back and evaluate. It is all about balance.
The ancient Chinese had it right (one more reason for me to be proud of my heritage).
Have a purposeful week ahead!
Aloy Chua 