Healthy Eating

Jan 31, 2011

Body Ecology - The Ayurvedic Way

BODY ECOLOGY is a noun from the Greek oikos 'house'. Body Ecology is the branch of biology concerned with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings. The purpose of this blog is to provide you with the essential information you need to take charge of your own health and well-being. We try to keep you apprised of where to obtain the highest quality products to go along with the Body Ecology Diet (B.E.D). My wife has a problem with addressing the matter of eating the right foods as a "diet." She considers diets as temporary attempts to change your weight, as though you could reach a goal and go back to doing the same things that brought you to a condition that puts you at risk of disease and illness. She prefers to use "regimen" as a more permanent description of the habits which will lead you to living healthy as though it were a religious obligation to support the vessel you travel in as you walk this earth.
HOLISTIC MEDICINE
Holistic Medicine is defined by the American Board of Holistic Medicine as "the art and science of healing that addresses the whole person—body, mind and spirit." Holistic medicine is based on the belief that unconditional love is life’s most powerful healer.
Functional medicine is defined by the Institute of Functional Medicine as a science based field of health-care grounded in the principles of: 1. Biochemical individuality based on genetic and environmental uniqueness; 2. Patient-centered care as opposed to disease-centered care; 3. Health as a function of dynamic balance between internal and external factors (homeodynamics); 4. Web-like interconnections of physiological factors; 5. Health as a positive vitality rather than merely the absence of disease, and; 6. Promotion of organ reserve. The science of functional medicine is grounded in the marriage of molecular medicine, nutritional biochemistry, physiology, and cognitive sciences.
In order to effectively practice medicine, the practitioner must use a heuristic system. Conventional medicine is based on a reductionist system with a focus on isolated chemicals within the organs of the body. If we are confronted with a cataclysmic event, we may have to go back to the plants and herbs used by our forefathers in treating and preventing illness. The BED system of healing includes organic, unrefined oils and probiotics. For more than 150-years we have tried using prescription drugs to resolve illness and disease issues, but we remain at the bottom of the latter on longevity - worldwide. In 2003 we were 25th in longevity of all the industrialized nations of the world and now we are 52nd. Many doctors are losing faith with the pharmaceuticals that fail often and cost too much. They are reaching out for options that are more reliable in preventing illness and healing the sick.
Our country has changed the eating habits of our fellow Americans and especially our young. Fast food began to be convenient but damaging to our healthy. We even participate in contests that reward those who can consume large amounts of junk food. Young people have gone from natural ingredients to soda pop and now they celebrate the discovery of fatty foods like "Buffalo Wings." Arteries are clogged and younger people are dying from blocked arteries.
Our desire for sweet foods has produced a race to develop more and more sugar substitutes from chemicals that develop new problems for the digestive tract. Cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, and memory loss occur more often and affecting more Americans than ever before.
We are faced with sugar substitutes like Stevia, Splenda, Nutra-Sweet and find out much later that there are consequences to millions of people changing their eating habits to accommodate taste instead of nutritional needs. More people are asking me to give them the website that provides the research and results that bring them the information they need to improve their immune system. Even some of our most highly respected physicians are reaching outside the satchel of the pharmaceutical salesmen for research-backed answers to the problems and complaints of their patients. Too much reliance on fast-food has changed the weight, shape and health of our youth.
Take the FIRST STEP To start eating more healthfully today by eating a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Do this to ensure that you get the largest possible number of different phytochemicals—compounds that fortify your cells. One easy way to do this is to strive for foods that are different colors—orange sweet potatoes, red tomatoes, green spinach and peppers and brown beans and legumes. Change you shopping habits to travel the peripheral areas of the supermarket to buy more produce, fish and foods rich in vitamins, herbs and minerals.
Malnourished immune cells become weak, inefficient, and powerless. A well nourished body can realize what may result in miraculous good health.
"Food creates a composite of everything your body needs for a strong immune system." No biochemist can replicate the magic of "Mother Nature."
Fortunately, even if you’ve eaten unsoundly in the past, your immune system is forgiving and can still regain its balance. "Immune cells are constantly being formed," says Namanjeet Ahluwalia, Ph.D., assistant professor of nutrition at Pennsylvania State University in State College. "You have to think of the body as being in a constant state of flux in terms of the immune response." This gives us an opportunity to repair and improve the immune response by maintaining our nutritional status.
Pile your plate with phytochemicals. Phytochemicals are the very reason people should start eating a diet top-heavy in fruits and vegetables now, says Paul Lachance, Ph.D., executive director of the Nutraceuticals Institute at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. "You name it. They prevent everything from gastrointestinal cancer to heart disease to infectious diseases," he says.
For years, scientists have known which basic vitamins and minerals are in fruits and vegetables and other plant foods. They have learned, however, that the food system is not that simple; there are literally thousands upon thousands of compounds in the foods and beverages we consume, all interacting with our cells in ways still being discovered.
These compounds are phytochemicals, substances found in the plant system with the strength to ward off fungi, insects, and viruses. When we consume fruits, vegetables, and other plants, those same compounds fortify our cells. They become boosters of our immune systems, operating like antioxidants, the molecules that protect our cells from harmful oxygen substances known as free radicals.
The Ayurvedic Way: Balance, variety, and moderation are integral to the philosophy of Ayurveda uses a holistic system of medicine, meaning that our minds, bodies, and spirits are all taken into consideration in the diagnosis and treatment of any illness. Clearly, much of what is being learned in laboratories confirms what has been practiced for centuries in India, particularly in regard to the use of Indian Herbs to boos our immune systems. I pray for health in mind, body and spirit so that I may serve Him with all my strength.

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