Let The Body Heal Itself Pt. 1

Your Body's Innate Intelligence
Positive Thinking:
A Gift From the Heart

Healthy Recipes:
It's Time to Warm Up with Comfort Food



HEALTH ADVISORY BOARD
o Al Sears, M.D. -
Chairman of the Board
o James B. LaValle,
R. Ph., C.C.N., M.S.
o Craig Ballantyne,
CSCS, M.Sc.
o Matthew Anderson, B.A.,
M. Div., D. Min.
o Tim Reynolds, M.D.
o Jonny Bowden, Ph.D.,
CNS
o Joseph F. McCaffrey, MD,
FACS
o J.William LaValley, M.D.
o David Kamnitzer, D.C.
o Dharma Singh Khalsa, MD,
o Mark Rosenberg, M.D.
o Joseph R. Simaie, D.D.S.
o Candace Booth, ND, PhD, CNC.
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Larry Clapp, Ph.D., J.D.
Jon Benson
Kelley Herring, B.S., M.B.A.
Laura LaValle, R.D.,
L.D.
Carlo X. Alvarez
Anthony Colpo
Ray Sahelian, M.D.
Jackie Silver
Mort Mather
MEET THE TEAM
o MaryEllen Tribby - Publisher
o Wendy Montes de Oca - Vice President of Marketing and Business Development
o Melanie Segala - Managing Editor
o Jon Herring -
Health Editor

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Friday, November 21, 2008
AcupuntureWhen Alternative Therapies Don't Work: Here's What You Need to Know

By Dr. Mark Wiley

It must have been 26 years ago that I had my first experience with so-called "alternative medicine." I was 13 and had been suffering chronic daily headaches and mid-back pain for half-a-dozen years. I was already seeing the best in Philadelphia's mainstream medicine, taking a plethora of prescription meds, and being put through dozens of tests, scans, and protocols.... All to no avail.

My father then took me to see a chiropractor, and do you know what? Within minutes my back and neck felt so much looser! My restricted movement was returned to within normal ranges. And I also started taking supplements. Over all, it was an amazing feeling... empowering!

I went back several times that week for treatments, and at home, attempted the exercises he instructed me to do. But the pain, and my suffering, returned and continued. This is not surprising. In fact, it is a common occurrence when people try alternative therapies -- making them think that they don't work.

The problem is, many people turn to "alternative therapies" as a last resort. They have had little success with mainstream medicine, have become perhaps desperate, and now are expecting a miracle cure or at least a fast turn-around of their signs and symptoms.

While I served as Director of the Integrated Energy Medicine healing center in Philadelphia, I did thousands of examinations, consultations, and treatments using alternative therapies and herbal medicines. I would have been delighted to offer patients both a miracle cure and fast results... if it were possible. And many times I was successful in "curing" someone in short order. But with other cases, the sheer depth, difficulty, and time-line of the problem made that task impossible.

Let me explain why some patients experience great success and why others have no change in signs and symptoms and find alternative therapies to be a waste of time.

In general there is a vast philosophical and procedural difference in the approaches (and results) of mainstream medicine and alternative therapies. Mainstream bio-medicine uses a disease-based model of health. That is, patients see their primary care physician when they are ill, the doctor diagnoses the illness (disease), and then prescribes a protocol of curing that disease. Often there is no cure... but pain and other signs and symptoms are controlled by prescription medication and/or invasive surgery.

Alternative therapies, on the other hand, work from a wellness model. That is, the focus is on returning the body to homeostasis (balance), and maintaining that balance to ensure good health and long life. They accomplish this proactively, through diet, exercise, mind/body techniques, herbs and supplements, massage, and so on. All are methods of alleviating pain, illness, and disease by restoring balance to the body.

If you have back pain and take a supplement, the pain will probably remain... for a while. But if you follow a protocol of regular supplementation with safe stretches and perhaps acupuncture or chiropractic care... the body will rebalance, and the issues will resolve. But this takes time. This was my situation at age 13. The pain did continue for awhile, but after my body was rebalanced with continued natural care, the headaches and back pain went away -- for good.

In a general sense, many alternative therapies aim at rebalancing the body to restore health. Chinese medicine uses herbs to balance blood, qi, body fluids, and organ function. Acupuncture uses needles to open meridian lines and correct energy imbalances. Chiropractic uses manual adjustments to realign the spine to allow correct functioning of the nervous system.

So when are alternative therapies a waste of time? Well, actually never. But the "trying" of alternative therapies most certainly IS. You see, there is a difference between "trying" and "doing." Trying means "you didn't do" something. Let's examine some common statements I hear in my office, and what they really mean.

Statement: I tried to call you and cancel my appointment.
Translation: I did not call you.

Statement: I tried acupuncture, and it didn't help.
Translation: After a few visits I was not cured and so decided not to continue and follow the protocol to the end.

Statement: I've been really trying to eat right and do my exercises.
Translation: I eat right once in a while, and I do my corrective exercises when I remember to do them.

Trying means not doing. And if you are not fully engaged in the doing of alternative therapies... seeing them through to the end... following the protocol... doing what you have been instructed to do... then they will not "work." Not because they failed you, but because YOU failed you.

You see, the therapies themselves are not the problem (unless you have chosen to follow the wrong one for your health issue), and they are also not time-consuming. Rather, it is the body that takes time to "allow" the method to take hold, effect change, and re-establish balance. But this takes time because the body likes to stay where it is, because it requires little effort to do so.

After repeated treatments, or a period of time spent doing exercises, or taking herbal supplements, the body finally realizes that it is actually easier to be in a state of homeostasis (balance) than to exist in a state of imbalance. It then "lets go" of its old unhealthy holding pattern. Now it can fully embrace a healthy pattern, and positive changes take effect.

Think of it like working out at the gym. If you are out of shape and lift weights, you will be sore. But little by little you will be less sore after the exercise. If you only lift weights once in a while, the size, shape, and density of your muscles will not visibly change. But if you stick with it ("do" it), you will notice your body changing in positive ways.

Internally this is what is happening with alternative treatment. Each day, each treatment, each bottle of herbs taken brings you one day closer to the body allowing them to take hold -- and then the body steps out of its own way to effect a cure.

The worst part is, people still look to alternative therapies as a last resort, and mainstream pharma drugs and surgery as a first choice. This is perverse. Using the big guns for the beginning of a problem (depending on the severity) is ridiculous. You don't blow up a house to kill kitchen ants.

My feeling on maintaining a balance in health and between mainstream and alternative medicine is this:

Everyone needs to get a physical every year, including blood and urine tests. If a problem is found, they should seek alternative, non-toxic, non-invasive methods to balance the body. After a period of time, they should have more tests run to see if the problem is better or worse. If better, continue with alternative medicine. If worse, and in the red zone of health, then turn to mainstream medicine for help. Not the other way around!

As it stands, we alternative practitioners get the worst cases, and we get them after years and decades of tests and toxic drugs and surgeries have truly damaged the body. And we are left to balance these bodies, in short time, at low costs, and with high hopes.

It's time people reframe their minds on this issue. The next time you feel un-well, seek out alternative therapies first. But you must DO it and not simply TRY it. It takes time, effort, and discipline, but in the end, being balanced means being healthy. And taking personal responsibility to do what needs doing -- and not depending on a doctor to do it for you -- is the greatest gift you could ever give yourself.

To your health!

[Ed. Note: Dr. Mark Wiley is a practitioner of Oriental and alternative medicine and the author of 10 books. He teaches health seminars internationally and is a health adviser and the editorial manager for The Healthy Back Institute. To learn more about his Institute, click here.]

Which of These FOUR Major Hip Dysfunctions
is Causing Your Back Pain?

Did you know your back pain could be caused by the muscles in your thighs? Or in your hips, sides and legs?

You see, if your thigh, hip, leg or other muscles are out of balance your pelvis and spine get yanked right out of their natural, healthy position.

These hip-dysfunctions are actually the hidden culprit in most cases of back related pain. And they get worse over time because they force your back muscles to start working “against the grain,” weakening them over time.

Worse, it's almost impossible to get lasting pain relief if you never fix the dysfunction because everything else is just the cause – even herniated and bulging discs, sciatic and other back conditions – they're all symptoms of the underlying imbalance.

There are really only about FOUR major hip dysfunctions that you might have. To learn what they are and get a FREE TRIAL of the only Self-Diagnosis and Self-Treatment system for hip-dysfunctions. Click here ...
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Positive Thinking:
How I Put the Joy Back in Christmas

By Mort Mather
Top

MailboxFor many years, our family's Christmas seemed to be about shopping, stuff, stress, and slush. There is not much we in the northeast can do about the slush, but our family has gotten away from the other three.

One Christmas morning I sat receiving hugs, kisses, and thanks from my two children as they unwrapped gifts “from Mom and Dad.” I was terribly unhappy. Why? I learned several years ago that the best place to look for that answer is within me. It's not always easy to pin down the cause of unhappiness, but I'm pretty sure blaming someone else is not helpful.

I had not participated in the shopping part. My wife had purchased the things the kids were unwrapping. Most of the gifts being unwrapped were clothes that would have had to be purchased anyway, so it wasn't squandering money that was bothering me.

I ultimately came to the conclusion that I was unhappy because I had not given anything, really. I had gotten a present for my wife but it was not memorable -- something that I had just gone out and purchased without much forethought.

With my newfound insight, I confessed my unhappiness to my family and suggested that in the future we only give one present to each family member, and that the gift be something that required thought about the person. They thought that was a fine idea. The next Christmas was the happiest of my life. My wife and my children, upon receiving my gift, each came to me with a very sincere and emotional hug, kiss, and thanks.

My gift for the people I love most cost only pennies in money. The cost was in time, thinking about each of them. I asked myself why I loved them. What did I think was special about them? What was special within the past year? Much of that thinking time was done in the shower, while driving to and from work with the radio off, while shoveling snow, or any other activity that didn't require thought.

I then put my thoughts into words on paper and wrote each of them a letter expressing my gratitude and love for the special place they had in my heart. The letters didn't contain any philosophy or advice... they were simply about my feelings for my loved ones.

Since that first special Christmas, we have made a letter exchange part of our family tradition. You might think that its something reserved for writers, but it is not your way with words that is important. It is the feeling that comes from truly thinking about the other person. One trick I can pass on -- when you have written the letter, set it aside for a little while and then go back and read it, pretending you are the person you wrote it for. This is the final empathy test to make sure you are not letting any advice or judgment slip in.

This gift of love, of focusing on a person you love, and thinking about the nature of that love, helps to keep us from taking love for granted. It seems to be a gift that keeps on giving.

The letters I receive make me pretty emotional too. Knowing that someone I love has taken the time to think about me gives me a very warm fuzzy feeling and gratitude for all I have. And that's the best Christmas present of all.

[Ed. Note: Mort Mather has been gardening organically for 35 years. He is the author of Gardening for Independence and has founded two non-profits -- one saved a farm on the Maine Coast and the other saved the historic Ogunquit Playhouse. Mort is a certified organic farmer supplying vegetables for his family-run restaurant (www.joshuas.biz) in Wells, Maine. To learn more, click here.]

Just in Time for the Holidays!

If you have been reading Total Health Breakthroughs for a while, you know that Kelley Herring shares her best ideas and recipes several times each month. But she hasn't shared everything. In fact, some of her most valuable ideas are contained in her brand new e-book, Guilt Free Desserts.

You see, most desserts are full of sugar. They might taste great, but they can wreck your health. And if it's not sugar, they're filled with artificial sweeteners... which taste terrible and might be even worse for your health.

But did you know that there are a host of functional ingredients that are all-natural, perfectly healthy, and taste just as clean and sweet as sugar? It's true! You really can have your cake and be well too.

And in Guilt Free Desserts Kelley shows you exactly what these ingredients are... how to use them... where to buy them... and more than 40 recipes you can easily make at home.

And not only that... as an added bonus, she has prepared another informative e-book, Guilt Free Desserts, including more than 20 healthy appetizer recipes your family and guests will die for.

I hope you'll take a few minutes to check out what she has to offer. Your health will be better for it! Click here....
Advertisement

Healthy Recipes:
Grass Fed Beef & Guinness Stew

By Kelley Herring
Top

Beef stewWant to lose a few pounds? Think zinc. Research shows 68% of diets contain less than two-thirds of the RDA for zinc. When your body is deficient in zinc, your insulin response decreases and metabolic rate drops, which means your body is more prone to store calories as fat. A single serving of this comfort food classic provides more than 40% of the daily value for this metabolism-revving mineral.

Time To Table: 1 1/2 hours
Serves: 6

The Benefits
Excellent Source of: Protein, Selenium, Zinc, Vitamin A, Vitamin B12, Niacin
Good Source of: Fiber, Iron, Potassium, Vitamin C, Omega-3 fats
Preferences: No Gluten

Ingredients
2 cups chopped organic onions
4 cloves organic garlic, smashed
4 tsp chopped fresh sage
2 tsp arrowroot
1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp organic unsalted butter
1 pound boneless organic grass-fed beef chuck roast
2 Tbsp organic tomato paste
3 medium organic carrots
12 oz Guinness Stout beer (1 pint)
2 cups organic beef broth

Preparation

Cut beef and carrots into 1 1/2 inch chunks. Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper. Working in batches, add to pot and sauté until browned, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer to bowl. Add onions, garlic, and sage to pot; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium; sauté until onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and arrowroot; stir 1 minute. Add beer; stir until thick and smooth, scraping up browned bits, about 2 minutes. Add broth, then beef with any juices; bring to simmer. Cover partially, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 45 minutes. Add carrots; simmer partially covered until beef and carrots are tender, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.

Nutrition
319 calories, 16 grams fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 7 grams monounsaturated fat, 1 g polyunsaturated fat, 63 mg cholesterol, 272 mg sodium, 14 g carbohydrate, 5 g sugar, 3 grams fiber, 25 g protein

[Ed Note: Who says dessert can't be healthy? Nutrition expert Kelley Herring's brand-new recipe e-book, Guilt Free Desserts reveals 40 easy-to-make, mouthwateringly delicious, 100% healthy dessert recipes you can make at home. Order today and you'll receive the e-book Healthy Holiday Hors d'Oeuvres for free.]


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