In previous posts we’ve talked about looking at us, the human species, as a biologist would look at an animal or a plant in nature. Let’s take it a bit further and look at our environment. This is another analogy I’ve shared with many of my patients from Dr Chestnuts book, “The Wellness and Prevention Paradigm.” http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10798834-the-wellness-prevention-paradigm
Do you remember hearing about the Great Lakes in America in the 1970s? The fish were dying in record numbers, and the birds that ate those fish were dying as well. The eggs from those birds were brittle and they couldn’t have any offspring. I’m sure you can think of a place like that here in Australia as well.
What would you think if I was to say to you that the reason why all these fish are so sick and the birds are dying and can’t reproduce is because of their genes. That we need more genetic testing on these fish. We need to screen them earlier, get treatment to them earlier, radiate the lakes and dump chemotherapy pills in the water. Perhaps we need to build fish hospitals on the side of the lake and give them drugs and tiny fish surgeries. It would be absurd! It wouldn’t make any sense and I would get laughed off the stage at any scientific conference.
Is that what we are doing to ourselves right now? As a species no other animal has seen the rates of heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, obesity, depression, ADHD, thyroid problems, metabolic syndromes escalate as much as the human species is experiencing right now. The majority of our health care system is spent on treating these diseases and health care spending rises every year. Half of all bankruptcies in the US are due to enormous hospital bills. I won’t get into numbers right now, but even governments are going broke from the costs of health care.
How do we avoid the burden of the health care (sickness care) system? Don’t get sick and stay out of the system. Take care of yourself now by investing in your health, like you invest in your retirement.
So thinking sensibly, what should we do for those fish and birds? How about cleaning out their environment. Lets make sure that what they eat, breathe and drink, and how they move around is pure and sufficient. Let’s not treat the effects of the bad environment, lets get to the CAUSE of the problem. And then lets do that for ourselves! Once we realize that we have control over our health and we are not destined to suffer the fate of our genes, we will have the power to avoid these disease for ourselves and our families.
All I want to do is share a different way of looking at ourselves. A view of ourselves as a human animal. I think if we did that we would make different choices about what we ate, how we exercised, slept and thought. The more of us that did that the healthier we would all be. I believe the healthier we are, the happier we are, the kinder we are, the more generous we are. That is the type of community that I want to live in, and raise my kids in. How about you?
Thanks for your questions and comments.