Chronic Prostatitis
Chronic prostatitis is a nonbacterial inflammatory condition of the male pelvis and can be considered male intersitial cystitis It is a member of the IC bladder pain syndrome(interstitial cystitis, vulvodynia, irritable bowel syndrome, GERD, and fibromyalgia) because the cause is the same as its other members Imbalances of qualities in the bowel caused by primarily the foods consumed and lifestyle choices that provoke the energy physiology lead to dissemination to the peripheral tissues Like IC itself invariably the pelvic nerves become involved with the qualities of light mobile dry rough and hot leading to observed symptoms
The presence of fever is a key differentiating feature between acute and chronic prostatitis This is very important because the treatment of acute prostatitis is completely different If a man has chills and fever of 100.5F or greater with symptoms of acute prostatitis then he should be on antibiotics and in severe cases hospitalized because the cause is bacterial
Acute Flares of IC and Chronic Prostatitis
It is estimated that greater than 90% of those with chronic prostatitis are of nonbacterial origin, that is, there is no bacteria or infection in the prostate tissue Sounds a lot like IC doesn't it?
Chronic prostatitis is not associated with fever and similar to interstitial cystitis occurs acutely as flares lasting 2-3 weeks Urological workups including cultures, xrays, and endoscopy are negative In uncommon situations cystoscopy may show bladder mucosal lesions that biopsy negative and are typically not characteristic of Hunner's ulcers(which are unusual even in IC) Prostatic calculi may produce a chronic bacterial prostatitis but this is unusual There is no association between chronic prostatitis and prostate cancer epidemiologically in the allopathic literature
There is no agreed upon best treatment from the molecular or allopathic model of healing but it is typically treated with antibiotics initially These courses usually last for 3-4weeks or more based on the resolution of symptoms and/or recurrence of symptoms This is often the case since the cause is nonbacterial As the chronicity develops in the clinical course men are often kept on antiinflammatories or even short courses of steroids have been used
Anatomically the prostate lives at the base of the bladder and as you can see by the accompanying picture the urethral tube passes from the bladder to the outside through the penis So the symptoms of prostatitis mirror those seen in women with interstitial cystitis Suprapubic pain, perirectal or perianal pain , low back pain, testicular pain, pain referred to the base or the tip of the penis, pain with ejaculation, urinary frequency, urgency, small volumes of urine passed, and a feeling of incomplete emptying predominate when the man is having an acute flare
Due to the hot quality inflammation like IC produces the symptoms of burning on urination and because the prostate is innervated by the same use nerves affecting bladder function there can be pain with ejaculation This latter symptom may also be caused by the prostate itself becoming involved by the hot quality Sometimes the prostate becomes so inflamed that blood may be seen at the tip of the penis at the end of urination
An Energy Science Approach To Chronic Prostatitis
As in any chronic disease there should be a division in treatment based on whether one is treating an acute flare or trying to do maintenance therapy This has been covered in a previous blog post Here are some basic foundational things to do
1 As always use a nutritional format appropriate for one's energy pattern and avoid incompatible food combinations
2 Use of the dinacharya(day in balance) is an important foundational method
3 Consistent daily pranayama practice specifically using kapalabhati can have symptom controlling benefit It has been shown in an Italian study of 231 sedentary men with chronic prostatitis that routine exercise helped symptoms Pranayama is an excellent combined aerobic and anaerobic exercise that stresses the pelvic floor hence strengthening this area of the anatomy which is involved in chronic prostatitis
4 Herbal formulas can be helpful even in the acute stage or flare and gokshuradhi guggulu can be effective in reducing congestion when the gland is involved
5 Basti therapy in both acute and chronic phases can be very helpful in treating the pelvic nerve imblances
6 Lidocaine as in interstitial cystitis transrectally can be helpful in reducing the acute symptoms of chronic prostatitis
7 If foundational work has been done then panchakarma can be a viable alternative in management
Like the IC bladder pain syndrome chronic prostatitis can be healed from an energy science perspective but it requires a disciplined approach and based on how long symptoms have been present determines the length of time of recovery
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Dealing With Cheese Opiates and Agni
The energy science can help us understand how to deal with this controversial topic about the potential addictive nature of opiates in milk
It makes sense that there is a sedative property in mother's milk or the human race would not be so advanced in numbers as it has become
Concentrated Forms of Opiates
Cheese is produced by acidifying milk and making a curd leaving the whey(watery protein) behind
The predominant protein in milk and therefore cheese is casein which if not completely digested will release in the gut as an opiate called casomorphin(BCM7) Opiates can produce a profound sense of pleasure
80% of cow's milk is casein Concentrated milk products(cheese, ice cream, milk chocolate) can have increased amounts of the addictive opiates or BCM7 proteins that link up to opiate receptors in the body, particularly the brain
Some interesting factoids
It takes 10 pounds of milk to make a pound of hard cheese(sour cheese)
It takes 3-4 pounds of milk to make one pound of milk chocolate A "chocoholic" is born
BCM7 is the powerful opiate held in any milk whether cow, buffalo, goat, or human Studies on cow's milk show that BCM7 is held to an amino acid named proline in A1 cows(tightly bound) and by histidine in A2 cows(loosely bound), so the latter can be more effective to produce the opiate effect
How about breads with gluten?
Interestingly gliadorphin from the digestion of gluten is similar to casomorphin both of which interact with opiate receptors in the brain, particularly those areas involved with speech and hearing, an important factor in children with autism, particularly if poor digestive fire is involved These byproducts of digestion will lead to exaggerated effects (ama in the energy science vernacular)
What To Do?
Bottom line: If you have a strong digestive fire, you'll deal with BCM7 early in the digestive process and more than likely won't be impacted by either form of milk, A1 or A2, or bread
If you have a poor digestive fire then either way BCM7 will be hanging around and an individual will potentially get the effects of casomorphin
So the energy science nutritional solution to the above, enhance digestive fire by:
If any heavy concentration of BCM7 is taken in on a day, avoid doing it again and again Allow the GI tract and the body to absorb the insult Don't pile on insult after insult after insult
If PK reduce the amount of dairy in your diet, avoiding the concentrated forms
Steaming or heating milk is a great idea
Never drink milk cold or with ice
Using a churan or a meal rich in cooling digestants or spices will help with digestion due to their impact on digestive fire
Using cardamom with warm milk helps digestion
Eat a nutritional format that is conducive to your energy makeup and avoid poor food combinations
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A friend of mine is a well trained matter field physician in the field of endocrinology having received training at several prestigious centers in the US and abroad. Due to the unique nature of the discipline he found himself drawn to explore the energy field of the mindbody.
In one of his sojourns he found himself speaking to a group of prestigious energy field physicians on how certain hormones interact with receptor sites in the body.
It was a series of talks and each time he found a sea of puzzled faces as he carefully took them through the molecular workings of the physiology of the endocrine system.
The third discussion led to the same returning polite group of puzzled faces. He repititiously and earnestly went over the information to explain his molecular material. At the break he saw one of the participants turn to his friends and exclaim, "Oh, I get it! He thinks the molecules do it!"
The story describes two perspectives, both valid. But what if, just what if we could entertain both viewpoints. Why you ask? The most important reason is that there is a system of prevention in the energy field work. And I believe we are all after how to prevent dis-ease.
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Healing and Synergy
"Ok give me the one thing that's going to clear this problem that I have" typically goes the refrain going through our minds as we try to figure it what to do
Heart synergy
And while we have been programmed to believe that it's that one pill, the one operation, the one piece of advice that's going to turn the corner, it's really not that way It may be that in an acute situation such as appendicitis that the immediate action of removing the appendix fixes the problem But even in that clinical scenario there is the need for doing things after the operation to fully recover In the management of chronic diseases this process of needing to do more than one thing in order to evoke a healing response becomes even more apparent Energetically the heart serves as the unifying field that brings all these various activities together
The Energy Science Approach to Healing
In order to evoke a change toward real healing the mindbody needs to know that we're serious about wanting to turn things around for us and move in a different direction Toward balance in this situation This means that there needs to be not only consistency in our actions but also a willingness to pile on the energetic effects produced by our actions
For example we might feel a tad bit better by introducing nutritional changes that bring about more physiologic balance Bringing about more balance to the physiology occurs when we stop adding to our imbalances For example, if we happen to have a Pitta Kapha energy constitutional make up then nuts are not a good choice for us because they carry the vibrational frequencies of heavy, slow, oily, static, and cloudy When we stop introducing these qualities of nuts into our physiology then the mindbody begins to shed those qualities that we were consistently putting into our mindbody
So we stop adding to the imbalance that is creating our ill health That's a good thing...changing our nutrition so we don't continue to keep ourselves sick A step toward healing has been made But there's another layer What about incompatible food combinations? Well, by avoiding them we begin improving our agni That's a good thing Another step has been taken
But then we can add another layer What about restructuring our day to a favorable time for the mindbody to do certain things...like getting up early to exercise, eating our biggest meal of the day at around noon, going to bed early to take advantage of the night time detoxification duties that the mindbody naturally does if we don't interfere with them So another layer has been added to the complex process of energy healing And we should point out that this healing has not cost anything....only just changing the way we do things
Synergistic Healing
So from an energy science point of view, real healing requires our participation and this layering effect There are a multiplicity of things to be done to bring physiologic balance and release excess vibrational frequencies that don't serve us well
This layering phenomenon is actually promoting synergy It's not just one thing but the multiplicity of things that are done that bring about the desired effect Each lifestyle behavior pattern that we add supports and makes stronger the previous pattern that we just put into place That is, these changes that we make feed on one another creating a grand foundation on which to support the healing of the condition that doesn't serve us anymore
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The World of Supplements and the Matter Science
Many with people with chronic diseases are looking for some kind of advantage to help with symptoms from their dis-ease So it often comes to people looking for help with supplements offered from the molecular promised land of the matter science world The question that's left unanswered by the supplement salesman is that if you don't know the origin of the disease in the first place how can you offer a molecular solutionin the name of healing
Addiction and Supplements: Is It Real?
Presently the molecule rules so people believe that the promises by the supplement world must have some merit But there have been few if any studies that show major breakthrough results with supplements particularly with the IC bladder pain syndrome The interesting phenomenon that occurs when supplements become popular is that everyone gets on the bandwagon without questioning efficacy The result is that the supplement salesman makes profits
Beware of Matter Science Doctors Selling Supplements
A recent diet book published by a popular matter science doctor received rave reviews by the matter science healing community and of course book sales sky rocketed the book to the NY Times best seller list And of course there was good but repetitive molecular evidence as to why the obesity epidemic was on the rise Using what would appear to be good molecular logic to explain away the obesity problem is akin to biochemical micromanagement Eventually the solution became not nutritional but supplements What?
When you read the one star reviews on Amazon the concern about the book is quite concerning What was promised was nirvana in 10 days to get you off your sugar addiction which is dubious but what was the complaint about the book by readers They were concerned that they had to pay an excessive amount of money for recommended supplements yet didn't experience any improvement in wellbeing
This is just one example of what is becoming a common place theme in the matter science world Physicians using their credentials to soft sell molecular solutions that they hope will in some way solve the problem at hand
There Is No Free Lunch
Even as convincing is the molecular and metabolic information the point still stands that there is not good data to support the long term use of taking molecular supplements particularly with respect to specific disease conditions
The nutritional approach based on 1000's of years of experience shows that the energy science approach if maintained on a consistent basis will pay dividends of progressive improvement in symptoms And the cost? What you normally pay for groceries Probably 80% of the solution in the IC bladder pain syndrome is nutrition and lifestyle behavior patterns
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4 Principles in Energy Science Cooking
As we have discussed in the managment of any dis-ease nutrition is foundational to having success to acheiving health longterm But in the energy science of Ayurveda nutrition is more than just what foods are selected for your unique mindbody energy constitutional makeup Even though foods are integral to success because they bring about balance to the physiology and prevent imbalances from occurring there is more to nutrition than foods Where to eat, when to eat, how to eat, why we eat all add to the "what to eat"
As we discussed we have talked about always making a deal with ourselves to sit whenever we eat This simply allows us to improve the chances of agni doing a good job in digesting whatever we're eating Eating our biggest meal of the day at noon is foundational to successful nutrition Why we eat uncovers that aspect of nutrition about emotional eating as well as overeating
But what about "how to eat"? This covers the aspects of bringing attention to eating of food but also how we prepare foods
The Uniqueness of Energy Science Cooking
One of the objections that I have heard about the energy science approach to nutrition is that you have to be Indian in order to do an Ayurvedic nutritional format While this is complete and utter nonsense people buy into such false writing because they don't know any better And they believe the people that are protecting the matter science approach to nutrition by misrepresenting the energy science
1 Truth be told the nutritional formats that are at foodsheal.com can be integrated into anybody's way of eating because the change in foods chosen means that you simply find substitutes for foods that are aggravating for folks with the IC bladder pain syndrome If there are problem foods such as nightshades for Pitta Vata then find vegetable substitutes Another example of this substitution is using sunflower instead of peanut butter
2 One of the basic tenets of energy science nutrition is to cook food in order to predigest There is a lot of rhetoric about this from the raw food or macrobiotic community but it makes intuitive sense to break down the cellulose of vegetables in order to aid the agni of the mindbody particularly if it's struggling Another time that raw food comes up is in blenderized veggie drinks In this situation the mechanical breakdown of the veggies may predigest but again the lack of heat applied may make this food preparation technique substandard
3 The use of ghee in cooking cannot be overemphasized in the management of the IC bladder pain syndrome because often the Pitta energy pattern is involved and the best way to pacify Pitta is by the liberal use of ghee due to its liquid and oily qualities But there is good matter science data as to why one would want to use ghee which enhances agni It is completely made up of small chain hydrogenated fatty acids(most common butyric acid) which does not have to be digested and moves through all the tissues within twenty four hours This has important ramifications in the detoxification process of panchakarma(PK)
4 Spices have volatile organic compounds(VOC) which when activated facilitates digestion, absorption, and assimilation of foods Spices are integral to healthy cooking because they augment agni They are best activated during food preparation by placing them in ghee and heating to activate the VOC Once activated they can then be added to other ingredients of the recipe If you have a heavy aroma in the kitchen when activating VOC it means that you have overheated and overcooked the spices
So there you have it A way to prepare foods so that your mindbody can get the most out of it because you have enhanced your agni in the process of preparation
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