Nutrition and Changing DNA
Most matter field science has looked at the nervous system as a fixed physiologic and anatomic structure. But that concept is being challenged with a new concept called neuroplasticity. Now researchers are witnessing people who have had strokes and paralysis who are able to recover some function and in one reported case complete recovery.
Now another concept is beginning to emerge to challenge another medical sacred cow. That genetic expression is a fixed, unchanging and unyielding blueprint. In a journal article in September 2005, Dr Dean Ornish reported that patients with prostate cancer changed their genetic expression to tumor by altering their nutrition. Not only did their genetic expression turn off repressor genes but turned on important genes to combat tumor. Furthermore these patients increased their T killer cell response to tumor cells eight fold.
So a new biological concept is potentially emerging-genetic plasticity. And the remarkable cause of this genetic shifiting event was a change in nutrition!!
This molecular evaluation points to what the energy medical sciences have held for thousands of years. That one of the main pillars to health is nutrition and they built elaborate sophisticated systems around nutrition. This means not just what we eat but when we eat, where we eat, how we eat and why we eat. That is the interrogatories of eating.
This concept of genetic plasticity is just one more reason why we need to take a very hard look at how we deal with nutrition. And the energy medical sciences can give guidance to the matter field medical sciences as practiced today.
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Value of Detoxification: An Energy Science Perspective
In the last couple of months I have written intermittently to you about the energy science's understanding of toxic load(called ama) that occurs with all disease Since this kind of thinking is completely foreign to those of us following the matter science medical model, it represents a radical departure as to how we think about the origin and treatment of disease
As I have said from an energy science perspective ama or this toxic moribund substance is the byproduct of poorly functioning metabolism Again the energy science describes poor metabolism as a result of low agni(digestive strength, power, or fire) This agni is in part the digestive capability of the entire GIT that we are all familiar with The agni in this part of the body is comprised of all the enzyme systems from the mouth to the rectum including all the bacterial systems as well
But there are other agnis in the body that are involved with the metabolism of the tissues and excretory functions And most importantly agnis that help us digest thoughts, feelings, and emotions When you digest well psychologically the result is mental clarity
From an energy perspective the primary purpose of any detoxification protocol is to improve agni or the capability to digest(physical food, thoughts, feelings, emotions)
Physical Detoxification
If you're tired you rest IF you're listening to your body As you know there are many people who don't listen to their bodies and that's literally the first step to disease Eventually you have to listen because the body essentially gives out with resultant disease
If your agni is laboring, not up to par, and as a result your body is producing ama, then it makes sense that one of the first things to do is to give your agni a rest One of the simplest things to do is a monodiet
A monodiet is a certain type of food that is done over a period of time The type of food chosen for the diet is not as important as the consistency to do the monodiet for the period of time Some would call this a "fast" and it is in the loosest sense of the term but it's essentially giving your digestive system rest Why? Because you're using only one group of enzyme systems to digest the same thing over and over again The monodiet could be fruit, could be rice and yogurt, could be fruit juice The point is that it doesn't matter what the monodiet is, as long as it's repetitive for a period of time
How long? It depends If you are Pitta Vata at most 7 days If PK then 14 days
Psychological Detoxification
I've divided the body and mind apart for discussion purposes but we should be clear here that from an energy science perspective the mind and body are intimately spliced They're one and the same What is mind is body and what is body is mind You can't separate them As a matter of fact detoxification of the physical body does psychological detox and psychological detox does physical detox That's how intimately spliced we are
Detox of the mind reduces mental ama and involves a form of monodiet as well But this monodiet is in the form of reducing mental activity The energy science is very clear that in order to remove mental ama some form of activity that reduces mental activity is most important
Why? Since we want to improve psychological agni we want to fast from thoughts The best way to do this is by meditation There are many ways to meditate The simplest is probably the most effective and involves watching the breath If you want you can add a mental instrument to trap the mind's attention using SO HUM SO on inhalation and HUM on exhalation
Breathing exercises can be meditative as well as yoga posture practice if done properly
The Benefits of Detoxification
When we improve agni there are great gifts Probably the most important is mental clarity and therefore peace, less emotional turmoil When the GIT is given some time off there is improved digestion and elimination We simply digest food better Here are some benefits from doing detoxification
Loss of cravings Feeling of lightness after eating Good taste perception
Steady weight Normal GI elimination Vigor vitality strength stamina
Healthy glow Mental clarity Sound sleep
Alertness Discrimination, intelligence Direction determination courage
Joy cheerfulness Contentment Affection enthusiasm
Patience Longevity Confidence
All because we have given our mindbody a break and improved our agni
To Health as a Skill DB
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Antiinflammatory Foods
Any disease with an inflammatory component such as mulitiple sclerosis can get ramped up during the summer months due to the hot quality that gets even more expressed We’ve chosen eleven ingredients we like that cool Pitta dosha particularly during the hot summer months If we’ve missed one of your favorites, please let us know in the comment section below
river cooling
11 Ways to Cool Off
1. Coconut
There are so many ways to use coconut and so many coconut products to enjoy – coconut water, coconut non-dairy milk and the traditional coconut flakes. Be aware that the oil, while it is certainly cooling, is not recommended for Vata and Kapha
2. Cilantro
Use as a garnish, stir chopped cilantro into a soup or toss with your salad greens.
3. Mint
Mint makes an amazing tea, loved by many. Toss fresh mint into your salad, on fruit or dessert.
4. Fennel
Fennel is wonderfully aromatic with its anise or licorice scent. Saute the seeds in oil to add to your favorite soups or stews. Add the powder to your chai or favorite hot beverage, or sprinkle onto your salad or dinner entree.
5. Rose Water
Add a dash to smoothies, rice puddings or a bowl of fruit. Substitute rose water for vanilla extract in recipes.
6. Pomegranate Molasses
The sugar that condenses when pomegranate juice is cooked forms pomegranate molasses and is quite heavenly. Add to salad dressings, dips and spreads, and use in marinades.
7. Sunflower Oil
This oil is traditionally used externally in Ayurveda as a cooling oil for Pitta. Enjoy sunflower oil as a substitute for vegetable oil. It is mild and light.
8. Maple Syrup
Use this cooling sweetener as you would any sugar. Would also be delicious in salad dressings and marinades.
9. Ghee
Ghee is clarified butter. It is beneficial for all three doshas (kaphas should use in moderation). It is delicious and easy to make. Use as you would butter or oil.
10. Turmeric
Turmeric has certainly seen a lot of press the past few years for it’s amazing health benefits. And fortunately it’s not difficult to add to your diet. Rice dishes, or potato or egg salads all taste delicious with some added turmeric. And of course there is curry!
11 Chyawanprash is a tasty Ayurvedic jam usually taken with warm water, milk, milk substitute whose prinicipal ingredient is amla derived from a berry that has very high Vitamin C but is not acidic It's very valuable in high Pitta conditions and therefore antiinflammatory Here's a link http://goo.gl/NMly6a
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Antiinflammatory Cocktail
The inflammation that occurs with pain as we've talked about in the past is from the hot and mobile qualities from an energy science viewpoint
As you know this pain can be excruciating and unrelenting causing undue stress on relationships and plans
And there are things that we have discussed that can help with temporary relief of symptoms
The Hot Quality
As we've mentioned before the human energy anatomy Ayurveda says that there are three energy patterns that give us function The Vata, Pitta, and Kapha physiologic energies gives the body movement, transformation, and stability respectively
Pitta the energy of transformation is the only one of the three energy patterns that has the hot vibrational frequency This energy of transformation is responsible for your flares Makes sense doesn't it? Hot transforms right? But too much of this energy produces chronic disease Burning wood, burning thoughts, burning stomach burning bladder, burning pelvis, burning vagina Holy smoke! Burned up relationships!
This is the energy that slso makes us competitive but if more hot enters into the equation it leads to aggressive behaviors that turn people off
Choosing Hot
So when it's hot in the environment the same hot is aggravated in our own mindbody energy field And when you eat trigger foods the same thing happens whether we can appreciate it or not That's why the food guidelines are so important because sometimes you can't appreciate what's happening
The hot from the sun is never as long term provoking as the hot that we ingest As I've discussed in other blogs consumption of the hot quality has a much longer staying power of influence This is a very important point since the physiology is affected literally for 35 days after a trigger food is chosen to be ingested
What happens when too much hot is in the energy physiology? You guessed it! INFLAMMATION
What To Do What To Do
Sooo…. here's a recipe for a delicious cooling herbal cocktail that you may find valuable particularly during flare seasons
2T of aloe vera gel(NOT the juice)
2oz of pomegranite juice
2oz of water
Chug a lug! Hmmmm delissios
Here's to cooling off
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5 Ways to Deal With Chronic Pain
In the energy science of Ayurveda imbalance of qualities such as hot, cold, heavy, light affect the metabolic fire called agni When this happens the end result is a toxic morbid substance called ama This is essence is how disease occurs in the energy model discipline
In chronic diseases the qualities lead to early symptoms of the disease complex but as progression occurs more qualities become involved and deeper tissues become affected due to the mounting amount of ama
Clogging of Energy Channels
When energy channels become obstructed with ama then there is no free flow of energy in the mindbody This leads to a buildup of the Vata energy pattern which is freely circulating in the channels(common channels we know from a Western perspective are the GI tract, large vessels like the aorta or vena cava, neural pathways, and the respiratory system)
Vata, when obstructed in the channels, causes pain In Ayurveda there is no pain without Vata So in the chronic disease pain is related to clogged channels from ama accumulation and the blockage of the free flow of Vata Often this is neurologic like pain and follows what I have written about in earlier blogs about the origin of any syndrome associated with pain
As you can see, keeping the channels open is essential for keeping vatagenic pain in check It is also important for immunity, and overall health To keep the channels open, it is important to eat fresh food with spices that help digestion so that ama is not formed When ama (partially digested food) is formed, its sticky nature blocks the channels and aggravates vata Also spices in your food, give a general warming effect to the whole body which helps to keep the channels open, and vata flowing
5 Ways to Prevent and Clear Pain
Staying warm The Vata energy pattern has the qualities of cold, light mobile, dry, rough, subtle, and clear so when we don't stay warm this can increase the Vata guna of cold and increase our pain Think about it....if you get cold the mindbody contracts Don't let your feet get cold Don't eat cold food and drink You might think ice cream is vata-pacifying because it's dairy but it's not It is actually vata-aggravating Anything cold you put in your system closes the channels and blocks the flow of vata That's why you get a headache if you eat cold things quickly
Transdermal creams can be used for pain control with reasonably good effect One has to be consistent, persistent, and disciplined in their use but if applied properly they can be very effective
Nutrition that causes pain Large beans, bananas, winter squashes and extra heavy foods are all known in Ayurveda as visthambi, (clogging to the srotas or channels) Avoid these items in your diet and you will find your channels are more open, and your vatagenic pain is less Also, avoid the nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, eggplant) because these toxic plants block the vibrational channels (nadis), which can subsequently cause the physical channels (srotas or channels) to shrink
Avoiding leftover foods or pre-packaged foods is important too These foods are not easily digested by the body and result in ama right away This promotes clogging of the channels and lessen the free flow of Vata
Daily schedules Regular routine is Vata pacifying so daily schedules are irregular and hectic(Vata provoking) there will be a tendency to increase the Vata energy pattern
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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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