Strange isn’t it ? Which doctor in the world would do that ? How about I say that each one of us is capable of being a doctor of our own ? Agreed we don’t have a medical degree for that or a complete understanding of the human anatomy – but we know our bodies best . And our brain is hardwired to self heal – only if we pay close attention to it when it tries to speak and give it the opportunity to fix the problem . In this fast paced world and an ever demanding lifestyle , nobody has the time and patience for that – especially when over the counter medicines are easily available and seem to work like magic . So if our stomach pains – we take a pain killer . The pain vanishes in seconds and we are back to our normal routine – not realizing that the root cause of the pain could be that something is wrong in the stomach . The pain might be a signal to draw attention to the problem or a signal not to overburden the stomach so it would get time to self heal . But we don’t heed to these subtle cues . We treat the symptoms rather than analyzing the root cause and resolving it . At times the location of the symptom might be different from the location of the problem . Every organ in the body is connected to and is impacted by every other organ in the body – the degree of interconnectedness differs . The nails change color based on the quality of blood and nutrients absorbed in the body , the tongue acts based on the signal sent by the stomach , the eyesight is impacted if a person has insulin resistance . By suppressing the symptoms the root cause is overlooked and re emerges in another part of the body as another ailment.
Another mistake we often make is our over reliance on chemical drugs . There are thousands of chemical reactions occurring in the body but where do the inputs for these reactions come from – the food we eat and the fluids we drink . So before gulping down a pill why don’t we try food as potential drugs ? They might have the same outcome but with positive side effects – aiding the body in its natural processes rather than resolving issues in one area and playing havoc in another .
Spices like cumin seeds , bay leaves , asafoetida perform the same function as Beano . A laxative irritates the lining of the intestine causing food to be eliminated many a times before nutrients have been absorbed from it . A natural fiber like Psyllium husk also puts the food in motion but in a healthier way .
Of course these natural treatments are slow and take longer to work since they try to restore the basic imbalance in the body and hence would not be recommended for acute , serious problems which if neglected could turn life threatening . Talking of serious problems reminds me of an old saying ‘Every problem was small before it became big’ – the body does give cues , hints and signs as the gravity of the problem increases . So why wait till the end when its out of control that we have to rush to a doctor and take harsh medicines or undergo surgery to treat it ? We’ll be in a much better shape if we nip the problem in the bud in a natural way and our body would thank us for being observant , caring , gentle and patient.
