You have now read Part I of this series on the human body, learning how to build a better understanding and confidence in each of our bodies. Now you will begin to understand that the intelligence that created this body from one cell, the fertilized egg, is still inside doing its job. We tend to think that this intelligence has somehow been lost and is no longer at work.
The body is a collection of systems, each with specific jobs. The lowest of these is the skeletal system that forms the body frame. This frame holds the factory for blood cells, act as an attachment for all muscles, and encases and protects with ribs the vital organs heart and lungs. The skull protects the brain, and the spine protects the spinal cord.
You have other systems with responsibility such as the muscular system that allows for motion of the body, the digestive system that takes nutrients out of the foods we eat to use as fuel, the reproductive system that allows the human body to be reproduced, as well as the endocrine system, renal system, pulmonary system, cardiovascular system, and the nervous system.
The nervous system, you will recall, is the first to develop from the mass of tissues that became you, and comprises the brain and all of the nerves that go out into the body to control, regulate and maintain ALL FUNCTIONS directly or indirectly. (Grey’s Anatomy Medical Text). The body is meant to be healthy and IS healthy as long as everything is functioning as it is suppose to and will only get sick when the normal, natural function of the body is interfered with, which can be sudden as in a trauma, or gradual as in heart disease of the development of cancer, etc.
There are all sorts of medical specialists that take care of your heart (Cardiologist), your bones (Orthopedist), female organs (Gynecologist), or who treat specific diseases like cancer (Oncologist). Then you have non-medical practitioners such as Dentists for your teeth and Podiatrists for your feet and ankles.
Another area of care is Chiropractic, which deals with the spine and, though many look on Chiropractors as back doctors, the specialty deals with the relationship of the nervous system and the balance of the spine in the maintenance and restoration of health, as mentioned earlier, the nervous system is what controls the function of the body and therefore maintains your health when there is no interference due to structural imbalances.
You also have those who try to help the body as Nutritionist, Herbalist, and then the treatment methods that stimulate body function such as in the various techniques in body therapy. From Asia you have acupuncture which uses fine needles to stimulate body function through various points in the body. All of these are available to the informed patient who understands more about how there body is working and the possible conditions that might need attention. Most medical doctors only understand the drugs they give and not other professions, so, referrals to more conservative alternative care are rare.
Now that you have an overview of the body and the areas of care, it must be repeated that it is better to stay healthy than to try to get well. Prevention is always the best approach to health. Prevention in itself can be a little confusing, so we will get to the basics that everyone needs to know. These articles are only meant to get you started, to gather some interest. What you need to do from this point on is to educate yourself and your family. You will need to learn what is available to you and your loved ones through the internet and the many sights offering information. Always look at “opinions” as something everyone has and not always fact. Some opinions are more hype that educational, but I am sure as you read through the material you will discover that for yourself.
Health is the optimum function of the human body. There are several things that can interfere with the body’s function. The most noted is NUTRITION. We all know we need to have good nutrition. Many of us were raised with “eat your vegetables, they’re good for you”, or other such statements. We could write reams of articles, as have already been written, about nutrition and what you should and should not eat. But, for the purpose of these short articles this will not be done. Good nutrition is essential to give the body the “fuel” it needs to operate and to maintain itself.
EXERCISE is the next topic. This is one where people do not do anything (the coach potato) or the fanatic who goes to the gym 7 days a week. There is an old saying that goes back years, “Use it or lose it!”. It is still true today. You need to use the body and keep it active. That does not mean you have to do an hour of workout at the gym, it means that you keep your body active and you use it when you can. If you are inactive and sitting at a computer all the time or someone who is driving all the time (truck driver, bus driver) you are going to have to make the effort to find time to do activities for your body to be healthier.
The more you do the better off your body will be, again I am not saying you have to work out 7 days a week, but you can park a little further away from the mall doors and get more walking in, or take walks after dinner, or enjoy the beach in warm weather, or other physical things. We now have the Wii where you can do exercising in conjunction with your computer. The main thing is to recognize if you are getting enough activity in your life. If you are stiff, if you are overweight, if you are physically weak, you are probably not getting enough.
Other factors for better health are; ENVIRONMENT, REST, POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE, GENETICS, and a BALANCED BODY. Notice that I never mentioned anything about pills, drugs, or such treatment. These are things that should be used only in emergency or as a last result. Again, PREVENTION is the best thing you can do for the body.
To be healthy you need to make sure you are getting the right nutrition and I will let you read many articles on that at your leisure and you need to make sure you are getting the motion in your daily activities. All of this helps the body to work as it was intended. Remember the INNATE intelligence in your body and make sure you are not doing things that interfere with its ability to function as it was designed. You want to make sure you are not abusing the body by forcing it to store more foods (as fat) than it need to be healthy, thus gaining weight that it has to carry around all the time putting stress on your frame and on your various other systems such as your heart.
Since “child obesity” is in the news so much and has been discussed repeatedly in the past several years as this problem became more and more evident, and now with the First Lady Michele Obama taking on the cause, we need to mentions something that is most important. This condition is NOT as disease to be treated medically, but a CHOICE that is made (a bad choice) and what has to be done is to make better choices, by the child and most important by the parents. If your child is mimicking you and you are way over weight as we see so often with heavy set families, there needs to be an all out effort for all effort to make better choices; in what you buy, in what you cook, and in the proportions you serve.
What we are trying to get the reader to understand it the responsibility of taking care of the body so it can do what it is suppose to do and that is to maintain your health. You see… the body maintains its health if you do not interfere with bad nutrition, lack of muscular activity, stress, repetitive traumas, toxic environment, or a body that has been traumatized and is not in balance as it should be, this interfering with the nervous system and the function that it controls. If you take care of your body then your body will take care of you.
If you know there is any weakness in your body that needs help, then you need to do specific exercises, nutritional supplements, meditation, chiropractic adjustments or other natural services to help overcome these weaknesses. The last thing you should subject your body to are drugs that can cause other problems with your liver and kidneys.
The body can take care of itself, if you allow it to do so. You can learn more about the specific systems of the body should you want to know more about a problem area. Try to keep in mind the miracle of the body and how it works.
This is the only body you get and it was created to be perfect and help you all of your life, but you need to take care of it. The “spare parts” are not as good as they are hyped to be, the drugs so many rely on causes more damage, and when you cut things out you will never have the benefit of that natural balance that was created. Accidents are accidents, but you need to be sure you take care of them is a way that restores the body to the best balance and condition you can. So many people wait until their body is falling apart before they make any attempt to take care of it, and many times there has been damage that cannot be corrected. This means it has to be mentioned again… PREVENTION, PREVENTION, PREVENTION!