The new meaning of “being green”, are you in the loop?

These days, it’s like if you’re not “green” your a monster (pun sort of intended). I feel like this attitude can go a bit over the top sometimes, but hey, I get it, we should care about the world God has given us stewardship over, and do things to better it not worsen it, I agree. But while the environment around us begs our attention, so does the environment within us. You may be greener than Swamp Thing on the outside. You’re a recycling genius, a grandmaster composter of eligible materials, you might even hold a Ph.D in the having/usage of recycled grocery bags, but for real, how are things looking on the inside? Not inside the bag. Inside of YOU. Are you a thriving, well nourished ecosystem in which there is cleanliness and order, or your insides like a polluted ocean in which your cells languish and choke on the garbage that surrounds it? Perhaps your passion is just really focused on the cleanliness of the world around you. Whatever your passion, a prosperous and healthy internal milleu will allow you to live out your passion and express it, par exellence.

There are lots of things to consider when thinking about healthy eating, but what I wanna talk to you about is eating green. Not green in the sense of functioning well on the inside. We’re gonna put that baby to bed now, but.. literally eating green. Like.. consuming.. green things. Like vegetables. Do you understand the importance of the place that organic leafy green vegetables have in cultivating a healthy body? I’ve been told my entire life to eat my freakin vegetables, but no one ever told me why!

Reason to be green #1: Mountain spring, or toilet? 

Lemme ask you this: if you could get your drinking water from the purest, most unadulterated source on earth (not at all referring to bottled water), would you rather get it there, or after it’s been recycled through the system (i.e. people’s bodies, toilets, storm drains, water treatment plants, etc), and out from your tap, after having a bunch of unnecessary chemicals added to it? The same question can apply to your food. Biology class taught us about the ecological food chain in which organisms obtain energy from the food that they consume. There are three main groups of consumers as they cycle up the food chain: primary consumers (things that eat plants), secondary consumers (things that eat things that eat plants – carnivores/omnivores), and tertiary consumers (top of the game. e.g. us). At the very bottom of the barrel, forming the foundation of the food chain, you have plants themselves. Plants reside at trophic level 1, because they are autotrophs, meaning they get their energy directly from the sun and make their own food from it. Thus, they are called “primary producers.” The significance of all this, is in considering the relative quality of the energy we garner from the foods that we eat. I believe it’s important to maintain a diet that pulls from all trophic levels (plants and animals alike), but because plants provide chemical energy that, before it’s breakdown in the plant, is obtained directly from the source (sunlight), we are getting energy at the highest possible grade available throughout the system.

As we consume organisms on higher trophic levels, the things that eat plants, the things that eat the things that eat plants, the quality of the energy which we derive from them is less potent, because it’s been diminished as it’s been consumed, and run through the system of consumers since the plant. The energy content of plants, represents the purest form of energy we will be able to harness over any other food source available in the chain.

Reason to be green #2: a new chemical romance 

The foods we eat on a regular basis, if we are consuming processed junk foods, are choc full of chemicals that are pretty hard on our bodies. These days, it isn’t just about the kind of foods we eat, we also have to consider the quality of the product. What kind of chemical additives are mingled with my food, that could be harming me, and bringing me down the path of disease? The sad part is, while some of these chemicals are beating us up on the inside, they also serve to enhance the taste of the foods we buy, leading, in many cases, to food addictions and out of control cravings. The good news is, the commercial food industry doesn’t have a monopoly on chemicals, because as it turns out, nature has her own mighty repertoire of chemical weapons that fight for us, not against us. I’m talking about phytochemicals. Phytochemicals (or phytonutrients) are substances plants synthesize to defend themselves against harmful invaders. Turns out, these chemicals are extremely beneficial for our health as well. Many of these phytochemicals are antioxidants that give plants/fruits their bright colors. There is a laundry list of these guys (over 900 in the foods we eat), and they usually roll deep, having, at times, 100 or more present per serving of a fruit or vegetable. They are beneficial for our bodies in everything from immune defense, to cancer killing, to reducing oxidative stress. I won’t even dare list them all, but I’ll intro you to a few of these bad boys.

Chlorophyll. “Chlorophyll, bore-ophyll.” Thanks Adam Sandler, but seriously, as bore-ophyll as chlorophyll may be, when it comes to making things awesome on the inside, this guy is an original gangster. Besides being the reason plants are green, chlorophyll is known for it’s anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidative properties. It also contains vitamins D, C, and A, and acts as a powerful natural deodorizer. So if you’re one of those extra stinky people I have to stand next to while I’m doing dumbbell curls in the gym, let’s hook you up with some chlorophyll and get you right.

Ajoene. This one tends to be the George Mcfly of phytochemicals. Has an unfortunate, irrelivant sounding name, usually left out of the conversation of phytochemicals, but when scrutinized, this one truly packs a punch. Ajoene is down with the antioxidant, anti-inflammation game but brings a lot more to the table. Ajoene is also known to have antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral capacities. It’s anti-clotting factors have also been suspected to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Flavonoids. No, nothing that came from or has any association with flavor-flav, just in case you were wondering. Flavonoids are regarded by some to be the most powerful phytochemicals in the game. Flavonoids are all business, complete with anti-allergenic, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory,  and blood vessel reinforcement properties, among many other important benefits.

Now you should get the picture of what your working with when you choose to go green. You’re treating your body to some of the most potent, health stimulating substances available anywhere. It’s food, that literally is medicine. Also, notice some of the things all these phytochemicals seem to have in common: anti-inflammation, anti-oxidation, anti-cancer. Nah.. couldn’t be, it doesn’t cost enough money to be something genuinely effective in killing cancer. Think again. When you get cancer, it isn’t because you’re suffering from a lack of chemotherapy, it’s because you’re suffering from deficiencies in key substances that are critical for immunity and the proper functionality of biological processes throughout the body. It’s because the inflammatory response is out of control, trying to keep up with all of the toxic substances we load our bodies with on a regular basis. It’s because the organ systems effected aren’t able to keep up with constant abuse of all give and no take, and having interference in it’s neurological connection to the brain, etc.

“Raw is war”. The problem with cooking your vegetables is that the high heat, this includes steaming, denatures enzymes and kills off a lot of the key substances we’ve been talking about. If you want to get maximum yield of the medicinal properties that come from your vegetables and fruits, you wanna eat them raw. Now, here’s your choice: eat a few carrots, an apple, and try not feeling awkward about chewing on a kale leaf or popping a handful of loose spinach. OR, put the whole lot of em in a juicer, and get it in liquid form. Perfecto. With juicing, not only are you preserving the key nutrients you wanna take in, you are able to fit a ton more content into a manageable serving. Plus, being that it’s in liquid form, the digestive process will be a lot smoother, and nutrient uptake will be as swift as can be.

But vegetables taste nasty though. This is true, if you don’t know what you’re doing. Take the most bitter mixture of dark green vegetables, add some ginger, heck even toss in some garlic (we need our ajoene, after all), throw em into your juicer, and go to town. Now, add an apple, pear, or some other sweet fruit, and (if you’ve proportioned it right) it will literally taste like candy. It’s all about the combination people, and it isn’t hard to get it right.

Also, eat the color of the rainbow. “Leafy” greens are, I believe, some of the best vegetables you can incorporate into your diet, but there are plenty of other vegetables that aren’t green, which have powerful phytonutrients that you are gonna wanna get into your body. Juicing is a lot of fun, and it’s one of the best dietary implementations you can make. There is a popular documentary out now called “fat, sick, and nearly dead” that documents the lives of two men who were physically just as the title suggests, and completely turned their lives around by juicing. It’s worth the watch. Well, we’re all on a journey. A journey defined by our habits. I can only hope your journey is leading you down the path of health, vitality, and long life. If you’re not sure where you are, a glass of the green can serve as a mark today, that you’ve begun down a new path. A path this is confidently running towards physical strength, and vibrant health.

 

 

 

 

What’s the difference between a chiropractor and an antelope? Or how about this: can you tell me what chiropractic even is?

Everyone’s heard of chiropractic! you say. There’s like ten chiropractic clinics just on my street alone yo’, why are you talking about this like it’s something no one’s ever heard of? The truth is, I’m not worried about whether people can say, spell, have heard of, or have been to a chiropractor. What I wanna know is… do you know what chiropractic is? Can you tell me the basic claims of a chiropractor? What he/she does, or thinks he’s doing to you when he gives you an adjustment, and how he believes that what he’s doing is helping you? (forgive the masculine pronoun, chiropractors can be women too, people). When you go to your chiropractor, do you know why you are spending money on his services? When you dismiss chiropractic as quackery, “fake medicine”, or just not a service worthy of your beloved dollar, do you actually have a legit reason for dismissing it, based on what you know to be true about it’s services?

The sad reality is sobering: a good honkin majority of people who say “oh yeah, chiropractic I swear by it” or “chiropractic, ha, that’s fake medicine, a bunch of trolling wannabe doctors” , can’t even tell you the basics of what chiropractic claims. Get this: there are even licensed medical doctors and healthcare practitioners of all different varieties that will bash and dismiss chiropractic on bases that have nothing to do with what chiropractic even does/claims, or will demonstrate massive misunderstandings of the procedures that chiropractors actually do perform!

Lemme give you a perfect example.

H. Doyle Taylor, former director of the department of investigations for the American Medical Association, during his deposition in the lawsuit against the AMA, and his involvement in trying to “contain and eliminate” the profession of chiropractic, admitted: “I didn’t know anything about chiropractic when I went to the AMA, I didn’t know a chiropractor from an antelope”.

I know, I need my mandible adjusted too, after that. A guy who (if you research any of his claims) vehemently preached against the profession of chiropractic was entirely clueless as to what chiropractic is at all. My point, and challenge to you is this: if you go to a chiropractor, AWESOME, but you should know what the service is really all about if you are investing your money in it. And more importantly, if you are anti-chiropractic, please have a reason.. a good reason, basing your disagreements securely on what chiropractic actually claims, and does.

Before I set the record straight by simply defining for you what chiropractic is, I wanna squash a few myths regarding what chiropractic it is not.

Myth #1: Chiropractic is “fake medicine”.

Actually this statement is true. Reason being that chiropractic has nothing to do with medicine! Wait.. but you said chiropractors are doctors, right? So what gives? Yes, chiropractors are doctors, meaning they have a professional, doctorate degree in chiropractic (which explains the D.C. after their names, standing for “doctor of chiropractic”). If someone can don the title “doctor” it is because they have earned a doctorate degree in what ever discipline the degree was offered in. Chiropractors are rightfully called “doctors”, but they certainly are not medical doctors. Medical doctors receive their doctorate in medicine, for which they rightfully earn the title “medical doctor” and thus the letters M.D. after their names.

Furthermore, Chiropractic philosophy and the philosophy which serves as the foundation of conventional/allopathic medicine, have absolutely critical, fundamental differences concerning the healing arts, sickness and dis-ease, and believe it or not, the substance of life itself. I will expound on these key differences in future posts you won’t wanna miss. But for now, know this: Chiropractic is not, and does not seek to be, classified as medicine.

Myth #2: Chiropractic training is a joke.

If one considers the rigorous academic program that comprises a chiropractor’s professional training, it will be easy to understand why chiropractors are definitely deserving of the title “doctor”. Here is a table (follow the link below) that gives a concise breakdown of the minimum credit hour requirements in key health sciences, compared between chiropractic school and medical school programs. This is brought to you by Dr. Grisanti, the medical detective http://www.yourmedicaldetective.com/drgrisanti/mddc.htm.

The truth is that chiropractors receive very solid, thorough training in the health/biological sciences. As the table demonstrates, many of the core aspects of health science are actually focused on a lot stronger in chiropractic college as compared to medical school (e.g. Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Diagnosis etc)!

Myth #3: Chiropractic is not scientific.

Anyone who truly does their research knows that this claim is untrue. All one has to do is search in any database containing peer reviewed scientific medical literature and they will find documentation on studies that promote the safety, efficacy, and scientific veracity of various aspects of chiropractic (e.g. Dynamed, EBSCOhost, PubMed, MANTIS database, Medscape, etc). Now, with that said it is important to understand that chiropractic does not enjoy the same favored position in academia, or as close association with deep pocketed monetary giants as conventional medicine does (e.g. the pharmaceutical industry). Therefore, funding for research in chiropractic is greatly outdone by that which is made available to the programs of conventional medicine. What this means is that research could be a lot stronger, if given the right opportunities. Chiropractic research teams are already getting stronger and working around the clock, so you can be sure that it will only get better as time goes on. Perhaps the coolest thing about chiropractic research, is that medical science seems to be publishing more and more literature bringing about “new findings” in research that supports what chiropractic has been teaching all along. More on this in future posts!

So what is chiropractic?

We’ll break it down real smooth. I’ll spare you the complicated textbook jargon and give it to you straight. Chiropractic is a healing art/science/philosophy that focuses on the health of the whole human body, by emphasizing the necessity of integrity (proper functionality) within it’s primary structural component (the spine) and it’s primary control component (the nervous system). Chiropractic operates under the scientific premise that the body, at all levels of organization, works together to maintain the homeostatic balance of the whole organism. This is the recognition that the body is self regulatory, and self healing. Therefore, the greatest healer is truly within the capacities of the human body itself, and the role of the health care provider is to facilitate the natural processes of the human body that lead to it’s ability to heal and thrive.

Let’s talk a little anatomy to give you a solid picture (don’t worry, I’ll be gentle). The spinal column (bones of the spine) enclose and protect the spinal cord. The spinal cord, connected to the brain, makes up the CNS (central nervous system). The CNS through the PNS (peripheral nervous system, nerves that go out from the brain/spinal cord to the rest of the body) control and coordinate every tissue, cell, and organ in the body (whether directly or indirectly).

In other words, in order for your heart to beat, your lungs to breathe, the organ systems of your body to function correctly, there needs to be that vital connection to the command and control center (the brain), and it’s the nervous system that allows this connection to happen. Without your nervous system.. you’d be destroyed.

So why do they crack my back? Well, this is where the spine/nervous system relationship comes in. The spine encloses the spinal cord (CNS), and it’s meant to protect it from trauma. It performs this function really well. The problem is that when we roll through the punches of living life in this world, we experience traumas, toxins, and all sorts of other insults that rock our bodies to the core. It isn’t hard for the bones of the spinal column to become misaligned, and as a unit, go into mechanical breakdown. When this happens, the bones of the spine, being out of place, now impinge and compress the nervous tissue of the cord (whether directly or because of inflammation found among joint surfaces). This phenomenon is known as “spinal subluxation complex”. Subluxation, referring to the misaligned spine impinging the anatomy of the spinal cord.

This is where the bigger issue lies. When the nerve trunks of the spinal cord become impinged, it creates interference in that nerve complex’s ability to transmit information to the organ systems throughout the body, that it supplies. Therefore, it’s ability to connect that organ system to the brain, is now greatly effected, in a negative way.

Because the nervous system controls the organ systems of the body, interference in the nervous system’s ability to communicate because of misaligned spinal bones compressing it in various locations along the cord, directly affects the ability of the related organ systems of the body to function properly.

The role of the chiropractor, is to restore the structural integrity of the spine, putting it back into it’s normal anatomical position restoring normal range of motion, and thus relieving the compression off of the nervous system, and therefore restoring the nervous system’s ability to maintain a full, unimpeded connection between brain and then rest of body.

Chiropractic is about health. Notice how I didn’t say chiropractic is about disease. Medicine, is about disease. I plan on amply demonstrating these key differences in future posts. Chiropractic, therefore, doesn’t treat disease. If you have a cold, an upset stomach, an ear ache, or perhaps a more serious condition like cancer, MS, or ulcerative colitis, your chiropractor won’t be treating you for these conditions.

But let me ask you something: If your nervous system is free of interference, and thus your body is able to coordinate and regain control over it’s natural healing processes and establish internal balance.. do you think these conditions will have room to thrive in your body? I agree.. no they won’t.

Hating on chiropractic, and loving on chiropractic are your rights as free people. But let’s be consistent and love or hate chiropractic on basis of what it is, not on basis of what it is not.

The Biomechanic.