Health Naturally..

"If you have health, you probably will be happy, and if you have health and happiness, you have all the wealth you need, even if it is not all you want."

I still remember how much I hated Mr. Manthena Satyanarayana for his shows on TV everyday in the mornings. I woke up to his voice every day I was in Guntur and may be I hated him for this reason alone. My mom was a sincere follower of his shows and she tried to preach a few of his points to me and my brother, but always in vain. He had a huge fan base for his shows on natural medicine, mostly housewives. I never thought I would land up in a Naturopathy chain of hospitals for my summer internship and in fact become a fan of naturopathy. My last 45 days at a peaceful village in Gujarat have been a great learning in every way. The beautiful part is my experience with naturopathy. Please read the entire post as it is really useful for us, especially in this polluted world.

As our technology and development advance, enormous problems with respect to environmental pollution and the general quality of life continues to grow. We live in a world where stress, pressure, competition are inevitable. These have paved the way to irregular and irresponsible eating habits, lack of physical exercise, dependence on medication and many other unhealthy living habits. The fast lives, ever growing pollution has added to the above and is the main reasons for our immunity breakdown, making us vulnerable to many diseases. This lifestyle of ours is the root cause of many common chronic illnesses like Hypertension, Diabetes, Obesity, Heart diseases and all kinds of arthritis. As put by the World health Organization, “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”.

Naturopathy is a system of medicine that focuses on natural remedies and the body's vital ability to heal and maintain itself. Naturopathy believes that our body has the innate capability to cure itself from any chronic disease but that capacity is reduced because of various factors like pollution, our lifestyle etc. Hence naturopathic treatment means to put ourselves back in order the nature force of life i.e. Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether, and Mind to gain perfect health. Naturopathy makes use of simple therapies to balance these forces and achieve healthy body and mind.

Naturopathic treatments include dietary changes, exercise, bodywork and natural remedies that support the body’s capacity to heal. It is the most profound medical science that goes deeper and heals from within. It removes dependence from external sources and puts your health back in your hands. Let us consider an example to understand the treatments better. Diabetes is a common chronic ailment. Modern medicine prescribes artificial insulin intake and also many pills to support the same. But naturopathy believes that simple changes in diet, exercise and yoga gives long term relief from diabetes. Naturopathic treatments include dietary changes through which intake of natural insulin is enhanced. Simple yoga asanas exercises like brisk walking are advised to stimulate pancreas and spleen, thus increasing the production of insulin in the body. Thus by addressing the root cause of the ailment, naturopathy is a competent system of medicine.

Naturopathy believes that “Sickness is the vengeance of nature for the violation of her laws”. Naturopathic medicine is defined by principles rather than by methods or modalities. Above all, it honors the body’s innate wisdom to heal. Naturopathy follows five pronged approach to achieve complete good health and wellbeing.

1. Healthy Environment: As a Danish proverb goes “fresh air impoverishes the doctor”. Healthy environment reduces various carcinogenic chemicals and hence prevents many chronic diseases like Cancer etc. A week away from the polluted urban environment at a clean and green environment works wonders on the human body. Hence they even advise to maintain ferns and potted plants in the living room as they increase the oxygen level in the room, which is vital for the well being of various internal organs.



2. Detoxification: Detoxification diets were created with the main purpose of freeing the body of stored toxins. Controlled fasting days along with a healthy diet will also help get rid of some excess weight. Diets of this kind may be very beneficial as they may constitute a great starter for a healthy way of life on condition that they are not abused. Also, there are many detoxification techniques in yoga and Ayurveda, which completely make our body toxin free.
   
   
3. Alkaline diet: An alkaline diet lifestyle will make you feel alive and vital; improve concentration, mental and physical stamina and overall self-esteem. The benefits of alkaline diet also include weight loss, better sleep. Also, it completely reduces acidity of blood which is the main root cause of many diseases. It also increases anti-ageing as the life of body cells is prolonged.



4. Naturopathic and Ayurveda treatments: External treatments like hydrotherapy, massages etc. relieve you from symptomatic relief. It increases the elasticity of nerves, which reduces the burden on heart. This also increases the efficiency of blood flow throughout the body, which helps in increasing the efficiency of many internal organs. Ayurveda emphasizes preventative & healing therapies along with various methods of purification & rejuvenation. Ayurveda is more than a mere healing system; it’s a science & art of appropriate living that helps to achieve longevity. It can guide every individual in the proper choice of diet, living habits & exercise to restore balance in the body, mind & consciousness, thus preventing disease from gaining a foothold in the system.
   
   
   
   
5. Meditation and Yoga: Meditation and yoga help in complete relaxation of body and mind. Yoga is not merely a set of asanas & breathing exercises- Pranayama, which helps in maintaining healthy body. It extends the beneficial effects on mental, emotional, social, as well as spiritual level of our being. Thus yoga gives us a complete healthy way of life. Yoga also improves the blood circulation, movements of various joints etc. It also solves the problems of constipation and insomnia, burns calories and lowers blood sugar levels. “Meditation is a delightful and spontaneous thing to do. It is the continual act of making friends with yourself".

After staying here for over a month now and witnessing how naturopathy is able to cure some of the most chronic diseases, I sincerely suggest you to spread the word. Also, naturopathy has preventive healthcare remedies, which include few diet tips and yoga, and is the best preventive healthcare across all the systems of medicine.

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