True Meaning of Natural Medicine

At work, I consult with patients on what natural healing means and how it works to improve their health. At leisure, I talk with people in diverse professions to promote their awareness for natural health. During my recent trip to New York, I discussed this popular subject with Ann, a friend from the good old SIPA (the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University) days. Having acquired critical acumen in top-tier health organizations, Ann asked an array of intriguing questions about natural medicine. We enjoyed our dialogue so much that we even extended the discussion via email in the following weeks. In this blog, I selected part of our email communication to present with you the meaning of natural health in modern society.

“Thomas Edison foresaw the medical development in this way: ‘The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease.’

What you, I and other SIPA friends have in common is the ultimate drive to make a difference in the world through social, political, financial and educational means. We know that we cannot recreate a NEW world with ideal peace and equality. Then what can we do? Knowing the conflicts in the EXISTING world, we participate in tasks that hopefully can make a positive influence on it and change it for better over the long term. Regardless of how turbulent the world is (pollution, poverty, ethnic conflicts, economic downturn, etc. you name it), we, as do-good-agents, enter this imperfect arena to minimize its conflicts and enhance its valuable heritage. Of course, this is the almighty goal and requires many SIPA graduates to reach it. Fortunately, we are getting closer and closer to it every year. This point of view is based on the assumption that human's moral nature prefers a peaceful world.

By the same token, natural healthcare acknowledges the uncontrollable variables that affect people's health. Polluted environment is bad for respiratory system, growth hormones in poultry and dairy products interfere with body's normal hormonal metabolism, severe winter weather dehydrates skin (I’m curious about Sara Palin's secret to healthy skin is in Alaska), radiation from TV and computer weakens eyesight, stress increases risk for weight gain and chronic disorders ... ... These are just some examples of EXTERNAL factors that have negative impact on our health. Can we remove all of them in order to stay healthy? It'd be idealistic to see them gone in our lifetime. Then what can we do to preserve our natural body? Here comes Darwin's Survival of the Fittest theory. "The fittest" in human health are those who are able to maintain good health despite of the severity of external environment. Can we achieve this? The answer is the conceptual foundation (this term is definitely better applied here than elsewhere) of natural healthcare: empower the body to naturally stay at its ‘Fittest’. This is based on the assumption that our body is able to heal itself naturally. Healthcare innovation makes more sense if it shifts its focus to the body's INTERNAL environment and INTRINSIC ability, instead of applying foreign substances to regulate the already-damaged mechanism.

I can type out pages of my perspectives into natural medicine, but I don't want to bore you with more lengthy texts. Just think about this scenario. Ms. Veggie has been on an organic vegetarian diet for a while. She does so because her digestive system is sensitive. Her stomach easily gets upset when she tries new food. Her doctor told her that staying away from meat helps ease her stomach. Recently, she got addicted to cupcakes. "One cupcake a day, bid smile all day" has been her daily snack this whole month. Yesterday she read somewhere about enriching cupcake flavor with a bottle of milk. She usually drinks milk in the morning. As a healthy calorie-watcher, she postpones her milk consumption till 3PM when she usually eats a freshly baked cupcake. Milk (organic of course) and cupcake together taste better, but an hour later, Ms. Veggie's stomach started making funny movements. By the end of the day, she already used a roll of toilet paper. If she came to see a natural doctor, she’d be treated to improve digestion function, rather than being ordered to discontinue the cupcake-milk combo.

The bottom line of natural healthcare is to strengthen the body's innate physiological functions. If the body is healthy and strong, it can identify good nutrients and bad substances, absorb the useful and eliminate the waste. If it is sick and weak, it cannot recognize good or bad, improper absorption and elimination of wrong elements can occur (it doesn't matter what type of food intake is). In this case, it'd be really hard to treat the conditions by altering diet, don't even think about curing its root cause. In practice, the general concept mentioned above guides natural treatment plans, which must be carefully customized to meet each individual's body constitution, prior health condition, emotions, stress, religion, lifestyles and so on.”

By now you know a bit more about Moogger way of natural health concept. But be aware that not all natural health practitioners follow the same ideology, just like regional variations in western medical practices. You don't have to agree with me, but I'm happy that you’ve taken time to learn about a new health concept. Of course, your feedback and comments are always welcome to help expand Moogger’s knowledge from dissimilar minds.

Bridging the Divide *

Oprah talks about it. Anderson Cooper investigates it. The Texas Medical Center researches it. It is a new sensation in America. What is it? Mind-body medicine also referred to as holistic, natural, alternative, or complementary medicine.

Regardless of what it is called, a growing number of people have come to embrace it conceptually and have gained health benefits in practicing it. Philosophically, it is grounded in the belief that our physical well-being is directly connected with our minds. By releasing
emotional and mental toxins, we are able to restore our physical balance. The idea of treating body and mind together provides answers to some health conditions for which the cure has eluded traditional medicine. It may turn out to be the next best thing in medical practice. We have heard of the miraculous results that mind-body medicine has been able to achieve and it has inspired us to explore the subject in greater detail. But what are good and credible sources from which we may learn? Following are three books I recommend that were written by leading doctors in mind-body medicine. I hope that they will contribute towards a firm conceptual foundation for your holistic well being.

Healing from the Heart – Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.

Dr. Oz is vice-chair and professor of surgery at Columbia University. He directs the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Further, he is the health expert on The Oprah Winfrey Show and chief medical consultant to Discovery Communications. Although Dr. Oz is known for his recent best-seller You: The Owner’s Manual, a book he wrote earlier, Healing from the Heart, describes what he observed when his patients were treated with traditional cardiac care combined with energy healing, hypnosis, yoga, aromatherapy, music therapy, acupuncture, and visual imagery. The accounts of their mind-body healing are vividly described and strongly support his position that the relationship between traditional and alternative medicine should be complementary and not mutually exclusive.

Many Lives, Many Masters – Brian L. Weiss, M.D.

Dr. Weiss received his medical degree from Yale University, completed his internship at New York University’s Bellevue Medical Center, and went on to become the chief resident at Yale University Medical School’s Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Weiss is currently chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami and a clinical associate professor at the University of Miami School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry. In his book, Dr. Weiss innovatively brought psychiatry and metaphysics together based on his patients’ cases. Despite the controversy surrounding past-life therapy within psychiatric circles and Dr. Weiss’ own uncertainty about spiritual existence, he was startled when one of his patients recounted stories of 86 past lives during hypnosis. This realization helped Dr. Weiss treat her anxiety, depression and phobias. While it is understandable to hold skeptical views when entertaining the idea of the spiritual connections introduced in the book, you will be intrigued to consider the possibility of reaching “space between lives.”

The Web That Has No Weaver: Understanding Chinese Medicine – Ted J. Kaptchuk, O.M.D.

Dr. Kaptchuk received his Doctor of Oriental Medicine in Macau, China in 1975, and has been instrumental in migrating eastern medicine philosophy to the United States. He is an assistant professor of Medicine and director of the Asian Medicine and Healing Program at Harvard medical school. If you only have time to read one book on Chinese medicine, this is the one. This book scientifically blends ancient Chinese medicine with modern Western medicine. You can find the answers from A-Z of Chinese medicine that include such matters as energy, spirit, the five elements, yin and yang, acupuncture and herbology. Through the lens of Western culture, Dr. Kaptchuk provides a comprehensive guide on the theories and practices of Chinese medicine that focus on the mind-body connection.



*This article was first published in Yellow Magazine November 2008 issue.