Swine flu, part deux.
Like the proverbial bad penny, Swine flu, or H1N1 just won’t seem to go away. Let me re-phrase, the media’s obsession and government’s over-reaction with the swine flu won’t go away. I can understand the media, it’s all about selling more papers (figuratively speaking, no one reads newspapers anymore). Fear mongering equals high ratings. The government? Who knows, maybe they’re trying to divert us away from the fact that they’re hiding the bodies of little green men shot down over New Mexico
A while back I talked a little about the swine flu; and the fact that it’s not Ebola or Hanta, it’s the sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, fever flu, with a cool new name; there’s some 16,000 known variants of influenza. Now, I’m not saying let’s just ignore it and hope it goes away, I’m just saying let’s get a little perspective. At last count about 109 Americans have died from the swine flu this year; 30,000 have been killed by complications from taking Tylenol in the same time period.
As Ben and I have both said, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. And I’m not talking about a vaccine, that’s being pro-active, and a whole host of other issues. Over the past 30something years, I’ve eaten tons of watermelons, seeds and all; and have yet had a vine grow out my ear (thanks Uncle Mike for scaring the bejesus out of me). What I’m saying is, just because you plant a seed, doesn’t mean a plant will grow. The environment has to be just right.
So how do we create a flu-unfriendly environment? #1Vitamin D. Vitamin C is to Marsh Brady what Vitamin D is to Jan Brady. We all know how great C is, but no one ever talks about D. Ever notice how fewer people are sick in the Summer? It’s because the direct rays of the sun create Vit D in our body. Once the equinox rolls through and takes away our direct UV light, we no longer make Vit D; quite possibly the most important vitamin involved in boosting our immune system. #2 Proteolytic enzymes. All disease is manifested via the prostaglandin E2 pathway. Enzymes such as bioflavanoids, ginger, turmeric (mustard), paipan (pineapple), NAC and a long list of others that are hard to say and spell, act on said pathway stopping the tissue damage and thus “dis-ease” of disease. #3 Me.
I forgot #4. Pro-biotics. Your body is a giant petri dish. We have bacteria, fungi and other uni-cellular organisms just swimming it up in our bodies.
ReplyDeleteThere's a ecological principal known as carrying capacity. It's kind of like the fire marshal's maximum capacity declaration you see posted above the door. There's only so much room, so if your body is full of "good bacteria" there's no room for the "bad." Eating REAL yogurt, not the sweet syrupy stuff you find at the grocery store, or taking supplements with healthy bacteria such lactobacillis and eating foods high in Vit K will foster their growth.
Avoiding the willy-nilly use of anti-biotics will prevent the wanton destruction of our little friends too. That's another story for another day.
Now the flu is a virus not a bacteria, but probiotics help boost our immune system too.