Skip to main content

Natural Awakenings Dallas -Fort Worth Metroplex Edition

 972.992.8815

Keeping Our Body in Harmony

May 07, 2014 01:33AM ● By Constantine A. Kotsanis

There is a new term, “civilization disease”, gaining in popularity, which means that the wonders of our industrial/technical age have also brought with them a toxic load the body is incapable of managing; and women are particularly vulnerable.

To compensate for this toxic load, we must stay in harmony with our internal and external environments. To accomplish this, we have composed the “symphony of health”. The primary components of this masterpiece consist of nutrition/water, exercise/oxygen, hormonal balance, detoxification/chronic infection control, and community.

Nutrition/Water

Because proper nutrition is the cornerstone of good health, changes in food and water must be made before any other. Increasingly busy schedules for families have led to eating foods low in nutrients. These devitalized foods create an acidic environment in our bodies that when left unchecked, leads to a constant state of inflammation and eventually chronic disease. The good news is this process can be reversed.

Start with clean food and water, meaning it is free of pesticides, preservatives, hormones, and antibiotics. Drink a minimum of one-third your body weight in fluid ounces of alkaline water each day; preferably in-between meals to allow proper digestion.

Our diets are best when they are made up of a variety of meats, fish, poultry, fruits and vegetables and limiting high-glycemic index foods [define]. Also, calorie restriction is still a key factor in health and longevity. Because minerals alert the brain when it is full, the mineral content in food is important. Most packaged foods contain added sugar, confusing the brain, which continues to signal hunger.

Many people have some form of food intolerance. Dairy products can be particularly disturbing to the hormonal balance of a woman’s body,manifesting as allergies, gut yeast, blood acidification and liver overload. Both dairy and processed gluten products can suppress the endocrine and immune systems, and high-glycemic index foods can diminish the benefits of hormone treatments. All of these highly processed foods contribute to our inadequate vitamin/mineral consumption, so a pharmaceutical-grade supplement regimen, in addition to a healthy diet, is recommended. This regimen should include essential fatty acids and digestive enzymes, because improperly digested food can lead to bacteria and fungal overgrowth in the gut.

Exercise/Oxygen

To continue to be in perfect harmony, we must have energy, which stressors and activities decrease. Exercise, although it may seem counterintuitive, is the perfect way to increase energy. This is because energy is produced by the mitochondria in our cells, and the more mitochondria a cell has, the more energy it can produce. What do these busy little energy manufacturers feed on? Oxygen. The more oxygen we can breathe in, the more vibrant and energetic we will feel. In addition to regular exercise, practice breathing deeply 10 times at the start of every hour. As an added benefit, increasing oxygen to our cells can create elasticity, smoothness, and clarity in our skin.

Hormonal Balance

Hormones provide the rhythm for our symphony, requiring perfect harmony for the body to function properly. The thyroid and adrenal glands are particularly important, and once balanced will keep the body in tune. Too much cortisol brought on by excessive stress interrupts sleep, causes general fatigue, weight gain, and a weak immune system. When cortisol is consistently high, the adrenal glands get tired and the hormones necessary for cortisol production get depleted. Cortisol is necessary for blood sugar regulation, immune function, blood pressure maintenance and metabolism of fats, sugars and carbohydrates.

Detoxification/Chronic Infection Control

Kotsamos InstituteManmade toxins permeate our air, water, soil, food and household goods, preventing the best functioning of our system. Maintaining a lifelong detoxification program through oral or intravenous chelation, as well as oxidative therapies, is essential. Detoxifying our body can help prevent or control many chronic conditions and diseases such as cancer, diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Community

In 1961, a study was conducted in a Pennsylvania community. In spite of working in factories, smoking, eating heaping plates of pasta, and drinking copious amounts of wine the residents had far lower heart disease rates than communities surrounding them. Genetics were ruled out and the researcher concluded that it was the supportive community, with its spiritual groups, festivals and community rituals, that made the difference.

We all want our lives to be a melody that flows harmoniously. Eating well, reducing our toxic load, increasing energy and just breathing are excellent places to start. Implement this program in stages, nourish mind and spirit and begin to reap the benefits of an individualsymphony of health.


The Kotsanis Institute, under the direction of Constantine A. Kotsanis, M.D., is located at 2260 Pool Rd., in Grapevine. For more information, call 817-481-6342 or visit KotsanisInstitute.com.