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THE NATION THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2012
NATURAL HEALTH
How the Law of Balance keeps us healthy
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HE fear of thunder is the beginning of wisdom for many people. I know of some people who shiver to the bone marrow and seek hiding places under their beds or perhaps under a carpet. Ironically, it is such people who are loudest when it comes to invoking "Holy Ghost Fire" to consume their real or imagined enemies. Ironically, too, what frightens them is an occurence in the atmosphere of the earth, incomparable in magnitude to the power they seek, power which devours all cleanliness, even themselves. Since the beginning of Time, man has wondered what lightning and thunder are. My forebears asked the oracle man. I asked my high school teacher. When my children asked me, I referred them to the Children's Encyclopedia. I am sure they will ask their children to check the internet. It is in the course of everyone wondering what these phenomena are that cell salt health practitioners concluded that people who fear the thunder are deficient in one of the 12 biochemical salts, NATRUM MUR (sodium chloride). This is not table salt but, like all cell salts, triturated homeopathic varrants of it, which makes it medicinal. The 12 cell salts are believed to be basic constituents of every one of the adult body's 100 or so trillion calls, in various ratios based on their nature and functions. The NATURM MUR personality presents not only the symptom of the fear of thunders, but many others. If I seem to have highlighted the thunder, it is, perhaps, because we are in the rainy season during which we have to live almost everyday with lightning and thunder. Maybe I should strike the nail on the head. I do not like lightning and thunder. I've heard of thunder bolt but hits, and I am sure one must have torn through my neighbour's window. In the nation of many 'fake' people that Nigeria has now become, you can't trust the lightning catcher the electrical people fix in your house for your protection. One rainy day last year, I was awakened from deep sleep by a sudden bright lighting of my bedroom which I didn't light up before I went to bed. For a moment, the lighting seemed like the flood lightning of a stadium at night. Instinctively, I knew it was lightning and that thunder was coming. Sure enough, it came almost before I jumped out of bed seeking refuge nowhere. The following day, many people in Lagos spoke about that thunder which was loud enough to have been heard almost everywhere. But weren’t we all near illiterates or illiterate? For it isn’t the sound the hurts, but the lightning. It was in the course of researching nutritional supplements that could steel the heart against such fear that I stumbled on Natrum mur as a remedy. Before I come to Natrum mur and the importance of the Law of Balance in the building and maintenance of radiant health, I wish to quickly travel on memory lane to my high school physics class. • Thunder is caused by lightning bolts. • Lightning is produced in thunder storms by the collision of ice and liquid particles above a freezing level in a cloud traveling downwards. The collision creates electric fields which leads to giant sparks when they become large enough. • This causes atmospheric discharge of electrons, which leads to storms in the clouds • A lightning bolt travelling downward on the storm compresses surrounding between 10 and 100 times, raising atmospheric pressure. • At some point, the compressed air explodes in a loud bombing burst we call thunder. So, why are we afraid of thunder, when the explosion may have occured about 500 kilometres away, if it came just a few seconds after the lightening? I haven't a clue as yet,except to imagine the lack of a ‘shock absorber’ and for a personal experiment with Natrum Mur which has worked substantially for me. I took my cue from the experiences of homeopath Sir John Neir, a physician of Queen Elizabeth II and one of England's most reputable homeopathic doctors. He often described himself as a typical Natrum Mur personality. He was riven with headaches and became blind in one eye. Only drugs and coffee seemed to give him relief. It was when he turned to homeopathy and tried Natrum Mur at a very high dosage that the headaches disappeared. That is over 40 years now! According to Nigey Lennon and Lionel Rolfe in their HOMEOPATHIC CELL SALTREMEDIES: "He went on to describe the person for whom Natrum Mur is a good constitutional tonic. This person becomes irritable over trifles, especially small noises such as the sound of people fussing or of a clock ticking. He or she is intense by nature, sensitive, and prefers to be alone. Music rouses feelings of great emotion. The Natrum Mur person prefers sorrowing alone, and if a well-meaning comforter tries offering consolation, he or she is rejected with scorn. A marked symptom is a headache that feels like a thousand little hammers pounding in the head.” Before Sir John, many leading European homeopaths had described Natrum Mur deficiency symptoms to include dejection, depression hypochonria and tiredness of the brain. Other classical symptoms often mentioned in persons who need Natrum Mur include, say Lennon and Rolfe. • "... free watery discharges, which flow far a easily from the mucous membranes • "Natrum Mur ... is also indicated in cases where the vagina is excessively dry • "Natrum Mur subjects also tend to be sensitive to light and heat, and they have poor circulation , they are often chilly and their condition appears to be aggravated by the seashore. • "They are often melancliodylic ... fear of thunder is a symptom. Sir John Neir said that during the air raids in London during World War II, a need for Natrum mur was indicated in cases of shock. •"Natrum mur people suffer from constipation, hard dry stools which tend to cause anal fissures and diarrhoea, sometimes alternating with constipation. Enough of Natrum Mur for now.
Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus
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S a young man fascinated by the study of Man, Na ture and Matter, the Law of Balance always caught my fancy. It holds the world together, we were taught. But I
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didn't see it beyond my nose, that is beyond easily observable body systems and the society. I learned that there must be healthy balance between giving and taking. Thus, when I take in air (inhale), I must let it out (exhale). If I take more than I give up, I merely court trouble with gluttony. The same applies to eating and defecating, drinking and urination. Even in human relationships, a friendship or marriage soon collapses where one party sponges on another, without anything to offer. In the great nations which have collapsed, that was a seed of decay. In the Old Germany, Otto Von Bismarck, the Iron Chancellor, pushed out Prussia and Hungary from the Union. Hasn't Russia done the same in the former Soviet Union? This Law is universal and affects even the internal peace of the human body. One of the areas we encounter this every day is in the balance or imbalance among calcium magnesium and Phosphorus. Calcium is important for the bones, teeth, blood, fertility, the heart. A normal blood pressure, prevention of colon cancer, enzyme activation, digestion of fat and proteins, muscle contraction and nutrient absorption, including Vitamin B12, among many other uses.
Magnesium MAGNESIUM is a remedy for muscle spasms such as in "muscle pulls", period pains, leg cramps and heart palpitations and glaucoma. When calcium flows into muscles, they contract. Magnesium causes a relaxation of these muscles when it flows into them. Where there is too much calcium flow and less of magnesium flow, the Law of Balance is breached and distress follows. I wondered for many years what the aim of the eye doctor was in always prescribing for my father special eye drugs, especially TIMOPTOL, for glaucoma. I was to learn that it blocks calcium from settling into the soft muscles of the eye drainage. If this happens, the "gutter" contracts and less fluid flows through, causing a fluid accumulation or backlog which damages critical structures. Glaucoma may be a subtule body message that calcification may be going on in other parts of the body as well (heart, blood vessels, joints, brain etc). This would imply that the Law of Balance has been breached with a gross deficiency of Magnesium. It is no wonder that, like Vitamin C, Magnesium, antagorust of calcium, has been known to reduce ocular (eye) tension in the right dosages. The five phosphate cell salts, of which magnesium phosphate is a star anti-spasmodic, member, have in this context, been certified for brain and eye health Dr. Shari Lieberman and Nancy Bruning report in their THE REAL VITAMIN & MINERAL BOOK that "low magnesium appears to be associated with psychiatric problems", citing a study of 165 boys in which those deficient in magnesium showed evidence of brain and sleep disorders. Magnesium does much more than can be written here. It prevents heart disease and is involved in the production of energy. Thus, magnesium deficient people are likely, in addition to other symptoms, to be fatigued and listless, and experience premature labour. A few years ago, this column reported the case in Shomolu, Lagos, of a woman who had four habitual abortions about the fifth month but carried the fifth pregnancy term on Calcium and Magnesium supplemtation in the diet. Phosphorus, like calcium, stregthens the bones and teeth. It helps the body use fats, protein and carbohydrates. In combination with fats, it makes phospholipids with which cell wall is made. Phosphopids also act as vehicles for fat circulation in the blood.
The Balance
For the Calcium /Magnesium/Phosphorus tripod to stand well, they must combine in the following ratios: • 2 atoms of calcium to 1 atom of magnesium • 1 atom of calcium to 1 atom of phosphorus • 2 atoms of phosphorus to 1 atom of magnesium Often, diet and lifestyle breach this natural order. Stress and acidity of the blood lead to more calcium being pulled out of this union for rescue alkalinising work in acidic blood. The situation is worsened when the right calcium is not consumed. Still, more trouble comes because the phosphorus consumption in the modern diet is abnormally high. There is too much phosphorus in soft drinks, and other carbonated drinks, for example. With more phosphorus entering the body through these and other sources, calcium is lost and osteoporosis takes its toll. In a study of female athletes, those who drank carbonated drunks found twice as likely to suffer fractures than those who did not. I gave up on cashew fruit about three seasons ago when I related bone pain I was experiencing to a gluttonous intake. I had wished to enjoy cashew that season. When I checked for the bonus it was adding to my health account and I found there were about 70 parts of phosphorus to one of calcium, I gave it up immediately.
Cheap Calcium
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HEN it comes to buying calcium supplements, many people go for the cheapest ones, believing that cal cium is calcium. The pity is that such people may be consuming lots of calcium but are not getting much out of it. Even the little they get may be poisoning them for all calcium is not good calcium. Producers of cheap calcium products are business people who know what such people want and give them in good measure. American gynaecologist Dr. Catherine Northrup says it all in her NATURAL ALTERNATIVE TO HRT: "When it comes to taking supplements, you should be aware that some are much more easily absorbed than others. Some are so poorly absorbed, you are wasting your money and possibly doing more harm than good. So when you buy supplements, look very carefully at the labels. Calcium Carbonate is one of the cheapest and most available form of calcium supplement. It is otherwise known as chalk. It is an inorganic mineral, is mined from the ground, and is not present in this particular form in any plant or animal. It can increase the risk of kidney stones and chalky lumps in the breasts and can be deposited in the joint, contributing to arthritis. Its efficiency as a supplement is highly questionable since research demonstrates that in this form calcium is not well absorbed into the system". Dr. Northrup, author of many books, writes with passion on women's health. She adds: "Indeed, there is some evidence that calcium carbonate supplements cause more calcium to be excreted in the urine when taken by women with adequate levels of stomach acid. They might even have been losing calcium than they were taking in. Calcium citrate, on the other hand, was found to be absorbed well by women with low stomach acid. In the study, 500 mg of calcium citrate was absorbed better than even 2000 mg of calcium carbonate". Dr. Northrop advises women to cut down on cola and fizzy drinks and meat to reduce an increasing presence of phosphorus in the blood. An elevated phosphorus blood level triggers release of calcium from the bones and teeth to match the blood pretence of phosphorus. Thus, people with bone or teeth problems who consume calcium hoping to solve these problems, may be unable to overcome their problem if they do not have enough stomach acid to digest the calcium , if they are consuming the wrong type of calcium and, if they are increasing their phosphorus load in ignorance. That's why this column always suggests caral calcium, iron calcium brands such as IONITE and calcium cell salts ... calcium phosphate, calcium sulphate.
Vitamin A, Zinc and Copper
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HIS is another nutrient relationship governed by the Law of Balance. We all sense this law. Women in particular balance the colours of their dress. Architects design pillars and beams to balance all the forces acting on a building. And motorists? Don't they inflate the car tyre to the right gauge and send the vehicles to the mechanic for wheel balancing?" The planets and the solar systems of this greatUniverse are not colliding simply because they have achieved through mutual attraction and repulsion of one another the state of balance or equilibrium which they must produce to locate themselves. The grantational forces which make this happen are like the pillars and beams of the architect. In our bodies, nutrients also respect this universal law in relation to their activities where they serve a joint purpose. An example is the function of Vitamin A and Zinc in the eye. Both are antioxidants which protect the eye against oxidative and free radical damage. Many people are aware of the role of Vitamin A for this purpose, but not of Zinc. Now, there is no amount of Vitamin A one may take, it may not be absorbed by the eye if a certain amount of zinc is not present. Many people with failing vision may be Zinc deficient. Zinc is needed for about 250 en-zyme reactions in the body, and about 80 per cent of the body's stock of zinc is stored in the prostate gland in men. In this gland, zinc helps to check the activity of an enzyme named 5-Alpha Reeductase. In the presence of an adequate amount of zinc in the prostate gland, this enzyme behaves itself. But it misbehaves in a deficiency status of zinc. Zinc deficiency may occur due to many reasons, ranging from poor stomach acid to digest it and poor dietary intake to excessive loss through ejaculations. In the prostate, zinc also acts as an antioxidant to protect the sperm against antibodies in the female reproductory tract. Sexual explosion has led many men to having sexual dealings with women too often than is healthy for them or recommended for their ages. Every ejaculation means loss of zinc. It is like a bank account which is going red but is not replenished. Without antioxidant protection from zinc, the sperm are damaged and infertility may occur, the sperm count is low. In the prostate gland, 5- Alpha Reductase begins to misbehave, converting testosterone, the male hormone, to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Like fertiliser, DHT stimulates prostate cells to over grow, and this may be the cause of prostate enlargement for some men. Zinc loss also means poor absorption or deficiency of Vitamin A in the eye, and this may promote continued visual impairment. Of course, many enzymes may suffer in the absence of zinc. One area that is often over looked by many people is that zinc and copper combine in a ratio of about four parts of zinc to one of copper. Some enzymes depend on copper for their work, some of which is involved in the healing process. Copper, an essential part of Super Oxide Dismutase, one of the antioxidant complexes made by the body to fight free radicals, plays a significant role in the immune system. When experimental animals were given oral contraceptives their blood copper levels rose significantly. In humans, elevated blood copper levels have been found associated with diseases such as "rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, anky losing spondylitis, rheumatic fever and sciatica" among others. It is not known if the elevation caused the conditions or was apartoftheorigin,orifitsignifiesanattemptbythebodytousecopperasahealing agent. There is no doubt, however, that a copper deficiency causes anemia, skeletal defects, degeneration of the nervous system, pigmentation problem and other problems. Copper supplementation has helped lower total cholesterol and raise HDL, the good cholesterol. In copper deficiency- induced anemia, hardly will any "blood tonic" help, if it doesn't offer copper. The Law of Balance affects the entire Creation, of which the health of the human body is a microscopic part. Thus, the relationship of this Law to health building cannot be a subject of only one column. As time permits, these relationships will unfold.
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