HEALTH-DISEASE-IMMUNITY CONNECTION
The feeling of perfect health exists, for some of us a lifetime, for others years, days or just minutes. One person is full of energy without feeling sick, while another is constantly in a state of healing and getting sick again. What can be the cause of people living in the same environment, yet feeling so different? We are bombarded daily by millions of viruses and bacteria, but we get sick from them only a fraction of the time. There are dormant germs living on our skin, or in our respiratory, digestive and nervous systems. We don't even know of their existence until some inside or outside factor activates them and springs them into action. The human body is a host for these germs, providing them with a comfortable home. What makes them destroy their host? The meningococcus bacteria which live in our respiratory system all of a sudden become ferocious killers causing meningitis and sometimes death. The varicella virus lives in the nerve endings quietly, one day activated, causes painful shingles. Why not sooner, or later, why for some and not others? Immunity and the body's ability to keep germs at bay are mostly undiscovered territory. The body's doorways for germs are closed 99.99% of the time, so there is very little chance for all of us to get sick from these at times harmless, but sometimes lethal killers.
The human body also has an amazing ability to deal with certain conditions. Some people suffer from angina with only a 20% blockage of the coronary arteries, others with 85% blockage have been known to run marathons. Some die of heart attacks with clean arteries.
A friend of mine when asked her secret to how she has stayed so healthy and energetic at 72, told me, “I know that I have to accept getting old gracefully but I don't accept getting sick just because I'm getting old. I have never allowed time for myself to be sick. I refuse to spend my time in bed feeling sorry for myself. I decided that I'm a strong, healthy, productive person regardless of my age”. Is she a genetically healthy person or is there something else which keeps her healthy? I've noticed on myself that when I'm very busy or fully concentrating on a project, I never get sick. I don't have the time. But as soon as I decide to relax and give myself couple of days off, usually the second or third day I wake up with a sore throat! Working in the hospital during busy times, no matter how many people coughed or sneezed around me, I was immune to it and stayed healthy. Did I unconsciously talk my body into not getting sick because I had so many important things to do?
Well, honestly, the busier I get the more attention I pay to my diet, activities, nutrition and the structure of my daily life. In lazy times, (keeping with my true nature), I become disorganized, eat and sleep whenever I feel like it and my diet: a cookie here, chips there, well its just terrible.
So, positive attitude, good nutrition, prevention, organized daily activities, healthy diet and lifestyle is the answer to achieve good health? I'm positive that there are many other factors, but according to our present knowledge, this is the best we can do for now in order to achieve the best state of health we can.
