Principles of Naturopathy Part 6  – Prevention

Prevention

Focus on overall health, wellness, and disease prevention.

The old cliché: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, rings true here.  Personally, I think the ratio should be measured in tons, but that’s just me! 

One odd quirk of our current healthcare system is the over-emphasis on disease, with insufficient attention to health and wellness. 

In the current model, health is often considered as a mere absence of disease, and if the provider cannot find physical evidence of disease, then the patient is considered “healthy” …even if they are not feeling well.  

One important element to consider is the inherent limitations of the testing methods used in modern medicine. 

If a test performed only measures certain variables, then you are working with the inherent limitations of that test and nothing more. 

The tests run cannot be considered all-inclusive, as that would demand that current technologies encompass all the knowledge to be had of the human body. 

Remember, we are an advancing civilization with advancing knowledge―we’ve yet not reached any pinnacle, have we? 

We would be wise to not be so arrogant as to think we have exhausted all avenues of knowledge and insight. 

We are even wiser if we can further relax and loosen our inherent biases, and consider all available knowledge gathered from all parts of the globe. One human story knitting together various perspectives on the mysteries of life. 

It so happens to be, that very different perspectives on human health have emerged from different cultures.

And if something is true in some fashion, it cannot conflict with another something that is true found somewhere else.  Truth cannot conflict with itself.

Imagine being born and raised in the same place and having no awareness of any other land or people anywhere else.

Now, imagine if you were suddenly transported into another land, where other people lived amongst themselves and yet communicated in a way that sounded like gibberish to you―what would your reaction be? 

Remember, we are an advancing civilization with advancing knowledge―we’ve yet not reached any pinnacle, have we? 

Would you say, “these people are fools and are talking nonsense”? Or would you think…..”hmm, I wonder what they are trying to say? Maybe I should pay attention and learn from them, for they may have something valuable to offer?”

The modern medical battlefield is undergoing something similar right now, where there is a confrontation between western and eastern perspectives and philosophies of health.  

Who is right? Who is wrong? Can they each have ‘their own truth’ and yet not be true when moved somewhere else? 

Think about it―can the truth conflict with itself? 

So perhaps they are both true, and there needs to be a unifying system that can integrate these concepts into a working, cohesive, and coherent whole. 

This is the exciting times we live in, and the courageous curious ones who have no skin-in-the-game but for the search of truth, will be the light-bringers of this generation. 

The potential this holds is of unprecedented importance.

We are at a juncture right now, a crisis of sorts, and how we come together will determine the next steps of our living. 

Can we finally thrive, moving beyond a state of mere basic survival, pooling our best knowledge and practices, and forming a healthcare system that is focused on preserving health? 

Only time will tell, and it’s up to us in whom we choose to support in this process. 

The preservation of health is cause of the prevention of disease.

Click Here for Part 1
Click Here for Part 2
Click Here for Part 3
Click Here for Part 4
Click Here for Part 5