Being Health

Renee Lehman

(3/2021) The following article is the first part of a two-part series on health. This article will be addressing issues with our health care system, and different perspectives on how our genetic code plays a role in our health. The second part (in April) will be focused on practical applications of Traditional Chinese Medicine to enhance your health accountability.

The United States spends more than any other country on healthcare ($11,172 per person/year). Health care spending increased to $3.6 trillion in 2018, about 17.7 percent of our gross domestic product (GDP). Even with this high level of spending on health care, the USA ranks 28th out of 40 in life expectancy (78.7 years) within the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries. Meanwhile, Japan, spends $4,766 per person/year (close to $7,000 less per person than the USA), and has the highest life expectancy among the OECD nations (84 years). Keep in mind that the average cost of healthcare per person/year (per capita) is $3806 for the rest of the developing world (www.oecd.org; accessed on February 18). (As a side note: The mission of the OECD is to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.)

Where did this $3.6 trillion go? The spending can be broken down into the following categories: Hospital Care - 33% of spending; Physician services - 20% of spending; Retail Prescription Drugs -10%; Other Health Care Services - 5%; Nursing Care Facilities - 5%; Dental Services - 4%; Home Health Care - 3%;, Other Professional Services - 3%; Durable & Non-durable Medical Products - 4%; Net Cost of Health Insurance - 7%; Government Administration - 1%; and, Government Public Health Activities and Investments - 5%.

Also, of the $3.6 trillion, $1.5 trillion, is directly or indirectly financed by the Federal government. In other words, the Federal government dedicates resources of nearly 8 percent of the economy toward health care. Increased health care spending does not always result in better treatment. Often, in countries that spend more, people are opting for expensive tests and elective procedures that drive up costs. In fact, according to the OECD, several factors influence the spending on healthcare:

• How medical services are used: Expensive diagnostic procedures and elective surgeries, like MRI scans and corrective knee surgeries, drive up health care costs.

• High costs of drugs: In the U.S., drug costs are more than $950 per capita (the largest amount when compared to the other OECD member countries).

• Poor health-related behaviors: Excessive alcohol consumption, tobacco use, poor nutrition, and poor exercise, increase health problems.

Pause for a moment to digest the above information…

Often poor health-related behaviors/lifestyles are the root cause of many chronic diseases (such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, to name a few). Wow! Who knew?! But now you may ask, "What about the relationship of your genetic code to disease?" There is much talk about genetics/genetic code, and the causes of disease. You may ask, "Aren’t my genes a key determinant for chronic illness?" Well, maybe. Let us look at a few perspectives on how the genetic code can be evaluated/used for potential health care interventions: The Human Genome Project, Biotechnology, and the Traditional Chinese Medicine approach.

First, The Human Genome Project (HGP)…

Completed in 2003, the HGP, was a research project aimed at deciphering the make-up of the entire human genetic code (genome). It was believed that having the complete sequence of the human genome would be like having all the pages of an instruction manual needed to make the human body. The HGP discovered that there were around 20,500 genes that made up human DNA. Now the challenge to researchers and scientists is to determine how to read the contents of all these pages and then understand how the parts work together and to discover the genetic basis for health and the pathology of human disease. In this respect, genome-based research will eventually enable medical science to develop highly effective diagnostic tools, to better understand the health needs of people based on their individual genetic make-ups, and to design new and highly effective treatments for disease.

Then, through the understanding at the molecular level of how things like diabetes or heart disease or schizophrenia come about, we should see a whole new generation of interventions, many of which will be drugs that are much more effective and precise than those available today. What do you notice about the above statement from the HGP? A primary focus of this research is toward developing treatments for diseases.

Another new technology being researched to treat disease is Biotechnology. Recently, there has been more coverage in the media about the use of biotechnology in healthcare. What is biotechnology? Biotechnology is defined as: the manipulation (as through genetic engineering) of living organisms or their components to produce useful usually commercial products (such as pest resistant crops, new bacterial strains, or novel pharmaceuticals). Biotechnology, is the use of biology to solve problems and make useful products. The most prominent area of biotechnology is the production of therapeutic proteins and other drugs through genetic engineering. How did biotechnology really take off?

In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court, in the case of Diamond v. Chakrabarty, ruled that "a live human-made microorganism is patentable subject matter." This decision spawned a wave of new biotechnology firms. Today, biotechnology researchers seek to discover the root molecular causes of disease and to intervene precisely at that level with the use of gene-therapy and the development of traditional pharmaceuticals that stop the progression of a disease.

So, to create drugs for treatment of disease, researchers have been looking to our genetic code for answers. This is good, and, it is only one perspective about how to work with our genetic code.

So, lastly let us look at some basic concepts in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). This portion of the article is a primer for the Part 2 article of Being Health-Accountable.

In TCM, the Yin - Yang symbol consists of a circle divided into two teardrop-shaped halves - one white and the other black. Within each half is contained a smaller circle of the opposite color. No matter where you bisect the diameter of the whole circle, each half will always contain some Yin and some Yang.

Everything in the Universe contains Yin and Yang. They are two opposite yet complementary energies. What does this really mean? Although they are totally different—opposite—in their individual qualities and nature, they are interdependent. Yin and Yang cannot exist without the other; they are never separate. For example, night (Yin) and day (Yang) form a simple example of the Yin-Yang pairing. Night looks and is quite different than day, yet it is impossible to have one without the other. Both create a totality, a complete whole!

So, returning to the discussion of our genetic code, based on the principle of Yin and Yang, if our genes have the genetic code for disease, then it also has the genetic code for no-disease. This is Yin-Yang, and a more positive way to look at our genetic code! Even Epigenetics research has discovered that "your genes are not your destiny." Dean Ornish, MD has stated, "Treatment of these and other chronic diseases account for 75% of our healthcare costs, and yet they are preventable or even reversible!!!".

Let us begin by reviewing the fact that the American healthcare system is a ‘disease care’ model. You go to the doctor or seek medical advice when you are sick. It is a great system for acute illness and trauma. However, this model does not promote wellness and prevention of disease. Eighty percent of our chronic illnesses (diabetes, heart disease, and obesity to name a few) are not effectively addressed by our current "Disease care" model of healthcare, because many of these chronic illnesses are related to poor health-related behaviors/lifestyles.

Dean Ornish, MD has stated, "Treatment of these and other chronic diseases account for 75% of our healthcare costs, and yet they are preventable or even reversible!!!" Yes, our genetic code does play a role in disease. However, the more that is learned about the genetic code and the ‘epigenome,’ a layer of biochemical reactions that turns your genes on and off (like a light switch), the less it appears that your genes look like destiny. The epigenome seems to play a bigger part in your health.

In fact, Dr. Ornish has stated, "It’s not all in your genes. Your genes are not your fate. If you change your lifestyle, you can change the way that your genes are expressed…. You can turn on your disease preventing genes and turn off your disease promoting genes."

Interesting: disease preventing genes and disease promoting genes. This sounds like the TCM concept of the Yin and Yang energies in the Universe. Remember the discussion about the TCM perspective of our genetic code from the first part of this article? Based on the principle of Yin and Yang, if our genes have the genetic code for disease (Disease promoting genes), then it also has the genetic code for no-disease (disease preventing genes).

So, by focusing on ways to stimulate the no-disease genes, then you can be preventing disease and promoting health. As it is written in the ancient TCM text, the Nei Jing (475-221 B.C.), "The best doctor concentrates on prevention instead of fixing disease." How can you go about focusing and promoting health using the TCM perspective? Let us begin by discussing the role of Kidney Qi with health.

Kidney Qi

In TCM, the Kidneys have many functions on the body, mind, and spirit levels. The Kidneys are at the root of all our physical functioning. They are the source of primordial Yin and Yang; therefore, the Kidneys are the root of our genetic code. The Kidneys are the source of our potential/our life source (they are our ‘battery pack’). The energy from our ‘battery pack’ activates our metabolism and motivates us to live. They provide the basic impulse toward the ability to grow and reproduce. On an emotional and mental level, the Kidneys are responsible for mental strength (adaptable thinking), long term memory, concentration, cleverness, and the ability to be "still". On a spirit level, the Kidneys are responsible for our inherent constitution, resiliency (which includes inner power and courage in times of difficulty), the ability to fulfill our potential and manifest ourselves in the world and having the faith for a ‘future harvest’.

Kidney: The Root of Genetic Wisdom - Your entire life depends on healthy Kidneys (and their partner, the Bladder). They are considered as the "congenital constitution" and origin of life. Therefore, the body’s life source is stored in the Kidneys and contains all your genetic wisdom. Yes, wisdonis buried in your genetic code. When your Kidney qi is strong, you can use this wisdom to create a better life. As Grand Master Nan Lu, OMD stated, "Every cell in the body is looking for health. This kind of GPS is encoded in your DNA. Your cells are not born looking for disease or illness."

TCM reminds us that the wisdom of how to maintain balance, harmony, and health flows through us. "One of the fundamental tenets of TCM is that it believes we are all born with the ability to heal ourselves. We are born with this wisdom encoded in our DNA. That is why its goal is to help a person return to balance and not just treat symptoms. When that happens, a person can heal themselves. More than 2,000 years ago, the Nei Jing, an ancient medical text, stated that when a person is in balance and Qi (or energy) flows freely in the body, there is no place for disease or illness." Grand Master Nan Lu, OMD

The question is how can we turn on/tap into this wisdom? First, we need to focus on Prevention. Prevention is the true area of expertise of TCM. One of my goals as a TCM practitioner is to educate my clients and the community about the benefits of natural healing techniques and balance lifestyle choices so that people can support and maintain their health. The techniques that can tap into this healing wisdom include Eating for Healing, Qigong practices, and Lifestyle changes.

Eating for Healing

TCM looks at foods in terms of their healing essence. Foods that support Kidney qi functioning (and therefore, your genetic wisdom) include: any seafood: fish and shellfish, including crab, lobster, shrimp, oysters, and clams. Seafood comes from salt water. The salty taste is associated with the Kidneys in TCM’s Five Element Framework. So, seafood carries a salty essence to support the Kidneys. Also supporting the Kidney qi are walnuts, pine nuts, pecans, black sesame seeds, bone broths, and beans (think black beans and kidney beans).

Qigong Practice

Exercise supports your body/mind/spirit. However, certain exercise regimes can be energy depleting while other forms of exercise can be energy building. Energy-building (Qi-building) exercise supports your body. One of the best ways to build your energy is through Qigong. Qi is translated to mean the vital life force that flows through all things in the universe. Gong, means accomplishment, or skill that is cultivated through steady practice.

Qigong is an ancient energy practice that breaks down energy blockages in the meridians, the invisible pathways through which Qi flows throughout the body. Qigong is the key to discovering your very special inheritance that is locked away inside of yourself. You discover your unlimited potential!

Lifestyle

Over the years we have been taught to ‘be tough,’ to ignore, override, and eliminate the sensations of our body until, out of desperation, they become a disease. We often ignore our body’s wisdom of how to live well and in harmony with natural laws.

Listen to your body’s wisdom, learn from your body’s wisdom, and adjust your ways of living. Quieting the body/mind/spirit with the simple, low-tech techniques do not cost a lot of money. Simple lifestyle changes can make a big impact on our lives.

"The best doctor concentrates on prevention instead of fixing disease."
- Nei Jing (475-221 B.C.)

Renee Lehman is a licensed acupuncturist, physical therapist, with over 33 years of health care experience. She can be reached at 717-752-5728. Jefferson Breland is a board-certified acupuncturist, he can be reached at 410-336-5876. Their office in Gettysburg is located at 249B York Street.

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