Keeping yourself off a waiting list

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 626, 5 March 1996, Page 10

Keeping yourself off a waiting list

Waimarino naturopath Errol Vincent discusses hospital waiting lists, and shares his views on how to reduce them: With all the present talk and newspaper headlines about lengthening hospital waiting lists for operations like heart bypass, hip replacement, and cancer removal, perhaps it is about time we each took responsibility for our own health rather than relying on the ability of hospital s to effect lasting treatment. Natural therapies, and in particular, naturopathy, takes a holistic approach when treating disease and ill-health. This holistic approach considers body, mind and spirit, as one whole integrated system, with each influencing the others. Of these three aspects, the physical body is the most obvious and perhaps the easiest to treat. I say easy to treat because every living creature, follows the uncompromising laws of nature. Once we know and apply these laws, then vibrant good health must result. These laws are basically very simple. One of the most important laws is that the body is a self healing organism. It is always striving to correct any imbalance or injury. If you break a bone, cut your skin, or suffer an ulcer, the body will always call upon its energies to heal. Each cell is programmed to regenerate and self heal. To assist this self healing ability, the body must have an unrestricted, efficient blood circulation. This free flowing circulation carries oxygen and nutrients to every cell and removes all debris. It is when this blood circulation is compromised that we begin to suffer ill-health. Cells not receiving sufficient nutritional support through the blood flow, begin to act strangely and the tissues change. Some become arthritic, others cancerous and others may become functionally blocked with debris. The easiest way to reverse such ill health is to clean the blood so it can reach every cell. The first move is to reduce the intake of fats and oils. This unsticks the blood and allows oxygen and nutrients to reach the cells. Second, cut back on all foods which are highly processed, this helps to reduce the amount of debris cluttering the body. For continuing good health, one then needs to reduce wear and tear on all body systems, especially the digestive system. The easiest way to do this is to eat foods which are as natural as possible and therefore easily digested. The digestive system then has an easy time, and this allows it to continue functioning effectively over a long period of time. Most people don't die of old age, they wear out prematurely because of insufficient blood flow and tired digestive systems. To speed up the rejuvenation of the body, a naturopath would recommend specific herbal remedies to assist the healing process. Now is as good a time as any to take control of your health. The best way to reduce hospital waiting lists is to keep ourselves off such a list.