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HOMEOSTASIS: THE KEY TO NATURAL HEALTH

Body fluids in balance [Neutral pH]

When all minerals, hormones, pH and other elements that make up our body's internal chemistry are in perfect balance, the body is said to be in Homeostasis. It is then able to work efficiently.

When we cannot maintain homeostasis, i. e. our body fluids are either too acidic or too alkaline, we are more exposed to lifestyle-related degenerative diseases. Among the most common of these are cardiovascular disease, cholesterol, cancer, osteoporosis, allergies, arthritis, asthma, depression, diabetes, gout, hypoglycaemia and sinusitis.

The purpose of this document is to highlight the main culprits that upset our body chemistry. The next step towards better health and quality of life is simply to adjust our lifestyle to neutralise the causes of an upset body chemistry.

Poor nutrition

Alarming nutritional trends have manifested during the period 1900 to 1980. The fresh fruit and vegetable content in the average diet has decreased from 40% to less than 5%. The consumption of various other nutritious unprocessed foods has decreased by between 33% and 75%.

On the other hand beef consumption has increased by 75%, cheese by 400%, margarine by 800%, sugar by 50% and syrup by 400%.

These dietary changes all too often lead to an upset body chemistry [Lack of homeostasis]. This usually means that our body fluids are too acidic. This leads to an impaired immune system and exposure to degenerative diseases.

Calcium

Calcium is so critical to life that the body is willing to sacrifice bone mass to ensure adequate levels of calcium in the bloodstream. This indispensable mineral also plays a crucial r'le in assisting the body to achieve and maintain homeostasis.

Calcium also plays a pivotal r'le in the metabolism of all minerals in the body. All the minerals work in relation to one another. Therefore all of the minerals can be affected if one of them becomes deficient or excessive. This is especially true of calcium. This key mineral is involved in almost every function that the body performs and is found in virtually every cell, tissue and organ. Without calcium our heart would stop beating.

When calcium is pulled from the bones, protein is also pulled out of the bones and tissues. This results in lower back pain, osteoporosis and other problems.

The well-documented importance of calcium in the body has led to the proliferation of calcium supplements. The sad and shocking truth is that calcium supplements may well contribute to the onset of degenerative diseases. We are already receiving too much inorganic calcium in our daily diet by the inclusion of this mineral in our food. Extra inorganic calcium is being added to orange juice, bread, soft drinks, milk and yoghurt to name but a few.

We now know that all this inorganic [non food-form] calcium can and does create havoc in our bodies.

Unfortunately virtually all calcium supplements are of an inorganic nature. The only exception is found in recent technology called 'Foodstate' tm whereby calcium is molecularly bonded to protein food cells that act as chaperones for the metabolism of Calcium in our bodies. [See 'Calcium and Immunity' under 'Health Hints' on http://wellness.oppiweb.com.]

Sugar and Carbohydrates

Sugar is one of the basic substances that can upset homeostasis [body chemistry].

Sugar should not be called a food. It is a chemical that our bodies cannot utilize or digest well. This includes table sugar, raw sugar, brown sugar, turbinado sugar, glucose, maple syrup, honey, fructose, rice syrup, barley malt, corn syrup, dextrose and dextrine.

These simple sugars get into the bloodstream very quickly after being swallowed. It's the speed as well as the quantity that gets into the bloodstream that causes the upset. The more sugar is consumed, the more upset the body chemistry can become. Some people stay out of homeostasis for more than 24 hours after eating sugar.

Excessive amounts of sucrose disturbs the metabolism of all the minerals. You can be putting the right amount of calcium into your body, but when eaten with sugar, that calcium will not be absorbed efficiently. This has a snowballing detrimental effect on the body's ability to utilise all minerals.

A surprising amount of food items have sugar in them, i.e. bacon, pastrami, packaged pizza, salt, hot dogs, bologna, non-dairy creamers, canned vegetables and breads to name just a few. Manufacturers know that the sweetness is addicting. Sugar hooks us on their products. For example, popular 340 ml cold drinks contain up to 12 teaspoons of sugar.

Even dairy products have a sugar content in the form of lactose. As much as 50% of people tested for food allergies have reactions to dairy products, mostly milk and milk substances. Allergies, in turn, upset our body chemistry.

In 1840 the average consumption of sugar in the Western world was 4 teaspoons per day. This figure has risen to 53 teaspoons per day in September 2001.

More than 20 teaspoons of sugar per day reduces the number of the body's fighter cells down by half. This can cause severe health problems.

Sugar causes depletion of magnesium, which has more than 300 functions to fulfil in the human body. It also encourages the growth of unhealthy fungus.

The natural and healthy source of carbohydrates is unrefined grains, cereals, fruit and vegetables.

Distress

Mental and physical distress upsets the body chemistry. When we get angry, depressed, play victim, hold judgements against others, try to get back at people, the stress becomes distress.

Physical pain, an operation, a car accident, over-exercising, being exposed to too much heat or too much cold can all upset the body chemistry.

All distress changes the body chemistry in the same way, whether the distress comes from foods your body cannot utilise, physical or mental distress or any combination of these.

Distress and disease inter-relate to compound the problem. Disease increases our distress levels which, in turn aggravate our upset body chemistry. This leads to more acute disease. This frightening vicious circle can be extremely debilitating and often leads to fatality.

CONCLUSION

To achieve and maintain homeostasis as a pro-active health measure we need to implement the following lifestyle changes:

' Avoid or cut down as far as possible on distress and unnatural or undesirable foods [especially fats

and all forms of sugar].

' Eat as much as possible of natural, unrefined foods that our ancestors would have eaten.

' Ingest as much food-form calcium and related minerals in the correct proportions to each other as may be necessary to ensure that our bodies achieve and maintain homeostasis.

SOURCES
Appleton, Nancy: Healthy Bones.
Appleton, Nancy: Lick the Sugar Habit.
Orr, Neil M: Positive Health.
Tomlinson, W. Alan: Various Papers.

Compiled by Jan Greeff
P.O. Box 4181
Barberton 1300
South Africa
November 2005
Tel. / Fax. +2713 7122436
SMS only +278 454 838 90
grewe@absamail.co.za
http://wellness.oppiweb.com