BACK TO BASICS
First Things First
In day to day practice a Naturopath is confronted with many and varied illnesses and symptoms that vary from A to Z. Very often people think if their treatment is complicated it must be better. When there is an attempt to treat all the individual symptoms of a complaint without addressing the underlying causes, the person ends up walking away without a clear idea of what is ailing them. Often many and varied symptoms which may seem unconnected can be brought down to one ore two common denominators or causes.
No matter what you are suffering from acne or arthritis, if you're not sleeping well, not "going" every day or having or able to have three square meals a day, then there's very little point in looking further along the line up of symptoms if the basic needs of the body are not addressed first. Often constipation and poor sleep are major contributors to other complaints the person may suffer. Sleeping tablets have their place and are essential to make life bearable for people with chronic pain and in other illness for periods of time, while the real problems underlying the complaint are being addressed. Unless the causes are treated the over use of tranquillisers and sleeping drugs can compound the initial problems.
Naturopathically sleep disorders are treated like the bit of the iceberg protruding above the water line. The symptom constitutes only 1/3 of the problem and the other 2/3 the unseen bit, the cause, is where treatment is focused. There are many herbs which can help the poor sleeper's nervous system relax and switch off. Camommile tea contains very high amounts of magnesium, potassium, calcium and phosphorus which all help tone and sooth the nerves and puts their control back in the hands of the owner. It is also a good smooth muscle relaxant and helps to settle tight muscles as well. Valerian is another herb which has been used for centuries in the treatment of sleep disorders. This herb is also high in the above minerals and also contains a substance called Valerianic acid which helps improve sleep quality. Valerian actually improves coordination and alertness and does not cause drowsiness. There are many other herbs which have a safe sedative action which improve sleep, are not addictive and when prescribed over a period improves a person's sleep pattern. Eventually they can sleep with out any assistance at all. Just because you may have been a poor sleeper all your life doesn't mean you have to put up with it for the rest of your life! All that is necessary is that poor sleep patterns be properly understood and put into perspective so the person understands why they have the problem. Poor sleep exaggerates and compounds any other complaint the person may be suffering. Waking refreshed gives the body renewed energy to get the body doing what it was always good at, self regeneration.
Constipation slows the body's metabolism and as wastes builds up in the system particularly over a long period of time every chemical reaction in the body is disrupted. The body doesn't get on with the job of repair and maintenance. Many believe that if they've only ever used their bowels twice a week then it's OK for them to be that way. As soon as there is a delay in the body removing its wastes it is reabsorbed by the blood and recycled back into the body again. You can imagine what the household would be like if the toilet and kitchen tidy was not emptied regularly. No one wants to live in a house like that! Over the last few years the importance of fibre in the diet is becoming recognised. It was only a short while ago in the late 50's that fibre was considered to have no nutritive role and was not needed in the diet. How quickly things change. When we think of fibre we tend to think of bran and wholemeal breads etc. This type of fibre is rough and good but if taken to excess it can actually cause constipation as the bowel becomes overly dry and cannot push things along easily. There is a softer form of fibre which can supplement some of the rougher fibre. It is the spongy cells found in vegetables and fruit particularly root vegetables, cabbage, apples and pears but a certain amount is found in all fruit and vegies. Your choice of fibre is a bit like the washing up, you don't need the steel scrubber all the time sometimes the sponge is needed as well.
Fluid intake must also be taken into account. An adult requires 6-8 glasses of liquid a day. Inadequate fluid intake may be one of the major contributing factors of constipation.
So perhaps bright eyed and bushy tailed is how you can feel when you get back to the basics.
In day to day practice a Naturopath is confronted with many and varied illnesses and symptoms that vary from A to Z. Very often people think if their treatment is complicated it must be better. When there is an attempt to treat all the individual symptoms of a complaint without addressing the underlying causes, the person ends up walking away without a clear idea of what is ailing them. Often many and varied symptoms which may seem unconnected can be brought down to one ore two common denominators or causes.
No matter what you are suffering from acne or arthritis, if you're not sleeping well, not "going" every day or having or able to have three square meals a day, then there's very little point in looking further along the line up of symptoms if the basic needs of the body are not addressed first. Often constipation and poor sleep are major contributors to other complaints the person may suffer. Sleeping tablets have their place and are essential to make life bearable for people with chronic pain and in other illness for periods of time, while the real problems underlying the complaint are being addressed. Unless the causes are treated the over use of tranquillisers and sleeping drugs can compound the initial problems.
Naturopathically sleep disorders are treated like the bit of the iceberg protruding above the water line. The symptom constitutes only 1/3 of the problem and the other 2/3 the unseen bit, the cause, is where treatment is focused. There are many herbs which can help the poor sleeper's nervous system relax and switch off. Camommile tea contains very high amounts of magnesium, potassium, calcium and phosphorus which all help tone and sooth the nerves and puts their control back in the hands of the owner. It is also a good smooth muscle relaxant and helps to settle tight muscles as well. Valerian is another herb which has been used for centuries in the treatment of sleep disorders. This herb is also high in the above minerals and also contains a substance called Valerianic acid which helps improve sleep quality. Valerian actually improves coordination and alertness and does not cause drowsiness. There are many other herbs which have a safe sedative action which improve sleep, are not addictive and when prescribed over a period improves a person's sleep pattern. Eventually they can sleep with out any assistance at all. Just because you may have been a poor sleeper all your life doesn't mean you have to put up with it for the rest of your life! All that is necessary is that poor sleep patterns be properly understood and put into perspective so the person understands why they have the problem. Poor sleep exaggerates and compounds any other complaint the person may be suffering. Waking refreshed gives the body renewed energy to get the body doing what it was always good at, self regeneration.
Constipation slows the body's metabolism and as wastes builds up in the system particularly over a long period of time every chemical reaction in the body is disrupted. The body doesn't get on with the job of repair and maintenance. Many believe that if they've only ever used their bowels twice a week then it's OK for them to be that way. As soon as there is a delay in the body removing its wastes it is reabsorbed by the blood and recycled back into the body again. You can imagine what the household would be like if the toilet and kitchen tidy was not emptied regularly. No one wants to live in a house like that! Over the last few years the importance of fibre in the diet is becoming recognised. It was only a short while ago in the late 50's that fibre was considered to have no nutritive role and was not needed in the diet. How quickly things change. When we think of fibre we tend to think of bran and wholemeal breads etc. This type of fibre is rough and good but if taken to excess it can actually cause constipation as the bowel becomes overly dry and cannot push things along easily. There is a softer form of fibre which can supplement some of the rougher fibre. It is the spongy cells found in vegetables and fruit particularly root vegetables, cabbage, apples and pears but a certain amount is found in all fruit and vegies. Your choice of fibre is a bit like the washing up, you don't need the steel scrubber all the time sometimes the sponge is needed as well.
Fluid intake must also be taken into account. An adult requires 6-8 glasses of liquid a day. Inadequate fluid intake may be one of the major contributing factors of constipation.
So perhaps bright eyed and bushy tailed is how you can feel when you get back to the basics.