We live in a booming tech. era. Advancements in communication technology alone have allowed abundant access to information that didn’t exist decades past. There is an obvious knowledge-hungry movement in the direction of health and wellness trying to break free from our sick western culture. With all the new information, we want higher-quality advice as to how we can become healthy and stay healthy. Keep reading..
Not many of us are aware of the truly immense power of the human nervous system. Although the research has only just begun to uncover our minds’ seemingly endless capabilities, the discoveries are remarkable. That said, let us discuss the growing body of research on the mind’s sophisticated intelligence as it pertains to our health.
The Diathesis-stress model is popularly known to introduce the “mind-body” relationship on an international level (Pert, 2003). This complex theory is based upon simple cellular biology. It concludes that our thoughts have complete control over the chemical/hormonal reactions throughout the body. In modern medicine, the prolonged hormonal response of stress has clearly been recognized to negatively impact the immune system and the systemic health of one’s physiology. Long-term stress can express different genes in the body that would not have been otherwise expressed. Providing us with insight as to why some individuals exhibit certain mental health disorders and why others do not, this model shapes scientific advancement for future generations. (Diathesis-stress model) What is more, this model does not stand alone in its definition and interpretation of health.
It aligns well with the ‘Biology of Belief,’ a theory pioneered by Bruce H. Lipton that further develops an understanding of one’s physiological response to environmental stressors. This modern theory focuses on the fundamental role of proteins and their capability of expressing genes of DNA. Every cell in the body is controlled by and produces an individual reaction from its surrounding physical and energetic environment. (Lipton, 2005)
For years, scientists have wondered what controls a cell; what is the brain of the cell? Lipton proposes that the brain of the cell is its phospholipid bi-layer of cellular membrane. The membrane contains receptors that quite literally hook onto surrounding proteins that travel within the extracellular volume. These proteins are messengers; they send a signal to the receptor, through the membrane, and into the cell. (Lipton, 2005)
Conventional biology has sustained a theory unlike that of those discussed above. Moreover, many scientists still maintain the ideology that a cell’s operation may be slightly controlled by DNA designs originally stored in the nucleus. Bruce Lipton believes that individual genetic composition is essentially irrelevant. He has demonstrated that the only way a ‘cancer gene’ can be expressed is through the process of thought. “He writes: ‘The belief that we are frail biochemical machines controlled by genes is giving way to an understanding that we are powerful creators of our lives and the world in which we live.’”
We are born with our unchanging DNA. We are not born with a preset environment. Development of the human personality is heavily dependent upon our parents, relatives, and friends. It has been referred to as a ‘pre-programming.’ This programming is set within us at a very young age, and it governs how we psychologically react to an environmental effect. Thus, individuals respond differently to a stressful stimulus. One can now differentiate why some children may express genes of ‘dis-ease’/disease and why others do not. (Robson, 2009)
One should now be able to comprehend the logic. A person’s health can only move two ways: forward or backward. A person’s emotions can be portrayed in two ways: positive or negative. Thus, a seemingly healthy person should only be moving positively forward. With this research, there is new hope for future generations and their impact on the world’s societal structure (Ray, 2004).
This new paradigm of our individual Mind-Brain-Body puts our life into a more rational perspective. The correlation between them has such a deep impact on our cellular structure that it can negatively influence our health and our body’s ability to prevent disease. Since its genesis in 1895, Chiropractic has understood there to be three stressors in our nervous system: Physical, Mental, and Chemical. These three stand-alone pillars of stress share an inverse relationship with true health. In conclusion, we are individually in control of our thoughts, and the body will always follow the mind. (Pert, 2003) I hope one day it will become the norm of how we all define and promote our innate wellbeing.
Bibliography
Diathesis-stress models. PREVENTION ACTION. Retrieved from https://www.preventionaction.org/reference/diathesis-stress-models.
Lipton, B. (2005). The biology of belief: Unleashing the power of consciousness, matter and miracles. Santa Rosa, CA: Mountain of Love/Elite Books. Retrieved from https://davidpratt.info/lipton.htmRay, O. (2004).
Pert CB, Chopra D. Molecules of emotion: why you feel the way you feel. New York: Scribner; 2003.
Ray O. How the Mind Hurts and Heals the Body. American Psychologist. 2004;59(1):29-40. doi:10.1037/0003-066x.59.1.29.
Robson TM. The image doctor. Scottsdale, AZ: Lifesuccess Publishing; 2009.