Monday, November 18, 1996
Psychoneuroimmunology (Part II)
In my last article, I reviewed the frustration many of us have had when we try to detoxify our bodies but get no improvement or very little improvement. Since that article, many of you have written me confirming that same feeling of frustration with your own journey toward recovery. As I have stated before, it is my belief that the lack of progress in recovering lost health is due to oxidative stress that our body is unable to manage. Unmanaged oxidative stress keeps our bodies in turmoil. We are unable to maintain or achieve hemodynamics or homeostasis. Even a weak body that has reached hemodynamics, can begin getting well.
With the first article in this series, I listed several factors that I believe keep our bodies in oxidative-stress and I said that in future newsletters I would cover these items. Of these, there are two that I consider primary or foundational; one is mental-emotional attitude and the other is intestinal health. Both are so important that it is hard to say which is foremost. Attitude and intestinal health both have a profound effect on the immune system. As a matter of opinion I have chosen attitude as of primary importance.
For many years, the anecdotal treatment of positive attitudes and health were ridiculed by the allopathic community. However, in recent years, laboratory experiments have validated this effect at several levels both in the body (in vivo) and outside the body (in vitro). The name applied to the relationship of attitude to immune response is Psychoneuroimmunology or PNI for short. The major tenant of PNI is that the immune system is entwined with the neuroendocrine system, like a triangle with the respective corners being the endocrine system, the immune system and the neurological system. They all effect and are being effected by each other in an incredibly complex dance of neuropeptides, stress, social factors and feedback loops. The old Cartesian way of looking at the body is a dualistic with the immune system as a separate entity of its own. The new science of PNI is a holistic design looking at the whole being more than the sum of the parts.
As I was writing this article, an Associated Press release entitled "Stress-Disease Linked" cited several key statements that characterize the field of PNI. For example, "stress and depression that send emergency hormones flowing into the bloodstream may help cause brittle bones in women, infections and even cancer". Dr. Philip Gold of the National Institute of Mental Health continued to say that this process could "destroy appetite, cripple the immune system, shut down the process of tissue repair, block sleep and even break down bone". He was among the speakers at a two-day conference of the International Society for Neuroimmunomodulation, a group of experts who study the effects of stress and depression on physical disease. They referred to a study at Ohio State University demonstrating that this affect was more exaggerated among women than men.
All the research in this field suggests that if you really want to get well, then get your immune system on your side. It isn't easy. It wasn't easy for me, but you can do it in spite of how sick or depressed you are. When I made my decision to get well, I got a mail order catalogue from Abbey Press and bought signs and plaques with positive thoughts that I plastered everywhere I went. They were a constant reminder to me of positive things. I bought music that I knew would cheer me up. I didn't buy any with negative messages, but I found what was uplifting. I choose Christian music because of the positive, hope filled messages they delivered. I used earphones and played the music ALL THE TIME--even when I went to sleep. It took me almost a year to reach the point that my mood was changed from a normally negative to a normally positive mood. When I got there, my body was ready to help me. My immune system was on my side not my adversary. Prayer and meditation are taught for their positive healthful effects by many different and widely diverse religions. I prayed and read through the Bible that year. This is not the place for an appeal to your faith but I believe you should find your faith, if you want to get well.
In conclusion, think about these things and decide for yourself where you want to start.
Go to your local library and look up PNI and if they have an internet access, look up http://home1.inet.tele.dk/skovlund/SESKOV2.htm. This is a good on-line source of information. Remember, having a good positive attitude about getting well is a basic step in recovery. I believe that without it, you won't recovery, no matter how many right things you do!
Some final comments about diet and DHEA. Many of you have asked about diets. There is a lot of confusion and argument about which is best. I recommend very highly a new book by Dr. Jeffrey Bland called The 20-Day Rejuvenation Diet Program. It has chapters entitled Detoxification, Powering Your Immune System, and The Phytonutrient Diet. Many helpful tips are included and it is very informative. Dr. Bland is an international lecturer and well known for his research in Functional Medicine. You can order the book direct from Keats Publishing at 203-966-8721.
DHEA is now available over the counter and practically every day I see a related article in the paper, magazines or on TV. It is promoted as the cure for everything. Please be aware that it is not a vitamin but a powerful hormone precursor. You can get into big trouble and could cause permanent damage to your body by taking too much. Every clinician that I respect cautions about using too much. If you are going to take DHEA have a blood test done first to check your blood levels of DHEA-Sulfate. If it is low, then you could benefit from taking a conservative dose. A therapeutic dose would be 10-30 mg for women and 20-50mg for men. After a constant dose for a month, have you blood level recheck. Whatever you do, be conservative with DHEA.
Good luck and may God bless you.
Next issue: Intestinal Health--Feeding from the passing food stream.