Health Care - Where to start?

The first decision to make in any debate on health care (for yourself or for the animals in your care) is whether  you want to depend on the artificial manipulations of pharmaceuticals to stop the symptoms or whether you want to support the body's ability to heal itself with the tools that nature has supplied.

If you opt for the first, then you will follow the crowd to the doctor's office then to the pharmacy then back to the doctor's office at the next crisis.

If you take the second option, you will start down a path that will not only improve the health of the patient but will leave that patient less susceptible and more resilient into the future.  And for now at least, it will be a much less crowded path than the one to the pharmacy (unfortunately).

But that still leaves our question - where to start? 

Start with the basics and the basis of any natural health care system is nutrition - fresh whole foods (appropriate to the species being fed) and in ample variety to supply the full spectrum of needed nutrients.

What to give and how to give it is determined by the evolutionary trail of the species at hand and how we can fit these evolutionary patterns into the world of domestication.  Certainly cats have different requirements than horses so there is not a "one-size-fit-all" diet, obviously. 

The nuances of diet will require some research on the part of the caregiver but the two hard and fast rules that apply to any species is the use of variety in components and moderation in the use of any single component.  Following these two rules in feeding a species-appropriate whole food diet will make any diet manageable and will allow the diet to self-balance over time.

The problem with this line of thinking is where to actually find fresh, whole, and nutrient dense foods.  That line of questioning then takes us into the world of agricultural production systems (organic or conventional industrial) and food distribution (local consumption  or global distribution).

And that leaves us with topics for another day.

The Downstream Effects of Medicines

If you know me, have ever spoken to me, or have ever read anything that I have written, you probably realize that I have a huge bias toward natural medicines in general and homeopathy in particular.  There are many reasons for this bias, not the least of which is the efficacy of the medicine.  But there are other reasons beyond therapeutic results.

One of the major issues with the indiscriminate use, overuse, and abuse of pharmaceuticals is that after they are taken, they are excreted either intact or as metabolites.  Depending on the species taking or being given the pharmaceuticals, these excreted products are either deposited directly on the ground where they make their way into our ground water or they are flushed through a sewage treatement plant that is not designed to remove these chemicals and then they make their way into our ground water.  This ground water then makes its way into our drinking water supply.

Google the studies that have been done on pharmaceuticals in the groundwater.  Major levels of antibiotics, hormones, anti-depressants, etc have been found in nearly every water sampled in nearly every country where these studies have been undertaken.

This drug residue in the water represents a huge problem or at least a huge potential problem for any creature consuming these contaminated waters.  Yes, the residues are present in parts per million which should be harmless but they are also found in complex combinations that have never been studied.  It is the synergistic effects of these chemicals that represent the true danger.

So back to homeopathy and other natural medicines.   Homeopathy is an energy based system of medicine.  The remedies used are diluted beyond chemical detection.  Thus when you use homeopathic remedies there is no chemical residue to be excreted into the environment.  It is only the energy of nature that is being returned to nature.  This is much different than the end results of a pharmaceutical based system of therapeutics.

This benefit is not unique to homeopathy.  Any of the nature based systems of medicine can make this environmentally friendly claim.  Herbal medicine, acupuncture, any of the body manipulation techniques, flower essences, and Ayurvedic medicine can all make this claim.

Chemical vs Natural - the comparison doesn't stop with the therapeutic responses in the patient.  The comparison continues into the larger context of global health. 

We can only be as healthy as the environment in which we live.   Think about that the next time you take a dose of medicine.

First Blog Ever for Me

I have come to the conclusion that writing a blog is like talking on the radio.  You do what you do but never know if anyone is on the other side of the communication.  So assuming this will be read.......

This blog spot will be dedicated to veterinary homeopathy.  There will be occasional case studies, some pertinent materia medica, and snippets of theory and philosophy for those interested in the art and science of veterinary homeopathy.

As I have a more personal reason to embrace homeopathy since February, 2011, I will also share my thoughts as my own liver cancer is being treated with homeopathy.

And I also reserve the right to ramble onto other topics as the muses direct. 

I promise additions to this blog will be made regularly on a sporadic basis as time and inclination permit.

Enjoy