By Leslie Kasanoff DC
Are you healthy or just not sick yet? In our disease-oriented society most people don’t even understand that there is a difference. How many people do you know (maybe you’re one) who eat some kind of junk; from chips to soda pop to processed meats or donuts on a daily basis, are sedentary for much of the day yet have no overt symptoms of disease and so consider themselves healthy?
On the other end of the spectrum are those with “poor genetics” who maybe do none of the above yet have symptoms of illnesses. Surely genetics DO play a role but that role only lasts so long. And most of us are neither of these extremes; just doing what we can for as long as we can, to one degree or another, to keep ourselves healthy.
But what is health? The most commonly accepted definition is, “physical, mental-emotional, social & spiritual well-being; not merely the absence of symptoms.”
The 5 essential “secrets” are secret, not in the fact that most don’t know them; for most do. The secret is the proper way to apply them to your best advantage. So while I can talk about them in general here, the proper application for each person is a little different based on your individual history, genetics, lifestyle, stresses and more. Helping you navigate that, understand what›s most important for you and put it into practice is essentially what I do. So what are the 5 “secrets?”
The first, not surprisingly, is diet. Regardless of the details of which diet you prefer from vegan to paleo to many others, Michael Polan said it best: eat (whole) food; not too much. A further explanation: make at least 90% of your diet plant-based whole foods; fruits, veggies, beans, nuts, whole (unpulverized) grains. If you do that, the other 10% can be animal based and maybe even a little something processed once in a while. The ‘paleos’ will tell you not to eat any grains, the vegans will tell you not to eat any animal foods. The truth is that the one thing Centenarians (those who live to be 100) from Okinowa to Africa to Peru, to Seventh-Day Adventists in Southern California all have in common is that their diets, though different are about 90% plant-based and whole food.
Next: get enough sleep. Simple. Do it.
Next: Mental-emotional & spiritual well-being. Whether it’s yoga, prayer, exercise, meditation or a zillion other things; find a practice that speaks to you, that you enjoy and can continue for life.
Number 4, you might have suspected: exercise. My simple rule: move as much as you can, wherever you can, however you can, whenever you can for as long as you can! Recent studies have also shown that sitting, regardless of all other factors, increases mortality. More specifically; sitting for more than three hours per day. That›s why I›m standing up as I›m writing this! You need to do aerobics as well as strength building, and stretching for all muscles in all parts of your body. See what I mean about it being the application that is secret!?
So what is the 5th secret? Unfortunately it and how to accomplish it are the most under-recognized secret: a properly functioning Nervous System. Why the Nervous System and how do you do that? The Nervous System because it controls and coordinates everything in your entire body; every cell, tissue, organ, gland and system. How do your white blood cell, for example, know what to attack & what to leave alone? They communicate with your Central Nervous System. If you want to be healthy, the Master system needs to be able to properly control and coordinate everything that happens and needs to happen. There is only one profession in the world that is dedicated to maximizing and restoring Nervous System control of your body and that is the Chiropractic profession and specifically chiropractors who don›t just see themselves as a way to relieve back pain. When the spine is out of alignment (what chiropractors call a Subluxation) it interferes with the control and coordination of the body. Evidence indicates that it takes only the weight of a dime to begin disrupting nerve messages from the spine. Do you suppose you could have a misalignment in your spine right now that is so minimal it›s putting only the pressure of a dime on a nerve? You likely wouldn’t even feel it. That is what the Chiropractor is trained to find and correct. When we do that, it often means that pain goes away, but SO much more happens. I’ve seen babies with chronic ear infections get better in a week and avoid ear tubes. I›ve seen a mom who had multiple miscarriages deliver a healthy baby. I›ve helped keep several people from spinal surgery and carpal tunnel surgery. And lots more than I could summarize in this short article all because re-connected the control of their body so it could do what only the body can do; heal itself.
So those are the five essential secrets: diet, sleep, mental-emotional well-being, exercise and a properly functioning Nervous System to control and coordinate it all.
Dr. Leslie Kasanoff has been a Chiropractor and Health Coach & Consultant for 25 years. She sees (primarily Medicare and CenCAL) patients at Community Health Centers in San Luis Obispo and uses gentle non-force chiropractic techniques. She also has a small private practice in Los Osos. In addition, Dr. Leslie does health consulting & coaching, works with well-researched whole food products and does speaking engagements. To learn more about health consulting, coaching and products, to set up a private practice chiropractic appointment or to book her for a speaking engagement, visit her at https://drlesliek.com, email her at or call her at 805-235-2712 (15 minute free consultations available). Call Community Health Centers at 805-269-1500 to set up a chiropractic appointment in the San Luis Obispo Community Health Center Clinic.
