Environmental Illness Sufferers Foretell Our Future

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http://ens.lycos.com/ens/mar2002/2002L-03-01g.html

Healing Our World: Weekly Comment

By Jackie Alan Giuliano, Ph.D.

Environmental Illness Sufferers Foretell Our Future

Enough. These few words are enough.

If not these words, this breath.

If not this breath, this sitting here.

This opening to life

we have refused

again and again

until now.

Until now.

-- Whyte, poet, Washington state

Most of us can have no idea of the terror and aloneness that the thousands

of people afflicted with environmental illness face every day. Many of them

are prisoners in their own homes, unable to venture out very far into our

polluted world before succumbing to life threatening symptoms.

But even worse than the often constant pain they are in, is the rejection

they feel from friends, neighbors, and even some of their doctors. Why?

Because each sufferer of multiple chemical sensitivities or a host of other

ailments that are caused by toxic substances in our environment, are grim,

in-our-face reminders that we are killing ourselves, our planet, and our

future with our relentless drive for wealth and progress.

Nearly every modern activity today releases chemicals, and we come into

direct contact with them every day. Such a large amount of toxic substances

has been released for so long that there may be no naturally occurring clean

air, soil or water left on our planet.

All around the country, toxic sites are awaiting cleanup while their

pollutants enter our air, water, and soil. (Photo courtesy EPA)

And don't think you are fine if you are not suffering like those with full

blown environmental illnesses. If you were exposed to human made chemicals

during early fetal development, it could have affected much about your life.

Impaired motor function, spatial perception problems, learning, memory and

auditory developmental problems, fine motor coordination impairment, and

balance can all be affected. In severe cases, mental retardation has

resulted. What might be the global effect of a five to 10 point reduction in

IQ across the population?

As I mentioned last week, drugs and techniques of Western medical doctors do

not work for many afflicted with environmental illness. When your entire

immune system, nervous system, and organs are reacting to toxic substances,

drugs often have minimal symptomatic effect.

In addition to the lifestyle and health practices I reviewed in the first

part of this commentary, there are a number of alternative medical practices

that could be of value to chronic sufferers of environmental illness. A few

of them are reviewed below.

I am not a medical doctor and none of the following suggestions should be

construed as medical advice nor should you change your diet or treatment

programs without first consulting a qualified health practitioner that you

trust.

Homeopathy:

Since the time of Hippocrates, medical practitioners have questioned the

wisdom of giving complex combinations of drugs. A significant number of

physicians have emerged over the centuries who believe that giving a single

drug, often from botanical sources, is the wisest course of action.

Additional drugs, they believe, should not be given until the action of the

first was completely gone.

It is from this idea that homeopathy may have been born. Eighteenth century

physician Hahnemann, is generally credited with the development of

homeopathy, a complex system for the treatment of disease.

The word homeopathy comes from the Greek words " homoios " (similar) and

" pathos " (the suffering). The Mindbodyhealth.com website says, " In a time of

dangerous bloodlettings, blistering, use of toxic drugs and raging

epidemics, homeopathy's gentle yet powerful effects made it immediately

popular. According to historical records, death rates in homeopathic

hospitals were 1/8 the rates in orthodox hospitals! Homeopathy quickly

expanded throughout Europe and America, which by the early 1800s had 22

homeopathic medical schools, over 100 homeopathic hospitals, and thousands

of practicing homeopaths. "

Adverse drug reactions were the fourth leading cause of death in the United

States in 1997, killing over 100,000 people annually, according to a

University of Toronto study. That number continues to rise. With the

evidence of drug toxicity almost common knowledge, homeopathic formulations

are receiving a wider acceptance today because they are very safe. Millions

of Americans are rediscovering homeopathy, books can now be found on the

subject in many bookstores, and there are many homeopathic physicians.

A detailed description of homeopathy is beyond the scope of this discussion,

but one element is important to note. Homeopathy takes into consideration

the whole person, both mentally and physically. It treats root causes, using

symptoms as clues to the bigger issues.

Nux Vomica (Photo courtesy DrinkEase.com)

Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body's own healing abilities.

The medicines used in homeopathy are unique to this field. They use almost

immeasurably small doses of a drug that would normally have the opposite

effect when used full strength. For example, the fruit of the poison nut

tree, " Semen strychnos, " contains strychnine, a poison. If eaten, it will

cause sickness and vomiting.

But homeopathic preparations of poison nut, known as Nux Vomica, stop

symptoms of nausea. In the homeopathic preparation, the seeds of the fruit

are diluted to the point where they are virtually undetectable with modern

instrumentation. But the energy of the plant is present and the results are

profound. If you have an upset stomach or nausea, homeopathic Nux Vomica

will often eliminate symptoms immediately in some people.

A qualified homeopathic practitioner, preferably one with many years of

experience, can be of great assistance to a sufferer of environmental

illness, and many other illnesses as well.

NAET:

Dr. Devi S. Nambudripad (Photo courtesy NAET.com)

Developed by Dr. Devi S. Nambudripad, a California acupuncturist and

chiropractor, who was trying to relieve herself of severe allergic symptoms

suffered since her birth in South India, NAET is helping thousands cope with

allergies to all kinds of substances. NAET stands for Nambudripad's Allergy

Elimination Techniques.

I have had NAET treatments for Seasonal Affective Disorder and sensitivities

to electromagnetic fields. My wife's mother was cured of a life threatening

latex allergy with NAET. Even pets can benefit. My dog is currently being

treated for flea allergies using these techniques.

Over 2,000 medical practitioners from all over the world have been trained

in this technique. NAET is non-invasive and involves clearing your body of

sensitivities to substances by working the energy pathways often accessed by

acupuncturists.

Acupuncture:

Acupuncture can have dramatic results for some people. Practitioners can be

found around the country, but you must find someone with many years of

experience. This is an emerging field in the United States, so there are

many inexperienced, people with good intentions out there still learning. If

you have chronic environmental illness, you need someone with more

experience, preferably someone who has also studied in China.

Many hazardous substances have been disposed of together in unmarked drums.

The effects of these combinations are unknown. (Photo courtesy EPA)

Don't be surprised if your insurance company doesn't cover some of these

alternative treatments. And don't look for support from even major

organizations like the American Cancer Society. In their 2002 report " Cancer

Facts and Figures, " the American Cancer Society states, " Public concern

about cancer risks in the environment often focuses on unproven risks or on

situations in which known carcinogen exposures are at such low levels that

risks are negligible. "

Much research on disease still centers on how an individual's personal

behavior or genetic makeup affects their risk. But , senior

scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council and an assistant clinical

professor of medicine at the University of California at San Francisco,

thinks this approach is lacking.

" Pollution has been overlooked and underfunded as a potential cause of

cancer, " she said in an interview with San Francisco Gate, an online

publication. " There is more research being done now than there used to be,

but it's still only a fraction of the total research that's being done. "

We are truly on our own. Fortunately, alternative health practitioners - and

a growing number of Western trained doctors - are searching for the cures,

even if they have no control over the causes.

While most of our political, business, and health care leaders have

abandoned sufferers of environmental illness, there are still many avenues

to explore for help. Don't give up hope. You are not completely on your own

as long as there are so many people out there who care.

And the rest of us need to keep the pressure on our leaders to take these

sufferers seriously and to see them for what they are - visions of what is

to come for the rest of us if things don't change fast.

RESOURCES

1. See the first part of this series at:

http://ens-news.com/ens/feb2002/2002L-02-22g.html

2. Read about homeopathy at:

http://www.mindbodyhealth.com/bmc_homeopathy.htm

3. Learn all about NAET and find a practitioner near you at:

http://www.naet.com/subscribers/index3.html

4. For a discussion about environmental illness in children, see the Health

Child website at:

http://www.healthychild.com/database/allergies___environmental_illness.htm

5. The American Red Cross in California gives " Tips for People With

Environmental Illness or Chemical Sensitivities " at:

http://www.redcross.org/disaster/safety/eqtenvil.html

6. A website with information gathered by a chemically sensitive individual

contains useful info at: http://www.ehcd.com/websteen/

7. Get help finding a holistic health practitioner from the Holistic

Medicine Resource Center at: http://www.holisticmed.com/www/directory.html

8. An extensive list of resources for the chemically sensitive can be found

at: http://www.ctaz.com/~bhima/resources.htm

9. Find many non-toxic pest control products at: http://www.safe2use.net/

10. Find out who your Congressional representatives are and e-mail them.

Tell them that they must take environmental illness seriously. If you know

your Zip code, you can find them at:

http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ziptoit.html

{Jackie Alan Giuliano, Ph.D. is a writer and teacher in Seattle. He can be

found lamenting that the most meaningful health care he has isn't covered by

his insurance. Please send your thoughts, comments, and visions to him at:

jackie@... and visit his website at:

http://www.healingourworld.com}