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4:01:2006 |
| It’s Crazy NOT to be a Health Nut! Several years ago I had an experience that made me realize just how crazy it is that people who are concerned about their health are labeled as “nuts.” My new patient, Anne, was dealing with a myriad of health issues typical of a 65 year old woman living in the United States – osteoporosis, high cholesterol and blood pressure, arthritis, ulcers, and diabetes. When I met her in the lobby of our clinic, I was enthusiastically greeted by her sister, Elizabeth – a vibrant, healthy looking, attractive middle-aged woman. I later learned from Anne that her being in my office was all Elizabeth’s doing. Anne went on to tell me that everyone in her family, two brothers and two other sisters, was fighting the same sort of ailments that she was except for her “younger” sister, Elizabeth. When I said that perhaps Elizabeth would fall prey to the same fate, she just smiled and said “I don’t think so.” I was a bit curious about her inflection of “younger” and the obvious disapproval regarding something about her sister, so I asked her how much younger Elizabeth was than her. Well, Anne told me that Elizabeth was actually her older sister by 8 years and the oldest in the family. I was shocked because while Anne looked like she was closer to 80 than 65, Elizabeth looked in her mid-fifties. I could not resist, I asked Anne why she felt Elizabeth would be spared from the diseases that were afflicting the other member of the family. Her response was prescient, but stated with distain “Oh, she has been a health nut for over 50 years.” It was at that moment that I truly realized how absolutely insane it is for everyone not to be a health nut. We are given one body to nourish and serve us, why not make it as healthy as possible? Like many patients more or less coerced into seeing me by a family member, I felt that Anne might not be receptive to the dietary, lifestyle, and supplementation strategies that I would lay out to address her health issues. She belonged to an era that for some reason rejected the notion that diet and lifestyle are fundamental to healing. Instead, she chose to rely on a few little pills, actually she was on 11 different medications, to try and correct her faulty biochemistry. Experience had taught me that the best way to handle these situations was to simply ask Anne if she was willing to make any changes to her diet and lifestyle. When she said no, I quickly, but graciously ended the appointment. Since we had only used 15 of the allotted 45 minutes, I was excited to have the opportunity to spend some time with Elizabeth. It was an inspiring to me to see so vividly how following a path of health could defy the odds of developing diseases with an inherited tendency as well as dramatically slow down the aging process. A New Paradigm Emerging For nearly 30 years I have also been a “health nut.” In fact, I am quite proud to say that I might be one of the most recognized “health nuts” of my generation. Over this time, while it has been interesting to see many components of the natural health movement in the 1970s become mainstream items – yogurt, salad bars, whole grains, vitamin and mineral supplements, tofu, soy milk, etc.; as well as the tremendously effective natural products introduced in the 1980s and 1990s like Glucosamine sulfate, ginkgo, St. John’s wort, and melatonin for some illogical reason there still remains a stigma that if you care about your body and health that you are “nuts.” There also seems to be a deep underlying rejection in society to the idea that diet, lifestyle, and the use of natural medicines offer an effective answer to the health challenges in America even though there is tremendous support for this assertion. It is time that all of us health nuts stand up and eliminate the stigma attached to being health minded – it is a rational approach to life. It just makes perfectly good sense doesn’t it? I believe there is a new paradigm that will emerge in our culture where good health practices are recognized as the norm while engaging in damaging actions to our health is viewed as nuts. Some Exciting Changes to www.doctormurray.com I apologize for being a bit delinquent on getting my newsletters out on a timely basis, but trust me; I have not been spending my time idle. In the next few weeks you will be seeing a revamped website at www.doctormurray.com. The site will be more user friendly and the content will be better organized. What I am most excited about is that I have written concise dietary and supplement protocols for supporting health and healing in over 50 common health conditions. And, what is really great is that we have added a manner in which people that follow the protocols can provide anonymous feedback. I hope that this mechanism will allow me to continue to refine my recommendations so that I can continue to offer the best possible solutions that natural medicine has to offer. I have received so many phenomenal testimonials over the years on protocols that I have written; I wanted to find a way to share these so others would be inspired and encouraged. Here is a testimonial that I received just today from a 69 year old man named David:
Here is another that I got today from Sharon:
Amazing isn’t it – the tremendous ability to influence body functions by giving the body the tools it needs. I just love getting this sort of feedback, it really inspires me. Don’t worry, as soon as the new website is good to go, you will be the first to know. Thanks for your support and I hope that 2006 brings you the best of health!! Live with passion, Michael T. Murray, N.D.
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