Can food replace medicines?

  What is the food?

Food can be definite like a type of substance with a nourishing role which we bring it in our body by eating, drinking, or injecting. Food is in fact one of the most complicated blends of chemicals. We need to learn more about the food and the impact of it on our bodies.

       We can describe our body relation with food by well known Hippocrates’s expression ” We are what we eat”

Why we need the food, what food does for our body?

 From the first day of existence like an embryo, we need food to grow. Through the mother’s processing system, food rich to the embryo helping to grow. After birth, during childhood, until adulthood, we need the food to grow properly and to develop healthy body systems.

       Keeping the body alive by an optimal operation of its systems needs fuel which everyday meal should provide.

        Along our life body suffer many accidents, dysfunctionalities and normal aging process which conduct to tissue destruction. Replacement of destroyed tissue need nourishment which the food provides.

        Food, oxygen, and water are the 3 necessary inputs in the human body in order to keep it alive and well functioning

 Macro and micro nutrients from food

 From point of view of how the body uses them food is composed of macronutrients and micronutrients.

        Macronutrients like protein, carbohydrates, and fats are used by the body in large amounts for energy and reconstruction.

        Micronutrients like vitamins, minerals, enzymes are used in small amounts and they play the roles of catalyst in the body’s functionating processes.

 How we use food to keep body balance.

 It is everyone’s desire to have a healthy good looking body.

       A person who has good physical health is likely to have bodily functions and processes working at their peak.

       There are a few aspects which we have to take into account in order to keep our body functioning well:

1.Level of PH in our blood.

         In order to stay healthy, keeping a stable PH value of blood on the alkaline side is crucial. The kidney which is the organs with main responsibility for doing that can be put under the high stress if our diet is mainly formatted from food which generates acidic metabolic ash. When we establish our diet we should mixt the food in the way how the metabolic ash stays on the alkaline side.

2.Helping the natural regenerating process of the body

        Naturally, some of the cells regenerate and help the body to function on his peak. There certain foods which have the ability to naturally increase the production of stem cells, responsible for tissue regenerations

3.Keeping weight under control

        It is generally accepted that the optimum functions of body systems happening on a healthy weight. The healthy weight does not coincide with the top model weight. Each body has its own shape and structure and according to that body mass can vary on healthy individuals. In fact, a healthy body doesn’t always coincide with a very slim one. In some studies, it has been shown that the risk of early death is higher in people who are thin compared to those who are overweight. Of course, this study does not include obese or morbidly obese people.

         Food has to be variate and enough for the body to function but overeating conduct to imbalances, overweight following in the most cases of drastic diets which put more stress on the body and maybe deprivation of some useful nutrients. We should  have in mind ” We eat to live, we do not live to eat”

 4.Keeping the balance in gut bacteria and enzymes for a healthy digestion.

         A healthy digestive system is the one able to ensure optimal digestion and absorption of nutrients as well as the elimination of residues. Is also responsible for an adequate response to inflammatory processes and maintenance of the immune system. Such a system has to keep the right balance of good bacteria and digestive enzymes. There are particular foods to be added into the diet which feed those bacteria and help maintain the balance.

Can food replace medicines?

The answer to that question has double sense YES and NO. Food does definitely more than just nourishing. It can improve or worsen health depending on how is used. 

       It is definitely desirable that food is used correctly to prevent disease. In what concern treating medical conditions strictly by diet is only possible on a limited number of medical mild condition.

       We will treat a caught with honey but when is about treating an active TB we need to partner a standard, strong antibiotic scheme with a very rich nutrients diet to defeat the disease. We are well able to control indigestion with mint tea but infection with an H.Pilori needs a partnership between an antibiotic and a proper diet to get eradicate it.

      There is anyway a long list of medical conditions that can be controlled by diet: high cholesterol, high glucose, Type II diabetes, high blood pressure, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Cohn’s Disease, and many more.

      We also learn that natural antibiotics from certain foods can be more efficient in some antibiotic-resistant bacterial like Manuka Honey defeating MRSA.

          We should also understand that food can’t replace totally conventional medicine.

Using the food for nourishing, pleasure, and treating or alleviate medical conditions.

 Our daily food is a partner for life. The healthier our relationship, the longer we will have a good quality of life. We are to learn to use the food for nourishing our body, treating and alleviate the medical condition, and for pleasure too. Listening and understanding how our body reacts to different foods should be the start in creating a healthy, happy relationship with food which to support us in all stages of our life.