Iron rules of health - 16

[Guest guest]

We now come to the most damning effect on the central nervous system

wreaked by this chemical soup around us.

 

Hormones – these delicate and vital messengers – become so disturbed

and damaged that they throw everyone off balance, from the middle

aged - men as well as women - to teenagers – yes and even down to

the smallest babies.

 

What deeply concerns this author is that we are ruining the health of

future generations and the damage may spread even further in

unrealized ways by causing massive and permanent infertility unless

we make sweeping and fundamental changes in our environment and

agricultural farming methods.

 

Precocious puberty shows in the appearance of physical and hormonal

signs of pubertal development at a far earlier age than is considered

normal. It came as a surprise to this author based on his experience

with Indian patients, that in U.S. for many years now puberty has

been considered precocious in girls younger than 8 years and boys

younger than 9 years old. In India these landmarks would be 12 and 14

years only 50 years ago.

 

The reasons for these abnormalities are given on this link for your

interest:

 

http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic1882.htm

 

On this site we see that it is reported by an MD that nearly 33%

girls in U.S. suffer from sexual preciocity, as a result of which,

stress, behavioural problems and shorter than normal stature, are

only some of the effects that may be expected. Naturally, hormone

imbalances affect the younger children more as their nervous systems

are not yet fully developed.

 

Environmental factors such as endocrine disruptors, DDT metabolites,

polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) and Phthalates are considered the

cause of these problems as expressed on this University of Michigan

website:

 

http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/yourchild/puberty.htm

 

Phthalates are also believed to cause pre-term deliveries, sperm

damage and low sperm counts, which can be checked by visiting various

references on the links given on the above site. It may be of use to

note that those transparent or attractively colored PET bottles which

we all use to store mineral waters, to feed milk to our babies and

store all types of liquids or shampoos etc. allows leeching of

Phthalate into the liquids contained.

 

This is yet another way that the slow poisoning of the population is

occurring, on a daily basis.

 

The hormone oestrogen aids in the development of secondary sexual

characteristics, the growth of the breasts, widening of the pelvis,

fat pads on the hips and the appearance of axillary and pubic hair.

In the average time span of a woman's fertility, being 30-35 years of

monthly reminders, ovulation occurs on the 14th day before the

appearance of the next menstrual cycle. As her age advances, the

quality of the egg declines and the oestrogen levels, which are very

helpful in preventing fat deposits in the arteries, get cut off,

which then makes women susceptible to coronary heart disease and

breast cancer. Even a mild oestrogen imbalance can cause breathing

difficulties and shortness of breath in middle aged and older women.

Therefore of equal importance is the problem of hormone disturbance

in middle aged women even those within child bearing age as they

mould the whole society with their own deficits being perpetuated in

their offspring.

 

When the lady of the house is happy and healthy the whole family

remains so, but when she suffers from a hormone imbalance, the life

of children as well as husband becomes difficult. The love adhesive

which binds the whole family into a single unit starts cracking and

de-bonding. Most women can see when the first indication of some of

their health problems are due to hormonal imbalance by visiting this

site:

http://www.johnleemd.net/forms/hb_test.html

 

Signs of aging can also be diagnosed by Vaidyas, one of the most

obvious being the graying or drying of the hair. The silky smoothness

of the hair will also lessen.

 

The commonly accepted reasons for the occurrence of breast and

ovarian cancers are considered to be oestrogen dominance, caused by

declining levels of progesterone as women age, and/or with removal of

the ovaries in hysterectomy, or from xenohormones in the form of

pollutants and pesticides or from oral contraceptives or synthetic

hormone replacement therapy. Most women have to put up with obesity

as a result of hormone disturbance either due to these above reasons

or to post pregnancy hormone disturbance. The contribution of C-

section to obesity has been already discussed in many posts on

ayurveda. Another most common ovarian dysfunction and endocrine

disorder which affects approximately 15-20 per cent of women in the

reproductive age and is a major cause of infertility is the an-

ovulatory cycles. The affected women will often have signs and

symptoms of elevated androgen levels, menstrual irregularity as well

as weight gain, a slight amount of abnormal hair growth on the face

or the body and no periods at all (amenorrhea) if the imbalance is

extreme. The initial onset of this disorder appears in the peri-

pubertal years and is progressive. Experienced Vaidyas can catch this

condition as soon as it appears. In this case of hormonal imbalance,

maturing eggs fail to be expelled from the ovary, creating an ovary

filled with immature follicles. The cysts then contribute to further

hormonal imbalance causing even more cysts and enlarged ovaries. Then

it is termed polycystic ovary disease (PCOD), characterized by

anovulation (no formation of egg) irrespective of periods (which may

be regular, irregular or absent altogether) and hyper-androgenism

(elevated serum testosterone and androgen levels). Such women who

conceive have a higher rate of early foetal loss as the hormonal

environment may interfere with egg development within the follicle

and disrupt embryo implantation within the uterus.

 

Their chances to conceive are also fewer, compared to normal women

who ovulate every month. Women with normal hormonal function get 12

chances a year to conceive but women with PCOD may only get 3-4

chances a year to conceive due to delayed periods. This condition is

also related to insulin resistance with elevated fasting blood

insulin levels. The high levels of androgenic hormones interfere with

the pituitary ovarian communication, leading to increased LH levels,

anovulation, amenorrhea and infertility. Irregular ovulation usually

means that pregnancy is more difficult to achieve. Naturally, if

ovulation is not taking place, it is not possible to conceive. The

corresponding condition for men is erectile dysfunction and lack of

libido as a result of reducing testosterone levels and/or increase of

estrogen levels leading to fat accumulation in the female pattern.

Figuratively speaking in every man there is a woman hiding and in

every woman, a man is hiding,. Male menopause is the increase of

oestrogen and reduction of testosterone, arranged by God so that

fathers love their children and do not look at their daughters in

ways that are unacceptable to society. With male menopause a man may

survive the shock of loosing his wife if his daughter is still there,

otherwise a widower cannot survive this loss as well as a widow.

Young diabetic women treated with insulin are at special risk of PCOD

condition. The amount of insulin injected by insulin-dependent or

insulin-requiring diabetics is far in excess of what the body

produces naturally. As mentioned in the introductory post in this

series, diabetes is the same auto-immune disease as cellular

malfunction. Obesity is the most common symptom of these women and

they are also insulin-resistant. When a woman is insulin-resistant,

her fat cell does not respond normally to the insulin in the blood

stream. Weight gain in itself can result from high serum insulin

levels. In addition, skin tags, or tiny excess flaps of skin in the

armpits or neck area are seen in addition to male fat storage

patterns - abdominal storage rather than standard female pattern on

thighs, hips and waist and mid-cycle pain - indicating painful

ovulation - due to the enlargement and blockage of the surface of the

ovaries. Female pattern obesity is also an indicator of hormone

imbalance. Experienced vaidyas can make out which hormones are

disturbed by appearance and a few nadi vigyan points and treat them

accordingly.

 

In hormone imbalance, in addition to causing menstrual irregularities

the constant oestrogen production stimulates the growth of the

uterine lining which usually induces very heavy uterine bleeding. The

bleeding episodes may occur after long gaps of time and heavy

bleeding running beyond 5 days may be the result. Clots, darker

colour and a foul odour are also sometimes present. Each of these

symptoms indicates a different condition to a Vaidya. Frequent

urinary tract infections causing itching and abnormal discharges are

also symptoms suffered by a few women.

 

In the past, no medication or special precautions were needed and

women used to age gracefully contributing to the welfare of society.

However, in our present conditions, women are suffering so much that

some medication and lifestyle changes which include yoga and

meditation have become a must. Leaving discussions on yoga and

meditation for our later posts, let us discuss here hormone

modulation using herbs alone. We need hormone modulators instead of

hormone manipulators. Both men and women are suffering from serious

hormonal imbalances because of all this toxicity in the environment,

in our foods and beverages, as well as the drugs such as the b/c

pill and hormone replacement therapies.

 

If we look at medical science and allopathic Westernized medicine,

the limit of their treatment is hormone manipulation with Premarin,

Prevarin or synthetic testosterone for men. These synthetic

treatments throw out of balance the homeostasis of the other hormones

that work in synergy with each individual hormone. We cannot

manipulate one hormone without throwing the others off balance

because they all work in synergy. If we manipulate oestrogen we are

going to throw luteinizing hormone, or follicle stimulating hormone,

or growth hormone or DHEA, all off balance and no one can gauge

exactly which hormones are going to be thrown out of balance. Such

manipulation essentially disturbs smooth dhatu building process and

meda (fat) does not get converted to higher dhatus. The higher dhatus

contribute to building of sperms and ovums, and sex fluids. The

results of HRT are already discussed on messages # 5508 and # 5925

pointing out the various cancer risks and incontinence problems.

Message # 6045 and # 6124 describe various mainstream HRT

formulations and bio-identical hormone proposals.

 

We need plant derived substances that are non-toxic and coming from

nature that modulate these hormones like tuning a piano or a radio. A

plant-derived compound used in the west and Australiya could be

damiana. We have black cohosh, blue cohosh, dong quai, dioscorea

extract from the Mexican yam, plant sterols, natural progesterone

cream and many other compounds. Phytosterol regulates the body and

provides all the necessary nutritional precursors. Dioscorea extracts

and amino acids support natural hormone production of body and work

in harmony with the immune system - efficient burning of fat - mental

alertness - recovery from stress - sex hormone balance - and helps

in the conversion of calories to energy. By 35, hormone production is

slowing down in everyone. Phytosterol is not a hormone but a

precursor. The main ingredient in Phytosterol is a plant-sterol

derived from a couple of species of Dioscorea (Mexican Yam). In the

final analysis the body will only ever make the hormones it needs.

 

Just as Mexican yam extract is used in west, ayurvedic equivalents in

India are Shatawari extracts or powder along with other herbs such as

Licorice, Aswgandha, Vidarikand, Gokharu and Aamalaki which were

described by this author in post #6124. More importantly, a mixture

of plant and animal derived hormones are also used in India to a

limited extent. In recent years, Panch Gayya medicines have given

us "Nari Sanjivani", a distillate of cow urine together with

Shatawari decoction. This medicine, when taken along with date crush

offers a complete hormone balancing solution restoring normality by

reducing menses and its frequency as required. When combined with

other medicines such as Phal Ghrut, this approach resolves vaginal

dryness, reduced libido, frequent urinary tract infections and skin

problems such as acne and candidiasis. Those who have an aversion to

cow urine can take other ayurvedic formulations discussed in message

# 6124. But most the important hormone balancers are made in cow

ghee, so dependence on cow is always present. Hormone balancing

ayurvedic medicines should be taken under the guidance of a Vaidya,

so that you do not tilt the balance to other extreme.

 

Why would acharyas have taken the cow for proposing these medicines?

Holiness is the answer. The cow is Satvic by nature, never going mad

or becoming irritated. Mad cow disease developed only because she was

fed non vegetarian food. Similarly, in humans, women are more

affected by poisons than men. Consider the effect of alcohol or

smoking to evaluate the truth of this statement. In addition to this,

the author has prescribed certain oil massages or fomentations for

the area below the navel to take care of Vatic disorders of the

ovaries. But what is needed and what should be done depends on each

individual case, one remedy does not suit everyone.

 

Women will generally only take treatment for cosmetic ailments like

obesity, unwanted hair growth or acne. They will not mind the

underlying delayed and heavy periods which should be treated first,

they may not even realize that there is a connection between them.

Who would put two and two together and realise that these are related

signs? Average Indian women would not know this! Or realise that one

being treated would affect the other problem. General

practitioners, even if they know the connection, do not have

anything to treat them with. Another observation to be noted is that

the excess estrogen mimicking chemicals are stored in adipose cells

causing cobblestone or orange peel appearance (cellulite) of the skin

in extreme cases. Most problems in women are not oestrogen related

problems but progesterone related problems. The very thing that they

increase in medicine (oestrogen) is causing cancer. Progesterone gets

produced in more quantity by alkaline food, satvic food and

glycosugars which are all good contributors. That is the reason this

author prescribes dates and almonds along with other medications,

when treating infertility.

 

Just as before important tasks are undertaken, the blessings of God,

or our elders, are requested, requiring us to touch their feet after

bathing and putting on clean clothes, so before considering any

hormone modulation approach for fertility problems, this author

suggests that men and women should first undergo cellular

detoxification.

 

The whole body should be detoxified in a step-by-step and systematic

approach.

 

The first step is to cleanse the liver, kidneys, lymphatics, colon,

and the cells. This way eventually the cells will breathe again and

receive the intelligent nutrients that they need. The role of liver

in fertility is already hinted in past posts.

 

The next step is the building phase which includes building up the

hormones, building up the immunity, eliminating nutritional

deficiencies and repairing this deficit with a more appropriate diet

and then increasing the blood flow to the injured or diseased areas.

 

Detoxification of the liver will make it burn rather than generate

more fat. Regular exercise thereafter will help weight loss and will

also help the body in reducing it's blood glucose levels. Activities

such as walking, jogging or swimming are highly recommended. Those

who can tolerate steam saunas will benefit from the estrogen

mimicking chemicals being eliminated from the fat cells. Then with

the reduction of weight and the reduction in insulin resistance,

regular ovulatory periods will usually resume. Of course, some women

are cursed even after this extensive treatment and will still not

become pregnant, but that karma will become evident from their

inability to believe that all such holistic efforts contribute to the

creation of a good soul.

 

Eventually the cellular engines become bathed once more in oxygen,

photon light, water, vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids or

whatever may be missing. Only then will the cellular engines

synthesize as they were designed to.

 

A relatively similar approach works well for the teenager's hormone

imbalance and obesity problems. Other than obesity, hypertension,

constant fatigue, irritability and heavy irregular cycles, there are

indications that hormone imbalance is progressing even in children.

Teenage boys suffering from auto-immune problems with loss of immune

function suffer frequent coughs/colds/fevers but Panch Gavya therapy

will provide the best solution with the hormone levels being

naturally balanced using cow urine based medicines.

 

The remainder of this series will be continued to discuss cellular

energy fields for health.

 

Editing help from Jane MacRoss is gratefully acknowledged.

 

Dr Bhate