This month, we will discuss specific emotions, interactions of emotions, how you seek balance in the paradigm of full and dynamic health, beginning with negative emotions.

In Chinese Medicine, emotions are integrated into the whole spectrum of health. In a system called the Law of Five Elements, we gain respect for the depth and profound level of understanding and integration of the Traditional Chinese Medicine system of health care.

Five Element is a system that reflects nature and her many faces. The elements are: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood. Each of these elements have corresponding organs, energy channels, functions and attributes. The organs related to the elements are as follows:
- Fire: Heart, Small Intestines, Heart Protector and San Jiao, or our water metabolism.
- Earth; is the Spleen and Stomach.
- Metal is the Lung and Large Intestines.
- Water element is correlated to the organs of Kidney and Bladder.
- Wood element is related to the Liver and Gall Bladder.

Each Element and organ has it's corresponding positive and negative emotions and emotional states.
Fire: Joy, or over excitement, and "Propriety and Rites" is the virtue.
Earth: Thoughtfulness, or worry, and the virtue is Faith.
Metal: Grief or Sadness, and the virtue is Reverence.
Water: Fear is the emotion, and Wisdom is the virtue.
Wood: Anger and Human Kindness or Benevolence.

Each Element also has corresponding functions. For this article we will dwell on the emotions. Emotions are a reflection of our inner dynamic and balance. As our negative emotions are pushed more toward positive states; or virtues, we are approaching a place that produces a "healing" dynamic.

Negative emotions are strongly correlated with numerous disease states. Chronic stress is a by product of a negative emotional state, and we know that it leads to not only a shorter life span for many reasons, but a lower quality of life. I believe that each of you if asked would vote for a higher quality of life before you wished for a long life. A long life without a high quality of life is a life destined to be full of suffering.

So what are the negative emotions: I include among them: Fear, lust, neediness, criticalness, obsession, spite, despair, worry, pride, and indifference.

Each of these emotions are spawned out a belief that you are a victim of some life situation or circumstance. As soon as we believe ourselves victimized, we lose all power and initiative. We lose the ability to act out of our divinely bestowed right to be creative. We willingly enter our self constructed prison of our own design, only to complain bitterly to everyone who will listen to us about how unfair it is that we are in this horrid prison, which is of our own creation. We are, ignorantly and blissfully in a dank, lonely prison of our own volition. So how do you know if you are falling in this morbid trap? When we talk of others as we recount why we have had a tough day. Or, if we blame others for our problems. If we accuse, gossip, backbite, or artificially lift up others, we are playing in this game, and usually unknowingly.

How do you step off of the field if you are playing this game? Start by taking responsibility for how you feel. Don't allow others to take control of your life, by giving them the control, via blame for your problems. Take back personal responsibility in your talk, self- talk, and what you are willing to listen to from others. Second, realize how powerful you are. If you can create a deep dark negative hole to live in, you can create a bright, open lush mountain meadow to live in in your mind. If you have the power to create a vivid environment in your life, it can be vividly good, or vividly negative. Recognize, you have the power to create your own life, whether it is delightful or painful. You have the power.

Next month we will talk more about the positive emotional states and discuss why they are only a safe place to visit if you stopping by for a quick stay as you gather your strength for the next stage of the journey; moving ahead to your highest potential, the virtues.

First off, let's go over what our holiday hours will be:
Christmas Eve (Mon. Dec. 24th): Closed
Christmas Day (Tues. Dec. 25th): Closed
Wed. Dec. 26th: 8am-6pm

New Years Eve (Mon. Dec. 31): 8am-12pm
New Years Day (Tues. Jan. 1): Closed
Wed. Jan. 2nd: 8am-6pm

Coming later this month: New Expanded Hours! We will be significantly increasing our business hours, so not only will you be able to schedule during the current hours, but you will soon have the option of scheduling on Tuesday morning, Thursday, or Saturday! We will send out a separate email when we finalize the times and start date for these new hours, so be watching for further updates!

Foods Boost Mood

-"The Good Mood Diet," written by Susan Kleiner, a registered dietician, includes a list of 30 feel-good foods that have shown to increase energy and sharpen mental focus.

-Protein-rich foods, like seafood, boost the ability to concentrate, while carbohydrate-rich foods, like pastas, foster calmness.

-Some feel-good foods include fish, blueberries, milk, nuts, bananas, broccoli, cocoa powder, and oranges.

-Other foods like fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, and candied yams can make you feel sluggish, so eat these types in moderation.

*Taken from an article by Sylvia Hubbard, Monday, Nov. 26, 2007

Polio Vaccine Causes Polio??

-Nigeria is fighting an outbreak of polio caused by a mutating polio vaccine, say world health authorities, but the only remedy is to keep vaccinating the children there.

-As many of 70 of the 1,300 cases of polio stemmed from a mutant vaccine virus rather than a wild virus.

To Vaccinate or Not To Vaccinate...

-Generation Rescue has surveyed over 9,000 vaccinated and unvaccinated boys in California and Oregon. What they found was astonishing...

-All vaccinated boys, compared to unvaccinated boys:
--Vaccinated boys were 155% more likely to have a neurological disorder
--Vaccinated boys were 224% more likely to have ADHD
--Vaccinated boys were 61% more likely to have autism
--Vaccinated boys were 120% more likely to have asthma

-Older vaccinated boys, ages 11-17 (about half of the boys surveyed), compared to older unvaccinated boys:
--Vaccinated boys were 158% more likely to have a neurological disorder
--Vaccinated boys were 317% more likely to have ADHD
--Vaccinated boys were 112% more likely to have autism

We Can Do Better--Improving the Health of the American People

The United States spends more on health care than any other nation in the world, yet it ranks poorly on nearly every measure of health status. How can this be? What explains this apparent paradox?

The two-part answer is deceptively simple--first, the pathways to better health do not generally depend on better health care, and second, even in those instances in which health care is important, too many Americans do not receive it, receive it too late, or receive poor-quality care.

Pathways to Improving Population Health

Health is influenced by factors in five domains-- genetics, social circumstances, environmental exposures, behavioral patterns, and health care. When it comes to reducing early deaths, medical care has a relatively minor role (10% impact). Even if the entire U.S. population had access to excellent medical care--which it does not--only a small fraction of these deaths could be prevented. The single greatest opportunity to improve health and reduce premature deaths lies in personal behavior. In fact, behavioral causes account for 40% of all deaths in the United States. Although there has been disagreement over the actual number of deaths that can be attributed to obesity and physical inactivity combined, it is clear that this pair of factors and smoking are the top two behavioral causes of premature death.

Although inadequate health care counts for only 10% of premature deaths, among the five determinants of health, health care receives by far the greatest share of resources and attention.

The largest potential for further improvement in population health lies in behavioral risk factors, especially smoking and obesity. We already have tools at hand to make progress in tobacco control, and some of these tools are applicable to obesity. Improvement in most of the other factors requires political action, starting with relentless measurement of and focus on actual health status and the actions that could improve it. Inaction means acceptance of America's poor health status.

Improving population health would be more that a statistical accomplishment. It could enhance the productivity of the workforce and boost national economy, reduce health care expenditures, and most important, improve people's lives. But in the absence of a strong political voice from the less fortunate themselves, it is incumbent on health care professionals, especially physicians, to become champions for population health. This sense of purpose resonates with our deepest professional values and is the reason why many chose medicine as a profession. It is also one of the most productive expressions of patriotism. Americans take great pride in asserting that we are number one in terms of wealth, number of Nobel Prizes, and military strength. Why don't we try to be number one in health?

By: Steven A. Schroeder, M.D.
NJM Volume 357:1221-1228