Gema García Marcos
Updated Tuesday, February 20, 2024-16:38
"We have light, but we do not see the sun;
we have clocks, but we do not have time
; we have doctors and hospitals, but we do not have health; we have knowledge, but not wisdom; we have thousands of friends in networks, but almost 25% of the population she feels alone". The portrait that Rafael Guzmán García, psychoneuroimmunologist and osteopath, makes of our society is as devastating as it is accurate.
In his new book, 'Your body, your home' (Espasa), Guzmán García dissects how the environment in which we live, the thoughts we have, the type of food we eat, the contact we maintain with nature, the hours we How we sit or how long we are exposed to sunlight influence our health.
The picture you paint of our way of life is absolutely disheartening. How does this disaster impact our health? This portrait is the fruit and the unequivocal sign that we do not do things well, that we violate every day the most basic laws that ensure and govern human life. Breaking the rules always has unpleasant consequences. If we break the laws of the civil code we pay for it with a financial penalty or even with jail, when we break the rules dictated by our body we pay for it with illnesses and even death. The problem is that many of these laws are very unknown to the average citizen and this is why, among other things, I decided to write 'Your body, your home', since, as article 6 says of the Civil Code, ignorance of a law does not exempt you from compliance and, in our body, the same thing happens. It indicates that we have accepted, allowed and integrated suicidal lifestyle habits since we were children. Isn't he a bit of a beast? I would define him more as mindless or naive. Without a doubt, it is ignorance that drags us towards these paths. In my opinion, one of the big problems we suffer today is that what is statistically common has been considered normal and correct without reflecting on it.
If this were not the case, we would not think of giving our children before going to school (where they spend almost the entire morning sitting) those breakfasts based on refined cereals, cow's milk processed with soluble cocoa
(with a sugar content of 74 %),
or white bread with jam,
if we knew, they can generate insulin resistance and predispose them to getting sick. Or it would not occur to us to stay up until 2 in the morning watching television series or looking at social networks knowing that this disrupts our biological clock (biorhythm) and predisposes us to anxiety, infertility, depression and a host of diseases. Nor would it occur to us to lower our children's fever with a drug without it reaching 38.5º -39º, knowing that fever is a wonderful strategy of the immune system to annihilate pathogens and a fantastic way to modulate and mature its defensive system. When we so lightly lower the fever of our children (or us adults) we are voluntarily harming them and going against their health. I could give hundreds of examples... Therefore, we must stop and not analyze our life under our temporal and contextual reference, since our biology and our functioning are not governed by the laws that our reductionist, materialist, digital way of life has imposed. and based on comfort.
Our body is governed by ancestral and natural rules that promote life
However, our way of acting is antibiotic. Anti-life. Beast, therefore, falls short. You say that the body speaks to us... In what way? How can we learn to listen to their messages and, most importantly, to interpret them? That's right, our body is informing our brain 24 hours a day how everything is going. Humans (and all living beings) have a sense (in addition to sight, taste, smell, etc.) called
interoception,
which is nothing more than a flow of information that goes from each organ, each system and, I would dare say, each cell to higher command centers located in our nervous system. This information remains in the subconscious, unless there is a significant imbalance and those command centers consider that they should let this information pass to the conscious and make us participants in it. This is how the symptoms and those small signs appear that we should know how to identify.
Tiredness, insomnia, itchy skin, dry eyes, strange internal sensations, etc.
When our body functions correctly we should not perceive anything.
Things as common as constipation, loose or soft stools, smell of sweat, strong smell of feces, loss of memory or verbal fluency, lack of concentration, imbalances or pain in menstrual periods, numbness of the hands and a long etc. These are situations that we have normalized but that tell us that something is not working well.
Living outward, projecting our life on our mobile devices and worrying more about having than being leads us towards an absolute disconnection with our interior and our body. Contact with nature, sports and activities such as mindfulness, prayer or any exercise or situation that brings us closer to spirituality or a bit of introspective life will help us reconnect with our body and will give us back that innate ability to perceive the messages that our wonderful body sends us. In your book you propose that we recover those habits that are closest to or recreate an ancestral life, understood as a life more linked to nature—to our nature—than to technology or the harmful habits that have imposed on our hyper-technological and consumerist societies. Isn't it an impossible mission? What do we start with? It is not at all an impossible mission if we have relevant information about the consequences of being subjected and submissive to technology and virtual life. Technology must be at our service and not the other way around. Information gives us power and above all freedom, and currently our society lives in perpetual slavery. We are chained to technology and, worst of all, we believe we are free.
The problem is that in large companies that manufacture technology there are teams of neuroscientists who know perfectly how our reward systems work.
They know which brain circuits are activated and deactivated every time we consult social networks, they give us a 'like', we hear a notification, we see how the light on our screens turns on or what we feel when our mobile phone vibrates in our pocket announcing a message. new notification. It is absolute control of our minds or, worse, our consciousness and conscience and this is terrifying. We are starting, therefore, from a half-zombie society with extremely high levels of anxiety due to this overstimulation of the reward circuits. We live in the era of 'yaismo', and we are not going very well down this path. There's a solution? I want to believe so. Hopefully one day common sense will prevail, but today, as they say, common sense is the least common of the senses. In the book, I give strategies to manage slavery and be able to gradually get out of this situation or at least so that, if we decide to continue there, within the 'Matrix', we do so voluntarily and with knowledge of the facts. Which ones? Are those '11 postcards' that you talk about on the journey to regain health? The factors that make up the health equation are many. We cannot be simplistic and expect to be healthy or extend our longevity by modifying one or two parameters. Life is multifactorial. The 11 postcards that can make up a very healthy album are:
1.-
Having the knowledge and information necessary to make optimal decisions, as well as to be able to correctly estimate the risks;
2.-
Understand the reason for the need to make changes in our habits. If we do not understand why, our brain, which is addicted to laziness, will set psycho-traps for us that will make us succumb to comfort and with it, to illness.
3.-
Respect 7-9 hours of sleep at night. And I point out the nocturnal one;
4.-
Be in contact and immerse ourselves in nature very frequently;
5.-
Expose ourselves to sunlight daily and without protection for a few minutes each day. In the book I discuss this in great detail;
6.-
Implement movement and physical exercise in our daily lives;
7.-
Break a sedentary lifestyle every 40-50 minutes and do at least 2 minutes of movement;
8.-
Eat foods loaded with nutrients and that are human. That is, those that we have eaten for hundreds of thousands of years and have allowed us to reach this day. Avoid processed foods, and everything that is packaged or labeled with additives as long as Don Quixote;
9.-
With marked exceptions, never eat more than three times a day. That is, do not snack, eat snacks, candy or gum, etc. The digestive system must be allowed to rest for at least 5-6 hours after each meal. Human beings have never eaten as many times as we have until now. We have been very hungry, we ate when we could and our genes were forged in an environment lacking energy. This is what our body is prepared for and what it expects to receive. Excess food makes us sick. There must be a daily balance in the debit and credit account as far as calories are concerned.
The oldest people are those who eat the least or ingest the fewest kilocalories. Eating is oxidative.
Let us never forget that our genes have not changed one bit in the last 20,000 years. We are physiologically primitive but we live with a digital and plastic decoration. Therein lies a large part of our problems.
10.-
Try to escape as much as you can from those toxins to which you voluntarily expose yourself every day. They are found in food, cosmetics, tap water, hair dyes, tattoos, etc. At least, try to avoid these. Not to mention tobacco, alcohol and drugs, which everyone already knows about. Avoid electromagnetic pollution. Use your cell phone in moderation, do not sleep with it on the nightstand, turn off the Wi-Fi at night, walk or rest your bare feet on the ground in the forest, the sand on the beach or in a park. In the book I tell you the science behind all this.
eleven.-
Find a little time every day to meditate, pray or have a moment of introspective life that connects you with your being, with you. This is a shortcut to health. There is a lot of science behind the benefits of meditation. It's free medicine. Of course, there are many more cards that make up this album, such as socialization, sexuality, etc. But, above all, there is gratitude and respect for ourselves and others. What is visceral pain mapping? It is a well-defined and delimited map that reflects the referred pain generated by each organ when it does not function well or there is a problem. It is not something esoteric or shamanic. It is something medical and scientific. We all know the pain referred to the left arm that generates a heart attack. This depends, to a large extent, on the innervation (nerve conduction) of the organ in question. It addresses an anatomical and medical concept called the metameric level. In this way, each organ has a defined territory where it can project pain. For example, the liver can cause pain in the right shoulder, the stomach can cause pain in the neck and upper trapezius region, the ovaries can cause pain on the inside of the knee, the ureter can cause pain in the groin and genital area, and the large intestine can cause pain in the region. lumbar etc. Much of the pain, apparently muscular or joint, has its primary origin in the viscera and usually leads us to confusion and sometimes absurd healthcare costs. What is, in your experience, the worst habit we can fall into? Voluntarily lengthen the day with artificial lights and shorten sleep time.
We are the only living beings on earth that shorten the night and lengthen the day
. We are brainless in this sense. I'm not saying that we go to bed at 9 at night or that we don't turn on the lights (which is what we really should do), but that we be cautious. As Paracelsus said, the dose makes the poison.
Every day we subject our body to 'jet lag' and, for this, we must pay taxes
. Why do we fall so easily into the temptation of junk food if we know that it harms us? Human beings are addicted to energy . We have died so many times and for so many hundreds of thousands of years from starvation that we have developed many strategies to save and obtain energy. Every time we eat a high-calorie food, our brain rewards us with pleasure. It releases dopamine in our reward circuits so that we associate that gesture, that food, with delight and we repeat it every time we can.
Behind the agri-food industry there are also neuroscientists who play with our senses of taste, smell, sight, etc. and they manufacture foods that cause a massive release of dopamine in us
becoming true junk and fast food junkies. It's a real hack of our reward system. The same thing happens with lying so comfortably watching a movie, eating popcorn and with the remote control in your hand. It's all about energy. You also point the finger of blame at our addiction to milk and its, you say, 'morphine'... Indeed, Mother Nature is so extremely intelligent that when she designed animal milk (human milk included), He introduced a protein into it, which is in fact the most abundant, which is casein. This protein, once in our body, or in that of the calf or sheep, decomposes and gives rise to a metabolite which is caseo-morphine. And like morphine, it bombards, like any opiate, our area of the brain in charge of pleasure and addictions (the dopaminergic mesolimbic area). With this, nature ensures that the newborn suckles, thus obtaining all the benefits of breast milk. Babies are junkies on their mothers' tits. It must be remembered that, until a few years ago, there was no formula or continuity milk for babies. They either suckled or died. But if we transfer that to adulthood and the consumption of milk, which has nothing to do with the chemical requirements of the human species, we can have serious problems. Cow's milk is very good for calves, no doubt, but not so good for humans. Thus, we find adults addicted to milk and especially cheese due to its high concentration of casein. This is just one of the problems that milk can cause. For a baby there is nothing that replaces breast milk, and for a calf there is nothing that replaces cow's milk... But that's it. Once our teeth come in, if we continue breastfeeding we break the laws. Think about why children lose their 'baby' teeth at 5-6 years old. This marks the age at which we should eat everything solid and abandon milk. Stop breastfeeding and drink coffee. Is it that bad? If we have problems with sleep, blood pressure, anxiety, etc. it is really harmful. If all goes well, it takes us a minimum of 5-6 hours to eliminate caffeine from a coffee. Keep it in mind. If we have the possibility of undergoing a genetic study to assess
how the gene responsible for metabolizing caffeine (CYP 1A2) works
and it operates normally,
coffee is beneficial as long as we do not drink it beyond 3-4 hours. pm
. There are people who have a mutation in this gene and eliminate caffeine very quickly. For them there are no hours. They can take it whenever they want. Even before sleeping.
But if you have a problem in this gene, coffee is really harmful
. If you do not have the opportunity to take the test, keep in mind that if you are one of those who, when you drink coffee, your pee smells like coffee, makes you somewhat nervous, or its flavor lingers for a long time in your mouth, I strongly advise you to stop taking it. radical way. It's a drug and it will take work but in the long run you will be happy. Be careful because chocolate and tea contain the same substance. In 'Your body, your home', I explain in great depth everything related to this socially accepted drug. One of the pieces of advice you give to your patients who sleep as a couple is not to wear pajamas. Why? That's right, skin is one of the most wonderful and fascinating fabrics we have. In it we can produce almost all the substances we need to live. Among the substances it produces when stimulated is the well-known serotonin.
We can stimulate the skin with heat (in a sauna), with a hug or a caress.
. When we sleep as a couple without pajamas, simple skin-to-skin contact causes the release of serotonin. This protects us, among other things, from skin diseases and, of course, the impact on our mood is absolute. Also, we should sunbathe. But how if, on the other hand, they tell us to be careful? The sun is the main source of life on earth. When our body is bathed and crossed by all the wavelengths that make up the spectrum of sunlight, our cells receive multiple messages that promote the activation of genes related to life. Thus, it is known that the sun regulates at least 1,300 genes, of which 900 are from the immune system. When we expose ourselves to the sun without sunscreen, a true spectacle of life begins in our body. Substances as important as nitric oxide, serotonin, filaggrin, vitamin D and a very long etc. are released. Our way of life has led us to believe that exposure to sunlight can be dangerous, but it is not that the sun is dangerous. If we consume hydrogenated fats from processed foods and go from spending 9-11 months indoors to suddenly exposing ourselves to the sun, we may be at risk. If we modify our fat consumption and give priority to foods rich in omega 3 such as fish, shellfish, organic eggs, etc. and we expose ourselves little by little to the sun, we will be able to generate a melanin shield that protects us from a multitude of diseases and prolongs our life. Just a few years ago, we spent 90% of our waking hours outside, in the fresh air. Now we barely reach 10%. For this, it is also taxed. Why do you recommend fasting? The whole weeks thing is a bit strong, right? This is why we shouldn't even question it, since fasting is something like sleeping or waking up. Fasting has been part of our lives and, thanks to our ability to fast and establish strategies to endure fasting and adapt to it, we have been able to colonize the five continents and reach the present day. I am not in favor of a week of fasting if we are not familiar and accustomed to it, nor do I see it as necessary. We
only need to let our digestive system rest for about 12-13 hours each day
(including hours of sleep) to obtain benefits. The benefits are immense. From prevention of cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes to cancer. I'm not saying that if we fast we won't get cancer, I'm saying that we will put an obstacle in our way. We must mention the impact that fasting has on cognition, energy, pain and sleep. Everything is trainable and possible. Let's try to be respectful of the laws that govern us and try to give our brain and our genes what they expect to receive. When there is no congruence between what we receive and what we expect to receive, illness appears. Once again, the key is information.