The True Causes of Disease

Ask this question to most people and you’ll hear answers like smoking, alcohol, sedentary lifestyle, emotional problems, addiction, stress, etc… Others will reply inflammation, cholesterol which is too high, blood pressure too high, etc… Focusing on diet some would suggest eating saturated fats, too much meat in the diet, excess sugar, fast foods, processed foods, too much salt, etc…

Some of these answers are more accurate than others. Some have solid, unbiased science behind them while others are based on misinformation and commercial interests that have nothing to do with a genuine desire for you to become healthier.

The first thing to understand is that we and our bodies (not to introduce an unnecessary mind-body separation but it will help for a while in separating out the various pernicious factors) are integral parts of our environment. Therefore all disease and especially chronic disease is primarily a function of our environment rather than us individually.

If we look for internal body markers (cholesterol, low density lipoproteins, arachidonic acid, triglycerides, etc…) and label them as disease causing agents we are already looking in the wrong place. Given a benign living environment the body will always return to the highest state of health that it can achieve. If we treat ourselves to a healthy life, our bodies will self heal to the best of their abilities.

Why do I say “to the best of our abilities” ? Well because some disease processes are irreversible. A lifetime of damage can lead to disease which simply cannot be reversed totally. I do believe that miracles can happen but this is no foundation for reliable and effective medicine. However for most of us, we can regain massive improvement in health if we only stop injurious lifestyle habits and address our internal problems with intelligent, curative solutions. So once again the question remains, what causes disease?

Below are 8 categories of disease causing agents that combine to create disease. Those factors listed in each category are not comprehensive but represent in my experience the worst offenders

toxic substances (consider prenatal as well as postnatal exposure), especially:

  • heavy metals: mercury (especially from dental amalgams) , lead, cadmium, and arsenic
  • agricultural chemicals: pesticides and herbicides (glyphosate, DDT)
  • other common chemicals: BPA, phthalates, VOCs, flame retardant chemicals, etc..
  • fluoride, chlorine and other tap water delivered chemicals
  • man-made electromagnetic fields (consider non-ionizing as well as ionizing) ionizing: X-rays, MRIs, CT scans,..
  • non-ionizing: WIFI, microwave radiation, mobile phones & masts,
  • power line EMFs, “dirty” electricity, computers (especially with mercury lit screens), mercury & fluorescent lights etc..
  • infectious agents (consider our increased vulnerability today which begs the question why so vulnerable?)
  • parasites, viruses, bacteria, fungi
  • gastro-intestinal resilience and immunity

Lifestyle 1 – food and diet

  • Processed foods = additives and nutrient poor food
  • Processed foods = denatured and damaged macronutrients
  • Sugar = number 1 anti-nutrient and most widespread addiction
  • Excess carbohydrates = poor food choices
  • Modern food choices = loss of ancestral wisdom in what foods to eat

Lifestyle 2 – other

  • Substance abuse (smoking, alcohol, recreational drugs,…)
  • Overwork
  • Lack of sleep
  • Loss of connection to nature and natural cycles
  • Identification with destructive thoughts, emotions, and behaviours

Medically induced / Iatrogenic

  • Antibiotics and chemotherapeutic drugs
  • Excessive vaccination (as is practiced today)
  • Unnecessary or excessively intrusive surgery
  • Drugs in general due to their suppressive and even destructive nature
  • Radiation and X-rays

Loss of Organ capacity

  • Inherited or acquired deficits
  • Injuries that act as focal points for further problems
  • Organ weaknesses and susceptibilities
  • Damage, decline, and degeneration

Loss of Consciousness capacity or integrity

  • Emotional traumas
  • Miasms and other informational damage
  • Constitutional templates, imbalances, susceptibilities
  • Loss of connection: ecological, energetic, social, emotional, psychological, spiritual

That’s a long list and most medical treatments don’t even take these factors into consideration. Some even introduce or perpetuate the deeper problems.

It’s important to remember that the body-mind is a complex system and there is never a case of just one causative factor. Notwithstanding that any treatment must incorporate an understanding or appreciation of the hierarchy of causative factors. As in life in general not everything is equal: some causative factors are more important than others.

Only treatments which can remove these factors and reverse the processes that they have set in motion can be considered curative. Above all it is important not to make matters worse in trying to help – as Hippocrates famously said, “First do no harm.”