A designer to watch.

People today seem to have forgotten that maintaining good health isn’t limited to the gym and the doctor’s office. There are, well, better ways.

Myself, I’m a big proponent of Herbalism and exercise that’s good for mind and spirit, as well as body. I practise yoga and I’m learning a bit of Tai Chi, and I take herbs for my health, such as ginger as a broad spectrum antibiotic, liquorice root and mulberry green tea for my ulcer, and honey for cuts and scrapes. We can supplement our bodies’ natural healing abilities without synthetic chemicals.

The kinds of things that we put in our bodies are, obviously, extremely important to our health. People who eat large amounts of fast and processed foods can hardly be surprised to discover that they’re in poor health, mentally and spiritually as well as physically. Heavily processes foods, totally disconnected from the natural world, are not only physically unhealthy, but promote that very disconnect in the people who consume them. Human beings are a part of nature, and the meat, vegetables and fluids that we consume are as well, and that is something that people today forget all too readily. Factory farmed, processed, and flash-frozen meat, and pesticide-rich, GMO vegetables are not what human beings are supposed to eat. That chicken thigh had a mother, and that side of rice was one part of an ecosystem. The soulless, faceless nature of the food industry prevents from understanding where our food comes from, and under what circumstances. So we’re filling our bodies with whatever Maple Leaf and Schneider’s thinks is best (or cheapest), blissfully ignorant of the force-feeding, chemical bathing, and genetic modifications that went into our dinners. Eating organic foods, free-range and antibiotic-free meat, preferably from local producers, puts us back in touch with our food source, and allows us to understand so that we can make healthy, informed decisions.

Exercise is just as vital part of maintaining good bodily health as is nutrition, but it’s also important for the mind and the spirit. I can say from experience that yoga not only exercises the body, but clears the mind and refreshes the spirit. After a yoga session you may feel tired and sore, but you also feel happy and clear-headed, like a dull, grey fog has been lifted from your soul. And the practise of Tai Chi, which I have only recently discovered, is an engrossing and powerful meditation that frees the mind and brings it into a surprising unison with the body. Less introspective, though perhaps arguably more active, at least as we tend to practise them today, exercises, just don’t have the same effect. Running down the street with an iPod, or lifting giant pieces of metal with your pointlessly large arms may be a widespread idea of physical fitness in the West, but they do nothing for the soul. Certainly they have the general positive effects upon one’s mental state that comes with fitness and health, but they don’t promote interior, spiritual development.

German naturism (FKK) for health.

Or how about this: nudity. Yes, that’s right, Naturism is believed by many to have health benefits. When the FKK (Freikörperkultur, Free Body Culture, the very first modern Naturist movement) movement started up in Germany, it was closely tied with the Naturheilbewegung (Natural Healing Movement), a predecessor of the modern alternative/Naturopathic medicine movement. Gentle exposure to the elements, sun in particular (because sun exposure generates vitamin D), was believed to be vital to good health. Heliotherapy (therapeutic use of light) was used to treat such diseases as TB, rheumatism, and scrofula. The health benefits of excersice and naturism are compounded in activities like naked yoga (and I suppose naked Tai Chi, though so far as I am aware that isn’t a movement or “thing” of any kind like naked yoga is).

And, of course, there are alternatives to traditional Western medicine out there as well. I myself a Naturopath, who diagnosed my H. pylori infection every specialist had failed, who beat a killer cold in 2 days, and who helps me maintain my health like no doctor I’ve ever had before. I also practise a little at-home Ayurveda, Indian traditional medicine, which helped me cope with the pain without having to pump myself full of even more drugs, and also me eating more appropriately for my metabolism and body type. And of course there is Chinese traditional medicine, traditional folk medicines, and all kinds of homeopathy. Properly trained practitioners of all these forms of medicine can do just as much good for your general health and a whole host of acute conditions as a more traditional Western MD can, and they do it without the drugs.

So perhaps people out there should consider supplementing their morning run with a yoga class, or even a nude session with a Tai Chi video podcast. They should start shopping at their local farmers’ markets and health food stores. They should go see an alternative health provider. And they should start learning how to maintain their health naturally.