Dr. Gabor Mate discusses the Stress-Disease Connection, Addiction, ADD and the Destruction of American Childhood. He also shares very relevant thoughts about the cause of auto-immune diseases. He illustrates with great clarity the role that society can play in either enhancing or destroying the health of its people
I am a health professional and researcher so when I tell you that most illness is 60% preventable, I know what I’m talking about. By making even small incremental changes in lifestyle, a person’s health is sure to improve. For example, the loss of a few unwanted pounds may help lower a high blood pressure or prevent Type 2 diabetes. Doing weight bearing exercise or walking vigorously each day discourages the development of osteoporosis
Seniors especially have a responsibility to make these health related changes because Medicare is one of the most costly drains on our national budget. In 2010, Medicare alone cost the nation $468 billion. Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance combined took another $285 billion. Together, that accounts for 1/5 of the national budget!
As caring citizens, we seniors MUST do our part to help decrease our national debt by doing what we can, little by little, to prevent ourselves from unnecessary illness. This is why I am so appreciative that the Health Reform Act emphasizes prevention. Here is the provision which I have taken right out of the government document:
“Preventive Care under Medicare Eliminates co-payments for preventive services and exempts preventive services from deductibles under the Medicare program. Effective beginning January 1, 2011.”
This means that seniors can now get preventive health exams without worrying about a co-pay or deductibles. This is a great incentive and an opportunity for doctors (or qualified health professionals) to educate their senior patients about how to take better care of their health in order to prevent illness and thereby actively participate in the economic recovery of our nation.
According to the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh the following 14 precepts are requirements for building and maintaining peaceful/healthy individuals and communities
1. Do not be idolatrous about or bound to any doctrine, theory, or ideology, even Buddhist ones. All systems of thought are guiding means; they are not absolute truth.
2. Do not think that the knowledge you presently possess is changeless, absolute truth. Avoid being narrow-minded and bound to present views. Learn and practice non-attachment from views in order to be open to receive others’ viewpoints. Truth is found in life and not merely in conceptual knowledge. Be ready to learn throughout our entire life and to observe reality in yourself and in the world at all times.
3. Do not force others, including children, by any means whatsoever, to adopt your views, whether by authority, threat, money, propaganda, or even education. However, through compassionate dialogue, help others renounce fanaticism and narrowness.
4. Do not avoid contact with suffering or close your eyes before suffering. Do not lose awareness of the existence of suffering in the life of the world. Find ways to be with those who are suffering by all means, including personal contact and visits, images, sound. By such means, awaken yourself and others to the reality of suffering in the world.
5. Do not accumulate wealth while millions are hungry. Do not take as the aim of your life fame, profit, wealth, or sensual pleasure. Live simply and share time, energy, and material resources with those who are in need.
6. Do not maintain anger or hatred. As soon as anger and hatred arise, practice the meditation on compassion in order to deeply understand the persons who have caused anger and hatred. Learn to look at other beings with the eyes of compassion.
7. Do not lose yourself in dispersion and in your surroundings. Learn to practice breathing in order to regain composure of body and mind, to practice mindfulness, and to develop concentration and understanding.
8. Do not utter words that can create discord and cause the community to break. Make every effort to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.
9. Do not say untruthful things for the sake of personal interest of to impress people. Do not utter words that cause diversion and hatred. Do not spread news that you do not know to be certain. Do not criticize or condemn things you are not sure of. Always speak truthfully and constructively. Have the courage to speak out about situations of injustice, even when doing so may threaten your own safety.
10. Do not use the Buddhist community for personal gain or profit, or transform your community into a political party. A religious community should, however, take a clear stand against oppression and injustice, and should strive to change the situation without engaging in partisan conflicts.
11. Do not live with a vocation that is harmful to humans and nature. Do not invest in companies that deprive others of their chance to life. Select a vocation which helps realize your ideal compassion.
12. Do not kill. Do not let others kill. Find whatever means possible to protect life and to prevent war.
13. Possess nothing that should belong to others. Respect the property of others but prevent others from enriching themselves from human suffering or the suffering of other beings.
14. Do not mistreat your body. Learn to handle it with respect. Do not look on your body as only an instrument. Preserve vital energies (sexual, breath, spirit) for the realization of the Way. Sexual expression should not happen without love and commitment. In sexual relationships, be aware of future suffering that may be caused. To preserve the happiness of others, respect the rights and commitments of others. Be fully aware of the responsibility of bringing new lives into the world. Meditate on the world into which you are bringing new beings.
[Edited 10/14/08 22:35pm]
For more information and to learn how the Socially Engaged Buddhist community is putting these precepts in action, go to http://www.shambhalasun.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=1579
The position of Hillary Clinton at the TEDWomen talks represents that of the Obama Administration. It is visionary/futuristic/global. It is interesting that one of Obama’s campaign promises was to change the nature of U.S. diplomacy but you can see that many tracks must first be laid before that train can run because it is a new “line.” Philosophically, the majority of “we the people” are not YET ready to get on the social change train, We still want to get on the FRONT of the bus that is headed for WAR, bullying, domination, superiority and violence as the primary way to resolve social conflict…both domestic and international. You can see that Obama/Clinton believe that the inclusion of more women [known to innately lean toward consensus building] is crucial to our social transition. They are way ahead of “we the people” (including the business sector, politicians and our present social institutions). This gap between where we are and where we must go in order to survive and thrive in a global economy is one of the difficulties Obama is having in governing. He is the enlightened President we need for this kind of social change…but “we the people” don’t know it yet because so many changes that he is making are subtle and incremental. Many of these changes are being made through the kinds of people he is appointing — particularly women (and a record breaking 150 openly “gay” federal appointees). For example, according to Irene Natividad, Chair of the Coalition for Women’s Appointments, as of 2009, the Obama Administration had already made over 1000 women appointments but most of these were obstructed by the opposition. Only 143 of these were approved by the Senate. Was this a sign of resistance to social change? At the same time Kathleen Sebelius likened the importance and resistance to health care reform to the struggle of the suffragettes and further emphasized the point that reform would change the world for women. Since then, The Obama Administration has made two Supreme Court women appointees both of whom have strong skills in consensus building. Recently Obama appointed the much admired and respected social change advocate, Elizabeth Warren, to set up the newly formed Consumer Protection Department. It is noteworthy that approximately one half of Obama’s 70+ federal bench appointments have been women and 43% of this number have been “minorities.” (Bush’s appointments were 67% White males). Another indication of the fierce opposition to Obama’s predilection for social change involving greater participation of women and “minorities” is that he has received only 36% appointee confirmations in his first year. This is fewer than any of the 5 Presidents who preceded him.
So, we can see that social change is occurring but it is slow and often imperceptible as was the case of the Health Care Reform Act. Most of the population still does not recognize that changes are occurring in the healthcare system. For some reason (?) neither the administration, the Democratic Party nor Obama himself have chosen to relentlessly shine a light on these changes in order to enlighten the public. But, if you look closely you can see it happening. Since The President and Hillary Clinton obviously cannot bring about all these visionary changes alone, what are YOU doing in your personal life and/or community to keep the change happening since WE, TOO, ARE THE CHANGE WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR.
Before a community is willing and able to make changes in beliefs and/or lifestyle habits that influence the health of its people, it must become more aware of its problems and feel motivated and empowered to change. This artist has created a process whereby people in communities all over the world can come face to face with themselves. (These Ted Videos sometimes have to upload completely before they play. Please be patient. It’s worth it!)
There is a tendency in today’s U.S. discussion to attempt to “white” wash (pun intended) history by denying the truth of our past. For example, the true stories of the Native Americans (as now revealed in Manning’s “1491″), the African slaves (as revealed in Huxley’s “Roots” and Blackmon’s “Slavery By Another Name” about post Civil War Slavery), the Asians (as revealed in Takata’s “Strangers From A Different Shore”) and European types many of whom (especially the wealthy) were undeniably the oppressors of the poor and disenfranchised. It is this oppressor group and its populace that, today, seeks to rewrite history leaving out the atrocities and the evil deeds done in the process of its search for wealth, power and dominance over the world. E.J. Dionne Jr, of the Washington Post, shines a light on this lie as it pertains to how the issues leading to the Civil War have historically been depicted and how this depiction blurs our understanding of today’s politics.
Don’t Spin The Civil War
By E.J. Dionne Jr.
Sunday, December 26, 2010; 8:00 PM
The Civil War is about to loom very large in the popular memory. We would do well to be candid about its causes and not allow the distortions of contemporary politics or long-standing myths to cloud our understanding of why the nation fell apart.
The coming year will mark the 150th anniversary of the onset of the conflict, which is usually dated to April 12, 1861, when Confederate batteries opened fire at 4:30 a.m. on federal troops occupying Fort Sumter. Union forces surrendered the next day, after 34 hours of shelling.
The Civil War has forever captured the American imagination (witness the popularity of reenactments) for the gallantry and heroism of those who fought and died, but also for the sheer carnage and destruction it left in its wake. Anniversaries heighten that engagement, and I still recall the centennial of the war in 1961 as a time when kids with no previous interest in American history were exchanging Civil War trading cards along with baseball cards.
My neighborhood friend Jon Udis got a subscription to Civil War Times Illustrated, and our regular discussions of sports heroes Bill Russell, Johnny Unitas and Carl Yastrzemski were briefly interrupted by talk about Grant and Lee, Sherman and “Stonewall” Jackson.
But our conversations, like so many about the war, focused on people and battles, not on why the confrontation happened in the first place. There remains enormous denial over the fact that the central cause of the war was our national disagreement about race and slavery, not states’ rights or anything else.
In this video, renowned scholar, lawyer and activist, Michelle Alexander, presents new statistics and her personal experiences that confirm the fact that The United States is deliberately and systematically depriving over 50% of young Black men of their human rights (education, opportunities to earn a living and/or receive public assistance). Black and Brown young men are being arrested in disproportionate numbers. They are branded “criminals” for committing minor offenses that are generally overlooked in the White population. Black and Brown men more often end up permanently housed in “new shiny private prisons” for a lifetime. The speaker describes this social ill as a cast system rather than simply a racial issue. As a cast system it has implications to poor people in general. Ms. Alexander’s suggested solution to this social atrocity may surprise you.
Watch the full episode. See more WPT Presents.
Virtual statistics on the progress of health and economies of 200 countries. A lesson on how social changes have historically influenced the health of the people of those countries
The way we communicate with others and with ourselves ultimately determines the quality of our lives
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Greetings from the author of this blog. Hope you will become a frequent contributor. Your suggestions for this new blog are welcome!
