Читать книгу The Human Race – Too Smart to Survive - Dr. Matthias Meier - Страница 7
ОглавлениеChapter 2 - The Central Nervous System
It should be a well known fact that our central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord, which are located in our skull and spine respectively. With its estimated 80 to 85 billion cells, the brain controls all metabolic processes of the human body, be it joint metabolism, heartbeat, digestion, hormone secretion, etc. The entire process is so incredibly complex that it is questionable whether we will ever understand the details in their entirety. However, it is sufficient in this case to know that the brain is our central computer that has control over our organs, joints, muscles, hormonal glands, posture, and the processing of our emotions. It communicates with the respective end organ via the spinal cord and the nerve roots branching from it between the vertebrae. This communication goes in both directions, so that the brain is also constantly informed about the metabolic state of every area. This connection is essential for health, which seems logical, but plays practically no role in the treatment of diseases. But more about that later.
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The central nervous system is built up of different components: the brain, the spinal cord and the autonomic nervous system.
The brain is our central command, the all supervising and omnipotent center. It is from here that all signals are transmitted to the respective areas of the body, and it is here that all feedback from these regions is received. The positions of each muscle and every joint are immediately registered and calculated to the degree precicely and, if necessary, counteracted to ensure the most upright posture and specific coordination. The release of each hormone is precise down to the microgram and is increased or decreased depending on the amount of stress. All sensory inputs are transmitted at lightning speed and processed both logically and emotionally. Memories and feelings arise, and the vegetative nervous system reacts with increased heartbeat, altered digestion, adjustment of breathing and much more. At the “temporal lobe” of the brain, there is a large furrow that divides the anterior and posterior parts of the lobe. The anterior part (precentral gyrus) is divided in its cell portions according to body region and is used for motor control. Motor signals are sent from here and terminate directly at the muscle, which executes the corresponding commands. Behind the furrow is the postcentral gyrus, which is also divided by body region and is responsible for sensitivity, as well as serving as the target of signals sent from the periphery to the center of the brain.
The right and left hemispheres of the brain are connected by a bridge of sorts so that information can be exchanged. The diencephalon (interbrain) contains the thalamus and hypothalamus, with the former being important for consciousness and transmitting sensory input, and the latter being a hormone production site, as well as the center for circulation, breathing, temperature regulation, and sleep-wake rhythm. The midbrain processes and transmits a great deal of information related to movement. Eye movements are controlled from here. And Substantia nigra (black substance) ensures the release of dopamine, which is stimulated by movement and whose function is impaired in Parkinson’s patients, for example. The mid-brain is already part of the brain stem, which phylogenetically represents a very old part of the brain and, unlike the cerebrum, has hardly changed during the course of human evolution.
The spinal cord acts as an extension of the brain stem and is essentially the highway for nerve signals into the body, carrying all signals from the brain everywhere (except for the cranial nerves themselves, which control the eyes, ears, inner ear, tongue and throat, face, etc.). Some nerve signals reach speeds of up to 120 meters per second, while other nerves are much slower. (You know what this is like: You stub your toe on the edge of the bed, drop something on it or jam it in the garage door. You know what’s about to happen, but the pain is still 1 to 2 seconds away. The nerves that send this signal transmit it at a speed of only 1 to 2 meters/second, hence the delayed onset of pain.) The speed of conduction depends on the type of nerve involved. Some are surrounded by a nerve sheath that has small constrictions. The electrical signals then jump from ring to ring, reaching the highest speeds. Nerve sheaths are primarily made of cholesterol and their structure is damaged in patients with the disease “multiple sclerosis”. Small nerve roots are released by the spinal cord between the vertebrae, which branch off to the right and left, supplying individual areas of the body with signals and transporting them back again.
But the nerve roots also integrate autonomic nerve fibers, which control metabolism and things like adapting to stress or resting conditions. The major vegetative centers connect at the thoracic spine to form longitudinal cords that run under the rib joints on the right and left to the upper lumbar spine, forming what is called the “sympathetic trunk”. This is our stress system and responds to stress by altering hormone production and energy supply to keep the body alive in emergency situations (increased heartbeat, increased blood sugar and cholesterol, faster breathing, increased muscle tone, dilation of bronchial tubes, reduction of digestive and thyroid function). Discrete changes, however, are physiological and change within a day, from day to day, and from week to week, automatically adjusting to external circumstances. From the brain stem and coccyx originate the large parasympathetic nerves, which act like an antagonist of the sympathetic nervous system. They promote sleep, digestion, and healing as well as growth by stimulating the thyroid gland.
Who is not familiar with this situation? A small turn or a bending movement and suddenly pain shoots up the back of the neck—a stabbing pain between the shoulder blades or deep in the lumbar spine. What is it that brings us this misery that takes days or weeks to go away, and does it have a deeper meaning? Can we wait it out or should we get it treated?
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Subluxations in any segment of the spine can lead to disturbed biomechanics, thereby limiting the mobility of the small vertebral segments, exerting pressure on the intervertebral discs and reducing their nutrient supply. They can interfere with the transmission of nerve signals. This is a crucial finding since nerve roots transmit signals for the metabolism of muscles, tendons, joints, organs and hormone glands. A permanently disturbed transmission can thus lead to a chronic disease in the area supplied by the nerves (for example, dizziness in the case of subluxations of the upper cervical spine, cardiac arrhythmia in the case of subluxations of the upper thoracic spine or knee arthrosis in the case of subluxations of the middle lumbar spine, etc.). A subluxation is, strictly speaking, a protective mechanism of the brain to prevent certain vertebral segments from becoming too misaligned, such as after an accident or in the case of intervertebral disc degeneration. Muscles that stabilize the individual vertebrae receive a signal to contract and tense. While this protects the segment from further misalignment, it also means a deterioration in biomechanics and a physical stress for the individual. In order to function optimally, it is important that the skull and spine remain in their physiological structure and position with the pelvis. A rear-end collision or fall, a blow to the back of the head, or other events judged to be trivial can upend the healthy biomechanics of the spine, even if no fractures or disc damage can be detected. Protective subluxations cause minimal, yet physiologically significant, lateral tilt, compression, and rotation of the vertebra, thereby limiting motion on the disc and increasing pressure and decreasing nutrient delivery to the disc. If these are not resolved, long-term deformities of the spine and further degeneration of intervertebral discs and osteoarthritis in the vertebral joints will result. This also leads to increasing pressure on the nerves coming out of these segments, which prevents the transmission of the nerve signal. Nerves perform a variety of tasks that include motor control, sensitivity, including pain and metabolic control. This association of nerves and peripheral joints, organs, endocrine glands, muscles and fascia is well documented and virtually the same for all people.
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A real-life example: A young woman has a rear-end collision on her way to work and goes to the hospital to be examined. In the emergency room, an X-ray of the cervical spine is performed as standard procedure to rule out a fracture. She is given the all-clear—no fracture, just a steep angle of the cervical spine, as often occurs in rear-end collisions.
The attending physician tells the patient it is “muscular in origin”. After a few days, the patient notices increasing pain on the left side of her face and back of her head, as well as dizziness. Since it was a work-related injury, she presents to the accident insurance consultant (treating trauma surgeon) and reports it. An MRI scan is performed to rule out further injury to the vessels supplying the brain; however, it yields no further findings. A prescription for rehabilitation is given and it begins within two weeks. The patient receives the entire spectrum of rehabilitation medicine including physiotherapy, massages, Fango, electrotherapy and psychological support. After three weeks, there was still no improvement. Treatment was extended by one week, but still had no positive results. Slowly, the medical staff began to feel annoyed. Was the patient faking it? The patient was discharged as she had been admitted, with the proviso that she could go back to work. Such patients are seen in emergency rooms and rehab centers every day, and many patients actually benefit from the treatments they receive. However, if the symptoms don’t improve, then the root cause of the issue has not been identified. The solution to the problem, however, is simpler than one might think. If you look at the X-rays of these people, you will see that the spine is not in its physiological position. Either there is a lateral tilt, a steep position (as in the example), or even a reversal of the natural curves, most commonly in the cervical and lumbar spine. These changes are associated with increased tension on the spinal cord and segmental roots, causing deterioration of signal transmission through the nerves. Restoration of normal biomechanics leads to a cessation of symptoms. For the patient in the example, 30 chiropractic treatments of the entire spine, including the pelvis, accomplished just that.
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Since the individual nerve roots from the spinal column have more or less the same path and the same target organ in all people, it is easy to assign specific misalignments to a symptomatology and to treat accordingly.
The anatomy and function of our “autonomic nervous system” is crucial to understanding the underlying cause of a disease. The autonomic nervous system can be thought of as a living battery within us that controls metabolism, energy levels, our need and quality of sleep, and the distribution of blood flow. It can be fully charged or it can be almost empty. Stress and recovery depend on a balance of its two counterparts: the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. The sympathetic nervous system is our stress system and is essential for survival in threatening situations. Typical “sympathetic” reactions are: increase in heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, fatty acids and blood sugar, decrease in thyroid activity, digestion and sleep as well as an increase of the tone of the small vertebral muscles. These are all natural reactions to a stressful situation, whereby the body does not differentiate between emotional, chemical or physical stress. It always responds first with an increase in sympathetic activity, which is of significance in this context. Normally, the acute stressful situation should eventually subside, and the response should cease accordingly. However, if the stress becomes chronic, this can become a problem. The situation of increased blood pressure, increased cholesterol, low thyroid levels, poor digestion and limited quality of sleep affects many people. Often a doctor prescribes a blood pressure medication, cholesterol-lowering drugs, thyroid hormones, laxatives and sleeping pills. But even without having studied medicine, one will now understand that the cause of the changes has not been treated or even investigated. This is because the various forms of stress continue to be present and do not diminish on their own over time.
Typical emotional stressors include relationship problems, financial worries, harassment at work, etc. Chemical stress refers to medications, pesticides, poor diet, mineral deficiencies, pollution etc. Physical stress pertains primarily to spinal misalignments that appear to deviate from the norm on an X-ray, but are not considered to be a medical problem by the medical community. A holistic therapy should always aim to find out what kind of stress is involved and to reduce it (or all of them). Changes in blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, thyroid levels, sleep, etc., will then return to the physiological norm and often make pharmaceutical treatment unnecessary.
The parasympathetic nerve is the counterpart that reduces heartbeat, regulates sleep, lowers blood pressure, strengthens thyroid activity, stimulates digestion and induces tissue healing. At the upper cervical medulla, below the cranial dome, is the nucleus of the so-called “vagus nerve,” one of the most important parasympathetic nerves. This nerve is responsible for a multitude of functions, including nerve supply to the bronchi, lungs, heart, esophagus, stomach, intestines for muscular contraction, but also, and even as a primary function, transmits sensory impulses from the intestines and the other internal organs to the brain. It can be restricted or irritated in its function by subluxations or malpositions of the upper cervical spine or the skull itself. Furthermore, a large parasympathetic nerve plexus lies in front of the coccyx on the pelvis, whose functions can be impaired or irritated due to malpositions of the pelvis, after accidents or after birth and can lead to sleep disorders, digestive problems, mood swings and increased susceptibility to infections.
This means that any impact on the spine can also have an influence on organs, muscles, joints, fascia and endocrine glands. Accidents or other external trauma, as well as mineral deficiencies with subsequent degeneration of disc material, will have adverse structural consequences on the functioning of the spine and the nervous system contained therein. Given that emotions are expressions of various biochemical processes, they are also influenced.
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Without going into details here, it is important to understand that sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems must maintain a balance. At times, one may be more dominant than the other—this way, the metabolism is adapted to the environment and regulated. However, when a persisting imbalance prevents the metabolism from adapting, symptoms develop and may vary depending on the spinal configuration. From this point of view, high blood pressure is therefore not a disease, but an adaptation of the autonomic nervous system to an existing stress factor. The same reasoning can be applied to other chronic diseases (see from A-Z) (1). To further emphasize this, the autonomic nervous system can be illustrated, and then through images depicting it before/after a course of treatment, shown how autonomic function (and thus health!) has improved.
Using a heart rate variability measurement, it is possible to visualize the autonomic nervous system. This principle is based on the fact that the heart beats at a certain frequency. The distance between two beats is almost equal at rest, but not exactly. The differences in the intervals between heartbeats is called heart rate variability. How variable this interval is depends on the activity of the autonomic nervous system, which stems from nerves in the upper cervical and upper thoracic spine.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
The upper figure on p. 30 shows a patient who is in a state of sympathetic dominance (white dot). Some stress factor (physical, chemical or physiological) causes the body to respond with a stress reaction. Her symptomatology included digestive problems, recurring skin problems, difficulty concentrating and pain in her spine with bouts of dizziness. The lower figure on p. 30 shows a patient who has been exposed to combined stress for decades and in whom the typical stress reaction has degenerated into a burn-out situation, and thus into a deeply parasympathetic state. His clinical history includes constant fatigue, night sweats, lack of motivation and several past cardiac events. Both patients are experiencing abnormally low levels of autonomic nervous system activity and as a result do not have optimal sleep or optimal healing ability. The goal is to bring both patients into the green zone (dashed zone in the middle).
Not only is balance restored, but the activity of the nervous system can be positively influenced, which in turn has a variety of effects—energy levels increase during the day, sleep becomes more restful, symptomatology decreases, medication can be reduced, pain disappears, and the immune system becomes stronger. A key component of this is being able to sleep well and restfully throughout the night without having to get up or wake up. Healing happens while sleeping, particularly during the deep sleep phases. Therefore, one of the goals of therapy must always be to improve sleep quality and to avoid or at least reduce nocturnal disturbances in order to have the greatest possible effect on health. There is some evidence that impaired function or a lack of balance is a driving factor of many chronic diseases, and measuring it can provide some indication as to the patient’s current state of stress.
The spine functions as a sheath and support for the nervous system and is essential for function and balance. Normally, the spine is straight when viewed from the front and has a double S-curve shape when viewed from the side.
Source: Adobe Stock (SciePro)
Although this structure is considered physiological, it can be influenced by many factors—accidents or other external forces, chronic mineral deficiencies, chronic poor posture and so on. All these factors have an impact on the structure of the spine, and consequently, the function of the nervous system it contains, in the short, medium, and long term.
Where it gets interesting is when the poor posture/structural problems are improved. This has a strong influence on the autonomic control of peripheral tissues and thus can have a positive effect on virtually all chronic diseases. This highlights how powerful our central nervous system is and how hard it tries to function for us. It is for this reason that knee pain resolves when the biomechanical burden of the spine is improved, even though the knee was never touched. This principle is applicable to all tissues, since the nerves from the spine reach and influence all cells of the human body. If you have an army that is losing a battle, you don’t replace a single soldier (that only happens in Hollywood movies), but rather you have the general issue different orders so that the entire army acts in a different way. Perhaps you can envision something similar for the functioning of the nervous system.
An MRI scan is often performed to diagnose disc damage and signs of compression of nerve roots. This diagnostic method has two major disadvantages. On the one hand, you only ever see one layer of the spine and never the entire construct in one picture; on the other hand, the patient is lying down. Sometimes the spine looks quite different when a patient is lying down versus standing up, which can be explained by differences in load distribution and corresponding biomechanics when the patient is standing up. Therefore, if you want to treat a patient using manual therapy techniques, a standing X-ray of the entire spine is far more helpful and gives a far more realistic picture than an MRI scan.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
In this case, a 17-year-old woman is complaining of chronic headaches. An MRI scan did not reveal any pathological changes other than a somewhat steep cervical spine and discrete disc bulges, thus no specific measures were recommended other than physiotherapy. Standing X-ray diagnostics, however, revealed a distinct kink between the fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae (arrow), indicating an injury to the so-called posterior longitudinal ligament and interrupting the harmonic curve of the posterior longitudinal edge. This disruption of the structure can cause the spinal cord, which is contained within the spinal column, to experience a change in tension. The patient’s reaction will always be to tense the neck muscles in an attempt to prevent this misalignment from becoming more severe to the extent possible. The kink is not visible via MRI, but is clearly visible on X-ray. The recommended treatment is clear based on the diagnosis that has now been established. The drawn curve illustrates the position the cervical spine should be in.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
52-year-old lady with menstrual cramps, back pain, headaches, and cardiac arrhythmia. The left picture clearly shows that the head deviates to the left and a kink of 10.3° at the upper thoracic spine and a contrasting kink of 12.3° at the lumbar spine. A pelvic obliquity of 12.3 mm also interferes with the symmetry. After 29 treatments, the head was able to be centered and the respective values reduced to 4.3° at the upper thoracic spine and 9.7° at the lumbar spine. The pelvic obliquity was reduced to 9.9 mm. While this might not look too spectacular, it brings with it the disappearance of headaches, cardiac arrhythmia and menstrual cramps, as well as a significant reduction of the back pain.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
Young woman (17) suffering from headaches and scoliosis. In the left picture, you can see that the cervical spine no longer follows the curve at the upper segments, but falls forward (even if only slightly), the lumbar spine shows a curve of 29.4° (40° is considered physiological). After treatment, the cervical spine was harmonized (upper segments follow the curve) and the lumbar spine now shows 34.3°. The two images are separated by an interval of two weeks, in this time the young woman grew 1.5 cm.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
72-year-old man with prostate enlargement, elbow pain on both sides and foot pain on the right. After 29 treatments, the malpositions improved from 12.1° to 7.6° in the thoracic spine, from 11.8° to 8.7° in the lumbar spine, and the pelvic obliquity from 19.4 mm to 14.9 mm. The result is the difference between getting up six times each night to go to the bathroom with medication and getting up one to two times without medication and occasionally even being able to sleep through the night. Both his elbow and foot pain disappeared as well.
Source: Dr. Matthias Meier
What about a spine like this? Do you think this elderly lady has normal blood pressure? Sleeps well? Has regular digestion? You guessed it—no, she doesn’t. The physical stress on the nervous system is clearly visible here. Organ dysfunctions and connective tissue instabilities of the knees with subsequent arthrosis on both sides have already occurred. Standing upright and walking becomes a torture and medication is taken to make the situation bearable. The cause can be clearly seen in the picture. However, the possibilities for correction of the biomechanics are significantly limited since the mobility of the individual vertebral segments has decreased significantly. Nonetheless, symptom relief by manipulation of the spinal components can still be achieved. Even if no structural change occurs, the patient can usually reduce the amount of medication needed.
It is clear, then, that the position of the spine determines pain, organ function as well as activity and dominance of the autonomic nervous system, and therefore may contribute to disease development. It is important to take this into account when treating patients with chronic diseases in order to be able to treat them causally.
There is another interesting aspect here. When the structure of the spine is reconstructed, old symptoms may sometimes temporarily reappear. An example of this would be a young woman who reported having cardiac arrhythmia indicated that disappeared after a few treatments, but after several weeks of therapy, she developed a feeling of instability in her right shoulder that she had not had for years. Five years ago, she had suffered a shoulder dislocation while serving in a tennis match, which she was able to “pop” back in spontaneously. Afterwards she had a feeling of instability for a while, which improved with physiotherapy and training. This feeling of instability came back after a certain number of therapies, but lasted only a few weeks. It is almost like turning back time with therapy and the patient is reliving their symptoms in reverse order. In other words, certain symptoms that occur as a result of a corresponding spinal misalignment may disappear as the misalignment continues, whereas others may be added that can be classified as more dangerous (cardiac arrhythmia vs. shoulder pain). The body tries to compensate as much as it can to maintain function, but gives clear signals when there is a serious problem.
Opioids
The opioid crisis in the U.S. dramatically illustrates how the central nervous system can be abused and what the consequences of doing so can be. CNN reports that in 2017, approximately 1.7 million Americans suffered from the effects of prescribed opioids and 652,000 people became addicted to heroin.2 Approximately 70,200 people died from substance overdoses, of which 47,600 were opioid overdoses. In 2016 and 2017, more than 130 people died each day from an opiate overdose (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services). In 2011, 240 billion milligrams of morphine were prescribed, then in 2017 it was “only” 171 billion milligrams.3 Globally, illicit drug sales, fueled in part by prescription drug abuse, are estimated at approximately $320 billion per year.
The mode of action of opioids is mediated by receptors found in the spinal cord and brain—our central nervous system. The transmission of pain is stopped, and dopamine is also released in the brain, which can trigger a feeling of well-being, sometimes even euphoria—a high. Opiates are obtained from the opium plant (poppy family) and belong to the narcotics family. Heroin is a synthetic derivative of morphine and is considered a highly addictive drug. Opium has played a role in various societies for centuries. Particularly well known are the Opium Wars in China (First Opium War 1839–1842, Second Opium War 1856–1860). Currently, the largest producing countries are Mexico, Colombia, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Burma, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. Hydrocodone and oxycodone are semi-synthetic opiates produced in laboratories with natural and synthetic ingredients. In 2016, 6.2 billion oxycodone tablets were prescribed to patients in the U.S. alone (IQVIA). Between 2005 and 2015, 15% of emergency department patient visits and 3% of office-based appointments resulted in an opioid prescription. In 2015, it was reported by the International Narcotics Control Board that 99.7% of global hydrocodone use was represented by American patients.4 In 2016, the National Institute on Drug Abuse estimated that approximately half of the people addicted to heroin had previously developed an addiction to prescribed opiates, and that people who develop an addiction to prescribed opiates are 40 times more likely to become addicted to heroin.5
A brief historical account of how this came to be:
1861–1865: During the Civil War in the USA, field doctors used morphine as an analgesic on soldiers, who subsequently became addicted.
1898: Heroin is produced commercially by Bayer and was distributed to morphine addicts.
1914: The U.S. Congress decrees that opiates and cocaine become prescription drugs.
1924: Heroin is banned from both production and sale in the United States.
1970: Various opiates are divided into groups according to their dependence potential.
1980: An article was published in the New England Journal of Medicine stating that opiate addiction is rare in people treated with narcotics. This was taken as “proof” that opiates can be used safely and effectively.
1995: Oxycontin (retard opioid product of oxycodone) enters the market and is aggressively marketed (Purdue Pharma).
2007: Purdue Pharma pleads guilty to advertising the product as safer than it really was, $634.5 million in fines were paid.
2010: FDA (Federal Drug Administration) approves a new formula of Oxycontin that is supposed to make it safer and less addictive.
2015: DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) arrests 280 people, including 22 doctors and pharmacists, after a 15-month investigation following an increase in the number of opioid prescriptions.
2016: CDC (Center of Disease Control) releases guidance on prescribing opioids to pain patients.
2017: President Donald Trump signs an executive order for the creation of a commission dedicated to the opioid problem. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie becomes chairman, and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, becomes his adviser.
April 2018: U.S. Surgeon General recommends Americans carry naloxone (works antagonistically to opiates).
May 2018: The Journal of the American Medical Association publishes a study showing that synthetic opioids such as “fentanyl” had caused 46% of opioid-associated deaths in 2016—a threefold increase since 2010.
December 2018: The CDC reports that fentanyl represents the most common opioid overdose deaths. From 2013 – 2016, the rate of overdoses from synthetic opiates increased at a rate of 113% per year.
January 2019: The National Safety Council reports it is now, for the first time, more likely to die from an opioid overdose than from a car accident.
March 2019: More than 600 cities and Native American tribes from 28 states sued eight Sackler Family members, Purdue Pharma’s senior figures, for allegedly boosting sales through manipulative marketing.
May 2019: Five executives of “Insys Therapeutics” (produce a version of fentanyl) are found guilty of bribing doctors to prescribe opioids to people who didn’t need them.
May 2019: “Teva Pharmaceuticals” agrees to pay $85 million fine in Oklahoma.
Aug. 26, 2019: “Johnson & Johnson” must pay $572 million in fines for its role in the opioid crisis in Oklahoma.
Aug. 27, 2019: NBC News reports that Purdue Pharma is offering to pay between $10 billion and $12 billion for its role in creating the crisis.
Sept. 16, 2019: The Sackler family is accused of arranging transfers of at least $1 billion to Switzerland to secure private assets. As early as 2007, $4 billion in private assets were allegedly withdrawn from the company and transferred abroad. The $12 billion settlement was rejected by the plaintiff states. Purdue files for bankruptcy.
Oct. 22, 2019: Ohio averts landmark lawsuit in last-minute $215 million settlement.
Approximately 400,000 people have died as a result of opiate abuse between 1999 and 2017. Numbing pain with analgesics without understanding or seeking its cause inevitably leads to a downward spiral that has proven particularly dramatic in the U.S., but which also had significant consequences in Germany as well. Once the prescribing physician’s budget is expended, no more opiates can be prescribed, thus the patient is then on his or her own. The patient then either endures the pain and struggles with withdrawal symptoms or goes the illegal route. Neither option poses a rosy prospect.
Most opium sold as heroin in Germany comes from Afghanistan (90% of the world’s trade) and financially benefits the Taliban. According to a BBC report, the area used to grow opium in Afghanistan has increased from 74,000 hectares in 1994 to over 300,000 hectares in 2017.6 In Germany, 34.8% of young adults have had experience with illicit drugs. Cannabis is often the drug of choice, but others are also used in 7% of cases. However, the trend is upward for all drugs. While Mexico registered 33,743 murders in 2018 and this has sadly increased to 34,582 in 2019 (4) (that’s 95 murders a day!), drug-associated crime is not as evident in this country. Nevertheless, the money generated by the sale of drugs is used to finance crime, including in Europe (5,6). One of the largest drug seizures destined for Germany occurred in Italy in November 2019, where nearly 1,200 kg of cocaine from South America was discovered in banana crates (7). The largest find across Europe occurred in Spain in April 2018, when about nine tons were found in containers.
Drugs that affect the central nervous system have been used since time immemorial. Nowadays, they are used and abused in a medical sense as strong painkillers. Many are unaware of what this means for tissue healing. For tissue to heal, three things are essential: First, the nerve supply must function well. This requires a healthy spine free of major misalignments. Second, all raw materials must be sufficiently available to form new cells: 60 minerals, 16 vitamins, 12 amino acids and 3 fatty acids as well as being free of environmental toxins. The third component, which is often overlooked, is an emotional balance. When these are all in place, the brain can repair tissue damage, which happens through an inflammatory process. People usually associate inflammation with something negative, like pain and swelling. However, what they don’t realize is that this is the body’s way of trying to heal tissue. Swelling is caused by increased blood flow or filtration of blood into, for example, a joint capsule, resulting in swelling of the affected area. Increased blood flow to a region leads to more nutrients and a better chance of healing. What do we do about it? In most cases, we take anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen or Voltaren, Arcoxia or acetaminophen, which curb this very reaction. As a result, the patient experiences a decrease in swelling, and thus a decrease in pain. However, this certainly does not promote healing, because the inflammatory processes that drive healing are artificially suppressed. Some plants and spices are thought to have anti-inflammatory properties, such as turmeric. Strictly speaking, they promote inflammation or make it more effective, rather than hindering the intended healing response. Chronic inflammation is the body’s desperate attempt to heal tissue, but its effectiveness is hindered by some negative influence. Here it would be useful to locate this negative influence in order to improve the patient’s health. These reactions are also controlled by the central nervous system. The big difference between allopathic and naturopathic medicine is that the allopathic physicians believe that the body gets sick and needs help from outside (medicines, operations, etc.), while naturopathy believes in the self-healing power of the body. A bone usually heals on its own within six weeks. When we suffer a cut, it usually heals quickly without consequences and without outside help. Why shouldn’t other tissues be able to heal as well? Intestinal tissue takes 6-12 weeks for the superficial cells to all be replaced, bone cells about twelve months. Some tissues, such as cartilage, menisci or intervertebral discs, have little or no blood supply, and are therefore considered non-regenerative. But cartilage cells are also alive. If they are alive, then they also have a metabolism. If they have a metabolism, they have to absorb nutrients and dispose of waste products, and they multiply. If they can multiply, they can regenerate. We simply need to apply the right stimuli and provide the cells with nerve supply and raw materials, while removing all inhibiting influences. Sounds logical, right? It is and, strictly speaking, should be implemented in every doctor’s office. But the reality often looks different. The entire complexity and genius of our central nervous system are not sufficiently appreciated. Treating symptoms always has top priority: for back pain, injections and painkillers are standard; for high blood pressure, blood pressure medication; for osteoarthritis, surgery is performed; for depression, antidepressants are prescribed; for diabetes, insulin injections (even though too much insulin is normally already produced) or metformin or similar pills; for obesity, it is possible to reduce the size of one’s stomach surgically; for cardiac arrhythmia, options include medication, electrical/medical conversion, or even implanting a pacemaker. While all these things can alleviate a person’s symptoms, they do not address the root cause; thus, a holistic approach to therapy always seems to be the more promising one.
Furthermore, there is a considerable discrepancy in global prices for medicines. “Medbelle” published a study7 in November 2019 that compared the prices of commonly prescribed drugs on the world market in 50 countries. The drugs in question were those for erectile dysfunction, epilepsy, fibromyalgia, lowering cholesterol, asthma, antibiotics, diabetes, immunosuppression, female hormones, panic attacks, high blood pressure, arthritis, skin disease, etc. Prices in the USA were clearly at the top, with the price of the active ingredient deviating by 421% above the median. For some active ingredients, it was up to 2000% above the international average. Germany was in second place with an upward deviation of 105%, while Thailand had the lowest prices. In line with this, overall health can be very expensive in the U.S. Harvard University showed that among all reasons to go bankrupt, healthcare expenses ranked the highest at 62%, even with existing health insurance.8 Serious illnesses can quickly cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, which can rapidly deplete financial resources for most people. Approximately 530,000 families are affected annually.
2 https://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/18/health/opioid-crisis-fast-facts/index.html
3 https://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/18/health/opioid-crisis-fast-facts/index.html
4 https://www.incb.org/documents/Publications/AnnualReports/AR2016/English/AR2016_E_ebook.pdf
5 https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/relationship-between-prescription-drug-heroin-abuse/prescription-opioid-use-risk-factor-heroin-use
6 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47861444
7 https://www.medbelle.com/medicine-price-index-usa
8 https://www.thebalance.com/medical-bankruptcy-statistics-4154729
