Are You Healthy... or Just Not Sick? This may seem like a confusing question to some people but believe it or not there is a huge difference. Many people believe that being healthy is just a lack of symptoms. For instance, I don't have a fever so I must not be sick. If this is the principle you base your health on, you are missing the big picture. Health is a state of homeostasis in which your brain, the master controller of everything in your body, has all systems in your body working at their maximum potential without outside interference. For instance someone may be taking a pain reliever everyday to prevent headaches. The person then does not get a headache everyday so they believe they are healthy because they are symptom free. What is really happening is they now have a chemical doing the job that their body is supposed to do. After a while their body forgets how to stop that headache so it begins to depend on the chemical to provide headache relief. So how do we get healthy instead of just not sick? We do it by controlling the chemical, environmental and structural problems that affect our bodies. For chemical problems it starts with diet and exercise. Our diets are loaded with chemicals that affect our nervous system. It is important to eat the proper balance of fresh healthy foods that will provide our bodies with the nutrients that will enhance our nervous system. Exercise is important for heart health, blood flow and cell reproduction. As we age our cell reproduction slows which allos our bodies to start to degenerate. Strength training and cardiovascular exercise improves blood flow to our organs, muscles and skin, allowing a continual reproduction of cells. Chemical factors also include stress. Stress is a chemical because when we are stressed we produce a hormone in our body called cortisol. Cortisol allows our bodies to produce fat and can make us sluggish. Harmful environmental factors include smog, smoking and unprotected sun exposure. To limit their harmful effects use sunscreen and if you are a smoker, quit. Finally, structural factors can include posture, poorly designed workstations and inadequate beds and chairs. This is where a Doctor of Chiropractic can help your health. Structural problems cause a tremendous amount of stress on your nervous system that can lead to other health problems. A Doctor of Chiropractic can help remove structural interference to your nervous system and help your body return to health and go way beyond not being sick.