Auto-Immune Epidemic

What the heck IS it with so many folks now being affected by auto-immune disease? Type 1 diabetes, much of heart disease and high blood pressure, lupus, Multiple sclerosis, the list goes on and on and on. Now a friend's 3 year old with Kawasaki disease.

The healing arts used to be about helping kickstart the immune system - even leeches were about removing things 'that stood in the way of the body healing itself' by sucking the nasties out. Immunizations were next, training antibodies. Then antibiotics, to stop bacteria from reproducing so the body had time to beat them into submission. And the biggest gains in public health came from enforced sanitation laws combined with refrigeration and appropriate use of food preservatives.

But while we weren't looking the game changed. I suppose that the fundamental rules of the game are the same, but we are seeing a new facet of it. And I've not seen the Pagan community's healers address it at all - not that I'm up on all that's going on everywhere, mind you.

But I remember during the beginning of the Zoo Flu that everyone was quoting Susun Weed, and talking about tonics to help fight it. Never mind that what tends to kill in the flu is cytokine storms - the immune system going into overdrive and destroying the lungs. What we needed - and still need - to discuss is how to CALM the immune system so it responds in ways that don't kill us.

The extent of my knowledge of THAT is pitifully small. Ginger and turmeric are spices that help calm the immune system; Mediation may help reduce inflamatory response; and I suspect that chakra BALANCING (not 'turning them up') would be useful but I'm guessing on that. That's not much knowledge, and no useful treatment in it, just generalities.

Crap.


Frondly, Fern