An Aspirin a Day and the Doctor Will Stay
By Bera Dordoni, N.D.excerpted from the upcoming (still untitled) sequel to her book I Have a Choice?!
“Yo, Tom, you got some aspirin I could borrow?” Shelli asked.
“No. What hurts?”
“I feel a headache coming on.”
“Do you take aspirin often, Shelli?”
“A couple times a day, maybe – when my fingers hurt from arthritis pain or I have a headache. I’m sore today because I worked out yesterday so I used up the rest of the bottle this morning. Do you have any? It can be generic; I’m not choosy about brand names.”
“Wow, that’s a lot of acetylsalicylic acid to put into your body! Do you have any idea how dangerous that can be?”
“Acetywhat? Come on, it’s just aspirin. Don’t make it into one of your big deals, okay? It’s safe, everybody knows that. It’s over the counter. It isn’t even a drug, for Pete’s sake.”
“Um…sorry. It is a drug, and while it was revolutionary when it was introduced and saved a lot of lives, it can be very dangerous, just like lots of OTC medications can be if they’re taken indiscriminately.”
“Geez, Tom, you’re such a poop!”
“Speaking of which, when did you last poop?”
“Excuse me?!”
“I’m just asking. That could be why you have a headache.”
“It’s not. I have a headache, not a buttache.”
“Yeah, but they’re at opposite ends of the same body. It’s all one system, Shelli, you know that! And people who don’t poop often enough tend to get headaches because the toxic buildup in their intestinal tract affects every single other cell in their body. Every cell affects and is affected by every other cell. Come on, Shelli, you know that!”
“Look, talking to you is making my head hurt more. I just want the pain to go away. Can you or can’t you help me?”
“I can. What do you say we kill your pain right now?”
“Now you’re talking!”
“Great, since I don’t have any aspirin, let’s just sit here for a minute and breathe some oxygen into the area of your head that hurts. Breathe in slowly through your nose and visualize the oxygen going straight to the area of pain. Hold your breath a few seconds. Good. Now release it slowly through your mouth. Excellent. Now do it again.”
“I feel like an idiot.”
“Stop fighting me and just breathe, okay? We’re going to do this for about five minutes. Inhale through your nose—good—hold, now release through your mouth.”
“I’m getting dizzy.”
“Good. That means it’s working. You’re getting oxygen to the brain. Stay seated so you don’t fall over. Again: in through the nose–”
“I don’t believe it. I think my headache is going away.”
“Good! Keep breathing. In through the nose–””
“It’s slacking off! How’s it getting better so fast? Even aspirin doesn’t work this fast.”
“That’s the point, isn’t it? Keep breathing–”
“I’m serious—my headache is gone!”
“Fantastic! Most people don’t realize that oxygen is the most potent painkiller on the planet—and it’s free and can’t cause any harm the way drugs can.”
“I’d never have believed it if my headache wasn’t totally gone. I thought aspirin was the safest thing I could take.”
“I know. Most people do because they’re touted in commercials and ads and even by a lot of physicians for quick relief, but the truth is they don’t actually “heal” anything. OTC drugs and NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) block inflammation to give you temporary relief, but they come with some pretty serious short and long-term side effects.”
“Side effects? Aspirin?! Like what?”
“Like liver damage, to begin with.”
“Aspirin causes liver damage. Yeah, right. Why do I ever listen to you?”
“Maybe because I study stuff you don’t have time to read up on. For instance, according to the Mayo Clinic, ‘just aspirin’ overdosing is the leading cause of liver damage.”
“The Mayo Clinic? I thought they said an aspirin a day keeps you from having a stroke or a heart attack.”
“Science is always discovering that something they thought was absolute isn’t. When aspirin was first introduced to combat high fevers, no one knew that it increases specific liver enzymes that cause damage at the same time cell-protecting antioxidants are being depleted. When inflammation becomes chronic, it can lead to wrinkles, obesity, Alzheimer’s, cancer, arthritis, and a whole lot more. In fact, new studies are finding that inflammation is behind an incredible number of human aches and ills.
“As to helping thin your blood to prevent stroke or heart attack? Researchers have also found that overuse of aspirin or NSAIDs can help leave the body vulnerable to them! Plus, they are a leading cause of gastrointestinal distress, including bleeding ulcers.”
“So if I shouldn’t take aspirin as a blood thinner, then…?”
“Try cayenne pepper. It’s a much better alternative to keep your circulatory system flowing smoothly. (http://gallupjourney.com/2012/02/cayenne-turn-up-the-heat/) And because it increases blood flow, it actually helps prevent ulcers—and arthritis. And even high blood-pressure headaches. How’s yours, by the way?”
“Gone, miraculously.”
“Not miraculously, just naturally. Holistically, if you prefer. Do you still drink diet sodas and eat fast food?”
“No! Not every day, anyway. Only when I don’t have time to prepare something good. Between work, the kids, the weather, bills—I’m under a lot of stress. There’s almost never enough time to plan a good meal. Hey! Don’t laugh at me!”
“Come on, Shelli, you know that’s all just a bunch of excuses. And they’re not doing you or your kids any good. Whole foods give you the nutrients your body needs to have energy and oxygenate your body. You can’t just breathe everything away! Pro-inflammatory foods deplete your oxygen stores. Natural, fresh foods increase them.”
“Pro-inflammatory foods. You mean like burgers and fries? We don’t have burgers and fries every night! Sometimes I cook!”
“Good—but what I really meant was stuff like sugar, pasteurized dairy foods, too much meat, processed foods with white flour and GMOs (pastries, donuts), trans fats, sodas and energy drinks.”
“Just everything we eat, in other words.”
“Look, I know you’re not going to throw everything out and only eat fresh fruits and vegetables all day, every day. But if your body doesn’t have enough oxygen circulating through it, inflammation can build up, and inflammation causes pain, discomfort, and ultimately, disease. What I’m saying is that if you take away the cause of it and then consume foods, herbs, and spices that can help alleviate inflammation, you’re going to feel better. And so will your kids.”
“What kind of ‘foods, herbs, and spices?’”
“Well, let’s see. Ginger root and turmeric are both flavorful and anti-inflammatory. Celery seed tea is great for easing the calcium buildup in painful joints. Pineapples have great digestive enzymes to reduce soreness and inflammation—and they just might satisfy your sweet tooth.”
“I like sweet.”
“I know you do. Then there’s
- Whole grains
- Beans
- Winter squashes
- Sweet potatoes
- Orange and yellow fruits
- Berries
- Dark leafy greens
- Flax seeds with omega-3s providing anti-inflammatory fats
- Avocados
- Raw walnuts, cashews and almonds
- Raw seeds
- Virgin coconut oil”
“I like a lot of that stuff. But what about chocolate? I thought that’s supposed to be good for you, too.”
“It is, if it’s dark raw chocolate. Check out the La Montaňita Co-op in Gallup. I think they’re the only place in town that carries dark raw chocolate. And don’t forget to keep exercising—not now and then, which leaves you sore, but regularly. It’s one of the best oxygen-raising anti-inflammatories on the planet.”
“What about coffee? I can’t get going without a cup or two in the morning.”
“Do you drink it black?”
“I just add a little cream and sugar.”
“Then it’s not helping you at all. A cup or two of black coffee would be more useful to your body.”
“Ugh! Not gonna happen, Tom.”
“Well, then, try green tea if you’re looking for a beneficial kick. Its antioxidants stage an anti-inflammatory assault against inflammatory invaders. And don’t forget to drink enough water to wash away those toxins.”
“Enough being…?”
“At least half your body weight in ounces.”
“That’s a lot of water.”
“Our bodies take in a lot of toxins, even if we don’t eat them.”
“Yeah, that much I know. From chem trails and the Fukushima radiation leakage.”
“And all the electromagnetic fields from our TVs and phone and Internet connections…”
“Oh, yeah. Modern living. Can’t avoid it, can we?”
“Nope.”
“How about pizza?”
“Leave out the dough and cheese, and just eat the garlic. Eat it raw, minced, chopped, sautéed, in soups, salads, stews, stir-fry—any way you can. It packs a wallop against swollen joints.”
“It also gives you bad breath.”
“Let’s call it ‘fragrant’ breath. It reduces inflammation and makes the pain it causes go away.”
“Well, when you put it that way…”
“By the way, how’s your headache?”
“What headache?”
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Dr. Bera “The Wellness Whisperer” Dordoni, N.D.
Specializing in immune system rehabilitation, restoration, and maintenance through nutritional counseling, life-style coaching, and the laws of attraction. To purchase I Have a Choice?!, schedule a private consultation, or learn more about her next workshop, wellness retreat, or natural-health class, visit www.bastis.org or call 505-783-9001.