HOW NATURE’S APPROACH ENHANCES HEALTHINESS  

Photo by: Quang Nguyen Vinh on Unsplash

“Nature teaches more than she preaches. There are no sermons in stones. It is easier to get a spark out of a stone than a moral.” —John Burroughs 

VEERING OFF COURSE TAKES A TOLL 

Ms. Mitchell was miserable. Right knee pain was ruining her life, which up until recently had been pretty good. Although she could have retired from preschool teaching long ago, she still enjoyed the children, their families, and her co-workers. Unfortunately, her medical treatments to address the pain had been disappointing and expensive, but she was determined to feel better again. While pondering what to do next, a friend of a friend gave her my phone number, and she contacted me. Impressed by her tenacity, I was happy to help.

Ms. Mitchell’s situation was not unusual. She admitted that she no longer cooked much after her children had left home. She ate mostly convenience foods, and she had gained weight. She realized that veering away from the natural meal practices that had formerly sustained her was taking its toll.

When I suggested that she eat dark leafy greens and drink the liquid they’d been cooked in, she exclaimed, “Just like Mama used to tell us!” I realized that she was also aware of the powerful role natural practices can play in building and restoring health.

OBSERVING NATURE’S SUCCESSES   

Earth has successfully managed its living systems for approximately 4.5 billion years. Some of the secrets for this success lie in the way nature has equipped life forms to self-manage their needs, take advantage of available natural materials, adapt, and when needed, restore themselves. 

A good example of how nature succeeds with this approach can be seen in the way orchid plants grow and prosper in their natural environments.

Orchid plants meet their needs for filtered sunlight, water, and nutrients by growing beneath the canopy of leaves near the tops of rainforest trees. Orchid plants’ nutrients come from raindrops that fall onto them from this lush rainforest canopy. Since the trees are not harmed by the orchids, a healthy balance between them exists. 

When the canopy is lost to a storm or other disturbance, the orchid plants lose their life support—but only temporarily. Through an impressive rebalancing feat, the orchids quickly adapt by growing new roots and stems on a different side of the tree or on a tree nearby to restore their equilibrium.

This systematic, adaptive approach, commonly used throughout nature, is key to the success and survival of orchids and all living systems, including humans. It can also be key to our success in creating and maintaining healthiness.

LEARNING AND USING NATURE’S APPROACH 

What can we learn from nature’s approach? 

1. Nature’s clear, fundamental goal is for living systems to survive, reproduce, and prosper. 
2. Nature prioritizes the use of natural materials and resources. 
3. Since life is dynamic, self-correction and adaptability will always be needed. 
4. An ability to self-restore serves as a fail-safe from extinction.

Best of all, nature’s approach is free, and we can use it to our advantage. 

How do we do this?

For starters, we need to know that the goal of healthiness is to attain a harmonious state of being rather than an “absence of disease.”

In using nature’s approach, we would prioritize consuming natural whole foods. We would engage in natural physical activity just like the dog walkers, dancers, and commuters who use public transit, who are often more fit than fitness-center members, do. And we’d prioritize a natural way of navigating life based on personal meaning and purpose.

Since our lives are more dynamic and changeable than they’ve ever been, cultivating adaptability is a superpower. Self-restoration through taking breaks and prioritizing downtime is our fail-safe from extinction.

Maintaining healthiness obviously has more moving parts and complexity than growing orchids, but nature’s simplicity gives us a powerful approach that has universal utility.

MAKING NATURE’S APPROACH OUR OWN

Refined over billions of years, nature’s approach teaches the self-organizing and self-reorganizing required for living successfully in our highly dynamic environment. Even with our most ingenious technologies, we will not match nature’s effectiveness in creating healthiness. Our best option is to learn how to use it and to make it our own.

If you or your company want a more effective approach for solving modern, health-related challenges, contact us and find out more.

Joyce M. Young, MD, MPH 
Managing Director, Advanced Wellness Systems
Lead Expert for the High Health Network

Photo by: Jeffry S.S. from Pexels

 “There is a way of beholding nature that is itself a form of prayer.” —Diane Ackerman

 Your colleagues at Advanced Wellness Systems