When do we know that our body need a complete overhaul of its engine system? What are the signs that our engine is running down before its time? Here are the signs to look out for. It is when we find it difficult to get our of bed. It is when we feel stress out all the time. It is when we get minor sickness like cold, flu and sore throat all the time. It is when we always feel  lethargic. What is lethargy? This word gives us an imprecise description of the feeling of slowness, tiredness or lack of energy. It could include fatigue, tiredness, drowsiness or listlessness. All these problems did not happen overnight. There are many factors that lead to these conditions of poor immunity and a feeling of feeling drained all the time.

Some of the probable causes are:

• Drugs induced

• Diseases

• Age or Organ Dysfunction

• Lifestyle

• Functional

Drugs Induced: Alka-Mints, Atrofen,  Calci-Mix, Calcilac Calcite-500, Corax, Dia-check,  Edecrin, Enduron, Esidrix, Glycate, Hygroton, Kalcinate, Lasix, Lorazepam, Lozol, Maxzide, Medilium, Novo-Clopate, Novo-Poxide, Oretic,Os-Cal 500, Pharmacal,  PMS-Baclofen, Prolixin, Renese, Reposans-10, Serax, Thorazine, Thorazine, Valrelease and Zaroxolyn  are some of the hundreds and hundreds of drugs that can cause lethargy. It is a silent unseen attack on the body.

Diseases: When we fall sick, we want a quick "restoration". We quickly go to the neighbourhood clinic to get a prescription. Drugs are effective in killing bacteria and "solve" other problems but it is a well known fact that it also leave behind a trail of internal damages that is hard to detect at that point in time. But over the years these damages begin to build up and finally one day we find our immunity gets worse and worse.

Age or Organ Dysfunction: spleen, kidneys, lungs, liver or heart, menopause etc

Lifestyle: Over work, sedentary lifestyle, stress, insufficient rest or sleep, unhealthy diets or nutrition insufficiency.

Functional: Food poisoning, iron poisoning, lithium toxicity, Kwashiorkor (insufficient protein in diet).

Causes

The root cause of a run down body lies within our body. It could be a sign that our body energy flow has been disrupted. That our body's organs are not function at its optimum. 

A fundamental TCM principle states that every living organism contains a life force that circulates continuously throughout it until death. In humans this life force, which connects with our internal organs, circulates throughout our energy channels to give us life and energy. Basically good health is regarded as the smooth and unobstructed flow of this energy throughout the body. When this energy is obstructed, illness results. Health condition, environmental, dietary and lifestyle factors such as nutrition, work and stress, may affect the flow and therefore our health.

TCM view our body’s 5 main organs (heart, lungs, kidney, liver and spleen) system, commonly call the 5-Elements in TCM herbalism, as the most important organ system in the body. They form a complex system that helps to keep our body healthy. Majority of diseases can be traced back to the dysfunction of one of these organs or a combination of these organs and its inter-connected systems. As a result the energy flow is not smooth and vibrant.

Lets look at one example. The organ mostly affected by emotional stress (which can lead to lethargy) and drugs is the liver. One of the primary functions of the liver is to store and purify blood and to detox our body from harmful materials. If the liver is affected then the flow of energy would be affected. In TCM theory, the liver is paired with the gallbladder in a “symbiotic” relationship. What affects the liver function can also affect the gallbladder function. The gallbladder energy meridian runs across the shoulders, up the neck and over the sides of the head.  This explains why sufferers of stress often complain of stiffness in the neck and shoulders. In extreme cases they might have headache. The reason is because the energy is not flowing freely. And the result is stiffness (blockages) and pain. Stress and drugs can affect our organ system. Organ deficiency result in lethargy and weak immunity.

A deficient lung can cause lethargy and poor immunity. A dysfunction lung and spleen can also cause lethargy and poor immunity. Weak kidneys can cause lethargy and poor immunity. A dysfunction kidney, liver and lungs system (insomnia) can cause lethargy and poor immunity. A dysfunction stomach and spleen system (our digestive system) can cause lethargy and poor immunity. A dysfunction cardiovascular system can cause lethargy and poor immunity.

Prevention

In order to prevent our body's systems from been damaged it is up most important that we take care of our health. Diseases, the side effects of drugs and careless lifestyle are path ways that eventually cause our body to be permanently affected. Once damaged it is not easy to rejuvenate the system back to functioning order again as each system is a complex network of delicate functioning linkages. One of this linkages is the "symbiotic" lung spleen relationship. A dysfunction spleen would affect the health and function of the lung because the functions of the spleen is to produce lymphocytes (one of the two major type of white blood cells) and since the lung is the only internal organ that is always expose to the outside environment, if the defense mechanism is down (spleen inability to produce lymphocytes) then it is lightly that as a result of weak spleen, the person could always suffers from cold and flu.

Therefore it is important to ensure that the 5 organs system are always kept in a healthy condition. One ancient herbal sage once said "It is better to make weapons before the wars start". Another person put it differently, saying, "It is no use to try and buy an umbrella when the rain has begun". As the saying goes "Prevention is better then cure" therefore it is only wise that we should keep our engine system running smoothly. This leads us to the concept of Restorative Immunology.

In our busy lifestyle it is not always easy to try and keep ourselves healthy because to prepare nutritious food can take a long time. Many of us do not have the time and we opt for instant food that often lack the nutritional content that our body needs. As the years go by, lack of nutrition, stressful life, sedentary lifestyle and quickie "healing" synthetic chemicals (plus all the side effects) take their toll on our bodies. Too often the slow changes (in the wrong direction) within our bodies go unnoticed. We ignore the symptoms like tiredness, lethargy and lack of energy. Slowly we find it difficult to wake up in the morning. One fine day doctors say you have cardiovascular problems or that your sugar level is too high or that he detects protein in your urine. Once doctors can detect the disease, it means your health is already very bad.

But life and health do not have to be that way. In fact a little knowledge of natural healthcare and prevention on our part goes a long way in preventing and reducing the enormous cost of damage to our body. If we can keep our 5 organs in general good health we can prevent a lot of diseases and headaches.

Restorative Immunology is taking herbs rich in phytonutrients that we do not normally get in our daily diet to rejuvenate all our 5 organs. These nutrients are essential to our good health. Prevention is cheaper than cure. A few capsules each day would keep the headaches and doctor away. Radix Panax Notoginseng, Radix Polygonum Multiflorum, Radix Salvia Miltiorrhiza, Folium Perilla Frutescens, Semen Sinapis Alba, Poria Cocos Wolf, Fructus Schisandra Chinensis, Radix Glycyrrhiza Glabra, Radix Pinella Ternata and Rhizoma Zingiberis are generally used to improve the functions of the organs. Radix Panax Notoginseng, Radix Polygonum Multiflorum and Radix Salvia Miltiorrhiza are traditionally used as longevity herbs. They are also used to improve blood circulation.

Clinical research by western scientists have shown that Polygonum Multiflorum (he-shou-wu) increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, reduce total cholesterol, free cholesterol, triglycerides, retard atherosclerosis, protect the heart, strengthen the membranes of erythrocytes (red blood cells) and has powerful natural antioxidant and free radical scavenger and these have powerful anti-aging functions in humans. (Foster)

Even though there are a lot of research done on the individual herbs itself, it must be remembered that TCM herbal science does not encourage the consumption of single herbs for treatment purposes. Very few herbs can be consumed as single herb. There are many reasons why TCM doctors do not prescribe single herb to their patients. Such practise is based on thousand of years of clinical experience. To be effective herbs must be prescribed as formulation to bring out their maximum efficacy. This is through the use of "catalytic" herbs. Holistic rejuvenation and restoration for the body's systems takes time. For best result restorative immunity must be given six months to a year to work. The wonderful part about restorative immunology is that as we carry out our daily work the body within is experiencing wonderful changes. As the years go by, one can see the difference between those who consistently seek to improve the internal health of their organs and those who do not. The problem with longevity products is that the subject under study outlives the researcher!! One study said that the average lifespan of an American doctor is only 58 years old. Master Li who consumed herbs all his life died at the age of around 251!! Below is an abstract written by Dr. Subhuti Dharmananda, Ph.D., Director, Institute for Traditional Medicine, Portland, Oregon about Master Li (see picture)

"During his long life, Li Ch'ing Yuen had various occupations. He served as a soldier, sold medicinal herbs, and taught many disciples in the Oh-Mei mountains, Szechuan province. Many of his disciples were over a hundred years old. Some of the oldest men of the district could recall stories their grandfathers told them about Li Ch'ing Yuen. Even at 248 years of age, Master Li had good eyesight and a quick stride. In 1927, General Yang Shen heard about the longevity of this marvelous man and invited Master Li to visit his seat of command in Wan-Shien. He later described Master Li in a book: "He can walk very quickly in the mountains, even though he's almost 250 years old. He is seven feet tall. His complexion is ruddy, but he is completely bald. His fingernails are very long. In one meal he eats three bowls of rice, chicken, and another kind of meat. Master Li told Yang Shen that sometimes, while he was in the mountains collecting herbs, his provisions would run out. He would survive by eating herbs, especially ginseng, ho-shou-wu, and polygonatum [huangjiang]. Toward the end of his life, Master Li allowed himself to be photographed. Because of his fame, the eight-inch photo found a ready market. Yang Shen's envoy presented one of these photographs to Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, who asked to meet Master Li, but by the time Yang Shen located him, Master Li had died. The New York Times reported the death of this wonderful man in 1930."