Today’s modern conveniences don’t equal good health

People always ask me, ‘Emilio, what’s the best piece of advice you can give someone about their health?’” I think I have an answer to that question that isn’t a mile long, but it’s packed with some detail when it’s broken down. My answer, in short, is try to live like God’s creation intended us to live from the start of it all. As in, let’s live a lot like our ancestors did in many aspects. No, I don’t mean go sleep in a cave or eat raw buffalo meat.

When I say live like God’s creation intended us to live, one could argue that technology and all the advancements made by man have made life more simple, more efficient and more convenient. Well, I can agree with the convenience/efficiency aspect of today’s world, and some technologies and modern advancements in health have been good things, but when we really sit back and reflect on it … (sitting back in reflection) … do we really need more than God gave us when he created this Earth?

I believe that answer is no.

God has supplied everything we need. Convenience doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s good for us. We are beautifully designed for a world we no longer live in.

Remember, difficulties and trials make us stronger, and we have to challenge our bodies in order for them to grow stronger and healthier.

At the end of the day, God created man and woman and gave us all purpose and free will. With that purpose some of us have done amazing innovated things, but in everything that is man’s, there are flaws. In everything that is God’s, there are no flaws.

To name just a few things that God created, we can look at ocean tides and the perfect synchronization with no end that allows all life to survive.

The atmosphere and ozone layer that protect the Earth and allow the ecosystem to sustain life, the perfect distance from the sun to sustain life of plants, animals and humans. Plants and animals were put on this Earth for the benefit of humans to feed and breathe. Plants give us food and oxygen to nourish our bodies.

Water was put on this Earth for survival. Roughly 70% of the human body is water and roughly 70% of the Earth is made of water.

That’s no coincidence. The Earth’s ground literally gives off an electromagnetic charge that matches the frequency in which our heart is beating.

You have heard me talking about grounding before and its benefits for circulation and immune function. Most people don’t walk on the ground barefoot because we have these things called shoes that have about a half inch to an inch of rubber on the bottom which allows no electrical charge through them. Synthetic surfaces such as asphalt and concrete prevent that charge from occurring as well. No benefit there but maybe some convenience of keeping thorns and sharp rocks out of your foot.

God gave humans the fascinating ability to procreate new human life as well.

Daytime light and evening darkness coincide with our circadian rhythms that allow our body to be on alert or sleepy depending on what our internal body clock tells us from the environment around us. That’s a perfect system too, until it gets interrupted by some of the conveniences we have on like artificial light from light bulbs and our phones that we constantly scroll at night.

I could write for days on all the examples, so I will quickly go through some of them as best I can. We have talked about exposure to various hot/cold temperatures being good for the body’s circulation, oxygen consumption and immune function. Man invented air conditioning and furnace systems that conveniently keep us at a comfortable temperature and over time this has made humans get less of the benefits of temperature exposure and less tolerant of varying temperatures.

You may be comfortable, but is it better for your health?

Not necessarily. Breathing natural air that is circulating and more oxygen rich is also better for you. We don’t get that in our homes.

Exposure to sunlight is one of the hallmarks of good health. Vitamin D is obtained from sunlight and made from our body’s cholesterol.

Without exposing ourselves to sunlight, there is a good chance we are low on Vitamin D, which is vital to our body’s function from bone health to hormone function to immune function.

It is estimated that at least 41% of the population is Vitamin D deficient. If we aren’t supplementing for it, we better be getting sunlight.

In today’s world, most of us don’t get sunlight more than an hour a day.

We are working in offices/ homes for the majority of the day and many of our hobbies/interests involve the use of a computer or phone screen indoors.

The majority of us no longer work outdoors like our ancestors did. The average child spends less time outdoors while in school than the average inmate. What are we doing?

Speaking of technology, some very efficient innovations have come to surface since the late 1980s that have changed the entire landscape in which we live as humans.

Everything now is “smart.”

Everyone walks around with a smart phone that allows you to access information with the tap of the screen, has improved communication across the world and allows us to interact with one another socially through a screen.

Computers are running the world and with AI on the horizon, it’s only going to get more intense. We can now stream from our phones and watch videos for days on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok that keep us scrolling for hours on end. The average American spends two hours and 27 minutes a day on social media alone. That’s roughly 38 round-the-clock days a year, solely dedicated to social media. The rates of suicide, anxiety and depression have skyrocketed since social media was introduced to the world and they are steadily increasing.

Have you ever seen so many kids stressed about what their friends are doing, how they look, pretending to live outside of their means, and fighting/bickering like we have seen via social media. During election years, all I see is people fighting about which politician is going to give them a better life.

All this added stress is at our fingertips and it’s not good for our health. Convenient yes, healthy no.

All of this networking via the internet also has decreased our physical activity. If we are spending an average of 2 hours and 27 minutes a day just on social media, do you think there is time to go for a walk or exercise?

Not really. This technology has also eliminated physical social interaction. Physical social interaction is a pillar of good mental, social and physical health. When we eliminate it, we don’t have sense of community and service. What we have is a bunch of people that cannot interact or physically communicate with one another, leading to failed relationships and social anxiety.

Back in my day, we used to have to talk to girls face to face. I sound old in this article I know. To my older adults, you aren’t doing yourself any favors either.

The average time spent watching television for adults 65 and older is four hours per day. The overall average time watching TV for all Americans is three hours. That’s less physical movement.

Nearly 95% of all Americans either drive or use public transportation to go places over 1/2 a mile. Our ancestors lived healthier lives because they walked significantly more.

Let’s talk food systems.

We no longer live in a world where we are eating strictly whole foods, grown naturally in the soil. We live in a world where you go to grab something of the shelf or in your cupboard and it has a list of ingredients that you probably can’t even pronounce. We should be eating like our ancestors did. Plants, vegetables, meat and fruits in the right proportions will go a long way. Staying away from processed foods, added sugars and seed oils are a must. Seed oils are toxic and are used out of convenience.

Using detergents to rid of the toxins from seed oils is not a solution to making something more healthy.

Use olive oil or avocado oil, which are not seed oils because they come from the flesh of a fruit, not a seed. Eating foods that are unadulterated is the key. And just because the American Diabetes Association tells you that something is OK to eat, doesn’t mean it is. After all, chocolate companies and drug makers of insulin/metabolic drugs fund this association. Don’t be so naïve to think they don’t want more consumers and customers.

And finally, but most importantly, health is not how many pills you take! Pharma becomes stronger when we are sicker. What’s the craze now? Weight loss drugs?

There are very few people that need these drugs. Most of us just want to take it because it’s convenient.

Metabolic disease is destroying us as a population.

And it’s not because we have a deficiency in Ozempic, it’s because we eat, breathe and drink toxins, microplastics and so much other junk that’s added to our food supply that slows down our ability to metabolize and for our cells to function. Where do we see metabolic disease and obesity? Humans and domesticated animals. Why?

We are feeding these animals the same food we eat. Animals in the wild are eating natural whole foods. You don’t see metabolic disease there, do you?

Medicaid spends more money on metabolic disease treatment than the entire defense budget. Medicare and Medicaid aren’t going broke because of funding, it’s because of so much unnecessary waste in spending for disease that can be totally prevented. Just remember, there are very few drugs that do not have consequences that come along with their consumption. Ozempic actually reduces your muscle mass significantly. It’s not just fat you are losing. Loss of muscle leads to real consequences.

There is no magic pill for anything. If we want to take less medication, we should try to live more along the lines of how God created us to live. Take advantage of good whole food, nature’s offerings and the functional capacity that God gave you to live an active lifestyle.

I am just as guilty as the next when using these technologies and conveniences. But after writing this article, I have come to the realization that convenience doesn’t equal health. The convenience is nice to have, but if we want to become more healthy individuals, we should aim to include some of the things that we were beautifully created for in the world that was created for us. I am not saying that innovations are evil, I am saying that many of them are human innovation.

The most important health decision we can make is a life closer to God and a relationship with Jesus Christ.

I’ve been asked why I write so much about God in your health articles. My answer to that is God has everything to do with our health, whether we want to believe it or not.

Truth is truth. I will no longer be lukewarm. Read the Bible. He’s coming back and we should be prepared!

To your health, (στην υγεία σου), Emilio Galis is the owner of Elite PT and Wellness LLC located at 638 Rostraver Road, Belle Vernon, Pa. Dr.

Galis and his staff accept most major insurance plans and have affordable cash rates for wellness services. They can be reached at 724-243-3728.