Day-time SALAD (1:5)
Buddhism is a very helpful philosophy that complements personal healing, as the philosophy is focused on improving the self. One of the central teachings is the eightfold path (in English also referred to as the 8 R's): right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right samadhi (meditative absorption).
As with everything that is created in a certain historical age, some items seem peculiar in the present era. Among the eightfold path, right livelihood comes to mind. The Buddha describes what jobs you should have and which not - and the type of jobs seem strange in the present day.
Lifestyle: That being said, probably right livelihood may make a great deal of sense for autoimmune conditions and GDD. Clearly excess stress is a bad idea, as is frequent flying, as frequent flying has been associated with depression (maybe the extra radiation is not good either). So jobs with lots of travel, like drug salesperson may not be ideal, working in a flower shop or a docent in a museum may be good.
Muslims pray 5 times per day. This also achieves a sense of peace, and the concept is good. Take some time during the day to meditate, even a few times a day.
Yoga maintains joint mobility as does Tai Chi. It is important to routinely do some form of stretching exercise. Cycling is a great exercise that can be done daily. Tennis and swimming also good, and trying to do these 3 times/week is a good health strategy.
Diet: Diet is addressed in greater detail in separate blogs. It is worth though repeating foods that are purportedly natural chelators: cilantro (possibly in combination with chlorella), pectin-containing fruits (peaches, apricots), and maintaining microbiome health with yogurt/kefir. Black or green tea made with alkaline water. One alcoholic beverage daily or every second day after work, for those who can drink, may be helpful. Malbec wines are especially high is resveratrol which has anti-inflammatory properties, but many wines contain it.
Stay tuned on the latest advancements:
Richard Semelka, MD. Consulting