Welcome to “The Royal Principles of Health,” written by Dr. Michael Dority and presented by Selene River Press. This fascinating series is based on the 33 principles of chiropractic identified by R.W. Stephenson, DC, PhC, in his 1927 classic Chiropractic Textbook. Dr. Dority calls these the “Royal Principles of Health” and invites you to learn how these foundational tenets illustrate the forces of universal intelligence that guide and determine our existence.
The Greatest Show on Earth Is Your Birth
Royal Principle #3 states: “Life is necessarily the union of intelligence and matter.”
The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus was billed as “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Beginning in the 20th century and continuing well into the 21st, it was the largest and best-known traveling circus in the United States, employing more than a thousand people, plus performers and animals (and the occasional runaway boy). Can you imagine the logistics of keeping a circus of this size running? The people had to be fed and clothed, the animals washed and trained, the shows coordinated and scheduled—and, of course, all of that animal poop picked up.
Managing our health is a bit like running a circus. If we don’t keep it running smoothly, we may have breakdowns (diseases), unsettled grievances (symptoms), and petty arguments (fevers). But we are blessed with a nervous system that coordinates all of the billions of cellular functions taking place in our bodies. Like the circus manager, the nervous system keeps the show of health in the center ring.
A baby in utero has a ringside seat at what is truly the Greatest Show on Earth. Formed from sperm and egg, a new life grows and transforms in the center ring, the mother’s uterus. The baby’s quality of life is totally dependent upon the nutrients, hormones, oxygen, vitamins, and minerals supplied by mom, who also has the job of processing the baby’s waste products. She is the one. For the Greatest Show on Earth to go on in the center ring of her uterus, she must perform a thousand plus jobs—and all of them must be scripted in an intelligent, coordinated order.
This brings us to our third life principle: “Life is necessarily the Union of Intelligence and Matter.”
We need the Life Force to intelligently script the “matter” of the baby (or babies) to develop, grow, and thrive. We see this in the first organ to develop, the brain, which is then followed by the spinal cord. With everything set in place, the goal is to provide all of the things the new baby needs to develop and thrive.
The nervous system is responsible for orchestrating the internal and external communications needed to fully express the capacity of life through the mother and into her little one. The flow of life from mother to baby must be free from static and interference. This is the way it was designed to function, and it is a principle we must live with. As the baby develops, the mother’s body controls the show in the center ring of her uterus.
Originating from the work of D.D. Palmer, the developer of chiropractic, we recognize three interferences to the flow of life that arises from our brain talking to our body and our body talking to our brain: 1) spinal subluxations or misalignments; 2) toxic chemical poisons; and 3) emotional stressors. (Notably, the second category has grown to include our refined, chemicalized food, chlorinated and fluoridated water, chemicals in clothing, drugs, car exhaust, and much more.) These can all have a profound effect on the way our body functions and maintains health. Further, they can negatively impact the baby’s development.
Let’s look at toxins. Toxic substances are so prevalent in our environment that we can measure them in the blood of a developing baby’s umbilical cord. A 2004 study revealed a total of 287 chemicals in umbilical cord blood. Of these chemicals, 180 of them are known to cause cancer, 217 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 208 can cause developmental birth defects. Mixed together, these chemicals create a complex mixture of carcinogens, developmental toxins, and potent neurotoxins.
Here are some of the concerns to keep in mind when a developing baby is exposed to toxins:
- Pound for pound, the baby’s chemical exposure is greatly magnified, as compared to the adult body.
- The immature and porous blood-brain barrier is not yet fully developed, thus allowing greater saturation of chemicals to the brain and central nervous system.
- Developing tissues and organs are more affected by chemicals due to lower levels of chemical-binding proteins. (The protein intake of pregnant and nursing mothers enhances the clearing of toxins.)
- Organ systems that are meant to detoxify and excrete chemicals and drugs are not yet fully developed and functional.
Does it get any worse? Can it get any better? In just 12 weeks and continuing to birth, developing babies grow into 37 to 40 trillion cells. To do this successfully, they must depend on adults for protection, nutrition, and a safe environment. We need to take this into account to ensure the future of our children and our children’s children. It does get better and better.
To help mom’s body eliminate toxins while pregnant, I use Arginex and Livaplex from Standard Process (1 of each, 3 times daily). These key nutrients regulate fluid balance and help the kidneys and liver eliminate toxins. They also help the mother’s body handle the extra demand of eliminating the growth byproducts of the rapidly growing little one—or two, or triplets!
Also remember that the kidneys receive their nerve control from the thoracic T1, T5, and T8 spinal nerves. The liver in turn gets its nerve talk from thoracic nerves at T2, T5, and T8. Chiropractic care benefits kidney and liver function by making sure those vertebrae do not create static on the nerves.
Last of all, remember that the mother’s emotions are mental as well as physical. They are felt in her body, and in turn they influence the developing baby’s body.
Some things to think about:
- What do you believe will come to pass in your pregnancy?
- Are you confident in your ability to build a strong foundation for your baby to grow and thrive?
- Are you being supported by others in your new adventure of the Greatest Show on Earth?
“The foundation of success in life is good health.”
—P.T. Barnum, Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Images from iStock/magicmine (main), sUs_angel (pregnant couple), KristinaJovanovic (group of women).
