A fascinating concept of quantum physics is the idea that our thoughts can manifest our reality. That where we put our attention can shift outcomes. The coronavirus is disrupting life and causing death, and we are hiding in fear, hoping a pharmaceutical savior creates a safe, effective vaccine. Instead, perhaps we should focus on empowerment and manifesting health instead of fear.

If we are choosing health, we need to focus our thoughts and efforts on health. In some ways it is fair to question, is coronavirus killing us or is our chronic ill health killing us? The biggest risk factors for death from COVID-19 (aside from age) are obesity, diabetes and hypertension. These are diet and lifestyle factors. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 42% of Americans are now obese. How long could we expect to go on like this without repercussions? 

Let’s contrast this with a country like Japan. With a population of 130 million, they have recorded 996 coronavirus deaths as of this writing. That’s one for every 138 deaths here in the USA. Government officials claim that use of masks is the reason why Asia has such lower rates of COVID-19 deaths. But they are not really doing anything differently than us when it comes to masks. Before coronavirus, citizens would only typically wear masks if they had a cold or flu as a courtesy to those around them. These days most people do wear masks. But restaurants are open and they are not social distancing. The economy is open.

What is different is that the obesity rate in Japan is 10 times lower than here in the USA according to the CIA Factbook.Japanese, in general, are far healthier; they eat better and are far more physically active than we are in the U.S. Their average life expectancy beats ours by six years.

It’s time to focus on health and to expect health for ourselves. We can’t follow bad habits forever without consequences. The evolutionary mismatch in which we now find ourselves, the difference between our biologically adapted natural lifestyle and our modern boxed-in, boxed- food lifestyle, is causing much anxiety, depression, obesity, autoimmunity, diabetes and more. We deserve more for ourselves.

There’s a lot that one can do to lower inflammation and move in the direction of a healthier immune balance. First and foremost, stop consuming things that compromise one’s immune system. A supermarket basket loaded with junk food promotes sickness and leaves us vulnerable to infection. This includes sugar, alcohol, processed foods and foods with artificial ingredients. Stop eating inflammatory foods that give you trouble, the most common of which are wheat and dairy. These often cause an immune reaction and challenge your immune system.

Instead of staying locked indoors, get outside and get some sunshine. A few recent studies our of Indonesia and the Philippines have correlated adequate Vitamin D (more than 30 nanograms per milliliter) with better outcomes and dramatically lower death rates due to Covid 19 infection. And considering all of the benefits that exercise provides to our mood, immune system and ability to balance blood sugar, it’s more important than ever to incorporate a regular exercise routine. Get enough sleep. Insufficient sleep crashes your immune system. Take care of your gut health. Eat fermented foods or use probiotics if they don’t upset you. Eat colorful plant foods containing phytonutrients that help fight metabolic stress and inflammation. It’s better to get extract carbs from foods like fruit and sweet potatoes than from bagels and muffins.

Let’s use the tragedy of coronavirus to make a paradigm shift towards a more natural way of eating and living. Taking control of one’s health is a far better bet than waiting for a supposedly safe vaccine that may never come. 

Glenn Gruby, L.Ac., CFMP, has been practicing and studying Asian Medicine since 2003 in California, Japan and his home state of New Jersey. He currently owns practices at the Functional Health & Acupuncture Institute, located at 1050 Kings Hwy., in Cherry Hill. 

Functional Health and Acupuncture Institute integrates functional medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 856-321-9301 or visit FHAInstitute.com.