Dr Choi urges public to improve their health through a lifestyle change |26 January 2018

‘All disease begins in the gut’ – Hippocrates

Statistics for the rate of overweight and obesity in Seychelles is alarming and a great cause for concern, according to Dr Choi, a local chiropractor based at Eden Plaza. He reveals that the leading cause of many of his patients’ health problems is an excessive intake of unhealthy food and a lack of exercise, which help explain the high number of overweight and obese people in the country. A poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle have the potential to cause many disorders such as spine & joint problems, hypertension, diabetes and strokes – many of which Dr Choi treats using chiropractic.

Chiropractic is a system of therapy based on the theory that the state of a person’s health is generally determined by the condition of their nervous system. Treatment mostly involves the mechanical manipulation of the spinal column and some chiropractors also employ radiology for diagnosis and use physiotherapy as well as diet. Practitioners in this field place great emphasis on treating the cause of medical problems without the use of drugs or surgery.

In his attempt to help members of the public avoid the main cause of their ailments, Dr Choi recommends applying the discoveries of Yoshinori Ohsumi into our daily lives. Ohsumi was awarded the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy - a fundamental process for degrading and recycling cellular components.

According to a press release published by The Nobel Assembly at KarolinskaInstitutet in October 2016, Ohsumi's discoveries led to a new paradigm in our understanding of how the cell recycles its content. His discoveries opened the path to understanding the fundamental importance of autophagy in many physiological processes, such as in the adaptation to starvation or response to infection.

Based on this finding, Dr Choi recommends fasting for at least 12 hours in between meals. This will then lead to a state of low calorie intake, stimulating the autophagy to become more active and help to fight infection and kill cancer cells.

Dr Choi also recommends applying the teachings of Dr Alejandro Junger who is known for his ‘21-day Clean Program’ and book entitled ‘Clean Gut’ on detoxing and cleansing the body to support our bodies to maximise their effectiveness.

According to Dr Junger, a detox program is a period of time during which one eats in a certain way and does specific things in order to create the best conditions for the body to be able to do its work of detoxification most effectively.This process involves removing toxins, e.g. avoiding processed food, restoring healthy bacteria in the gut, e.g. using natural antimicrobials like garlic and rejuvenating by making time to rest both our bodies and minds.

He adds that when we remove obstacles and restore whatever was lacking, everything corrects by itself; our bodies have all the information and ability needed to not only repair damage, but regenerate parts and revitalize itself, and if the conditions are optimal, even to rejuvenate itself.

Dr Choi thus urges members of the public to change their lifestyles beginning with a detox treatment which he also offers at his clinic to help cleanse the intestine and blood. After cleansing, he strongly advises people to be more conscious of what they eat, control their portions of food, engage in at least 30 minutes of aerobics exercise/physical activity daily and include a regular relaxation technique such as meditation.

He concludes by reminding us that Hippocrates, an ancient Greek physician once said that “all disease begins in the gut”.

References: Nobel Prize; MindBodyGreen