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Are Your Cells Talking to Each Other?
Communication! It permeates our
lives. We communicate for many reasons such as: 1) to get what we want,
2) to get rid of what we don’t want, 3) to let people know how we feel,
4) to show people we care, 5) to work productively with co-workers, etc.
As members of the human race we are fortunate to have various ways to
communicate our needs and desires. We can talk, use body language, write
our requests or key them into the computer.
But what would happen if we spoke
one language and the intended receiver of our message spoke another
language. Or perhaps we are speaking on the phone to a friend and static
interfers so much that they only hear some of our words or we say one
word and they hear it as a different word. Perhaps we are sending our
message via computer but some of the keys are either missing or mixed
up. That could cause some confusion, right? And the more static or more
keys that are missing, the more confused the message is. On the other
hand the better we can communicate with other people, the higher level
we can function at.
Did you know that the same thing
happens in our body? Our body is designed to function at an amazing
level. When we think of how complicated our body is, of all the things
that could go wrong, and of how much actually goes right without our
even thinking about it, it is truly amazing. But why do things sometimes
go wrong?
Our body is made up of various
systems (circulatory, nervous, muscular, etc) that are made up of
organs (heart, lungs, blood vessels) that are made up of cells.
To understand the importance of communication in our body, let’s take a
look at what would happen if our body was a business.
If our body was a company, our
systems would be the various departments in the company, our organs
would be the teams of people working together within each department,
and the cells would be each individual person within the teams. The
individual people are the powerhouses of the company. If they are doing
what they are supposed to do, when and how they are supposed to, and if
they are communicating well to each other to get their individual needs
met, then the team will work well. If the teams are working well and
communicating so their needs are met, the department will work well. And
if all departments are communicating and getting their needs met, the
company is successful. But if communication brakes down at any level, it
puts the success of the company in jeopardy.
Just as people power companies, our
cells power our bodies. So what do our cells need and how do they
communicate to each other? Let’s look at their needs first. In order to
work optimally our cells require nutrients which they use to produce
energy and repair themselves. This process produces waste materials
which they must eliminate. And they must identify themselves as to what
kind of cells they are and if they are native to our body or if they are
an intruder (virus, bad bacteria, etc). Each cell is covered with
glycoproteins (much like a fuzzy ball). When our cells touch each
other these glycoproteins pass messages from one cell to another. The
glycoproteins are comprised of variations of 4 proteins and 8 essential
sugars (also called carbohydrates or saccharides).
If all glycoproteins are completely
formed (no missing sugars or proteins), the message gets passed
along intact and the needs of the cell are satisfied. However, just like
having static on the phone lines or missing keys on the computer
keyboard; if something is missing from the glycoproteins, communication
breaks down and the cell either doesn’t get what it needs or is
sabotaged by sending out a wrong message.
What happens if a cell doesn’t get
the nutrients it needs to produce energy or repair itself?
Oooh! Energy drain! Premature aging!
What happens if it‘s message to get
rid of waste material is not understood?
Ouch! Toxin build-up! Yuck!
What if it is an invading virus but
the body doesn’t know it because of faulty cell communication?
Cold? Flu? Pneumonia? _____?
What if it is in fact a native cell
that gives out a message that is interpreted by another cell that it is
an invader?
Oh-oh! The macrophages are called in to eat it up pac-man style. If
this happens frequently enough, we will eventually be diagnosed with one
of the 85 known auto-immune diseases.
Wow! Did you have any idea how
important each of your cells is (yes, all trillions of them). So how do
we keep our cells communicating? It is in the glycoproteins. If our
glycoproteins are complete and properly formed, our cells are happily
sending and receiving the right messages. Highly functioning cells make
highly functioning organs, which make highly functioning systems, which
make a highly functioning body for us. The bottom line is getting the
right nutrition so our cells can make complete and properly formed
glycoproteins.
© Jan Barosh 2004. Permission is granted to reprint this
article in print or on your web site so long as the
following paragraph is included and contact information
is provided to
http://www.janbarosh.comJan Barosh’s degree
is in health and physical education with post- graduate
work in exercise science and psychology. She is a
licensed corporate wellness coach and a certified
teleclass leader and has helped adults and children be
more healthy and fit for over 25 years. Jan has
developed a unique weight management program called
LifeWeight™ which is being taught in the US and licensed
for distribution in the UK.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jan_Barosh
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