For more than 500 years, Oriental Philosophers have been using the extraordinary principle of acid/alkaline to explain how the universe works. In healing, as in all aspects of life, this simple, accurate universal Law provides some answers to apparently mysterious conditions such as cancer, chronic fatigue syndrome and candidiasis.
Ancient philosophers and healers observed that there are opposing forces in nature always seeking a balance. These opposing forces are not simply forces against one another, but are actually two parts of one whole. For example, male and female appear to be opposites, yet they really are extremes along the continuum of sexuality. “Maleness” is understood more clearly when compared with “femaleness”. Left is better, understood in relation to right. Up helps us explain what down is.
While these forces appear to be opposites or even antagonistic forces, they really are complementary. For example, left complements right, since knowledge of left and right allows us to navigate and explore. Most of us would agree that male complements female and vice versa.
When you combine any two complementary opposites, you can arrive at an ideal or a balance. For example, hot and cold create warmth.
The expansion/contraction principle is useful in understanding energy or ki (life force within our bodies). Contracting energy or ki is stored energy, while expanding energy is released energy. Contracting energy is closed and tight, while expanding energy is open, relaxed and active. Expanding energy has a fiery nature, while contracting energy is like the nature of water, yielding, accepting but persistent.
The contracting force is soft, dark, surrendering and intuitive in nature. Expansion indicates strength, brightness and intense, forceful, potent energy as in the energy of the sun.
It might be useful to point out here that extremes of contracting or expansion ki are not ideal energy states when we are looking at the energy of our body. The ideal is the balance or mid-point of the two. When we feel calmly centered and truly strong.
Illness, therefore, is either extremely constrictive, closed and tightened energy or extremely expansive, kinetic, nervous, uncomfortably intense energy. Candida itself is rapidly growing, expanding fungus that thrives in the impure, dark, moist, contracted areas of the body.
To stop or heal this condition we must stop the growth of this aggressive fungus by withholding the food it needs and simultaneously change the imbalance, weakened state of immune system to a positive, energetic one. Eating appropriate foods is vital, because foods, too, are classified according to expansion/contraction principle.
How The Expansion/Contraction Principle After The Food We Eat
Some foods, such as salt, causes a contraction phenomenon within the body. Salt induces contraction of the cellular fluids. Too much salt can cause dehydration or extreme loss of bodily fluid. When we eat salt, especially, too much salt, we become thirsty. You have probably experienced this at a movie theater, if you have eaten the usual overly-salted popcorn and become very thirsty.
Foods with salt inside them, such as animal foods and salty cheese, also, produce contracting effect. Therefore, beef, pork, lamb, poultry, eggs and fish are contracting foods. When we eat them, we feel more uptight or closed. A diet high in these foods can cause constipation.
Some foods, such as sugar, causes expansion to take place within the body. The blood stream quickly absorbs sugar and produces energy. If you notice that you are feeling too contracted, you also, might observe that you are beginning to crave something expansive with sugar in it, to help you relax or feel more open. All foods with sugar in them fruits, most dairy products, sweeten pastries, candy are expanding foods.
The body system diet will take care of the body. Some foods are naturally balanced and you will want to eat them often.
Besides sugar, note that alcohol, coffee and drugs have an expanding effect. When consumed in excess, they cause too much expansion and you can feel “spaced out”, confused and unfocused.
Since a healthy body always thrive towards balance, too much expanding food creates a craving for contracting food and vice versa. For example, if you eat too much salt or animal food, you will crave sweets to make a balance. Eating this way, puts your body on an undesirable seesaw. Its best to eat foods in the middle of the expansive/contraction see the chart.
The Expansion/Contraction Continuum
Illness is either extremely constrictive, closed and tightened energy or extreme expansive kinetic, nervous, uncomfortably intense energy.
Drugs
Alcohol The Body Ecology Diet
Sugar
Coffee Some Raw Vegetable juices
Yogurt Herbs & spices Foods that
Milk Teas are more
Raw Butter, oils, Ghee expansive
Cottage
Cheese
All other Lemons, limes, cranberries.
Fruits ______________________
Raw Vegetables & Salada The Foods
Green vegetables This chart
Soaked & Sprouted almonds The middle
Red skin potatoes Chart are
Ocean Vegetables the most
Winter squash balanced and
Nuts Root Vegetables the ones you
Beans B.E.D. Grains Only. The ones you eat most often.
All other
Grains as Shellfish Foods that are
Hard salty Fish
Cheese Fowl more contractive.
Beef
Eggs
Sea Salt
__________________________
The idea energy is the balance or mid-point of the two.
Salt is most contracting food, but it role has been completely being misunderstood. The ordinary table salt that most of us eat is too refined, it lacks the minerals we need and has harmful effects on the body. High quality sea salt, however, is essential to life and has medicinal value in our diet. For example, sea salt balances the expanding nature of butter and oils.
Why we crave sweets – Humans are contracted beings we belong to the animal kingdom, so, it is our nature to seek sweet, expanding tastes in an effort to balance the contraction. New born babies, tiny contracted beings thrive on breast milk, because, it is sweet and watery, it is expanding. The sweet vegetables such as onions, carrots and butter nut squash also, satisfy our sweet taste. You will feel well nourished by these foods and no longer crave foods containing sugar.
Remember, stress causes the body to contract. This too explains why we often crave expanding foods such as candy, alcohol and even tobacco, because, in our fast-paced world, we are usually under great stress.
Whenever you eat contracting foods, it is vital to balance them with expanding foods that promote health since substances such as coffee, alcohol and sugars inhibit healing, that leaves land and ocean vegetable, high quality oil, butter, ghee and simple herbs. These are excellent healing foods, which contain all of mature’s vitamins and minerals.
Fish is the preferred animal food. Among the contracting foods, fish, ranks closest to the desirable middle area or balanced centre area of the expansion/contraction spectrum. Cold-water fish, such as turea, salmon and halibut are the healthiest to eat, avoid warm-water fish, such as orange roughly, because of the preservations used when they are caught.
The food listed within the middle area of the Expansion/Contraction Continuum, provide the most healing energy for your body. Make them the main part of your diet and when you eat outside the middle area, make sure you balance your meals.
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