If someone offered you the answer to a long and healthy life would you jump at the chance to find out what that was? What does it take to be really healthy? Is it purely genetic? Is it lifestyle? How do I age gracefully? Is it taking enough of your cholesterol medication as our drug companies would have you believe? Is the answer to good health a better medicare drug system? Or is it something else?

From the perspective of Chinese medicine if you live a balanced life, you will have good health. Balance involves several elements.

First is genetics. The kidneys rule the essence or "Jing", the energy you are born with. It includes what your parents were doing when they conceived you, how healthy they are, and how your birth went.

Second is how you spend your life energy or bank account. Moderation is the key to good health. If you overdo food, exercise, sex, alcohol, work, or pleasure, you will deplete your essence. Depending on how much energy you are born with, you have varying degrees of leeway with this. Some people have a greater tolerance for alcohol than others.

Third is emotions. In Chinese medicine, every organ system is ruled by an emotional and spiritual function. All disease is believed to come from one of two places. It is either from inside the body or outside. If it comes from outside, it is usually some form of trauma or infection. If you got your disease from inside, it is ultimately due to an emotional imbalance. For example, the liver rules the emotion of anger. Its spiritual function is the need to get things done. Most Americans are obsessed with getting things done. We could say that control issues stem from this. The liver is also the organ that deals with stress. Liver imbalance leads to migraines, menstrual problems, strokes, high blood pressure, and even allergies.

Balance is different for each person. Since good health is my life's mission, I have given this subject much thought. After over twenty years of seeing thousands of patients my best conclusion is that it is based on a 20/30/50 formula. Twenty percent is derived from various medical type treatments. This would include seeing your doctor for medications and test, and other modalities such as acupuncture or chiropractic. Thirty percent is from a healthy lifestyle-such as the food you eat, exercise, vitamins and supplements. Fifty percent has to do with "other" things such as emotional and spiritual awareness. This is the part that is not always apparent. Sometimes an illness occurs because you have to clear an emotion you've been holding in for a long time. Other times, an emotion such as anger can be the cause of high blood pressure. Acknowledging the existence of the fifty percent can help you heal a problem that seems to have no answer.