What does it mean to “fix your terrain?”
Ever wondered what it means when one of your providers says that we need to “fix your terrain?” In naturopathic medicine, we look at the body as the terrain for someone’s health and wellness. My yoga teacher has been teaching us that you have to build a strong foundation first before you can begin to explore deeper and more advanced poses, such as handstands, crow, or the splits. Going directly into these positions with no strength, flexibility, or experience would likely leave you injured. Another example is framing a house before having a firm foundation to build it on, or building the second story before you have built the first.
In the same way, we must prepare the body for treatment before we can address the underlying causes of illness or disease, such as chronic infections or toxins. Otherwise, if we start killing pathogens and eradicating toxins before your body is optimized and ready, you will likely end up sicker than you began.
This curtails into the Germ Theory versus Terrain Theory debate. The germ theory, established in 1867-68 by Louis Pasteur, posits that all disease is caused by “germs,” i.e. bacteria and viruses, and that these pathogens are infectious and passed from one person to the next. This led to the development of antibiotics, like penicillin, as well as vaccines. If you address the bug, then you can restore health. However, one must ask, “why did some children in the 1800s die from fever and infection and others did not?” This would suggest that there were other factors at play, such as genetics, economics, environment, and perhaps the “terrain” of the host.
The Terrain Theory, which is the theory more naturopathic doctors and functional medicine practitioners believe, focuses on the body’s reaction to the germ rather than the germ as the cause of disease. Dr. Shackelton wrote about this in a previous blog called Germ vs Resiliency, in which she demonstrates how “we become susceptible, and then, an exposure to a germ causes infection.” Terrain theory explains how several people can get exposed to the same pathogen or toxin, yet not everyone in the group will have the same reaction or get sick. It also believes that microorganisms are already inside of us, but it is a change in our internal environment that causes them to go haywire and create symptoms or disease.
That internal shift is most often caused by toxins. Toxins damage tissues, and in response, microorganisms are able to morph into pathogenic, or disease-causing organisms. This is why avoiding toxins as much as possible is the first step to a healthy body (check out Dr. Shackelton’s new book that dives deeper into this topic). This is also why foundational medicine prioritizes getting the environment or terrain of the body ready to heal before starting treatment. We need to make the body a place where bacteria, parasites, and viruses have no opportunity to take hold and cause disease.
We do this by optimizing the following:
1. Mitochondria
2. Drainage pathways
3. Immune system
4. Microbiome
Mitochondria are the powerhouse of our cells and what drives energy and helps us heal. It is often mitochondrial dysfunction that leads to fatigue and autoimmune conditions. Drainage pathways include our liver, kidneys, lungs, skin, gut, and lymphatic system. They help us get rid of toxic waste and bacterial or viral debris. No one should ever detox unless they’re pooping daily 2-3 times a day, for example. And of course, our immune system is key for helping us fight infection and recover.
We have found a protocol that does all of the above in one of the simplest, most effective ways we’ve seen, and we are seeing incredible results in our patients, from those who have battled recurrent SIBO and candida to those who have tried every pharmaceutical possible for ulcerative colitis and only found relief with this protocol. Cell Core is a company founded on the premise of the Terrain Theory, and their supplements are based on carbon technology so nutrients are better able to get directly into the cells. They recommend a four-month Foundational Protocol (sometimes 6-9 months in more severe cases) that is good for almost everyone, whether you are currently battling a condition or not. I am personally on month three of the protocol, and my gut is feeling the best it has felt in three years of treating dysbiosis and leaky gut.
The first month of Cell Core Biosciences Foundational Protocol includes:
BC-ATP
K-L Support
Biotoxin Binder
CT Minerals
These four products support mitochondria and open up drainage pathways, which you will continue to do throughout the protocol. It is important that the protocol is followed in a systematic way, as each step goes deeper and deeper into the tissues to allow more and more chemicals, toxins, and pathogens to be eliminated from the body.
Stay tuned for our next blog which will talk about each phase of the protocol and how it helps to restore your body to optimal health and functions.
