Reflex Zones

Because of the tight network of energy channels within the body, there is a direct connection between our skin, organs and hormonal glands. Specific areas of our skin over our entire body are where specific organs or hormonal glands reflect their condition. They are the reflex zones for the organs, glands, and their corresponding functions.

Many people are aware of or have experienced reflexology in the form of a foot treatment. A reflexology-trained therapist can gently press areas on the bottom of your foot with great results of both relaxation, energy balancing and healing, but few people know that the same can be achieved by working on other parts of the body that are reflex zones as well.

Is particularly convenient since it is a place that regroups all major energies. The holistically aesthetician, and most especially one trained by Phytobiodermie, will analyze your skin and its conditions in a refreshingly new and entirely holistic way.

The additional benefits of reflexology can be included while doing a facial. It is how the energetic root-cause of many skin conditions can be addressed.

True Healing

Full wellness is not simply an absence of disease. It is a state of balance with an alignment of the hierarchy of our various selves according to our own sense of what constitutes our real and complete self. It is the result of a conscious awareness. 

All healings involve this realignment. A patient relying only on exterior factors to heal such as doctor and drugs will not improve as rapidly and as well as one who takes responsibility for her healing while simultaneously following a medical treatment. It is well to be mindful that, at all stages, before, during, and after an illness, our lifestyle and state of consciousness are factors that influence our health, well-being, and beauty.

Living from and with thoughts and emotions that emanate from our lower self generates energy that negatively affect our balance. They can also affect others around us. Conversely, when our thoughts and emotions are positive, wholesome, generous and forgiving — stemming from our higher self — generate energies that are not only beneficial to our own balance and health but also for others around us. For this reason, anyone working in a spa with a healing mission, as broadly defined as it might be, needs to be conscious of their energy, not only relative to their own well-being, but also for their impact on colleagues and clients. Self-rebalancing — physically, emotionally, mentally, and even spiritually — is very much a requirement for spa professionals if they wish to contribute to the renewal and rebalancing of their clients. This is the reason why the vocation of spa professional is such a high one when it is fully embraced.

The spas of the future will grossly fall into two categories: the traditional medical spa offering the quick-fix with invasive approaches, and the new generation of vital energy focused spas whose mission will be to renew and rejuvenate through balancing vital energy. Their treatments and other modalities will improve the mind-body realignment. For an increasing number of customers, an elite number of spas will offer more progressive and fully integrated approaches to achieving a fuller spirit-mind-body realignment. They will assume a life-coaching role and become teaching centers as well as places to practice and receive deep healing treatments.  Then beauty will naturally follow wellness — physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual — as health made visible!

The Eye Area–The First to Show Signs of Aging

The eye area is a sensitive one where signs of age manifest early. Not surprisingly, it is a very active energetic area with three meridians near the eye (bladder, stomach and gallbladder) and three meridians that end nearby (triple warmer, small intestine and large intestine). While product-only treatments can help, adding the energetic work of rebalancing all six meridians on each side is important. 

This can be very effectively accomplished by directing the color of light corresponding to each meridian to the area with Phytobiodermie's Biostimulateur™ in toning mode on all points. This energetic treatment is as good as it can get as a non-invasive and holistic treatment.

The eye-cup, a flat small glass cup used with the Biodraineur™ (drainage machine) is selected to darin the fluids around the eyes and to flatten away the small lines. There might be puffiness or dark circles under the eyes. This is a kidney reflex zone. Puffiness points to an excess of kidney energy and dark circles to a lack.

The Biostimulateur,™ thanks to its unique "disperse" and "tone" modes, is very useful in dispersing the excess of kidney energy or in toning the lack of it. It is done with the soft vibrations of the machine module tip in light contact with the skin while it is gently moved over the area. 

If It Is Good For Your Health, It Is Good For Your Skin!

Meditation can be practiced in a number of different ways...

Although it is a regular discipline for many spiritually motivated people, it can also be used in stress management, relaxation and generally, in most forms of self-healing.

Many progressive hospitals teach their patients some meditative practice because they have documented the related physical and emotional benefits.

If it is good for your health, it is good for your skin!

Our periods of mediation are antidotes to stress. They should result in a sense of calm and peace within our very core.

Anger: Potentially Just As Harmful As Viruses

Energy medicines are well aware of the facts that while we might breathe or ingest toxic substances our bodies can also be poisoned slowly but surely by our negative emotions. For that reason, we need to accept responsibility for our state of mind.

This conscious action is a major step toward wellness (physical and emotional health). 

Modern life is a constant source of stress–a permanent attack on our system.

While we might frequently live through a wide range of emotions, any negative emotion maintained for prolonged periods of time are just as harmful as viruses. Our livers can be just as poisoned by anger as by harmful eating and drinking habits.

Become conscious of your state of mind and practice getting away from negative emotions. A walk in the park, a talk with a good friend, or listening to soothing music are healing activities. 

Also consider some form of meditation. Many spas today even offer emotional detox programs.

Cleanse!

Eating the right food and exercising aren't all that are required to achieve and maintain ultimate vitality. Our intake of nutrients needs to be assimilated to become useful to the body and its waste must be eliminated. Unfortunately, a certain amount of what we eat might not get digested. It's frightening to think that undigested food stays in our gut and slowly putrefies as it accumulates! It clutters the system and reduces our ability to assimilate and to eliminate properly.

All this contributes to poor skin condition and will likely affect our body shape in addition to our health.

The term 'colon' is often used as a synonym for the large intestine. More properly, it is a part of the large intestine and ends at the anus. Burton Goldberg Group's Alternative Medicine Guide states:

"The colon along with the skin, kidneys and lungs, is a major organ for eliminating body waste."

This awareness points to the need to pay attention to the way your body eliminates and not simply focus on how to nourish it.

The older we get, the more we need internal cleansing. It is logical to start with the part of the system closest to the exit. Any blockage in the colon area will affect the elimination capacity of any other organ involved in assimilation and elimination. There is a variety of ways to flush the colon. They are worth reviewing with a naturopath. Some of those ways, such as a colonic irrigation, are offered at some wellness centers.

Other organs like the liver and gallbladder also benefit from periodic flushes. They can be simply induced by taking natural products over a short period of time. They are best done during the energetic season corresponding to the energy of the organs. For example, it would be during the spring (Wood element) for liver and gallbladder. In general, the best period for a colonic flush is the energetic fall because the large intestine belongs to the Metal element.

Some people recommend fasting as a means to achieve a general internal cleanse. That is best done according to the guidance of a trained practitioner. Certain spas and wellness centers specialize in cleansing cures of three to seven days or more. 

For more on this subject, consult The Detox Diet by Elson M. Haas, MD

Vital Nutrition Is Not Only Making the Right Choice of Food–It is HOW We Choose to Eat It

There is the danger of eliminating the vital and nutritional qualities of food in the cooking process. For many types of food, cooking improves the taste and the taste becomes the driving force in our practice of food prep. As a result, we lose track of our other objective–proper and vital nutrition.

In many cases, it is best to eat raw food. In others, we can improve texture and taste by breaking down rough fiber with a blender. High powered blenders are best. They allow for the preparation of tasteful smoothies mixing many different food elements. By making smoothies, we can add pleasant tasting food with what we need that might not necessarily be pleasant tasting.

If you're going to cook, use low heat because it does not substantially alter nutrients–in particular, necessary enzymes. High heat such as broiling, barbecuing and deep fat frying are medically recognized as dangerous. Worst is food cooked in a microwave oven because it so deeply modifies the molecular structure of food and beverages.

Symphony of Interdependence

The energies of the five seasons affect all things including your body and skin conditions. The workings of the five elements became the subject of a very detailed Law of the Five Elements with application to every domain. In the Western world that "law" is more skeptically referred to as the Theory of the Five Elements or Five Phases.

"In Taoist thought, the Five Elements are more than basic constituents of nature; they are aspects of the whole that a describe the energetic laws that govern both Nature and humans. Most important, they are specific adaptive and transformative attributes of the cycle of qi energy that defines the physical, emotional and spiritual state of the individual." (Moss 20)

J. R. Worsley (1923-2003), credited with bringing Five Element Acupuncture to the West said, "Every living thing and person is a unique embodiment and combination of the Five Elements."

The Five Elements are interdependent in each person, uniquely, including the movement of chi (qi) energy from the moment of birth to the moment of death, from sunrise to sundown and all through the night, and throughout the seasons of the year. In this symphony of interdependence, each person is able to meet (or not depending on the level of balance in this interdependence) his or her life challenges on a daily basis.

Moss, Charles A. Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance. Berkeley: North Atlantic, 2010. Print.

Roots of TCM (What is TCM, Anyway?)

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has ancient roots and evolved during an era when the metaphysical beliefs of Taoism prevailed in China and therefore it was influenced by Taoist beliefs and related cultural implications.

Taoists believed that to live harmoniously, man needs to be in accord with the energetic laws of nature. They saw a strong parallel between the cycles of nature (the days and the seasons) and the life cycle of man.

They also believed that man functions as a small individual ecosystem within a large cosmic ecosystem. The Taoism symbol is the well-known Yin and Yang shapes that together form a perfect circle, a symbol of eternal harmony.

As TCM involved, it came to include acupuncture, reflexology, herbal prescriptions, dietary principles, massage, and specific exercises such as tai chi, a gentle form of martial arts sometimes called shadowboxing.

Traders, missionaries and diplomats who visited Asia, particularly during the 18th and 19th centuries, returned home with reports of these classical practices. During the 19th century, waves of Chinese immigrants to the United States and Europe brought these traditions to their new countries and Westerners began to notice their positive results.

France and Great Britain, particularly, became well-informed of traditional Chinese medicine principles as a result of their colonial excursions during this period, yet it was not until the late 1970s, when Pres. Nixon opened diplomatic and cultural relations with Communist China, that the United States medical community became exposed to TCM. In the meantime, well aware of the benefits of energy medicines, Europeans were getting reimbursed by their Social Security and health insurance for such treatments.

Far Eastern concepts of vital energy are now getting broader recognition in North America as reflected by the popularity of acupuncture, herbal medicines, therapeutic exercise such as tai chi, yoga, and the more frequent Ayurvedic treatments in spas. The spa industry's continued exploration of new therapies for wellness and skincare creates renewed possibilities for TCM to flourish in aesthetics and wellness.

Take advantage of spas and wellness clinics offering TCM therapies. The higher the demand for such time-tested and proven therapies, the greater the opportunity the American healthcare system will eventually come to embrace it.

Strive for Balance

What is the definition of a 'state of health?' The notion of balance is helpful in formulating a conceptual answer.

Balance is a state of stability but it does not imply a static condition like a table resting on four legs. It refers to the capacity of a moving or flexible item or of a person to sustain a moving force or disturbance, and to return to its initial state in balance as would a swing or hanging pendulum.

A reed pushed by the wind returns to its normal position when the wind stops. An athletic individual might trip and quickly regain balance whereas someone with poor balance would fall down and get hurt. Health requires balance — the ability to deflect or avoid an attack and promptly return to normal and full health. The medical term for a state of physiological equilibrium resulting from a balance of all functions is 'homeostasis.' So long as this mechanism takes place naturally as intended, we are healthy even if temporarily one feels the weight of a short-lived attack.

Clearly, some people have better genes than others. They are naturally more resilient. But your good genes alone are not enough. Lifestyle choices are a major contributor to our physical, emotional, and mental condition. In combination, they cause us to be more or less healthy.

Getting sick is not simply a factor of touching, ingesting, or breathing a disease-causing agent. Non-physical causes can also generate diseases. You have likely experienced the relationship between excess of worry and stomach aches, for example, which occurs without any outside agent. It is strictly a cause-and-effect process. The many forms of stress from modern life can affect our immune system and reduce our natural defenses.

Eat More Perfectly

There is also an approach to nutrition according to the Traditional Chinese Five Elements. That is the basis for such a program as FoodScan created by the German company Medprevent® whose approach is complementary to the Phytobiodermie™ method. The work of Dr. Haas whose book, Staying Healthy with the Seasons, is in total harmony with the Phytobiodermie™ approach. 

From an energetic point of view, it is good to remember that food releases energy during the metabolism process. Both the quantity and the quality of energy matter. Food contributes to the vital energy that we need, but that energy comes with a certain bulk that needs both energy and oxygen to process. It is advisable to eat what is energetically rich (natural nutrients) with limited bulk and to avoid what is abundant in bulk but limited in energy. In that respect, the model of good food is a genuine farm egg that is free of added antibiotics and hormones. It represents great concentration of nutrients for a small volume. The worst is any bulky food heated in the microwave oven that kills all the nutrients and remains void of vital energy. Many people have a bulk-rich diet void of nutrients and vital energy. As a result, they remain hungry and eat more bulk that eventually accumulates in the body. It is a vicious cycle. It is one of the real issues in the American diet, yet few people speak about it in those terms because the politically powerful food industry is more about bulk than nutrition.

Beauty: Don't Make it an Obsession, Make it a Philosophie

What is health–physical, emotional and mental health? How can they be truly achieved?

Linked to health, beauty the natural way, necessarily becomes a matter of overall lifestyle. As an objective, achieving natural beauty can become a positive driving force in one’s life.

As we better understand the interrelationship of all that is at work in looking and feeling good, we develop a greater desire to ensure that anything that can be destructive to our purpose is removed and preferably replaced by something that contributes to our wellness.

Then beauty becomes not an obsession unto itself, but a real philosophy of life. This philosophy of life also pays attention to practical telltale signs which manifest in the physical body and challenge us in our drive to achieve our full potential within the natural cycle of life.

Real, Not Mainstream–Nutritional Wisdom

Just a certain essential oils are potent energetic tools for Phyto 5™ topical products, phytochemicals are essential tools to include in our diet for the special properties they offer in promoting wellness, vitality, and the immune system.

Unfortunately, phytochemicals have not yet received proper attention and mainstream nutritional wisdom is that phytochemicals are "non-nutritive plant chemicals." A major website describes these natural chemicals as "non-essential nutrients and not required by the human body for sustaining life." What is most ironic is that the same website goes on to list what it calls "some of the possible attributes" of phytochemicals to include: 

• richness of antioxidants
• reduced risk of cardiovascular disease
• reduced risk of breast cancer
• prevention of the multiplication of cancer cells
• antibacterial properties
• reduction of menopausal symptoms and osteoporosis

The list above is partial but it makes the case that many people would benefit from a regular and sufficient intake of these plant and fruit chemicals. We are told that they are part of the plants and fruit found in a proper diet providing five to nine daily servings of vegetables and fruit. But the tragedy is that we are not told where the desirable chemicals are located, and, in most instances, they are exactly in the parts we discard such as the white soluble cellulose around the grapefruit or the stems of broccoli and of certain leafy vegetables. Unless we are mindful of what we need and of where we can find it, it is not likely that we will avail ourselves of the energy and nutrients that are necessary to our harmonious functioning!

When to Eat What

Energetic quality of food is either or yang. Meat is more yang then vegetables.  Red meat is the most Yang. Veal and pork are more yin. Poultry is the most yin of meat, although some fish such as tuna is quite yang. Fish is more yin than meat.

Vegetables that grow in the ground such as potatoes and beets are more yang than leafy vegetables. It is recommended to eat cooling or yin food during the strong yang season of summer and to eat yang food during the strong yin season of winter. Makes more sense to have a steak and mashed potatoes in the winter then on a hot summer day when salads and fruit are more appropriate.

It is always recommended to eat the food of the season because they are in balance with the energy of that season. The color of fruit and vegetables is often used as a telltale sign of when it is best to eat them. For example, yellow fruit and vegetables are recommended during the transitional Earth season (the period of 18 days between seasons as we will see in later blogs) while a red tomato is preferred during the summer, the Fire season. 

What the Body Needs

Exercise does not need to be strenuous but we do need two types of exercise: stretching and cardiovascular.

Most health clubs have guidelines on how to properly stretch and how to achieve the proper increase in the cardiac rhythm according to age and physical condition.

For most people, 20 to 30 minutes of accelerated breathing three times a week is quite sufficient. During that time, the breathing will be made deeper to completely empty out the lungs and fully renew their oxygen content. Lack of frequent and deep breathing causes parts of the lungs and a myriad of the lung alveolus to remain collapsed.

Experts point to the need for breathing from the abdomen and not simply from the top of the lungs. This action helps the movement of the diaphragm, the largest muscle in the body, that acts as a major pump for the movement of lymph and of water throughout the body.

Exercising in general, and stretching in particular, sponsor the movement of vital energy throughout the body, accelerating the flow of blood that brings necessary nutrients to all cells. It also stimulates the process of elimination of waste within cells and tissues, yet one can also over-exercise and create a whole new set of stressors–physical and psychological.

It is good to remember that we generate more internal energy as we exercise, but depending on the type of exercise, we might also expend a large amount of energy leaving us depleted at the end of our session. The goal is to build up energy while exspending as little as possible. In that respect, low impact and moderately intensive cardiovascular exercises are superior forms of wellness enhancement. As always with vital energy, balance is important.

Mindful exercising connects intention to action. It is important because energy follows our intention, therefore we can redirect it. Yoga, qi gong, and tai chi are known for their focus on the coordination of movement and breast with intention and awareness. There are many other activities that can be performed with conscious focus, from golf to simply walking upstairs.

All this is contrary to the frequent practice of mechanically performing exercises while listening to music or watching television in an attempt to distract the mind from repetitive and boring movements.

Eat According to Your Body Type

People are now aware that fast foods are generally bad for their health and that consumption of fried food should be kept to a minimum. There are many slimming diets on the market, but too often they are not balanced meals for proper ongoing nutrition.

We are all very different physically and so are our nutritional needs. It makes sense to try to find an approach that is adapted to you rather than following government sponsored guidelines that are flawed because they treat everyone as if they were made by the same widget factory. In this regard, the concept of Dr. Peter J. D'Adamo, outlined in his book, Eating Right for Your Type, makes sense as it recognizes our differences based on our blood type (one of four) corresponding to different metabolic capabilities and, consequently, different nutritional needs.

Ayurveda also teaches nutrition according to the three doshas (energetic types known as Pitta, Vata and Kapha) also illustrating the need to adapt to our specific composition or dominating energies. This is the subject of the book, Conscious Eating, by Gabriel Couzens, MD. Another interesting book is Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, PhD. It challenges in an informed and documented way all the governmental and quasi-governmental agencies more keen on defending the interests of powerful corporate lobbies them promoting the well-being of Americans.

Quality of Nutrients = Quality of Life

In addition to the quality of air we breathe, both the water we drink and the food we consume are critical to our health and our beauty, body shape, and skin condition. While most people know that what they eat affects their body shape, few are aware of the effects of their nutrition has on their skin condition.

The body is a thermal machine. It needs fuel to function. In addition to the oxygen necessary to combustion, there is a need to feed the machine a certain amount of daily calories according to our activities and age. But unlike a regular furnace, it needs more than simply a caloric input. It requires a variety of foods as a source for the large amount of nutrients required for the proper functioning of the human body. Unfortunately, not only are most commercially grown foods void of nutrients, they have generally been treated with chemicals that are bad for our health.

Why all higher quality and organically grown food has become more available due to a growing demand, it is also more costly, yet the increase in the food budget will be more than compensated by the lesser need for doctor visits and medical drugs. Unfortunately, many organic and healthy food stores that carry wholesome foods also carry a lot of commercially grown food at higher prices than in other stores. It seems that upon entering a health food store, the customer lets his or her guard down and some retailers take advantage of this weakness.

In addition to food void of nutrients, our air is often polluted and so is our water. This dreadful reality in many parts of the nation and the world forces us to make a conscious effort if we wish to improve the quality of our water and food. We should drink an ample amount of water. Eight glasses of water a day is recommended so long as it is good quality water which is not always the case even with bottled water. Therefore, the use of appropriate filters on our drinking and cooking water source is an excellent improvement. Even the water used to bathe and shower affects our skin. Have your home water analyzed. It might need to be filtered and naturally treated. An important consideration is the pH of your water. Too many brands of bottled water have an acidic pH (lower than 7) as do sodas (as low as 4). Since our body needs to be slightly alkaline, overly acidic foods and drinks contribute to ill health and premature aging. Tap water is usually at the right pH by law, but it often has other undesirable chemicals.

Light: Raw Material for Human Life

Light is energy and can be thought of as "raw material" for human life and most living organisms. It behaves as a vibration and it radiates. Light propagates through space in the same fashion as AM or FM radio waves and any other electromagnetic radiations. All radiations are characterized by their wavelength and consequently, their frequency. White light naturally divides in seven colors as we can observe on a well-formed rainbow.

Each of the seven colors includes, and is constituted by, a range of wavelengths — not a single wavelength. Wavelengths are measured in nanometers. A nanometer (nm) is one billionth of a meter (a meter is a little more than three feet). Radiation from the visible spectrum are contained between 380 nm and 780 nm. Before 380 nm, there is the ultraviolet range and beyond 780 manometers, there is the infrared range.

To eliminate any potential dangers to clients as well as to therapists, Phytobiodermie light equipment has filters to eliminate any frequencies that exceed the visible spectrum, namely, infrared and ultraviolets. At the same time, Phytobiodermie equipment faithfully offers the basic seven colors of the rainbow with their full complement of frequencies. It also offers additional colors such as pink and turquoise for their specific beneficial properties.

Beauty–The Natural Way

What is health — physical, emotional, and mental?

How can it be achieved?

Very much linked to health, beauty, the natural way, necessarily becomes a matter of overall lifestyle. As an objective, it can become a positive driving force in one's life.

As we better understand the interrelationship of all that is at work as we strive to look and feel good, there is a greater desire to ensure that anything that can be destructive to our purpose is removed, preferably replaced by something that contributes to our wellness. Then beauty becomes not an obsession unto itself but a philosophy of life that also pays attention to practical telltale signs of where we stand in achieving our potential within the natural cycle of life.

Since the human body is not only fluids and solids but also vital energy, it stands to reason that we should keep our bodies in energetic balance to ensure a proper flow of energy that allows our body to function at its highest potential and even to heal itself when necessary. Just as we regularly go to the dentist, to the hairdresser or to the barber, we should have a routine of energy balancing treatments. That is why the Phytobiodermie face and body treatments are so desirable as they combined the usual facial or body work even pampering with energy balancing.

The Language of the Skin

It is interesting that doctors in naturopathy — therapies that rely entirely on natural remedies – and other medical professionals increasingly seem to share an enhanced view concerning the importance of the skin.

It seems that when the embryo goes through the process of separation of tissues, as tissues start their specialization, tissues that form the envelope of the body come from the same ones that specialize as the nervous system and the brain. 

Because of the way the skin reacts to what occurs both inside and outside the body, some holistic practitioner see the skin as a sort of external brain, capable of providing a large amount of psychosomatic information. Indeed, not only are physical factors manifested on the skin but emotional ones as well.

The skin is equally affected by our physical health and our emotional and mental states, therefore we can view our skin is more than simply a covering that needs cleansing and moisturizing! It is a vital organ with the gift of silent and intelligent communication. It is most useful to pay attention and learn the language of the skin, not only to look better but also to improve our overall state of wellness. 

The Yin and Yang of Body Shapes

According to the Five Elements Theory, all body shapes fall into one of five categories. There is a simplified approach limited to the interaction of Yin and Yang energies within our body.

 A schematic representation is useful. Yang is represented by an equilateral triangle (all sides are equal), standing not on its base but on the opposite angle. Conversely, Yin is represented by an equilateral triangle standing on its base.

Upside down triangle: dominating Yang energy. It favors the development of the upper part of the body at the expense of the lower parts (big shoulders and skinny legs).



The triangle resting on its base: dominating Yin energy. It favors the development of the lower part of the body at the expense of the upper part.




A rectangle standing on its smaller side: balance of Yin and Yang.




Two triangles joined at the opposing angles with their base both at the bottom and at the top: strong Yang on the upper part of the body with strong Yin at the lower part of the body creating a constriction in the midsection.  It results in insufficient energy for asimilation and elimination with all the attendant health and skin problems that this condition generates.



Two triangles joined at the base with opposing angles both at the top and the bottom: limited development of legs and shoulders with strong development of midsection. It points to an overactive assimilation and elimination but weak regenerating function.



This schematic information easily derived from observation is to be used in addition to the knowledge obtained concerning the five types of body shapes.