Recently adopted foreign cultures and subsequent lifestyles are firmly major contributory factors to the state of our national health presently. In policy, the over liberalised and unbalanced trade is not in our favor. Priority national attention must be expended in this direction. A healthy nation is a wealthy nation. The second phase of the independence revolution, economic freedom, cannot succeed without a healthy populace. Ill health is not only unproductive, it is economically retrogressive through the drain of unaffordable cost of Medicare.

National Geographic is a great program when nature is to be studied and understood. Animals are programmed creatures, unlike human beings who have the authority of self-direction. First, animals hardly eat outside their environment. Secondly and equally important, they eat and live consistently according to their natural disposition, as much as possible. All their health care needs are also naturally within their environment.

In as much as we are human and cannot strictly be isolated, we must endeavor to be culturally biased as we possibly can, for a good health balance. There is obviously a certain degree of disequilibrium in having imported lifestyles, particularly food and medicine. With the current system of unfair and over liberalised trade, the foreign hegemonies are largely in their natural disposition. This results in abundant economic returns of trade balance coupled with good health care for their populace. Unacceptably and sadly, the opposite is our portion. A domesticated lion can never be as strong as in the wild.

Real health and healing comes from the green world. It is in plants that we find sustainable health. The natural herbs and food is what was made for the well-being of man by nature. This is simply scientific. It is also true in biblical and koranic reference for guidance. Needless to state, same is true and a major component of African Traditional Religion.

Man is a natural being. Common sense follows that we function at optimal level with natural order of culture. Intake of chemically processed food must be limited to the barest minimum. It is also critically important that extreme chemically processed medication must be avoided as much as possible. This is because at the time of medical consumption, the patient already has a weakened health system. The chemically processed medication have a heavy dosage of toxins which further and easily weakens the already weak system of the patient. Among patients who die, a great number result from heavy dosage cum mixture of chemicals which in unhealthy balance, easily turns to poison.

Even in the general unhealthy habit of smoking, natural tobacco and cigars are healthier than chemically processed tobacco. The major health issue in this case largely borders on chemical additives through the processing. Again the human body being a natural system, must as much as possible, be serviced naturally. The same equation of natural and chemically processed dimension goes for alcohol. For example, natural and beautifully exotic Palm Wine is absolutely healthy, viz a viz other chemically processed brands of alcoholic beverages. There is nothing like early Saturday morning palm wine straight from the tapping pot. Nature indeed, is beyond imaginative goodness.

The major argument against herbal medicine is dosage levels. This argument is however flawed from a start. Herbal medicine, like natural food, lacks the chemicals of processed or orthodox medicine. It is this extreme chemicals that turn into poison when consumed in great and unhealthy mix of quantities. We must however, concede a great deal of work needs to be done on packaging herbal medicine. Though a difficult task, it is achievable. The Asian countries have attained similar feats. We must do same.

It is the herbs of the green world that has provided health and healing, adequately for thousands of years. We abandon it to our own peril. We can only improve its general packaging for the health and economic benefits of our people. Our restorative powers are in the green world. Many more Mampong Herbal and Scientific Research Centers must be set up, just as programmed under the government of the First Republic. Forward ever! Nkunim woho mayen!! God bless Africa!!!

Author: Yaw Nkunim
Sculptor, Writer, Concept Developer and
CPP Member