Health 101 - Article - Knowledge is Power?

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Knowledge is Power?
by Don Bennett, DAS

Many of us have heard this expression: Knowledge is Power. To fully understand this expression, we first need to define knowledge: 1. truthful information 2. false information thought to be true. Indeed, if you possess knowledge which consists of truthful information, you're well on your way to being empowered. If, however, the knowledge you possess is untrue (as is often the case when this knowledge comes from industries and individuals that place a higher priority on profit than on people), then you may feel empowered, but in reality (where we all live), you are not. If you make decisions based on false dietary knowledge for example, you will not be empowered to make positive changes in your health, and you may very likely negatively affect your health instead.

Now that we know about the true and false aspects of knowledge, you should also know that knowledge by itself is often not enough; if you don't have an understanding of the knowledge you possess, it may be difficult if not impossible to put it into practice. And, even more importantly, if you simply accept knowledge as the gospel truth, without a proper understanding of it, there's no way to determine if the knowledge is made up of truthful information. And if it isn't, you aren't going to be the one to benefit; an industry or individual other than yourself will.

How do we acquire knowledge? 1. Passively 2. Actively. TV is an example of passively acquired knowledge. When you watch television programming, as the name implies, you are being conditioned to believe many things; some of which are untrue. Were you lied to? Probably not. Luckily for us, it's hard for an advertiser to get away with a lie. But that doesn't stop them from programming you with misinformation. Here's an example. The following was a TV commercial; it was just black text on a milky white screen: "Calcium is good for strong bones" Next screen: "Milk has plenty of calcium" Next screen: "Got milk?" Notice the dairy industry never said, "Milk is good for strong bones", because they can't, because they know it isn't, and they know they'd be taken to court in a heartbeat if they said it was, so they never say that. But this doesn't stop them from letting you draw that conclusion from the two truthful statements they did say. It's called "association". I call it "indirect lying".

If you rely on only passively acquired knowledge, your health is probably being compromised. Only actively acquired knowledge can protect you from the damaging affects of certain human's nature. If you care about your health, you'll want to actively seek out accurate health information so you can have truthful knowledge. One way is to read books. But the problem with books is, which books? There are books that admonish you to drink your own urine for optimal health. True, you'd probably have some healthy skepticism about a book like that, but what about the books that recommend eating a high protein / low carb diet, and the books that recommend eating a low protein / high carb diet? Do you have the expertise to read both and make, not just an educated decision, but a correct decision? And in the case of your health, correct decisions are extremely important!

Books don't offer you the ability to voice your questions and confusions, and it's hard to get a feel for the author when you read his words rather than hear him speak them. That's why I'm an advocate of "interactive learning", which is an excellent example of actively acquired knowledge. When combined with reading material, learning from knowledgeable people, face-to-face as in a classroom environment, can make the difference between acting on correct or incorrect information.

When it comes to your health (the most important thing you possess) a course of study, taught by knowledgeable, sincere people, who care more about your best interests than they do about how profitable their class is, will go a long way towards helping you live to your health and longevity potentials. I have the privilege to be participating in a teaching role in just such a course; a course offered by two of the most sincere, down-to-earth people I've met in a long time. The curriculum's information is based on anatomy, biology, anthropology, cardiology, chemistry, comparative anatomy, endocrinology, epidemiology, hematology, nutrition, oncology, pharmacology, and rhinology (allergies). It is not based on what the instructors would rather believe, or on what they'd rather have you believe… it is based on sound, scientific information, and not on junk science, loaded studies, or personal preferences. The information is presented in a way that everyone can understand, and the course will help you make sense out of the tons of non-sense that invade today's health and wellness issues. And since your personal health is at stake, spending 10 hours over the course of one weekend at less than $29 an hour is a bargain-and-a-half. Take it from someone who has spent thousands of dollars on research, lectures, and classes over the last 30 years; education is not as expensive as ignorance. And since what can do you the most harm is what you know that just ain't so, knowing the facts about diet, exercise, and all the other equally important basics of vibrant health is powerful information indeed. When you're armed with the truth about health so you can prevent needless suffering and premature death, that's when Knowledge is Power!

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