From Birth

“If I knew I was going to live this long, I would have taken
better care of myself.” – George Burns

Congratulations, you are born. Several thousand dollars have been
invested in you, with pre-natal care, labor and delivery, formula, diapers,
furniture and designer duds.

From day one, your intake of breast milk or formula is scrutinized and
regulated. What is in your diaper is the topic of conversation for parents,
grandparents and anyone else who will listen. Is there any wonder
that there is a direct connection between those activities of eating
and pooping?

You are born with extraordinary assets: a mind and a body made
up of 75 trillion cells (Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology,
p. 48, John W. Hole, Jr.). There is no price that can be assigned to
these assets, nor are they refundable or exchangeable. You start
with a full portfolio, but what happens to it is up to your parents and
ultimately you. In order to understand your assets, a little knowledge
about how they work could infl uence decisions you make on behalf
of your investments.

BOD-Ē-NOMICS Note:
• There are 75 trillion cells in your body, 75 trillion factories
that make up your body corporation.

The Cell – Your Factory,

Your Financial Institution

“Everything you’ll ever need to know is within you; the secrets
of the universe are imprinted on the cells of your body.
But you haven’t learned how to read the wisdom of the body”
-- Dan Millman

Let’s consider the cell as your own individual factory and financial
institution. Your goal is to run a smooth, organized and profitable
operation. You were born a trillionaire, yes; the wealth is in your 75
trillion cells. Complicated, sophisticated, precious, self contained,
and goal driven. Like the dollar bill, each of your cells is a unit and
each cell has a purpose. Just like you invest a dollar bill to earn interest,
you put the best nutrients into your cell and it is healthy and
does its assigned job.

Each of your 75 trillion cells is a factory of the main corporation called
YOU. Everyone would like to have strong, steady investments that
yield progressive profits. Your body, in order to be healthy and attain
longevity, must receive proper nutrition and hydration to maintain
the factories that make up the You corporation.

There are many different types of cells in your body performing very
specialized functions. A cell as a factory is an energy warehouse,
a messenger, a conductor, and a transporter. Have you ever taken
a tour of a factory? It is a very large space. It contains boxes, bags,
crates and barrels of raw materials that are fed into machines that
whirl, mix, press, churn, dice, slice and package a finished product.

There are people working in the factory guiding materials and machines,
with the end goal of a finished product. At the end of the tour
you may receive a sample of whatever is being produced. You may
not want a sample of what is being produced in your body’s factory,
unless your doctor requests it.

We will describe one cell in general terms to explain its life and daily
activities. Cells are born, die and are replaced routinely by the body.
Brain cells are the exception: when they die, it is forever.
Your cells consist of two major parts: the nucleus and the cytoplasm.
The nucleus is surrounded by a double-layered membrane called a
nuclear envelope. The cytoplasm is a mass of fluid that surrounds
the nucleus and is contained by your cell membrane (Essentials
p. 49). Within the cytoplasm are organelles where many metabolic
reactions take place. The nucleus directs the overall activities of the
cell. The cell membrane keeps the shape of the cell and is semipermeable,
allowing for the entrance of substances like oxygen and
nutrients and the exiting of waste out of the cell. The cell membrane
is composed mainly of lipids and proteins and a small amount of carbohydrate.
Fatty acid portions of the phospholipids form the interior
of the cell structures.

Okay, enough of the lecture. What’s for lunch? Not so fast! A little
more information and you will be able to appreciate what happens
to lunch when it gets to the cellular level. The cell also produces
enzymes. Enzymes promote chemical reactions within the cell to
allow it to do its job. Glucose molecules are burned in the cell. This
process is called oxidation. Oxidation is used to promote cellular
metabolism.

The lunch menu today offers a burger and fries. It is time to follow
the transaction. Carbohydrates (bun, potato and tomato if it is a
deluxe) are changed to glucose which is used as a cellular energy
source. Your factory is put into production. The 75 trillion factories are
all operating 24/7, no days off, no holidays, but unfortunately more
and more sick time. Any excess glucose is converted into storage as
glycogen or fat. Just think of renting a storage bin for all your “stuff.”
Your body does the same thing, only it is in the form of fat storage
cells. Fat supplies energy. The body is very efficient: it only uses
what it needs and the rest goes into storage, maybe forever.

Dietary proteins (burger) are broken down into amino acids and are
incorporated into cell parts or used as enzymes. If the energy is not
needed immediately, it may be changed into glucose or fat molecules.
See how efficient the body is? It simply will not use more than it needs.                                                               It will either reconvert or store the excess.

Raw ingredients are your fuel. Your enzymes, hormones and oxygen
are your factory workers. The goal is to provide nutrients and
energy for maintenance and growth and also the removal of waste
products. Remember, this gig is 24/7. In the best case scenario,
the food you take in is a good balance to keep those cells humming
along. To add to this complex mix, while basic cell function is
similar in all human cells, your body has a wide variety of cells with
different functions, needs and responses to what you feed them.
Skin cells, brain cells and cardiac cells, for example, have different
jobs and nutritional and energy needs. The brain gets the first hit of
nutrition, followed by the heart, and then the lungs. Since the brain
coordinates all bodily functions, it requires the top shelf of nutrients
and oxygen. Tricky though, these cells are also the most vulnerable,
with no second line of defense. What you take in hits them first: no
protection, no filtration. Brain cells are the most sensitive to toxins.

Water is the next layer in our discussion about the cell. All life started
in water. In the New York Museum of Natural History there is an
exhibition of evolution. Day one starts with a painting of water with
cells swimming around. A single-celled organism sustained by water.
How does this work? Water (a combination of oxygen and hydrogen
molecules) fills each cell to help maintain its shape. It suspends all
of the parts in the cell so they can do their jobs. It conducts the flow
of oxygen and nutrition in through the semi-permeable membrane
and filters the waste, toxins and bacteria out. Each cell must have
an adequate amount of water in order to function properly. When
cells have enough water, this is referred to as adequate hydration.

BOD-Ē-NOMICS Note:
• The body is efficient. It will not use more than it needs. It will
store excess in your fat cells. Brain cells are fed fi rst and are
most susceptible to ingested toxins.