THE SIX HYGIENIC FACTORS

THE
SIX
HYGIENIC
FACTORS

THE ORIGINS OF HEALTH AND DISEASE

THE SIX HYGIENIC FACTORS

THE FOUR DOCTORS

STATES OF HEALTH AND DISEASE

GREEK MEDICINE RELATED TOPICS

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SECTION 1

THE
ORIGANS OF
HEALTH
AND
DISEASE

Hygiene is the science of self healing. It is the art of personal
health maintenance and disease prevention. Greek Medicine is, at
its core, basically just an elaborate and sophisticated system of
hygiene.

In proper hygiene practices, Greek Medicine sees the foundation of
all good health. In improper or faulty hygiene, Greek Medicine
sees the origin of most disease.

The art of hygiene is basically twofold, like the two sides of a coin.
On the one side, you must give your body all the good things it needs:
a pure, wholesome, nutritious diet; appropriate and adequate physical
activity and exercise; sufficient sleep and rest; and a healthy,
constructive daily routine and lifestyle. On the other hand, you must
remove from the body all the wastes and pathogenic matter that it
coesn't need, by keeping it clean, boith inside and out.

Galen's Four Basic Things

Galen elaborated on this even more, and expanded these two categories to
four. The art of hygiene, he said, consists of four basic kinds of things:

Things to be administered

a pure, healthy, nutritious diet and the right kinds of herbal tonics and
nutritional supplements.

Things to be done

appropriate exercise and physical activity; getting adequate sleep and rest;
a healthy, constructive daily routine; appropriate sex relations.

Things to be applied

regular bathing and cleansing of the body; anointing the body with aromatics,
unguents and medicated oils.

Things to be removed

cleansing and purifying the body of accumulated wastes, toxins and morbid humors.

Keep these four basic kinds of things in good order and you will enjoy excellent
health. Let them get out of order and you will fall prey to illness and disease.

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SECTION 2

THE
SIX
HYGIENIC
FACTORS

Greek Medicine has identified six basic areas or factors which, if
kept in good order, build health and which, if allowed to fall into
disorder, lead to illness and disease. They constitute the basis
of all health management and disease prevention in Greek Medicine,
and are as follows:

1) Ambient Air

2) Food and Drink

3) Exercise and Rest

4) Sleep and Wakefulness

5) Retention and Evacuation of Wastes

6) Perturbations of the Mind and Emotions

Because these six factors are not essentially inherent to the body
and its nature, they are sometimes called the Six Non-Natural
Factors. Because they concern important aspects of hygiene, I call
them the Six Hygienic Factors.

The proper management of these six factors constitutes the entire art
of hygiene in Greek Medicine. To recapitulate on the Six Hygienic
Factors and what they entail:

Ambient Air:

The impact of one's habitat and dwelling place on one's health. The
influence of geographic, seasonal, climactic and environmental factors
on one's health. The art of proper breathing. The basis of all public
health and environmental medicine.

Food and Drink:

The basics of a healthy diet, proper food selection and healthy eating
habits. Constitutional management with diet. Not just what you eat,
but also when, where, how and how much.

Exercise and Rest:

The value and importance of proper exercise. The classical Greek science
of exercise and physical culture. The different types of exercise, and
selecting the right one. How to design a safe, effective, sensible and
appropriate exercise routine and regimen. Finding the right balance
between exercise and rest.

Sleep and Wakefulness:

The importance and value of adequate sleep in health maintenance. Designing
a healthful daily routine that balances adequate, sound, restful sleep with
appropriate, constructive wakeful activity. Harmonizing one's personal
sleep / wake cycles with the rhythms of Nature.

Retention and Evacuation of Wastes:

Recognizing and cultivating the right balance between waste retention and
waste evacuation. Building healthy bowel habits. Maintaining urinary
health. Recognizing, preventing and treating autointoxication. Simple
hygienic cleansing measures.

Perturbations of the Mind and Emotions:

The impact of our mental and emotional states on our health. Constitutional
management of the mind and emotions. Appropriate, satisfying, affectionate
and constructive sexual relations.

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SECTION 3

THE
FOUR
DOCTORS

Another fourfold way of looking at the art of hygiene is in terms
of the Four Elements. Your body needs the daily attention and
ministrations of these Four Doctors:

FIRE:

Doctor Sunshine

AIR:

Doctor Fresh Air

WATER:

Doctor Pure Water

EARTH:

Doctor Healthy Diet

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SECTION 4

STATES
OF
HEALTH
AND
DISEASE

Most people casually assume that you're either healthy or you're sick.
Greek Medicine maintains that, besides these two extremes, there are
also various intermediate states in which one is neither totally sick
nor totally healthy. Here are the main possibilities as Greek Medicine
sees them:

Absolute, Radiant Health:

Much more than the mere absence of symptoms; perfect health, boundless
energy, endless joy, satisfaction and peace of mind.

Average Health:

The mere absence of any overt signs and symptoms of dysfunction or
disease; otherwise, the individual doesn't feel especially energetic,
joyful or healthy.

Minor Complaints:

Troubling symptoms, discomforts and minor dysfunctions start to appear
and drain the inherent vitality and resilience of the organism. Most
people take painkillers and other palliatives so they can go their way
and be about their business.

Mixed Illness and Health:

The individual is neither wholly sick nor totally healthy; health and
illness are intermingled in equal proportions.

Convalescence:

The individual is convalescing from a major illness; his/her condition
is still fragile and delicate, and recovery isn't yet complete.

Full-Blown Disease:

All the signs and symptoms of an overt, full-blown disease are fully
manifested, and the individual is suffering from a major illness.

The Art of Hygiene exists to take you, as much as your inherent capacity
for health will allow you, to the top of this scale - to absolute, radiant
health. Hygiene is much more than just the mere avoidance of disease; it
is the cultivation of perfect health.

THE SIX HYGIENIC FACTORS
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/The_six_Hygienic_Factors.html

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SECTION 5

GREEK
MEDICINE
RELATED
TOPICS
LINKS

HYGIENE
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/hygiene.html

Ambient Air
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Ambient_Air.html

Diet: Food and Drink
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Diet_Food_and_Drink.html

Exercise and Rest
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Exercise_and_Rest.html

Sleep and Wakefulness
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Sleep_and_Wakefulness.html

Retention and Evacuation of Wastes
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Retention_and_Evacuation_of_Wastes.html

Perturbations of the Mind
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Perturbations_of_the_Mind.html

Emotions and Organs
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Emotions_and_Organs.html

Sexual Relations and Hygiene
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Sexual_Relations_and_Hygiene.html

The Greco-Roman Bath
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/The_Greco-Roman_Bath.html

Greek Oral Hygiene
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Greek_Oral_Hygiene.html

Fasting and Purification
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Fasting_and_Purification.html

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF GREEK MEDICINE
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/basic_principles_of_greek_medicine.html

Seven Natural Factors
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Standards_of_Health.html

Greek Medicine Wheel
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/The_greek_medicine_wheel.html

Four Basic Qualities
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Four_basic_qualities.html

Four Elements
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Four_elements.html

Four Humors
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Four_Humors.html

Four Temperaments
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Four_Temperaments.html

Individual Temperament
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Individual_Temperament.html

Inherent Temperament
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Inherent_Temperament.html

Four Faculties
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Four_Faculties.html

Pneuma and Ignis
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Pneuma_and_Ignis.html

Vital Faculty
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Vital_Faculty.html

Natural Faculty
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Natural_Faculty.html

Psychic Faculty
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Psychic_Faculty.html

Radical Moisture
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Radical_Moisture.html

Pepsis
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Pepsis.html

Greek Chakras
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Greek_Chakras.html

Generative Faculty
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Generative_Faculty.html

Greek Medicine and Ayurveda
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Greek_Medicine_and_Ayurveda.html

Greek Medicine and Chinese Medicine
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/Greek_Medicine_and_Chinese_Medicine.html

The Four Humors in Chinese Medicine
http://www.greekmedicine.net/hygiene/The_Four_Humors_in_Chinese_Medicine.html

Greek Medicine
http://www.greekmedicine.net/index.html

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MIMI
https://en.mimi.hu/index.html

Eric Edwards Collected Works
https://ericwedwards.wordpress.com/

Romanceopedia
http://www.romanceopedia.com/

Alternet
http://www.alternet.org/

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