Air
Please see our disclaimer before trying any of the natural remedies that are in several of the 8 Doctors
The Doctor You Can't See — Doctor Air is everywhere, but can be seen nowhere. He is needed by almost every living thing. People can live for several weeks without food, a few days without water, but only a few minutes without Dr. Air.
Recycle — When God created air and the rest of the world, he made it so we would breathe in air and then breathe out carbon dioxide. He thought ahead and realized he would need a recycling program for oxygen. That's why he created photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is a process where sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water create oxygen. I think it's amazing that God thought ahead to give plants the ability to recycle air!
Posture - Believe it or not, your posture plays an important part in making sure your body gets all the good, fresh air it needs. When you sit or stand straight and tall, your lungs and diaphragm have the room they need for you to get good deep breaths of fresh, healthy air, and breathe out more stale air (which is actually full of Carbon Dioxide, is a toxin that you need to get rid of which in turn blesses the plants mentioned above, isn't God neat?). (See experiment at the end of this page)
Open the Window - When the weather is nice, invite Dr. Air into your house by opening your windows. Indoor air is breathed over and over again and Carbon Dioxide and other waste gasses increase. When you think of it this way, getting fresh air inside your house starts to sound very appealing! Also, stale air increases your chances of getting headaches or being more tired or grumpy than usual. Whenever it's cool enough at night to sleep with the window open, you should. Even in the cold of winter, it's good to crack the window a little bit and let in some fresh air.
Improve Indoor Air - In the summer when it's very hot, it might not be a good idea to bring in a lot of outside air so what can you do? For one, you can spend a lot of time outside getting fresh air (and exercise and sun, all kinds of good things). Something you can do to improve the quality of air in your house is with house plants. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they will help your air be healthier and cleaner to breathe. Some of the best plants for purifying your indoor air are Spider Plants, Ficus, Snake Plant, Peace Lily, Boston Fern, and Aloe Vera. Aim for two live plants per room.
Smoke Is an Enemy - To keep your lungs in their best shape, avoid breathing smoke. Smoke (probably any smoke, but especially from cigarettes) contains poisons that irritate and clog the air passages of your lungs. Cigarette smoke contains poisonous gasses and two of the deadly poisons are called nicotine and carbon monoxide. Nicotine damages small arteries. This makes it hard for red blood cells to carry the oxygen that our bodies need. Carbon monoxide keeps red blood cells from carrying oxygen (that our bodies need). If your body can't get enough oxygen, you get tired faster and run out of breath when you exercise. These two poisons also cause your arteries to get hard which is a cause of death in our country. Don't smoke or vape and don't breath smoke from other people who do.
Not all "Fresh" Air is Equal - Fresh air is awesome and we should all try to get as much as possible, but people who live in cities have a bit of a harder time. Cities have much more people which means more cars (with their exhaust), and factories are also usually located in cities. Sometimes air can actually be harmful and warnings are issued to tell people to stay indoors. If you live in a city, try to plan as much time as possible to drive out to nature or at least go to a park or nature reserve where there are lots of plants and trees. Also, it might help to keep at eye on weather quality for your area. As the saying goes, "There's an app for that," so search for "Air Quality" apps or look for air quality reports online.
Experiment - To see the importance of sitting and standing straight, try this experiment. Get a balloon and blow it up. Sometimes this is kind of hard, but it can be done. Now put the flat balloon between the pages of a book and hold it closed and try to blow it up. It's much harder, isn't it? Next time you are tempted to slouch on the couch, remember the great balloon experiment and make it easier on your lungs by sitting and standing nice and tall.
