– Rob Sinnott , DC, FPhC –
Adaptability is not merely a sign of life. I might suggest it is the physical manifestation of the presence of life itself. Let me explain in this short treatise and we will see if my words offer sufficient cause for this consideration.
The word adapt can be traced to the 1300’s and refers to the ability “to undergo modification to fit new circumstances.” The degree to which a living thing adapts determines its ability to not only thrive, but to even survive. Survival is all about adapting to stressors encountered by a living thing.
As an example, as children many of us played a role in spinning a merry-go-round as fast as possible while one daring friend tried to stay on the quickly twirling playground equipment. When you stayed as close to the center as possible, the centrifugal force was less and it was easier to adapt. Once you adapted improperly, you found yourself outside the center, now working far harder to be thrown off by forces to which you could not adapt. At one point, your arms would be straining to keep your grip before you were eventually tossed off, flying through the air and hopefully landing with relative safety.
Odd illustration you say? Let’s make this an analogy of our Chiropractic philosophy. We know that the forces of Universal Intelligence tend to be destructive toward structural matter. Liken these to the forces pulling the child off the merry-go-round. At the same time, we will liken the forces exerted by the child to fight this, to the forces of Innate Intelligence. Innate Intelligence fights the forces attempting to break down the matter of the body. We recognize this as an intelligent function, not merely one of randomness or “luck.”
The forces of Universal Intelligence work to create entropy in matter. Entropy is the process of breaking down matt er to its simplest units, while Innate Intelligence resists with its own efforts. Innate forces can be considered as forces of entropy resistance. As long as a living thing is not overcome by forces of entropy, it remains. When adaptation completely fails, as in the child being thrown off, life ceases to exist.
The coordinated eff ort used to fight entropy in our example is little different from the way the Innate Intelligence of your body resists entropy in order to maintain a state of health. Current scientific research shows that as a state of entropy increases within an individual, health decreases. Likewise, as the ability to resist entropy increases, health increases. Even more interesting, as the flow of information decreases, health decreases.
“By defi nition, only an intelligent system can process information and energy to reduce entropy.” “This unequivocal fact then demonstrates the existence of a regulating biological intelligence within the human body. Intelligence is the way in which life affronts entropy.”
Both of these concepts fit well within our Chiropractic philosophy. The scientific finding of a diminished ability to adapt results in decreased health is a foundational concept in Chiropractic. The purpose of a mental impulse is a directive to a tissue cell for a moment in time. As such, this information is vital to the healthy function of tissue cells. When this quantity flow of information is impeded, these researchers suggest that health is unquestionably decreased. Chiropractic’s vertebral subluxation, by definition, is just such an informational interference, resulting in reduced ability to reduce forces of entropy. We recognize this from the Chiropractic analysis which seeks to identify diminished adaptability signifying the diminished mental impulse supply, to the specific adjustment that results in restoring adaptability and therefore optimal health.
In summary, unimpeded communication from Innate Intelligence results in resisting entropy, and the level of entropy resistance is commensurate with adaptability, and therefore proportional to health.
