As a biologist, I was taught and taught for many years about the Germ theory. Louis Pasteur published a paper in 1861 stating that germs are the cause of disease. Western medicine picked up on Pasteur’s Germ theory and today it is a basis of Western medicine. It is generally accepted that one gets disease from microbiota, or germs from fungi, bacteria or other pathogens, parasites and viruses (although viruses were not included in Pasteur’s original theory). Modern medicine isolates each microbe to identify it, to see how it grows, and to find out what stops its growth. However, on his deathbed, Pasteur was said to reject his Germ theory, that Terrain is far more important.
The body has over 37 trillion cells and even more bacteria, fungi, and viruses. That means the body is made up of more microbiota and organisms than there are human cells. Considering that, then how do we define who and what we are? Are we really just humans? If so much more of the human body is made of microbiota, and bacteria and microbiota make you sick, we would be sick all the time. However, we do know there are “good” microbiota. So there must a balance between the “good and bad” microorganisms because we are not sick all the time.
The Terrain theory says that when the whole body is balanced and in a state of homeostasis or equilibrium, the immune system is able to fight off pathogens—or the “bad” microbes that make us sick. The Terrain theory looks at the body’s ecology as a whole. When the body is out of balance or in a state of disease, the body is weakened and pathogens can enter and flourish, allowing an overgrowth of any microbe. The overgrowth results in symptoms that arise while the body is trying to get back into balance, and these symptoms collectively are considered a disease.
When the body is healthy and the vital force is strong, homeostasis is maintained. When the body terrain is healthy, you most likely experience good health! How do we keep this terrain balanced? Easy! We keep the body strong by ensuring we eat, live, and think well. To keep the body healthy we need access to clean water, clean and real food and nutrition, to avoid toxins and electromagnetic radiation, and to have access to fresh, clean air and light.