Solar HealthComplementary Healthcare in Sevenoaks

At Solar Health Clinic, the client is treated as a whole person, not just a set of symptoms, and all possible explanations are explored. Our aim is to educate and empower clients to be more pro-active in taking responsibility for their journey to better health.

Although conventional testing (such as blood tests, x-rays and scans) may be helpful, especially in more acute problems, it often provides limited information when looking at the broader perspective of the whole body and all the different levels that exist to access information, which can be very relevant for helping with chronic diseases.

Despite what you may hear or read in the press, our health is deteriorating year by year. The rates of all degenerative diseases are increasing - we have more asthma, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, depression, arthritis, allergies, digestive disorders and obesity than ever before in history. Our children are fatter and more hyperactive than ever before.

At the same time, more and more money is spent each year on "health care". We have more doctors and more drugs than ever before, but it's not working - if the medical profession and drugs could give us better health, we'd already be a very healthy nation. That is why the field of complementary healthcare is growing so fast and why people are starting to take responsibility for their own health.

Clinic Opening Hours

Tuesday	10 am - 5.00pm
Thursday	11am - 8.00pm
Friday	10 am - 6.00pm
Saturday	9am - 2.00pm
Every Third Sunday - childrens' clinic by donation

Clinical Nutrition

Nutritional therapy is a system of healing based on the belief that food, as nature intended, provides the medicine we need to obtain and maintain a state of health. Although some health problems require specific medication, many conditions can be relieved effectively with nutritional therapy. These include disorders ranging from irritable bowel syndrome, coeliacs disease, chronic fatigue, energy loss, candidiasis, insomnia and depression, to backache, skin complaints, asthma, PMS, panic attacks and headaches.

Nutritional therapy will also benefit you if you have no specific illness, but want to maintain a state of optimum health. It is safe for babies and children as well as adults, and the change of eating patterns that is typically prescribed usually has far fewer side-effects than synthetic medicines, and doesn’t include cutting out whole food groups, unless this has already been agreed with your medical practitioner.

We may well be 'what we eat' but we are definitely 'what we absorb' and poor absorption of nutrients from the diet is the cause of many health problems.  Generally, if the gastro-intestinal tract is in a healthy condition our bodies thrive, and vice versa.

Nutritional therapy is a holistic discipline to help people of all ages to stay at their personal peak of energy and vitality. Today, new insights of food scientists play a significant role in the practice of nutritional therapy as preventative medicine.

The Prodimed Programme:  One of Europe's most successful weight loss programmes and only prescribed by qualified practitioners. If you are looking for an effective plan to fit in with your busy life, the Prodimed programme may be the answer to your weight loss goals. With easy to follow guidelines and weekly meetings with your therapist, you will be motivated and supported to achieve your weight loss goals with long term results.  The diet was developed by Professor Blackburn of Harvard University  in the USA and was introduced into France during the 1990s by Professor Apfelbaum.

Slimming down is often a medical necessity since obesity causes all sorts of complications, but under no circumstances should making those changes adversely affect your health. Weight loss is a serious business and it is important that you are guided by a professional so that your programme is designed especially for your needs and based upon your current health situation.

The Importance of Counselling and your Health Professional:  The role of your health professional is to guide you through the different phases of the programme and formulate a personal maintenance programme based on your lifestyle that will become a natural way of eating. During the weekly consultations, you blood pressure will be checked, you will be weighed and your BMI and body fat composition calculated.

Before starting the programme, an initial consultation will ascertain the best way for you to follow the programme. You will also be given a full nutritional consultation and live blood analysis on your first appointment. We will also discuss your medical history and you will be asked to sign a Health Statement. In some instances further tests may be suggested or a request to consult your GP if appropriate.

Finally, regular counselling with your health professional will keep you motivated, giving you hints and tips regarding the preparation of products to make the programme more agreeable or more suited to your work and home life, and guide you through any difficulties you may encounter.

We all need some body fat to be healthy. It is vital for basic body functions such as regulating body temperature, storing vitamins and cushioning joints and organs. But too much fat can damage your health and could put you at greater risk of developing serious medical conditions. Excess body fat is known to contribute to heart disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes mellitus and some forms of cancer.

Prodimed has an extensive assortment of products available in a variety of flavours. When you start with the Prodimed Treatment Programme you will receive the Prodimed Starter Kit after your initial intake interview.  The Starter Kit allows you to try out a range of different products during the first week, and by recording your preferences on your check list, it will be easy to order the products you prefer from the second week onwards.

The extensive assortment prevents monotonous food choices and gives you some pleasant variations during the strictest phase of the diet, helping you to properly adhere to the Treatment Programme.  More information on the range of products can be found at www.prodimeddiet.co.uk.

The Prodimed Treatment Programme

Under the supervision of your health professional, Prodimed offers you a unique and effective treatment programme to help you lose excess weight permanently.  The diet can be easily maintained thanks to the range of products and flavours available.

Active Phase:  Depending on the results of your initial consultation (including the health statement), your health professional will establish the necessary number of steps and work with you in deciding how long each step should last. At each step you will receive a Phase Form with all the necessary guidance for that step.   You should read each form carefully and strictly follow these guidelines as sometimes there are minimal, but essential, differences. The Active Phase is made up of the Full Protein Diet and the Moderate Protein Diet.

Transitional Phase: This phase gradually works towards the Maintenance Phase. The number of protein meals is further reduced and normal meals with fruit, dairy products and bread will be added.

Maintenance Phase: Returning to a normal and healthy food pattern with the goal being to maintain weight loss.

Live Blood Analysis

Your blood is your life force and every cell of your body depends on nutrients and oxygen from the blood. Most people do not know what condition their blood is in because they do not have the opportunity to look at it. With Live Blood Microscopy you are able look at your own blood at a cellular level under a powerful microscope connected to a camera and displayed on a screen.

Live Blood Microscopy, also known as darkfield microscopy, is a term used for the viewing of live blood under a microscope. A sample of capillary blood is taken via a finger prick and both practitioner and client can view the red and white blood cells, platelets and micro-organisms present in the blood whilst still alive and moving. The blood is not stained or treated in any way. Live Blood Microscopy provides information about your health that is not available via the usual pathology blood test.

Live Blood Microscopy, amongst many benefits, also allows the practitioner to assess the health and vitality of the immune system based on the type, health of cells, and number of white and red blood cells. When examining blood under a microscope the inter-relationship of body systems contributing to the condition of blood and health of a patient becomes evident.  The condition and quality of your blood cells may have a direct impact on your health.

The cleanliness of the blood plasma, the liquid in which the blood cells move can also be viewed.  Live blood analysis is not a diagnosis of any condition but looks at the overall health of the red blood cells, dehydration and, possibly, the pH level of the blood.

Colonic Hydrotherapy

Colonics are one of the most effective ways of cleansing the body (unless contraindicated). Colonic hydrotherapy is the gentle rinsing of the colon (large intestine) with warm water to remove encrusted faecal matter, gas and mucus, allowing for better absorption of nutrients and leaving you feeling healthy and lighter. It is a great restorative treatment that gives a systemic boost to the body, as well as helping to tone up the colon.

The ideal transit time of food through the body is eighteen to twenty hours. However, the average time in the UK (one of the most constipated nations in Europe) is now sixty hours for men and seventy hours for women - with over 20,000 new cases of bowel cancer being diagnosed each year. No wonder laxatives are the second biggest seller for the pharmaceutical companies.

Every tissue is fed by the blood, which is supplied by the intestinal system. When the intestines are dirty, the blood is dirty and so are the organs and tissues. It is the intestinal system that has to be cared for before any effective healing can take place.

Dr Bernard Jensen

In the 21st Century, we are bombarded with toxins and chemicals that our bodies are not designed to process or eliminate - air pollutants, chemicals in soaps, shampoos, toothpaste, beauty products, household cleaners, electromagnetic fields, drugs, processed foods etc. Added to this is stress (including emotional stress), high sugar diets, trans fats, excess dairy foods and too much red meat and the body becomes too acidic and stops coping. The body creates mucus which firstly gets stuck in the colon and then gets impacted, affecting muscle tone and reducing the space through which waste can move.

The History of Colonics  

Practised for thousands of years in ancient Egyptian, Greek, Chinese and Indian civilisations, and referred to in the gospel of Angels (The Essene Gospel of Peace) it has existed as a natural cleansing treatment. Egyptians visited the temple every month for regular colonic treatments and it is used now throughout the world as a deep cleansing process and healing treatment, both in hospitals, spas, retreats and holistic regimes.

The Colon  

The colon, also called the large intestine or bowel, is situated in the abdomen and forms the last part of the digestive tract. It is an extremely important organ of around five feet in length, handling not only our food waste but also all kinds of metabolic waste. A normal colon is populated by billons of friendly bacteria which assist in detoxifying waste, synthesise many vitamins and help support our immune system, guarding against infection and helping promote good general health. The colon is crucial to our overall wellbeing.

Our colon's delicate balance of internal bacteria is easily disturbed, be it through factors involving mental, emotional or physical stress, environmental pollution and electro-magnetic influences, to poor eating habits, modern lifestyles, various toxic substances which are often daily by-products of processed and badly digested foods, certain drugs, smoking, and general stimulants that we become addicted to.

Health and Disease

In disease, poor digestion, yeast overgrowth, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), chronic constipation and diarrhoea are usually accompanied by auto-intoxication, literally ‘self-poisoning’ (the re-absorption of soluble wastes into the bloodstream). All this backlog and insufficient movement creates a heavy burden upon all other organs, particularly the kidneys, liver, skin and lungs.

Colonic hydrotherapy is therefore helpful not only in general cleansing, leading to a base for your wellbeing. Bowel problems are without doubt part and parcel of stress on many levels and with stress becoming a modern day epidemic, colonics are a great stress buster and rejuvenator. Most people quickly experience improved mental and physical wellbeing, depending on the amount of their toxic load and the years of incorrect lifestyle which has preceded the first treatment. Your therapist will advise you on the number of initial treatments required to help you and how frequently you should have follow-ups to remain in a healthier state.

Is it Safe?

In the hands of a trained therapist colonic hydrotherapy is not only safe, but may be beneficial. The equipment is disposable and used only once and the treatment room is cleaned and disinfected between each client. The bowel’s natural bacteria is not disturbed to any large degree, it repopulates within 24 hours and with far more efficiency after a colonic than before, as toxic matter is removed good bacteria stands a far better chance of dominating and often probiotic supplements can be included.

Allergy Testing using the NAET Technique

An individual can be allergic to anything - foods, drinks, phannaceutical drugs, herbs, vitamins, water, clothing, jewellery, chemicals, paint, silicone, latex, plastics, pollen, grasses etc. Allergy symptoms can range from mild to debilitating reactions to life-threatening reactions. From a Western medical point of view, an allergy is an over-reaction of the immune system. In NAET (an allergy elimination technique discovered in 1983 in American by Doctor Nambudripad), allergies are viewed from a holistic perspective based on Oriental Medicine principles and defined in terms of the effect an allergic substance or emotion has on the energy flow (meridians) in the body.

An allergy is a condition of unusual sensitivity of a person to one or more substances which may be harmless to the majority of other individuals. In the allergic person, the allergic substances (known as an allergen) is viewed by the brain as a threat to the body's wellbeing. When contact is made with the allergen, it causes blockages in the energy pathways, disrupting the normal flow of energy through the body's electrical circuits.  

This energy blockage causes interference in communication between the brain and body via the nervous system, which begins a chain of events that can develop into an anergic response. 

NAET is a synthesis of various disciplines such as acupressure, chiropractic, kinesiology and nutrition, and utilises muscle response testing, which indicates the kinetic imbalance in the body caused by allergens.  The NAET treatment stimulates pressure points along the spine whilst the client is holding an allergen.  Specific acupuncture points are massaged and the substance must be avoided for 25 hours following treatment for best results.  Allergens are normally cleared one at a time in specific sequence.

Bowen Technique

The Bowen Technique is a remedial, hands-on therapy that is applied using very gentle pressure.  The practitioner uses thumbs and fingers on precise points of the body to perform Bowen’s unique sets of rolling-type moves which stimulate the muscles and soft tissue of the body.  There is no manipulation or adjustment of hard tissue and no force is used.  The experience of a treatment is gentle, subtle and relaxing.  It is believed that the Bowen Technique prompts the body to reset, repair and balance itself and clients report the experience of pain relief, improvement of function and recovery of energy. 

The pressure used in Bowen is quite subtle and can be extremely light and still get the job done.  It is not dependent on hard pressure and there is no awkward bending, twisting or re-positioning of the client during the treatment.  Because of this, Bowen can be considered for clients for whom other forms of therapy might be too aggressive, forceful or invasive.  The tiniest of babies through to the frailest of adults have been treated with Bowen. 

The Bowen Technique treatment protocol is very well worked out in its effect on the whole body.  For instance, probably the most common presentation for a Bowen therapist will be back pain.  With Bowen we will tend to give a whole-body treatment at the first visit, which includes the neck, knees and shoulders.  Because it is often very difficult to be completely sure where any given pain is coming from and to know how other structures are being affected by the original problem, Bowen’s holistic way of treating will most often get to the root of problems gently and efficiently. 

Most of the work can be performed through light clothing, although each session will vary according to the presenting problems of the client, an initial treatment will address the whole body.  As a general rule, moves will be made over the lower and mid back and legs, the upper back and shoulders before finishing with neck moves.

A session will generally last around 30-45 minutes although this will vary according to the way individual therapists work.  Treatments should be scheduled between 5-7 days apart and an initial set of 3 treatments is recommended in order to establish whether the client is likely to respond to treatment. 

Children's Health Clinic

I offer a Sunday clinic for children (up to the age of 14) for which there is no charge but a small donation to my charity box is appreciated. This means that parents who might not have the opportunity to bring their children along to my general clinic are able to take advantage of my services and, in return, local charities benefit - namely the Sevenoaks branch of Mencap.