How advanced are we?

I sometimes wonder

It seems that the older I get, the better I was??

That was a joke, so grammar police, hold your tongue.

I did something dangerous lately. I got to thinking.

And when I get to thinking too much, a Common Sense Health and Wellness post is usually born.

Back before I started medical school I would go to my father’s office and shadow him to get prepared for medical school. How a plumber would get me ready for medical school I never quite understood, but. Actually my father was a Family doc. He got along with all his patients very well, so hopefully I take after him a bit.

But one day in his office he was prescribing a new blood pressure pill just brought out onto the market for use, Vasotec. This med worked via the kidneys and did a decent job of lowering blood pressure without all the side effects of the other blood pressure meds used at that time. My father wanting to teach me something, or perhaps show off a bit, said that we now had a medication that was going to revolutionize medical care for high blood pressure. He thought they had hit the jackpot in treatment.

I thought a bit about what he said and at first was excited. I mean, this is kind of why I wanted to go to medical school. Helping people fix their health issues while getting to know them and building trust, well, that is what I like to do. I call it critical thinking and problem solving in a friendly trusting manner.

But as I thought about what my father said, I had to ask him.

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Me: “Hey Dad. What med were you using prior to Vasotec and when did you start using that?”

Dad answered, “That was HCTZ which works OK, but does have some side effects. I started using HCTZ about 10 years ago.”

Me: “Did you know about the side effects when you first started using the HCTZ?”

Dad answered, “Not really. They (Pharmaceutical reps) kind of downplayed the potential side effects.”

Me: “Hmmm… That’s interesting. Can I ask you another question?”

Dad: “Sure.”

Me: “How do you know the pharmaceutical reps are not downplaying the side effects again? Also how do you know they are not exaggerating the benefits now of Vasotec?

Dad: “Actually I don’t, but this is the newest and latest so….”

Me: “What will you say about Vasotec 10 years from now when an even newer blood pressure medication comes on the market that is supposedly even better with less side effects?

Dad: “Go to your room. You ask too many questions!

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That’s a true story with some minor changes for better effect.

So this comes back to the title of this post.

How advanced are we when it comes to medical care?

Let me answer that.

We are more advanced than when I started my medical training, but we are still in our infancy. So knowing that, we have to become true critical thinkers about our health and who we ask for guidance from about our care. I think the last 4 years have shown that we can NOT Take anyone’s word in the healthcare community without taking a deep dive ourselves.

I know my views have mostly been different from the traditional healthcare system for awhile now. But these last 4 years my views have changed even more.

Pearls that have been reinforced the past 4 years:

1- You need to be your own personal health advocate.

2- Diet and lifestyle cause and cure most health issues. Medications are usually just band aids.

3- Government, Insurance and Health industry protocols benefit Government, Insurance and the health industry more than they benefit you. Please read this #3 again as it is so important to understand.

4- Healthcare professionals have your best interest at heart. They truly want to help you. But their training is biased by Big Business/Pharma, as well as Health Insurers that hold tremendous leverage on what healthcare professionals are allowed to offer you. Since most healthcare professionals are now employed by a big corporation or hospital, they are required to follow algorithms/protocols as opposed to using their training and critical thinking skills. In other words healthcare professionals are following marching orders or their job(s) may be in jeapordy.

5- We put too much emphasis on medications and not enough on helping our body to heal itself like it has done all thru evolution.

So my thinking about health issues is not to medicate a named illness.

My thinking is first to find a root cause(s).

Then come up with a plan to fix the root so the body can get back into a healthy balance and heal itself.

I trust this method more because I have seen what Big Pharma, Big Healthcare, Big Government, Big Food and Big Insurance has done to the health of our community.

Seeing all of this over the past 40+ years is why I wonder how advanced we really are in health and wellness.

Knowing evolution has shaped our body to deal with our natural environment in a more balanced and healthy manner, and that evolution is just a bit older than our medical care today, well………………………….

Comments as always are welcome.