Restoring Common Sense To Healthcare
In times of commercialized healthcare considering natural remedies for some conditions could save you anguish, time and money.
We live in times when complete trust in unbiased authority – in a number of areas – should be reevaluated. Today more than ever, navigating through life requires sound judgment.
One of the most profitable businesses today is healthcare which includes medicine and pharmacology. Traditionally, both were held in high esteem. Each of them is important and often indispensable. Unfortunately, the focus of today’s healthcare has shifted from patient care to profit making.
Some of you may find my assessment revolting. It isn’t intended to be. Having been raised in a family of physicians, I always thought highly of medical doctors. My own life experience however suggests that medicine and pharmaceutical industry are not immune to commercialization.
Medications are being over-prescribed to a point where we’re becoming unresponsive to antibiotics and addicted to opiates and other pain-killers. Conventional hormone-replacement therapies (for women as well as men!) are wrecking havoc…. Over-vaccinating babies and children is a REAL concern: vaccinations are necessary but the quantity of them administered at once is scary and for a good reason.
Doctors are so proud of new – and profitable! – diagnostic technologies, they use them for a reason, but frequently also without any. (Not all diagnostic procedures are safe and most patients don’t know it until they experience complications.).
Many diseases are “treated” because unlike a patient cured, a patient who is “treated” for years at a time generates recurring revenue. (I’m not saying that there are no conditions that require long term treatment, but that some curable conditions are “treated” as opposed to being cured.)
Profit-focused healthcare is immoral and exploitative. Call me crazy but it is my belief that preying on people’s vulnerabilities and abusing one’s authority in the name of the all-important Mammon is wrong in general, but when it comes to healthcare even more so.
Progress in many areas including healthcare is a wonderful thing and the progress in medicine is astounding. But the original goal of medicine, which was to help people feel better and live longer, in many cases gave way to intimidating patients in order to increase profits.
Lawsuits and class action lawsuits against prescription drug and medical devices manufacturers abound. (Incidentally, during one evening of TV watching I noticed an announcement of a class action lawsuits against a specific medication’s manufacturer on one channel and a commercial for the medication, which caused harm and even deaths to its users, on another.)
Do you ever pay attention to new prescription medications’ commercials? Whoa! This is not a quotation but a meaning of one of them: this great medication will cure what ails you! Side effects? Heart attack, stroke and death. Promising, but I wouldn’t use this “miracle drug”!
Don’t misunderstand me: I don’t question the value of medicine. Everybody needs protective vaccinations and regular physicals, but once the test / lab results are in and discussed with your primary care physician, don’t be intimidated by the authority of your doctor: STOP AND THINK for yourself for a moment.
Will the recommendations of your doctor improve your health, or the doctor’s bottom line? Don’t follow your doctor’s recommendations, blindly.
You don’t need every procedure available. Based on your age, lifestyle and overall condition it’s quite possible to identify and heal your minor health complaints the old-fashioned way. Some unnecessary treatments and procedures however can do you more harm than good.
A migraine can be relieved with Botox injections or – quicker and safer – with natural remedies. Child’s ear infection can be cured with antibiotics – usually, several courses – or a few drops of garlic oil; take a guess which one is safer, faster and more effective. Final example: gallstones. The preferred medical option today is gallbladder removal. After the surgery, the patient has to make numerous dietary adjustments and may experience complications. Surgeons argue that the gallbladder isn’t a necessary organ. Theoretically speaking, brakes are not necessary in a car, either…. The surgery – of course! – is irreversible. But gallstones can be safely dissolved and expelled naturally when treated with natural remedies. Which option would YOU choose?
The list is long…
In years past, we were enchanted by the promise of modern medicine. Today, I urge you to consider more conservative options, first. In many cases, they are as effective in treatment of many common health problems as conventional medicine but safer and gentler, not to mention cheaper.
Being nice and finding comfort in compliance with establishment’s wisdom is easy. Considering the fact however that even health has become a commodity, I urge you to consider more conservative, alternative options! In many cases, they are effective. In some, they may not be sufficient. Still, trying safer options first is WISE! Don’t become a victim of healthcare industry’s greed. You have only one life, you have the right to think for yourself and make choices that benefit your health.
Photo by Sasun Bughdaryan on Unsplash
