Like many of you, I grew up in the world of Western medicine and I rarely thought outside the box when it came to health. However, the older I got, the more I saw how often mainstream medicine had very few answers other than quick fixes (like taking Rx drugs to mask symptoms that often cause MORE problems long-term) and expensive diagnostic tests. My narrow-minded perspective quickly grew, and quite frankly I wish I had thought beyond the walls of my doctor's office far earlier. Some may say I have my "head in the sand" for thinking this way, but that's OKAY, I really like the beach, so the sand is not all bad. 🙂
The integrated approach works best for me; use preventative methods (like nutrition) to actively prevent and heal underlying imbalances that cause illness, but understand that sometimes something happens that is out of your control and you need a quick fix, temporary support, or attention fast from Western medicine. But just for fun, let's compare these two different perspectives on some common health issues. Please note, I am not a medical doctor (nor do I play one on the internet).
8 Scenarios: Natural Health vs. Western Medicine
1) Example: Young woman with chronic PMS
Natural health/preventative: run blood labs to assess the mineral levels involved with hormone production (like zinc and copper), investigate gut infections that could impact estrogen recycling, check in with the functioning of phase 1 and phase 2 estrogen detoxification and hormone levels using a DUTCH Hormone test, all while using nutrition therapeutically to build up the body and support hormone synthesis. Typically, hormonal imbalance is caused by a low thyroid function, poor detoxification, chronic gut infections and/or a low nutrient diet causing a low progesterone and/or excess estrogen.
Western medicine: take a side effect-loaded pill to "manage" PMS with synthetic hormones, while masking symptoms and underlying imbalances in the body.
2) Example: Middle-aged adult with high cholesterol
Natural health/preventative: look a diet, liver + thyroid function, and nutrient levels that are needed to turn cholesterol into sex hormones as they should (thyroid hormone and a healthy liver/gallbladder are essential for this conversion). Just like a recipe, the body can't do its job without ALL the right ingredients.
Western medicine: take Rx drugs to lower cholesterol (an antioxidant), as well as reduce cholesterol intake, namely saturated fats, while increasing your intake of processed vegetable oils. Yikes!
3) Example: Young woman with varicose veins
Natural health/preventative: address areas of stress in the body that put a burden on the venous system (like poor liver detoxification, weak digestion, chronic gut infections, hypercoagulation and hormonal imbalance). Use nutrition therapeutically with lifestyle changes and wear compression stockings to help support the veins while correcting nutrition balance in the body.
Western medicine: ultrasounds to diagnose the problem, laser ablation to destroy the vein or an injectable solution into veins to "kill" them whenever needed. Compression stockings are also usually recommended.
4) Example: Young woman with sluggish thyroid function
Natural health/preventative: run a hair tissue mineral analysis to assess the thyroid ratio (calcium to potassium levels) along with a nutrient dense diet and targeted nutrition to address the liver, energy needs, and digestion. Use thyroid supplementation only if needed, and only after energy production is supported through dietary means.
Western medicine: take a thyroid supplement, and adjust the dose as needed while digging your body into a deeply depleted state if not also addressing diet and lifestyle (the reason the hypothyroidism came to be in the first place).
5) Example: Teen with ulcerative colitis
Natural health/preventative: address chronic gut infections, support beneficial bacteria levels, remove common food allergens from the diet along with harder to digest carbohydrates (ie. grains, disaccharides, and polysaccharides), while focusing on a nutrient dense diet of easy to digest foods. Also support the metabolism and thyroid health by making sure one is eating enough to up-regulate digestive strength, and reduce stress levels (stress has a huge impact on digestion).
Western medicine: Take anti-inflammatory drugs, and/or surgical removal of parts of the colon.
6) Example: Adult with acid reflux
Natural health/preventative: work on strengthening digestion naturally to up regulate stomach acid production to stop the acid reflux as well as address any overgrowths in the stomach (such as h-pylori and small intestine bacteria overgrowth that are linked to GERD).
Western medicine: take a Rx acid blocker that turns off/suppresses stomach acid (weakening digestion, severely limiting your body's ability to absorb nutrients, and creating the perfect environment for pathogens to overgrow in the gut — yikes)!
7) Example: Woman with mood issues
Natural health/preventative: assess what could be causing imbalances with neurotransmitters to begin with including: zinc:copper imbalances, pyrroles disorder, over/undermethylation, low b-vitamin production (from your good gut bacteria), gut infections altering serotonin production and creating chronic inflammation. Once the areas of stress and imbalances are uncovered, work to build support them as needed.
Western medicine: take a Rx medication to alter body chemistry while ignoring the conditions that created the problem in the first place. *Note, there is no shame is taking medications, but it's important to acknowledge it doesn't actually change the conditions that started the imbalance in the first place.
8) Example: Woman with unexplained weight gain, chronic fatigue and pain
Natural health/preventative: assess the liver-gut axis to understand nutritional deficiencies and excess using hair tissue mineral analysis, gut testing and blood labs. Gain clarity on the overall toxic burden at play and come up with an easy to execute plan to open detoxification pathways and help reduce the toxicity over time.
Western medicine: go on a diet for weight loss while taking Rx drugs to manage the fatigue and pain (which can cause liver injury).
I'm REALLY huge on common sense. Each part of your body is there for a reason and you need it, thus it shouldn't just be removed if deemed necessary by the medical doctor getting paid big bucks to cut it out(!). Your body works as a system of systems; find out the root cause and address it (not cover it up with a Rx drug!). I also love the simple diagnostics of a holistic approach like gut testing, fatty acid testing, hair analysis, the personal nutrition assessment, and bodily observations: nails, skin, tongue, temperature, pulse, sleep, bowels, etc.
Ideally Western medicine and preventative health/nutrition are paired, coming at an issue and supporting the individual from all angles.
So tell me, what approach works best for you?
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Also published on Medium.
Katie
We in the medical community often get bashed for throwing pills at people, I am a Nurse Practitioner, and the core of my practice and our training is lifestyle change should always come first. That means getting the exercise you need, having a diet that is healthy, and taking good care of yourself. Not all of us throw pills at our patients, some of us to take the time to explain to our patients the importance of a diet that is full of nutrients, rather than processed. Some of us address thyroid problems as you have described above, not all of us just send you to a lab and look at you as a number. Some of us do look at our patients as people, ask about their lives, treat according to symptoms. However, the problem is that not all patient populations are eager or want to make a lifestyle change or do the work required to have a balanced lifestyle. Even after speaking with patients for at length what the benefits are. And sometimes, lifestyle and supplementation does not always work. Not all of us Western Medical people are Cray Cray…
Catherine
Thanks Katie for reading and joining the conversation.
The article wasn't meant to be a blanket insult to the medical community, but instead draw attention to trends in western medicine and put an emphasis on preventative measures 🙂 So many people do not understand that a pill is just going to mask a problem vs. fix the root issue, and I don't know if the medical community makes that obvious to the patient?! And I totally agree, sometimes the patient just wants a "quick fix," where as nutrition and other modalities often take months/years to correct underlying imbalances.
Abundantly,
Catherine
Sheri
I do believe that natural holistic healing is always best, i.e. diet and exercise.. let's get real here for a moment and think about the majority of the population. They WILL NOT be willing to do the necessary things to improve their health. So what other choice does the medical community have, but to give medication that will treat the symptoms.
Chrissi
I must agree- I was told to lower my cholesterol I should take statins, give up butter and only use vegetable oils and spreads- which upset my digestive system and raised my cholesterol levels even higher- I now use butter and lard or ghee to cook with and my cholesterol is lower than it has been for years I also have a definite curvature of my spine in my neck and upper thorax and the beginnings of what I call a hollow chest which has an effect on my breathing and I think has caused me to develop reflux if I eat after a certain time of the evening- which has meant not only have I been given antacids but wind removers too none of which help .....
Ann
Slippery elm powder taken in a glass of water 5 minutes before a meal, twice a day will ease heartburn naturally.
Mememe
Catherine. I hate you and your delusional logic. Explain to me how taking L-Thyroxine for hypothyroidism is only going to mask symptoms? If you knew anything about physiology, you would understand that the way to FIX hypothyroidism is to REPLACE the hormone the thyroid is lacking. That's not masking a symptom. It is fixing the problem.
Tell me, with your mongrel logic, how I can fix Type 1 Diabetes with diet? Go. I'd love to hear this. (Ps, look up "diabetic ketoacidosis" which kills 1/2 of those left untreated for more than a day or two - for which the only cure is INSULIN... But what's the diet miracle to cure it? You seem to have an answer for EVERY medical problem!!)
Catherine
Hi Lauren,
Thanks for joining the conversation. Please watch your language and tone, or I will not be able to publish your comments per my comment policy. Comments are encouraged and appreciated so that everyone can be heard, but must be done so respectfully.
I think medicine has a place, but should be done along with addressing/fixing the root cause. While taking T4 and/or T3 for hypothyroidism can be an instant "fix" it doesn't address why the T4 or T3 might be low to begin with, which I consider a dangerous practice. In nutritional therapy liver malnourishment, protein deficiency, dieting, caloric insufficiency can all be additional triggers of hypothyroidism that are not commonly address by mainstream medicine.
If a diet is not adequately fueling energy production, is taking thyroid hormone always a good idea? I'd really question that. More on my opinion here: https://butternutrition.com/low-thyroid-how-to-thyroid-proof-your-diet/
I think there is a strong link between polyunsaturated oils and type 1 diabetes. A few of my favorite articles on the topic can be found below.
[1] Peat, Ray. Diabetes, scleroderma, oils and hormones. 2006. Retrieved on 27 December 2014 from http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/diabetes.shtml
[2] Peat, Ray. Unsaturated Vegetable Oils: Toxic. 2006. Retrieved on 27 December 2014 from http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/unsaturated-oils.shtml
[3] Weston A. Price Foundation. The Oiling of America. 2000. Retrieved on 27 December 2014 from http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/the-oiling-of-america/
I'm not a doctor so I'm not here to diagnose, treat or cure anything. What I am here to do is encourage people to think outside of Western Medicine's narrow scope of chasing symptoms.
Abundantly,
Catherine
Laura
Your spot on. Be encouraged to continue.❤️
Paula
Well, you did say '"this one might cause a stir", lol. I love the article and agree with you 100%. Western Medicine is crazy.
Catherine
Thanks for reading Paula 😉
Izabella Natrins
Thank you for your great article and your measured response Catherine. The routine prescription of Levothyroxine, with no advice on specific dietary & lifestyle changes does nothing when the underlying problem is low T4:T3 conversion and will hinder more than help.
But it does help to get the patient out of the doctor's office and keep them out by prescribing ever increasing doses with the advice to "be patient, let's wait and see".
Brooke
100% Agree with you Catherine. There is always a why. Good practitioners dig deep.
Keep up the amazing work!
Kiki
Be careful. Thyroid medication causes rage in many. I didn't realize this until I got off and went on herbs. Further, the meds didn't even address my chronic low body temperature so I can't believe it was doing a darn thing for my thyroid function. Go herbal! You'll rage less (feeling the need to tell someone you hate them simply for having a different opinion than you) and finally have full control of your life and actions. Best of luck.
seb
many problems can be prevented. so thats how you treat it, as far as diabetes type 1, how did it develop in the first place, now thats a good question! I have researched it left and right and it seems to be an inconclusive area, but what i can tell you that pregnant women using antibiotica have a higher chance of getting a kid with diabetes, so does not getting mothers milk and substitusion milk increase the risk. so how do you explain that nowitall? im not saying not to take medicine, just that it can be avoided in way to many cases. everybody needs to be on top of things and seek the truth, that goes for all parties, espesially the overtrusted medical doctors who therfore have unreasonable power
seb
western medicine is by far the best for anything acute, i dont think anybody wants to get herbs when they are bleeding out. so as far as liver transplant goes, did anybody say that you can use herbs for that? for a genetic disease when surgery is needed western medicine rocks. but this example is as relevant as saying when you are vitamin A deficient, a scalpel will not fix their lives,( just turning your argument around)
its not all pseudoscience, unfortunatly it dosent seem like you have the intellect to interpret what I am saying and Im sure in your mind you will justify it with blaming me, thats what why people like you with 13 years or whatever is so alarming, follow blindly like a sheep. do the research and find the truth, ask the right questions, but will you do that?? ......we all know the probable answer to that, so Im out of here. ciao
Lindy lou
I read the other day that some levothroxine have a chemical included that stops the thyroid from producing T3 T4. May be true may not....But the fact is the big pharmaceutical companies want you to be taking their product indefinitely . My idea of a good doctor is to get you off medication not keep you on it. I know there exceptions but the pharmaceutical and food industries are working together to firstly make you ill so the other can come along and pump you full of drugs that you don't really need due to the fact you have a bad diet. These giants are causing the problems. Why does a burger and coke cost a dollar and a salad and water cost 4 dollars..
Heather
I believe there is a way to speak to people with whom you disagree and have an open dialogue to exchange ideas.
Your comment, however, is filled with ad hominem attacks and is unnecessary.
Be nice.
Lynx
uuuum did you actually read the vitriol? Catherine handled it like a pro.
Allyson Turner
Holee Cr*p! That is extreme and HIGHLY undeserved. My 40+ years of treating myself via diet, homeopathics, herbs and other natural mean, pretty much speak to a lifetime of actual experience to support Catherine's views. And whereas, there are a LOT of bloggers on the net who's newly acquired, alternative health information is bogus at best, I say from personal application and experience that Catherine is NOT one of them.
FYI, I had a partial thyroidectome when I was 13, and if you don't think I have had a long and arduous journey getting to the other side of that, you are very. incorrect. As a testament to much of the information that Catherine advocates, at 59 yo, I am thinner than I ever have been, and enjoy extraordinary health.
You wanna support the barbaric medical system in this country? knock yourself out. And if you can show me one healthy person on either side of that absurd medical equation (doctors, nurses/patients), bring it. This is something we've all been waiting to see.
Lynx
This is confusing. Did you actually read this article?
Bouncedancer
Allyson Turner -- exactly -- it's struck me how many people who work in the medical/pharmaceutical industry look profoundly unhealthy -- obese, red face -- probably too many vaccines; I am starting to connect red face with (often) metals poisoning (besides alcoholism).
Gina
Example.... my friends thyroid was low but when looking at her reverse T3 a storage hormone and a lab that western doctors never run we found she was not converting t4 tot3 because she was storing her hormone. Once her adrenals were addressed and she supplemented her body with proper supplements her rt3 came down allowing her body to free up t4 which converted to t3. So that’s not delusional it’s a fact.
Linda Reynolds
My golly you are a little toxic! But to tell you, from a person who no longer takes L- thyroxine. That's me. I found that my diet was the reason, I have intolerances to dairy and gluten. 5 weeks after ceasing to eat these foods my thyroid kicked back in. This was 10 years after I was first diagnosed with underactive thyroid. I know it will not happen for everyone. Finding the reason things stop working is far more helpful than throwing pills at people, and rubbing your hands together at the brownie points you'll get from the pharmaceutical industry .
Mememe
What about these Canadian twins dying from Alagille Syndrome who will DIE without a liver transplant in the next 6 months? What's your magic dietary cure for them? You need to write an article on curing REAL life-threatening diseases with naturopathy and diet. You will fail miserably.
Catherine
Hi Lauren.
I think you are trying to put words in my mouth. If you correctly read my article, you would understand that I clearly stated, "The integrated approach works best for me; use preventative methods (like nutrition) to actively prevent and heal underlying imbalances that cause illness, but understand that sometimes something happens and you need a quick fix, temporary support or attention FAST from Western medicine."
Again this is my blog and personal opinion, and you are reading at your own free will.
Abundantly,
Catherine
mememe
Answer the question. How will you save the lives of these twins who will die without a liver transplant?
My argument is that when Western medicine is truly needed, it works in ways your pseudoscience never ever will. A vitamin pill or special diet will not fix their livers. Ever.
sarah
wow!!!! i never comment on these....but u have serious issues mememe. pop your pill and stay off the site if thats what suits ya.
mememe
I did not go to university for 13 years and put myself in $100,000 of debt to enter a debate about what is intelligent medicine and what is not with someone like yourself, who sounds only modestly brighter than a bowl of Jello.
Linda
Thanks Sarah, you took the words right out of my mouth.
Sally
mememe,
In my experience, those who question the status quo and specifically our western medical protocols are FAR more intelligent and better critical thinkers than those who blindly pop the pills, do whatever their docs say without digging deeper, and who follow the big pharma prescriptions for "health." Perhaps you, mememe, who spent $100,000 in medical school, are the one who should develop better critical thinking skills...or are you far too entrenched now in the ways of "intelligent" medicine to even comprehend there are many ways of living (and of attaining health) in life? I completely agree with Catherine and am very thankful there are others out there who question, question, question. Catherine isn't hating on western medical systems, she's questioning them. You are, however, hating on anyone who disagrees with you or has found a more natural way of being healthy. Sad. Medical practitioners like you are the very reason I distrust western medicine.
Ellie
Homepathy and preventative measures help thousands, even millions of people. Your'e entitled to your opinion but there's no need for agression towards someone who is only trying to help. Take a breath and realize how silly you sound, we are all humans and all want to live a long healthy life by whatever means necessary. People have been alive and thrived thouands of years before western medicine even existed you know... Live and let live.
Thank you for this article, Catherine. I totally agree with what you wrote here, and I can say that preventative measures and nature based medicine have healed me ten fold what the "western doctor" has ever done for me, I'm 19 years old and will never go back to the sad, unhealthy way of life in the western world.
Best wishes, Ellie
Taylor
Thank you for your post here, Catherine!!!
I have seen DOZENS of MD's to try to get to the root of a debilitating issue I've been struggling with for a long time. ALL of them have dismissed me - they got defensive, and even aggressive, with me when I asked questions they did not know the answer to. Then they stormed out of the room because they had spent more than 15 minutes with me, and left me with a prescription for a drug to control symptoms.
Over months, the prescribed drugs that I took made my condition much worse.
I am looking forward to trying out a naturopath next week - he promised to spend multiple HOURS with me going over my current lifestyle/diet and all of my medical tests - bloodwork, xrays, cat scan, endoscopy, etc......to help me figure out what is the ROOT of this.
I will also say - While I have always been very conscientious of food and exercise daily, I changed my diet to a paleo one in past weeks, which has helped my condition immensely already.
Fingers crossed he can help me further - give me other nutritional/supplement/diet/lifestyle ideas going forward to beat this thing that DOZENS of MD's simply couldn't.
Michelle
Hi Katie!
While I agree that not all in the medical profession are crazy and trying to throw pills at their patients, I have only found one (between me and my mother I have been to a LOT), that tries to heal naturally before writing a script. Most either don't spend enough time with you, don't listen to what you are telling them, or believe natural healing is is for hippies and doesn't work. Not exaggerating. I'm really pleased to hear that you are not one of the typical mainstream professionals and I wish there are more that take a genuine interest in natural healing. I guess that is what a naturopath is for...if only my insurance covered it.
Alicia
Oh and exactly right about the insurance. The one and only reason i haven't been to a naturopath yet 🙁
CDowns
As a long career RN I too was sometimes frustrated with the Medical community zeroing in on relieving symptoms instead of actually finding the cause. And often frustrated by patient's unwillingness to take responsibility for their health. I did lots of teaching my patients but sometimes I felt like a voice in the wilderness. But I persisted because some patients appreciated it so much.
One thing I would have liked to see in your article is a recommendation to avoid GMO foods in the case of IBS. I am a victim of GMO foods and I only found out through intense research on my own with no help from all the Medical people I came in contact with trying to find out why I felt so ill all the time with multiple symptoms. Scan even revealed microinfarcts in my brain that disappeared as I avoided GMO foods. The same symptoms within 24 hours and Inflammation of cranial nerve 6 happens every time I accidently ingest hidden GMO foods. I am a healthy 76 year old as long as I avoid GMO foods.
Alicia
What you say it's so true, but as a person who has moved a lot and been to many many different practitioners, i feel it's safe to say that no matter how hard i tried to get them to pay attention things that didn't seem like symptoms to them, or anything big enough to worry about (even though it's physically and mentally changing my life) no one has ever told me how to change my diet or naturally try to heal and cure myself first. They may have said to eat right but never explained what that was. It's not fair how all they ever seem to want to do is make sure the stats are ok and move on. I've had a lot of trouble with my healthcare and my health, and still am. It's hard.
Joy
DO you know about FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE? ( A Western Scientific Approach that address the ROOT CAUSES)
Suzy
I think we all need to realize that we all see things differently according to our training and our beliefs. Personally, I believe that all forms of medicine has a purpose and sometimes there's more than one way to accomplish the same goal. There is no one way that's right for everyone. We each must take responsibility for our own health and research possible solutions. My husband chooses to treat serious heart issues by ownly using medications. He's grossly obese and never exercises but after 3 heart attacks and lots of medicine, he's 74 years old and still working full-time 45 minutes away from home. This is his way and he's happy with his choice. I on the other hand am 10 years younger with high cholesterol and borderline diabetes. I research and have found natural remedies that work for me. If I take 2tablesoons of olive oil at bedtime, my hdl cholesterol is off the charts and I have no heart risk because my ratio of hdl/ ldl is awesome. For the pre-diabetes, I simply choose to eat few carbs, protein and healthy veggies, some fruit and nuts and dairy. I've been borderline for nearly 15 years. I believe doctors are mostly dealing with folks who want medicine for a quick fix. For the rest of us,we need to communicate with others of like mind and research for ourselves. We can't change others, but we can make different choices for ourselves.
Natalie
I am now recovering from Covid19 after being sick for four weeks. I used to be an avid believer in western medicine and I have a medical background to some extent, because I was interested in becoming a physician when I was younger. Western medicine literally failed me when I was sick with Covid, by telling me there’s absolutely nothing they can do for my nausea, high fevers, and breathing distress. They said that if I came into the ER on a stretcher, they could intubate me and put me on a ventilator, which often causes permanent damage to the lungs. They recommended Tylenol for my fever and pains, and advised I monitor my symptoms from home, alone. So, I ignored them, and talked to a nutrition expert. I went on immune boosting probiotics, took supplements to support organ health and alkalize the blood, like cod liver oil, elderberry, rishi, chaga, alkaline and mineral waters, cordyceps, barley grass, chlorella, spirulina, and thyme. I ate natural antivirals like raw garlic, antimicrobials like raw ginger and tumeric root, raw honey, echinacea, green tea, capsicum, red beets, parsley, citrus fruit, chamomile, and every other fruit and vegetable known to man. I made fresh chicken soup every day, and megadosed on 4,000mg of vitamin c for three days when my fever peaked, because a doctor informed me that they administer 5,000mg of vitamin C intravenously to patients suffering from covid19 in the hospital. To clear out my lungs and improve my breathing, I put eucalyptus and thyme leaves into a bowl of boiling water, and put a towel over my head to inhale the steam. I took hot showers multiple times a day, and did breathing exercises constantly. It took four weeks, but I have recovered from a moderate case of Covid19... and I didn’t have to go to the hospital, I prevented pneumonia, and I recovered. I wouldn’t recommend this treatment to people who are severely ill, who may need to be hospitalized and intubated, but for people suffering from a mild to moderate case and want to prevent it from becoming more serious, or for people who want to reduce their discomfort and the doctors aren’t helping, this regimen may be helpful. It also may be helpful to take in moderation while still healthy, to boost the immune system and ensure that you fight off whatever microbe comes your way. Just be aware that if you’re allergic to any of these ingredients, please do not self administer because they could cause an allergic reaction. I also would not recommend megadosing on any vitamin, even vitamin c, without discussing it with a nutritionist or doctor first. The key is, listen to your body. It will tell you what it needs to heal itself.
Kathleen
Katie....where do you work?
I've yet to find a medical professional who is like you.
It would truly be a blessing to be treated even in a basic human form.; not as a number and a burden. After getting sick and losing weight very quickly, I've had nothing but drugs thrown at me for the past year plus; and when that wasn't working, procedures galore. Still no answers, which is why I've taken my health back into my own hands and make my own, well researched and informed decisions.
If the warning says, "this has not been approved by the FDA" SCORE, I'm in! 🙂
Brittney
This article is really comparing "bad" medical practices to holistic medical practices. More specifically, it is making generalizations and assumptions about allopathic (M.D.) medical practice. Regardless, there are too many times a doctor fails to spend adequate time and energy looking at the patient as a whole. An osteopathic physician is trained to see the patient as a combination of mind, body, and spirit. An imbalance between, or within any of these aspects can result in illnesses or disease. While natural remedies are useful, and definitely underused, there are still ample diseases and illnesses for which "natural" remedies should neither be attempted or incorporated without the intricate knowledge and understanding of the human body. The "natural" approach described in the article is in parallel with the osteopathic approach. If you prefer this method of medical practice, look at the initials behind your doctor's name. If it says M.D., maybe you'd feel more comfortable with a D.O. that uses these osteopathic and holistic methods in practice, instead.
Janel
Brittney,
I appreciate your input on the subject. Reality is rarely as simple as good guy vs. bad guy. The actual medical practicioners, seem to just be ordinary people wanting to help by doing their job how they've been taught to. Follow the money... it comes down to industry industry industry. The industry taught them how to do their job. They answer to industry standards. The individual citizen cannot make a pill themselves; the industry controls the supply and gets a profit. On the other hand, food containing the nutrients that our bodies need to work properly can be grown by a kid, it's so easy. Why the heck would an industry promote the prevention of the diseases that their profits depend on?
Brittney
Hi Janel,
I agree with what you're saying. Unfortunately the pendulum swings both ways: naturopathic is now an industry and people want to make money there, as well. I think health care is coming down to people educating themselves and finding a doctor or someone qualified they can trust that doesn't have both their hands in the "industry" cookie jar. My fiancé worked as a natural supplement consultant for years. His wakeup call was discovering that he was selling a supplement that literally killed off dopaminergic cells in the brainstem and caused Parkinson's Disease with long term use (the supplement is Graviola). I chose osteopathic medicine because the focus is on the body's innate ability to heal itself, supplements (which are as dangerous as pharmaceuticals if not used properly) and meds should be used only when proper diet, activity, etc fail.
Andrea Clifford
Hi- I adore your posts and read them all, but you have big typo in this one, they are stockings, not stalkings…two very different words with different meanings. 🙂
Keep up the good work! You are right on about everything!
Andrea
Julissa
Deadly accurate answer. You've hit the bueylesl!
Lauren
This is ridiculous. I've never responded to an Internet blogger before, but I truly felt compelled.
As a chemist, I am asking you: do you think these drugs you bash are just fancy pills that doctors found lying around? NO. We take the time to create these drugs (or even find them through natural sources, such as plant extracts, etc), we then VIGOROUSLY test these drugs (unfortunately on animal models, but that's a whole different sad story). We jump through years and years of hoops by testing, retesting, remaking and retesting these drugs to do exactly what we want them to do. People who suffer from acid reflux (such as myself) can't always just "work on our digestion" to magically fix the problem. There are chemical processes in the body that I assume you have little to no understanding of that these drugs target that your "healthy diet, positive energy, and wishful thinking" approach cannot handle.
I assume you are of the same mindset as the anti-vaccers, because god forbid we put a small amount of dead or near-dead virus for our body to recognize and learn to easily defeat for the next time it encounters that virus. Because we all know that one study in that one journal that said "vaccine=autism" (which by the way, this article was redacted after brin proven wrong by other scientists... The scientific process is wonderful).
Good luck to you all. Let Mother Nature take its course with you all. God knows we need natural selection to pick up the pace to control our population.
paul
You need to do some unbiased research Lauren, check this out for starters.
http://www.fhfn.org/exposed-90-of-peer-reviewed-vaccine-safety-studies-fraudulent-putting-your-child-at-risk/
Zahra
What are you smoking, or should I rather say, "Don't drink the Kool aid!", and pray that you can get a chance for a gentle and not rough wake up call?
CDowns
Lauren...Fine, the drug may be a wonder drug but if you use any GMO excipients or fillers to keep the pills intact that drug will make me ill! Especially cornstarch. I am a tested and proven victim of GMO foods and sensitive. to many chemicals. Now I have Leukopenia. I'm sure past exposure to pesticides/herbicides/GMOS had much to do with it.
Mememe
Oh my God Lauren. Someone with a rational brain!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am an MD and, the same way I don't pretend to know what a lawyer, real estate agent or electrician does to succeed on a day-to-day basis, I wish anti-science people would just get it into their thick skulls that they understand approximately 2% of what our jobs in REAL biomedical science (medicine, research, drug development) actually involves. The Internet is a very dangerous place where people believe all the shit they see. If you idiots only understood the incredible amount of work that occurs "behind the scenes" to keep you and your like minded mongrel relatives safe, you'd shit your pants. Then you'd go to a naturopath and get a useless expensive remedy for pants-shitting, then you'd cave and go see your MD who would actually help you fix the problem.
sarah
you are an md???? now im really scared.
mememe
I'm scared of people who defend this type of shit instead of trusting SCIENCE and EVIDENCE-BASED MEDICINE.
If you're scared of me/maybe doctors in general, I'd love to see your response when you're in a truly life threatening situation. Will you choose to reach for a vitamin pill or a hospital emergency department? I guarantee you it would be the hospital emergency department.
Don't shit where you sleep.
Lizelle
Mememem I feel sorry for you. You are so deluded. it is clear that you have been brainwashed. You have the typical God-complex that you have been taught in medical school. You do not read or believe anything outside your precious science books. You believe so much in science and probably are an atheist too!
It is clear that you do not care about people, just yourself.
How can we trust a doctor like that?
You are like the one doctor that actually wished I got cancer just because I believe in alternative medicine.
I feel sorry for your patients!
Mark
Well, take the high rode, oh educated professional.
Evidence based approach? Like Thalidomide? How about vioxx? Or Statin rage?
No one is saying ER docs aren't indispensable, but likewise just as human (apparently) and worthy of praise but not worship.
Most resistance you'll encounter I'd imagine is on the big pharma money machine. The 6th largest economy is where fraud, incompetence and corruption abound. Wake up, we're not against you, we're against the culture of corruption.
Ellie
Medical "professionals" get so threatened when they think there is even the slightest possiblity of them being wrong. They need to chill with their whole God complex.
Izabella Natrins
You took the words right out of my mouth! Oh my goodness, if some of these comments are an example of the level of intellect and communication skills bought by a $$multi-thousand dollar medical and 'scientific' education, then it's no wonder that we are all in such a sorry state. of health!
I hope, however, that they're just the vacuous rantings of a few intellectually bankrupt 'professional' trolls expressing ludicrous opinions to get a reaction.
Lynx
Huge difference between General Practiioners (master of none) and emergency medicine. Get a grip.
Sophie
Mememe, my gosh why are you so agressive and demeaning? You’re an MD you say? A mentally unstable one ? Or more like a troll trying to stir the pot? If you truly are an MD...Do you talk to your patients the same way you’re talking to people on here? And if you truly feel so strongly and “hate” Catherine and her approach... why are you still here ? Why waste your time ?why risk getting your high blood pressure high with all that stress you’re experiencing when reading all
these opinions that don’t line up with yours? Not coming here and reading the stuff that clearly upsets you would be better for your health. But the again, nah a true MD ( well, at least one with emotional intelligence) , would not behave the way you are.
Rick
That's funny because I suffered from acid reflux for 10 years. It was so bad that I got a special dispensation from my insurance company to take nexium 3 times per day. I also had a duodenal ulcer, high blood pressure, suffered from gout, and had 2 feet of my colon removed because of diverticulitis. That was all before the age of 35. I am 55 now and take zero prescription meds. I was able reverse all ailments by changing my diet And taking colloidal mineral supplements. No GMOs, no high fructose corn syrup, no aspartame, no refined sugar, and no MSG. I am 100 times healthier 20 years later. My blood work is spot on. You may want to try my approach..doctor. By the way, everyone in my family has developed diabetes by the age of 50..everyone but me. But of course they think pills and shots are much easier than changing their diets. And of course I never even catch a cold anymore..go figure.
mememe
You're absolutely right. A healthy lifestyle will help you avoid pills.
When you were under 35, overweight, depressed, with diverticulitis, reflux and gout, who/what was the problem? Was it the medications, or was it your lifestyle? You said it yourself - it was your lifestyle. Until you changed your lifestyle, which is by far the best medicine there is, you relied on medications to keep you feeling well. I bet the majority of people arguing anti-medicine on this post have misaligned lifestyles, and hate allopathic medicine and life-saving medicaqtions because they don't want to face that truth.
elizabeth
There doesn't seem to be a "like" button. Thank you for your story. Same as mine, not quite. But I'm tired of trying to explain how it all happened just to be told I'm a freak.
Taylor
Elizabeth, me too!
I do strongly believe there is a time and place for the work done by MD's.
HOWEVER, after struggling with a debilitating condition for a long time now (and seeing DOZENS of different MD's to try to help me figure out the root of the problem) they have ALL dismissed me - they all got aggressive with me when I asked questions that they did not know the answer to. Then they rushed out of the room to see their next patient because they had spent over 15 minutes with me.
This is awful.
I need a MD to prove me wrong - but until one does, I am SCARED of people with a MD after their name. I am seeing a naturopath next week to promised to sit and talk with me looking at all of my tests for multiple HOURS. Fingers crossed.
Schneider
Another MD here 🙂
I love when people think that our precious medical science is infallible and even a chemist said that we test drugs a lot of times to make sure that they will work. Problem is that certainty is usually the truth of the idiots.
I don't know if you guys remember but there was super safe drug called Talidomida that... well, wasn't safe at all and some people got deformed and disabled by using them (a lot of pregnant woman used it).
Oh and let's not forget about your daily aspirin, my dear heart patient! Never mind, we just discovered that this could actually kill you faster...
The funny thing is that... Where are the scientists that said "Hey this is a super safe method" now? Where are they to take the full responsibility for deforming, killing and destroying the life of thousands around the globe? It isn't so fun when you are wrong right?
Things change. Science changes. The Empire State was build with thickest walls to support it, nowadays buildings taller than it have thinner walls because engineers discovered that their anterior studies were wrong. Science is like this, always changing.
Thank you for your awesome article Catherine !
PS: Memememe and the chemist guy, both of you should visit a psychologist and take some anger management classes 😉
Catherine
Thanks Schneider for sharing your thoughts and kind words 🙂
Abundantly,
Catherine
Lynx
Schneider I love your post..... As soon as name calling comes in then it becomes emotional.... no point to read any further.
I fully respect emergency medicine and more importantly respect alternative medicine for it's emphasis on lifestyle.... I fist started with doctoryourself.com I heard him on a radio station and he doesn't try to push anything on anyone.
Thanks Catherine for a great article.
Mrs Linda J Reynolds
Delusional and brainwashed.
Lynx
You do know that homeopathy utilizes the same science... ie: http://thespringcenterfornaturalmedicine.com/uncategorized/vaccination-and-homeopathy-similarities-and-differences/
Thinker
Oh, Lauren..... Your description of drug development and testing is so flawed. I happen to know a little about this firsthand.
Catherine is absolutely correct in her blog posting. Mainstream medical is failing hundreds of thousands of people.
Oh, and by the way....no link between vaccines and autism? Hmmmm.....
http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2007/06/no-evidence-of-any-link.html
Mememe
THERE IS NO FUCKING LEGITIMATE LINK BETWEEN VACCINES AND AUTISM. Quit posting this fodder. You do not know why you're talking about. Are you a babysitter for a living?
Patricia
Shill troll.
Ted
Traditionally trained western medicine MD here, and I have to say that I love this post Catherine, and you are completely right, Western medicine is totes cray-cray, guilty as charged! We either ignore nutrition COMPLETELY or recommend THE WRONG THING, and then we try to cover any symptoms with some ridiculous prescription drug which is frequently a toxin with a [possibly] desirable side effect. Oh and of course we divide the body into little geographic regions and 'specialize', ignoring anything that doesn't enter our little zone. I think the fact that 99.9% of us are nutritionally illiterate is probably our biggest sin, and then ever listening at all to the pharmaceutical industry is second worst.
Thankfully there are a few of us out there that aren't completely clueless! A lot of Functional Medicine docs really get the big picture [hopefully myself included]. I avoid prescription drugs like the plague and I think most of the problems I see on a daily basis can be radically improved if not outright cured with lifestyle changes, with nutrition having absolutely the highest importance of all.
I will throw western medicine a bone and say that we are doing a pretty good job with trauma care and trauma surgery and associated critical care so if you get hit by a bus then we can come in handy, but in terms of prevention and treatment of chronic degenerative diseases we pretty much suck. 😉
You can check out my nutritional advice at http://www.burnfatnotsugar.com but you might think I am a little crazy too as I'm definitely on the lower carb side of things, actually not far from nutritional ketosis--this just happens to be where I see the most dramatic results in my patients! =)
Anyway keep up the good work!
Catherine
Thanks Ted 🙂
This post was a little out of my comfort zone, but it needed to be said!
Janel
Thank you Ted I appreciate everything you said. Please continue to witness to the community.
Marlene
Amen!! Ted. Well said. If RX was the answer to everything, then why do they all come with such horrible side effects? I totally agree that most of the diseases can be cured or controlled by the food we put in our bodies. And, yes, Western Medicine does an excellent job with trauma situations, but with nutrition, they are mostly clueless. I commend you for being one of the few that are not in Medicine just for the money.
Mememe
I'm a MD too. I am not nutritionally illiterate. I encourage lifestyle changes and dietary moderation like crazy, but the reality is that most people JUST DONT APPLY THESE THINGS. Then they go on to get uncontrolled diabetes. At that point it is OUR job to step in and see he writing in the wall and recommend medications to keep them off dialysis or from losing their toes or having a fatal heart attack. There are times when medications are absolutely life saving. If you avoid prescription pills "like the plague", you are likely not meeting the standard of care of our profession and should be reported. Garbage in, garbage out friend. You give our profession a bad name.
Ellie
We need more people like you!!
joanna
since i've had ulcerative colitis for almost 8 years, i know that diet will not fix this disease in 99% of cases. that is absurd and surgery is necessary to save a person's life sometimes. if we didn't have western medicine and just used a natural approach, most people with UC would be dead already.
Kerri Knox
Joanna,
If we ate a traditional diet, 99% of ulcerative colitis would not even exist. It's a little strange, to say the least, that you think that diet will not help in 99% of the cases, yet ulcerative colitis is almost a completely unknown disease where traditional diets are eaten. And hardly 1% of people with any autoimmune disease even TRY traditional diets, so it's no wonder that 99% can't be healed from it- since 99% don't even try!
There are thousands upon thousands of people who've healed from ulcerative colitis using natural therapies. I think that your preconceived notions are overriding the power of nutrition.
Brittney
Unfortunately, the claim that 99% of ulcerative colitis can be cured with a traditional diet, is simply not true. There is a strong autoimmune component that must be addressed, which diet simply can't do alone. While some symptoms may be relieved through diet or natural therapies, it is dangerous to encourage someone to forego proper care. Even when the disease is quiescent, there is damage being done to the large intestine by the immune system. This damage greatly increases the risk for colon cancer. Surgically removing part of the colon, or all of it if it progresses to a toxic megacolon has been the only curative measure. (100% curative if the colon is removed completely, which would only be done in severe cases in which the entire colon has been affected/damaged.)
Also, I'm not sure what a "traditional" diet is. If we look at cancer rates throughout the the past centuries, stomach cancer rates have greatly decreased, which we certainly wouldn't attribute to the average diet today. There's more going on, particularly with the immune system. Diet has influences over the immune system, but not to the degree that it will cure an autoimmune disease, unfortunately.
Mememe
Joanna - the reality is, most people, such as those in this group, who poo-poo medicine have not had a truly debilitating life threatening disease like you have. Gluten sensitivity, food rashes, mild hypothyroidism and IBS are NOT going to kill you. As you said Joanna, UC, or things like cancer, many genetic diseases and severe endocrine diseases like Type 1 Diabetes will likely kill you without modern medications/surgery. Not to mention vaccine preventable illnesses, but God forbid I mention THOSE. Once these mongrels NEED allopathic medicine for a truly life threatening disease, I'm sure they will change their tune. And guess what?
Suzanne
I enjoyed reading this article as I am born and raised to trust western medicine no matter what. It wasn't until my sister studied TCM and Shiatsu that I realised there was something else out there.
One question though, who should I go to to get help with diagnosis and treatment of some of the above conditions. I went to see a naturopath once (in Australia) but I did not trust them and felt very uncomfortable by them pushing their diagnostic tools on my like iridology etc. Any ideas?
Catherine
Hi Suzanne,
The "alternative approaches" I listed were primarily how I would work to build up the body to support those with the conditions listed. Although in nutritional therapy we do not "diagnose or treat disease." I think a strong nutritional foundation is the key to any recovery plan.
As far as who to see, it is hard since each naturopath practices a little differently.
Thanks for reading!
Catherine
Kerri Knox
Another western trained medical professional here. I'm a nurse who turned to alternative health because I just realized that I was pushing drugs and not actually helping people get well, but to maintain bad health. I help SO many more people now in my alternative practice than I did as a nurse in hospitals. So, keep up the great work with the articles and teaching.
You can see my practice and educational website here at http://www. easy-immune-health.com
And to the chemist who said that drugs go through rigorous testing, blah blah, it's funny that Harvard just recently did a study showing that the vast majority of drugs that have come on the market in the last 50 years are just new patents for old things and that drugs are incredibly unsafe, to the point where even Harvard indicts the FDA for it's utter failure.
"Despite the small number of clinically superior drugs, sales and profits have soared as successful marketing persuades physicians to prescribe the much more costly new products that are at best therapeutically equivalent to established drugs.22 Both an American and a Canadian study found that 80 percent of the increase in drug expenditures went to paying for these minor-variation new drugs, not for important advances."
http://therefusers.com/refusers-newsroom/institutional-corruption-of-pharmaceuticals-and-the-myth-of-safe-and-effective-drugs/#.U1iPaFfdzWU
Ricko
At 35 I was extremely unhealthy. I suffered from Uclers, Gout, Acid Reflux, High Blood Pressure, high Triglycerides, High Cholesterol, and was 30 pounds overweight and depressed. I had 2 feet of my colon removed because of sever diverticulitis. I was on 6- 10 daily medications to treat all of this. I ate fast food , smoked, and drank 10 - 12 diet cokes per day. Not a single MD mentioned anything to me about my diet or nutrition in general. I started reading about the effects of GMOs, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup, and read about the fact that over 100,000 people per year die from adverse drug reactions from FDA approved prescription meds. I started eating organic,, stopped eating processed foods, stopped using anything with aspartame, started taking colloidal mineral supplements as well as using coconut oil to cook, raw honey to sweeten, and started using my magic bullet to grind up veggies and fruits. I keep my body alkaline. 20 years later I am 30 pounds lighter and prescription drug free. I have none of the problems I mentioned above and I feel and look like I am in my early thirties. Our bodies are amazing machines that can correct almost any imbalance or disease given the right ingredients..
b
you are a nutritional therapist and this article is very biased. you throw all MDs in one category and only assume all medical doctors just hand out pills. every nutritional therapist iv met seems 'cray cray' so this article by you does not surprise me. get more facts and your red font links lead to nothing. dusty.
mememe
Thank you for defending the noble and intelligent profession of medicine.
Peri
Wow! Does this post resonate with me... I have just heard the fabulous 'Evolution of Medicine' online summit and it seems a new paradigm in medicine is on the horizon. The age of super specialized, reductionist, Dr--as-God medicine seems to be in the dock. Patients are demanding another way and thanks to Functional and integrative medical practitioners like Dr Mark Hyman, Frank Lippman, Dereck D'Silva, they are getting it. It seems like Medical Nirvana...docs that LISTEN to you, advise you on nutrition, exercise and stress reduction often with the help of qualified health coaches, docs that want to get you Off your medication and heal through supplements rather than chemicals. I live in Mumbai, India, and I assure you Western medicine here is just as unpalatable. Very little face-time with your doc, a long list of meds, no emphasis whatsoever on nutrition...this was never how it was meant to be. Especially in a country which has a long and rich tradition of wellness through health traditions like Ayurveda.
I am due to go for an MRI in an hour, suspected MS. Yes, I am concerned about the outcome, but a little more reassured that the new collaborative doctor-plus-patient-working-In-tandem model will offer me all the tools I need to maintain health, acupuncture if necessary, supplements, of course, diet do's and don'ts et al...
More power to all the wonderful doctors, nurses and healthcare practitioners who are working so hard to bring wellness back.
Janel
thanks Perri
real doc
Western based medicine = Evidence based medicine.
The other guys = Forget Aspirin to lower risk of a heart attack, let's mix blackberries with coffee!!
Technology is a dangerous thing. Luckily most ambulances don't head to blogs or witch doctors when people are actually sick. But you guys are definitely great entertainment for the rest of us!
allen
It funny to read this today. On this mornings news, it was reported that Aspirin really doesn't lower your risk of a heart attack. It is only beneficial if you have already had one. So all those people who were listening to the Western based medicine were wasting their money, not to mention what the daily Aspirin might have been doing to their stomach linings.
Several years ago I had my cholesterol levels tested and my doctor called me a few days later and said to get into the office because my counts were so high he had to put me on statin drugs. To make a long story short, when I saw my numbers, I noticed that my good cholesterol was 95 (very high), and I pointed it out to him. He admitted that he forgot to check it because most people have a very low count in that area. I left the office that day without drugs, relieved that I knew enough to correct a very bad error. If I hadn't known, I would have been taking unnecessary drugs for the rest of my life. It made me realize how important it is for everyone to educate themselves about their health and to be very careful about what you put in your body.
mememe
The Framingham Score, a study of several countries with tens of thousands of patients, categorized the risk of heart attack. The elevated LDL level was the main predictor of cardiac death. The HDL was correlated, but not proven causative, with cardiovascular disease. Therefore, you are wrong. If your HDL is high but your LDL is also high, you are at just as high risk of having a heart attack than if your HDL is high but your LDL is low.
Also, that Aspirin "news"? At least 3 years old.
Mark
Framingham? ROFLMAO, I thought it was common knowledge that study was skewed.
Ancel Keys based his study on 7 countries, not the 22 he had data for. He cherry picked data which proved his theory and swept the rest under the rug. Had he included the data from the other 72%, his assumption would have been disproven. That is NOT science, that's fraud.
High CRP numbers are a much better indicator than cholesterol, of which you make 75% of anyhow. Therefore, heart attack seems to have an autoimmune factor which coincides with arterial plaque formation. Also a huge indicator for heart attack risk is magnesium.
If you're going to quote a source and appear credible, you might want to quote a credible source, not one that has been debunked as CAUSITIVE of diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Michelle
I agree and am honestly reluctant to see my DR about my sleep issues and asthma. I fear I'll get my hand slapped yet again for not getting my flu shot and be forced on drugs that cause other symptoms while not addressing whatever the cause is. It mostly seems to be environmental for me so moving may be my only option. I have yet to identify a naturopaths that can help in the Seattle area.
Kayla Wright
A lot of this can be summarized as over generalization. I think some more research on some of these topics may be necessary to fully comprehend why physicians choose particular treatments. Not to say that natural medicine is bad, but western medicine isn't either. Many medications can be found in nature (I.e. Antibiotics). Also, as a personal victim of IBD, there definitely is a lot of problems with your suggestions on how to treat ulcerative colitis. Removing the colon is ALWAYS a last-ditch effort. Diet is not enough to control symptoms for the majority of IBDers. I generalize here as well, I recognize that many Crohn's and colitis patients feel relief from simply changing their diet, however, it is important to recognize that this does not occur for all IBD patients. I know many IBDers who need anti-inflammatory's as well as diet and nutritional changes. As far as surgery goes, usually only occurs during an emergency or, as mentioned earlier, as a last-ditch effort when all medication options have failed and the patient is still in excruciating pain.
On another note, the word "prove" in the title of this post goes to show just how invalid the "science" is behind these claims.
Sean OToole
Some great comments.
I know that most people that go to western medicine practitioners are looking for a quick fix like a pill or a shot. Some that I have talked to about this are adament about this. Yes the doctors and others do comply because they don't often have any other solution. Most doctors don't have a clue about nutrition. I am a student of Herbology and I search out the best for me and often I will share what works for me. There are no licensed NMD's where I live so I do what I can.
Maeghan
Wonderful article, I completely agree with you. Doctors focus so much on treating symptoms by pushing drugs rather than looking at what's causing the problem. Sure, let's put more chemicals into our bodies, that'll help for sure. *sarcasm*
I'm loving your articles, and all the great info. Don't listen to the haters!
Kamal
Great article to support natural practices with few scenarios.
There is a reason why something is happening to you. Sometimes masking the problem with allopathic medications is not always the best solution. Ask your GP to assist in diagnosing the root cause and finding a naturopathic solution. I don't oppose allopathic medications but it seems like we as a society are constantly running towards quick fixes.
Anything masked for a long time comes back with horrible surprises. It's like domino affect. Time well spent to diagnose the root cause can save you loads of heartache later on. Always take anything coming to you in life as an opportunity to reflect. Not just on the eating habits but also your lifestyle.
There are some horrible comments left for the writer of this article. Instead of simply taking information to increase awareness some people have this tendency to always oppose/criticise. I truly appreciate the services doctors and surgeons provide to the society but there is no harm in being open minded to healthy approach to life. No one is saying Western medicine is bad. It's just the actions of big pharmaceuticals/businesses to push quick fix medicines as long term solution is not correct.
Simple truth is- We are all aware that in this day and age, greed is driving a lot of actions in people/ businesses (at all levels everywhere) that are not necessarily the optimum solutions for us.
Question is- Are we going to continue like this? or make little changes as individuals within our power to change this. Things don't change overnight but they do change with collective collaboration towards a focused outcome.
<3 laughter light 🙂
sarah
i too appreciate western medicine but acknowledge their tendency to overprescribe and underthink symptoms. i have a nerve and muscular disorder that developed at 32....and the only treatment and recommendation i received was....here take 6 pills a day to mask the symptoms....for the rest of your life. sad.
Judy Brown
Good discussion although i have not read all of the comments. This is where a health coach is so valuable. If a person needs to make drastic diet and lyfestyle changes, a health coach can walk alongside them and coach them through their challenges. I am a health coach and this is what I do to help people nevigate the conflicting messages in the medical world.
Joy
Hello CATHERINE
I can see from some of the comments above that you have truly stepped on the toes of those who are hardcore conventional medicine followers. GOOD FOR YOU!.
It is time that we speak up!
My personal experience with my own health (asthma & chronic allergies) and my husband who had a heart attack age 55 and my mother now 86 who struggled over 30 years with chronic bone and muscle issues (fibromyalgia, osteoporosis) and even our children ... taught me how inadequate the CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE MORALITY is!
BUT I don't have asthma any more! AND for over 5 years now WITHOUT ANY MEDICATION!
I helped myself with very helpful info on the Internet and books and only recently did I found a category for this approach it is called FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE which address the ROOT CAUSE instead of only medicating symptoms like in conventional medicine. Functional medicine has a western scientific approach that links all the symptoms to the root causes while dealing with SYSTEMS. It also address diet, life-style and emotions! As Dr Mark Hyman says: He sees people with a WHOLE LIST of SYMPTOMS and then he address it HOLISTICALLY 🙂
Conventional medicine fits only into a small piece of the pie of health but so many view it as the whole pie! NOT TRUE.
I suggest those who REFUSE to accept that conventional medicine is in MANY WAYS DYSFUNCTIONAL should watch a few videos by Dr Mark Hyman and then think again!
I have used homeopathy MANY TIMES ... high quality nutraceuticals or supplements ... REAL FOOD DIET .... life-style changes and the terrible itch behind me ears and in my neck is gone. NO PHARMACEUTICALS. \o/
I am not allergic to cats any more and I do not use any medication.
I am 59 going for 60.
I have many testimonies to share.
Those who have criticized you here ... well they NEED TO BE OFFENDED for staying stuck in dysfunctional medicine!
Emily
Common sense! YES! I really wonder about doctors & hospitals sometimes...
just a chemist
Hey Catherine,
first I don't intend to be offensive in any way. And I am happy that you wrote the disclaimer about not being a medical doctor etc.
I agree with you that some doctors are really unskilled. SOME. And I have experienced that myself.
But lets just talk about the majority, right?
They have been studying many years for their MD or PhD instead of taking a 9 month or so course. And all these therapies that you mentioned above are verified in MANY ways. By scientific studies on really lots and lots of patients. Until a treatment makes it to medical standard it really takes some time and testing. Same with meds.
What you suggest is from "you can try that" up to "really careless". Because of course nutrition is an aspect of health. And you can do something about some illnesses by changing the way you eat. Right.
BUT... In many cases you're not done by just changing your diet and lifestyle. Many of the problems you mention are genetically caused. And with some of them it's really damn careless to not seek medical help!
For example 3), 5) und 6) . Acid reflux I have myself been suffering of for a long time.
Changing your diet can help, I'm okay with that. But not seeking medical attention can lead to 3) thrombosis, 5) cancer und 6) cancer. And damn, nobody wants cancer.
So what's crazy about preventing cancer? This is really an insult to most medical doctors... Because, well, science is not brought forward by claiming some stuff. You need some studies to underline what you claim.
Because I am to lazy here's some about acid reflux and esophagial cancer, just as an example.
http://www.nature.com/ajg/journal/v97/n8/abs/ajg2002507a.html
http://gut.bmj.com/content/57/2/173.short
So, now it's your turn to prove what you're saying. If we go for acid reflux... Show me some studies that underline your claim. That show, that changing your diet is better than taking meds. And furthermore, that taking meds is "crazy".
Do so, and we will have some basis for conversation 😉
Regards,
Just a Chemist
Amarie
Hi Catherine,
My whole life I was let down by doctors, except for my entrance to the world. Now looking back st my 32 years of life and what I struggled with I cant be too sure doctors procedures to save my life, didn't have collateral damage. Since 4 ive been insecure about my weight, I can literally remember thats when I had my first self conscious breakdown. Till 16 I grew up in Chicago, as a kid I suffered many stomach aches and side pains as well as a weight gain following 9 years and older. It's funny my niece started gaining weight at the same age, in the same way and I remember telling her mom back then that she had the genetic hypothyroidism that my mother has passed down. It affects us all (woman in my family) but oddly it affects us somewhat differently. How it affected my niece though wss the same way it affected me as a kid, the weight gain, slowly lost teeth, or teeth growing in. Phases of lethargy, which can almost distinctively be connected to sugar. My youth I battled my weight, it literally took an eating disorder and self-medicating to overcome it. I think of all the times I went to the doctor as a kid, for a number of things, including just chk ups, and the same deal everytime. We can't figure out what the problem is with out running some tests, but for now have her watch what shes eating and getting plenty of exercise because she needs to lose weight. Wow thosr 7 years of college really paid off, not a single test was conducted until 16, after moving out of state. Doctors never once thought perhaps its her thyroid, my mother was always present, did he ever think to ask her if there is a history of thyroid problems. My entire childhood was spent fighting internal conflict, self-consciousness that had me wearing a sweatshirt hoody in Las Vegas summer weather. I used to love to swim, play outside, but the more I hated what I looked like the more I hide. I feel cheated out of being a kid for so many reasons and I envy people who tell me their doctor caught it early on. Why didn't any of mine? Then I moved to vegas, caught an allergy rash, went to the doctor he gave me a topical cream but said he wanted to run some tests and took 7 vials of blood. He had a whole clipboard of possibilities that could be wrong with me. Following the blood test was a phone call stating I needed to see the endocrinologist. I am just glad my sister in law listened to what I told me, she got my niece checked out. Can you believe once that slapped the old levroxine in her system she grew a couple of inches and lost 9 or more of her teeth, just over a couple of months. Thats crazy, but I only wish she wasnt reliant on any pill, but that her doctors could teach her a way of living and eating to assist her thyroid, because if any kid can pull it off, she can. Her mom has her on a weird, but strict diet, I will mention too the kid has lost most of the excess weight, no more baby fat on her face. She was in karate, and now cheerleading, she has energy like a normal kid. Then theres my sisters son, a year younger than my brothers daughter, he currently suffers a ton of asthma and allergy related issues, his immune system is in extremely poor condition and he is gaining weight, even though my sister put him on some gluten free diet that she was given the oK by her doctor. My nephew does not have celiac disease, so why did her doctor say this was okay especially since he is now my nephews new doctor.
I will tell you this much, I have never lived in a place where I was afraid to go to the doctor till I moved to vegas. Doctors here killed my aunt during routine knee surgery when they forgot to give her a blood thinner. In recent years they killed my father last year when he went to the hospital wiyh a treatable form of pneumonia and thanks to them caught an untreatable form of pneumonia on their ventilator. Then instead of doing everything they could to strengthen him, they did the opposite, giving him a tracheotomy, kidney dialysis and almost caysed a blood clot in his neck when trying to put in temporary pacer or something. I hate this toen enough as it is but if they could convince me they werent all doctors here strictly for money, perhaps I wouldnt fear them.
This article reminds me of a visit to the hospital while my dad was still there, a male nurse who appeared to keep in good shape was there so I approached him and asked if the doctors had already tried colloidal silver and nebulizer. I will never forget the surprised look on his face that I said that, I mistook it he didnt know what it was, but he assured me he knew exactly what it was but because of western medicine they would never resort to it as a procedure. Okay so basically a doctor doesn't do everything possible to save a person, thats what I learned that day oh and that I would have to find a licensed practitioner who can do this breathing method. Wow, well I called every doc lited under hollistic and alternative med. It was a tuesday around noon, not a single one answered the phone. The lesson here is, if u find yourself in a henderdon or las vegas hospital, demand a helicopter ride to another states hospital, it could be the difference between life or death.
MrsW
Seems that this post has a few people feeling a certain type of way.
To the memememee person, please go take your medications.
To the person who claims to be a chemist who creates medications: how about creating medications that don't worsen an already present condition or cause fatality. Every drug commercial lists a whole list of potential side effects that sound worse than what is supposedly being treated.
Having said all that, I have found that Western medicine to be useless as it pertains to treating a total person. It took a functional medicine doctor to diagnose my autoimmune disease correctly, give me correct supplementations, and to STOP the Synthroid craziness. I am finally on the road to wellness, but it has taken way too long. I absolutely WAS treated as numbers. All conventional doctors/practitioners wanted to do was to see a lab in "correct range" while totally ignoring me telling them that I still felt ill. Outside of cases that require surgery, conventional medicine is a joke.
Mrs Linda J Reynolds
This is my story too but I ended up finding out for myself .Worked it out from clues from many other people's experiences . Doctors were no help at all just wanted me to take the pills and that was that.
Heather
I love this blog.
I'm overt here cracking up at mememe's comment about how intelligent she is, yet she's over $100,000 in debt for student loans. 😂 Am I the only one who sees the irony in that😮?
Jan
Thank you for reposting this. Difficult to believe some of the uneducated hatred some of the previous posters spewed, but in the end they just show their own ignorance.
Excellent source girlie, keep up the good work!!!!!
Mark
Catherine, a wonderful article. I have been disappointed by MD's and their tests, somewhat like tea leaf interpretation or entrail divination. Yes Medicine has a role to play as do herbs. Folks like mememe who froth at the mouth should talk to more folks like us who jumped the rails of the crazy train (Ozzy). I have been sick and exhausted most of my life. I developed a terrible case of whole body dermatitis. No dice on either.
I've gotten my symptoms mostly under control and now looking to see if I can get back into health. Hence why I read you, Dr Mercola, Dr Axe, etc.
Mememe says they recommend a healthy diet. He/she should explain what that means (hint RDA has little to do with it) They should ALSO kindly explain where to obtain that nutrition. Back in the 30's there was congressional testimony which declared most Americans nutritionally deficient. All those decades of factory farming have depleted the soil of many key minerals. Not to mention, you're talking no hotdogs, ice cream, pizza, pepperoni, cookies, cakes, and ANYTHING which comes out of a box AT ALL. Basically, we have to reset our diets to what our grandparents grew up eating. That's like saying the swamp is infested by mosquitoes and we need to drain that swamp.
Sandi
So wish I would of come across you years ago, and my acupuncturist. I had injections done on a vein in my left leg, then 4-5 yrs later, another one shows up, so had laser treatment, just 1 yr back, and ya, another vein shows up now.. Nothing ever in my right leg! You are so right, and this is the same information I got from my acupuncturist this spring. Hind sight is 20/20 the old saying goes and rings so true. Flood the masses with misinformation to keep these doctors employed at the expense of human health! . Thank God for people like you and like minded individuals. May your business be blessed with much success!