By
Richard Smithee, Master of Traditional Oriental Medicine
Are You The Author Of Your Life – Or A Character In Someone Else’s Novel?
We are taught at a very young age to be very careful crossing the street, to look both ways and to proceed with caution. Why is it we were never taught about health, nutrition and healthy lifestyles? Today cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death worldwide, cancer is the second leading cause, and in the United States the third leading cause of death is known as “Iatrogenic,” meaning death caused as the result of a medical treatment. Diabetes is also a leading cause of death throughout the world, but it is difficult to quantify because 75% of diabetics die of cardiovascular problems, so the cause of death is listed as heart attack or stroke, but the true underlying cause was diabetes.
Research shows 80% to 90% of heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are due to a poor diet and lifestyle. So why are we not taught at an early age how to take care of ourselves through nutrition and preventive healthcare? The instructions that come with most medications state “This medication, along with diet and exercise. . .”. Well, where do we get our advice on a healthy diet and appropriate exercise? Surveys show that 98% of patients think their medical doctor is well trained in diet and nutrition and look to the doctor to advise them on healthcare.
THE REALITY IS: most doctors have little or no training in health and nutrition; Google “Nutrition education U.S. medical schools” and you will find; “Less than half of all schools report teaching any nutrition in clinical practice; practice accounts for an average of only 4.7 hours overall. Conclusions. Many US medical schools still fail to prepare future physicians for everyday nutrition challenges in clinical practice. It cannot be a realistic expectation for physicians to effectively address obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hospital malnutrition, and many other conditions as long as they are not taught during medical school and residency training how to recognize and treat the nutritional root causes.”
ANOTHER REALITY IS: the pharmaceutical companies (Big Pharm) give vast sums of money to medical schools to do medical research, they contribute gifts, books and research materials to the medical students and in return they dictate what curriculum will be taught. There is absolutely no incentive or motivation for Big Pharm to “cure or prevent” any condition. The money comes by treating symptoms; therefore the medical students are taught to diagnose conditions and prescribe medications to treat the symptoms.
Whether you have back pain, high blood pressure, or diabetes the standard of treatment is to treat the symptoms. In diabetes they give medications to regulate blood glucose and insulin and you are told there is no cure! Again, the reality is the medical doctor has no cure, because they lack training on how to PREVENT, TREAT, AND REVERSE diabetes.
Using Naturopathic and Functional Medicine protocols medical challenges like diabetes, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, arthritis and many other so called “auto-immune disorders” can be prevented, treated and possibly reversed using diet and nutritional supplements, along with exercise and lifestyle changes.
In Functional Medicine the focus is on strengthening the immune system which starts in the digestive track where 70% to 80% of the immune system resides. If we have poor digestion, gas, bloating, weakness, tiredness or frequent illnesses, chances are very good your intestinal flora (microbiome) is out of balance and/or you may have parasites, yeasts, or molds that compromise your health.
By focusing on cleansing and detoxification we eliminate many problems that compromise our health, such as acid reflux, gastritis, colitis and abdominal inflammation, toxins and constipation. Next we want to strengthen the immune system and the digestive system by introducing pre and probiotics to encourage the good bacteria to grow, we need the proper nutritional elements to encourage the complete digestion and assimilation of nutrients. And finally we address the diet and nutritional aspect of a healthy lifestyle. All the diets in the world will fail to give you healthy lasting results if your digestive and immune systems are not functioning well.
Every-body has cancer cells in their body; the only difference between inactive cancer cells and active cancer is the state of your immune system. The medical doctor approaches cancer with three main protocols; surgery, chemotherapy and radiation all of which damage and weaken the immune system. In Functional Medicine our focus is not on the cancer, but on strengthening the immune system which will allow the body to heal on its own.
Heart disease, cancer, and diabetes grow and flourish in the presence of sugar, acidic conditions and/or low oxygen environments. As an example one can of soda (12 ounces or 350 mL) has the equivalent of 12 teaspoons of sugar; this amount of sugar will reduce your immune system by 50% for up to six hours. If your soda is a cola drink containing caffeine it acts as a diuretic and you will pee four cups of fluid for every cup of soda, which dehydrates your body, the caffeine also leaches calcium out of your bones. Oooh! You say I drink diet soda so I don’t have to worry about the sugar! There is not enough time or space to explain it here but know that diet soda is more fattening, less healthy and puts you at much greater risk for health challenges.
Are You The Author Of Your Life – Or A Character In Someone Else’s Novel?
Be an informed consumer, if you have an acute health challenge like a traumatic injury or heart attack traditional medicine is where you want to be, they have by far the best diagnostic methods and advanced surgical procedures, if you need a hip or knee replacement, go for it! Your doctor is well trained in making a diagnosis using lab tests, x-ray, MRI’s, etc. Medications can be life savers if you are in extreme pain or medical crisis. Or you may have survived a health challenge and are deeply grateful for the help you received from traditional medicine.
But, if you are like a lot of people you do not like going to doctors or taking a lot of medications. So what should you do? Be pro-active, be self-empowered, seek out a healthcare provider that understands your situation and is trained in nutrition and health. Through experience and training it is often possible to detect future health challenges often – years before they manifest.
Consider this;
- If you live to age 65 one out of two men (50%) and one out of three women (33.33%) will have cancer.
- We are exposed to far more chemicals, pesticides and herbicides than in years past.
- Commercial farming techniques have stripped the minerals out of the soil and killed healthy bacteria in the soil.
- Toxins in air, water and food weaken our immune system. If you run a 10 kilometer race (6.2 miles) in the city of Los Angeles you will inhale as much toxic particulate as if you smoked a pack of cigarettes.
- Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) Using genetically modified foods the Monsanto Company’s goal was to control 100% of all commercial seeds genetically modified and patented. At the same time Monsanto started buying and taking possession of the world’s seed companies to limit competition.
- Only two countries in the world allow direct to the consumer advertising by the pharmaceutical companies, the United States and New Zeeland.
- The United States has 5% of the world’s population, but they consume 75% of the world’s medications.
- Many of the foods we eat are loaded with preservatives, artificial coloring, flavor enhancers, texturizers, added sugar, salt, and/or fat.
Why wait until you get a diagnosis of a major health risk? So, what to do? Just sit around and continue your life as before? Or become proactive using state of the art testing and treatment to strengthen and enhance your body to meet the challenges of Today!
For more information on how to complete a Health Risk Assessment and develop a personal health and nutritional program call today. Passport to Health
