Wow, didn't realize it's been over two weeks since I posted anything on my blog. Sorry! It was a crunch getting everything ready for the first major presentation on UnBreak Your Health at Unity Church in Dallas on the 12th. Went pretty well for the first time and the folks at Unity were wonderful. One of the folks attending thought I should sell the video since it was such a great overview of the wonderful world of CAM.
Yes, I did have a friend videotape the presentation, mainly for my own benefit to improve the material and my delivery. There are some bits that I'm working to put up on YouTube but we'll see how it goes. Haven't done any video editing for a long time.
Last week was spring break for my wonderful teacher/wife so we enjoyed the time off together. Went to see Dallas Blooms at the Arboretum, always amazing to see all of the brightly colored flowers there. It's a sea of spring, a great time to stop and smell the tulips (roses aren't blooming yet). It was a perfect spring day this year, not too hot or too cold, just a wonderful afternoon.
Several stories in the news lately so more a little later!
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Drugs in Drinking Water
Recent research has shown that even small amounts of prescription medications can affect human beings. Embryonic kidney cells grew too slowly, human blood cells showed activity associated with inflamation and human cancer cells grew too quickly. At this point we don't have a clue about the long-term effect of exposure to small amounts of prescription drugs. But the pharmaceutical industry is telling us not to worry about the prescription drugs found in drinking water in major metropolitan areas across the country.
The Associated Press conducted a 5-month study which found prescription drugs in the drinking water in 24 major markets. While tiny, the mere presence of so many types of drugs in tap water obviously becomes a concern to public health.
Even worse it was found that prescription drugs also have found their way down into the aquifers underground which supplies the drinking water to 40% of the nation.
I love the quote in the AP story from Dr. David Carpenter who directs the Institute for health and the Environment for the State University of New York at Albany. "We know we are being exposed to other people's drugs through our drinking water and that can't be good."
The Associated Press conducted a 5-month study which found prescription drugs in the drinking water in 24 major markets. While tiny, the mere presence of so many types of drugs in tap water obviously becomes a concern to public health.
Even worse it was found that prescription drugs also have found their way down into the aquifers underground which supplies the drinking water to 40% of the nation.
I love the quote in the AP story from Dr. David Carpenter who directs the Institute for health and the Environment for the State University of New York at Albany. "We know we are being exposed to other people's drugs through our drinking water and that can't be good."
Friday, March 7, 2008
Insurance Equality
The House and Senate are negotiating a compromise bill to equalize mental health benefits. The House recently passed legislation barring insurance companies from charging higher out-of-pocket costs for mental health coverage than they do for medical and surgical benefits. This version is different than the Senate bill so there will be some work needed to pass a bill to equalize mental health benefits.
Now if we could only get the Powers That Be to add coverage for complementary and alternative therapies!
Now if we could only get the Powers That Be to add coverage for complementary and alternative therapies!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
The Price of Pain
It may all be in your head after all. In a study published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine the price of a pill determined its effectiveness. In other words the same pill was reported to be more effective when it cost more.
This may be one of the reasons people often prefer high-priced new medications over generics.
The Placebo Effect needs to be studied so we can learn how to capitalize on it. Can you imagine if we spent just 5% on Placebo research than we do on prescription drugs? The pharmaceutical industry would probably disappear within a decade!
This may be one of the reasons people often prefer high-priced new medications over generics.
The Placebo Effect needs to be studied so we can learn how to capitalize on it. Can you imagine if we spent just 5% on Placebo research than we do on prescription drugs? The pharmaceutical industry would probably disappear within a decade!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Medical Risks
How often have we heard 20-20 medical hindsight after deaths raise an issue to a headline story? The latest example of "those risks were completely unanticipated" comes from the first follow-up study of hormone use after menopause. While heart problems linked to the pills appear to fade after stopping the medication new cancer risks appear.
You may remember this study was halted six years ago due to heart risks and breast cancer. Now we find out years later that lung tumors and other cancers become a problem. Those who'd taken hormones but stopped were 24% more likely to develop any kind of cancer.
As usual doctors are trying to play down the problem saying it only affects 3 women out of 1,000 on the hormone pills. Try telling the 3 women with cancer that it isn't a big deal. Better yet, try BEING one of the 3 women with cancer and see how you feel.
You may remember this study was halted six years ago due to heart risks and breast cancer. Now we find out years later that lung tumors and other cancers become a problem. Those who'd taken hormones but stopped were 24% more likely to develop any kind of cancer.
As usual doctors are trying to play down the problem saying it only affects 3 women out of 1,000 on the hormone pills. Try telling the 3 women with cancer that it isn't a big deal. Better yet, try BEING one of the 3 women with cancer and see how you feel.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Hold On To Your Wallet
Health-care spending in the U.S. is projected to hit $4.3 trillion by 2017, nearly double the current $2.3 trillion. Medicare spending will reach more than $2 trillion consuming nearly 20% of America's total Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Much of this change is driven by the aging Baby Boomer population but the failures of the current medical system must also be faced. The current system of private insurance means that every doctor is faced with multiple forms with different rules and criteria in a system of denial management by insurance companies. It's estimated that this factor alone amounts to 1/3 of the total health care cost today.
Unnecessary medical tests and procedures driven in part by liability lawsuits and partly by our top-heavy ratio of specialists to general practitioners means that perhaps as much as another 1/3 of total costs could be reduced by adopting a different medical approach. The majority of other industrialized countries employ a majority of general practitioners to prevent health problems, an approach that produces lower costs and higher world rankings. (America ranks #40 in longevity today.)
Developing a new, affordable health care system is past urgent, it's now critical. Health-care spending is projected to grow on average 6.7% each year in the next decade, far greater than the 1.9% growth in the general economy.
Adding complementary and alternative medicine into the mix is one ingredient in the new recipe for better health and lower costs, as it is in other countries.
Much of this change is driven by the aging Baby Boomer population but the failures of the current medical system must also be faced. The current system of private insurance means that every doctor is faced with multiple forms with different rules and criteria in a system of denial management by insurance companies. It's estimated that this factor alone amounts to 1/3 of the total health care cost today.
Unnecessary medical tests and procedures driven in part by liability lawsuits and partly by our top-heavy ratio of specialists to general practitioners means that perhaps as much as another 1/3 of total costs could be reduced by adopting a different medical approach. The majority of other industrialized countries employ a majority of general practitioners to prevent health problems, an approach that produces lower costs and higher world rankings. (America ranks #40 in longevity today.)
Developing a new, affordable health care system is past urgent, it's now critical. Health-care spending is projected to grow on average 6.7% each year in the next decade, far greater than the 1.9% growth in the general economy.
Adding complementary and alternative medicine into the mix is one ingredient in the new recipe for better health and lower costs, as it is in other countries.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Congress Investigating Misleading Lipitor Ads
Pfizer said it is pulling all of the ads for its cholesterol drug Lipitor since Congress is investigating whether the ads are misleading to the public. Pfizer is the world's largest pharmaceutical company and through last October they'd spent $139 million advertising Lipitor making it the 5th most advertised drug. The drug is the world's best-selling medicine with nearly $13 billion in sales last year.
The United States is one of only two nations on earth that permits direct-to-consumer advertising and it is the leading cause of our nation's prescription drug obesity.
The United States is one of only two nations on earth that permits direct-to-consumer advertising and it is the leading cause of our nation's prescription drug obesity.
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