Where to start when thinking about health? Everyday there seems to be a new twist on ways to gain the promise of better health or ways to overcome health problems – and many of these ideas seem logical, requiring only modest changes in lifestyle. But it’s easy to get hooked on a new fad, which is soon forgotten when a new idea comes knocking.
This rather undisciplined, sometimes over-diagnosed, and often costly approach to finding and maintaining health was highlighted in an article I read recently. It did not present a positive picture of health in the United States.
Dr. Joseph Mercola was quoted in the Global Burden of Disease study, which assessed health and disease trends in 187 countries and is said to be the “largest ever systematic effort to describe the global distribution and causes of a wide array of major diseases, injuries, and health risk factors.” This study released its rankings of the top 10 countries with the highest life expectancies and Mercola points out that the “United States did not make the cut – not even close.”
Even more alarming, an article authored by Gary Null, Caroly Dean, Martin Feldman, Debora Rasio, and Dorohy Smith describes in excruciating detail “how the modern American conventional medical system has bumbled its way to becoming the leading cause of death and injury in the United States.”
In order to improve the present medical system, many in the health care arena are pressing for the development of new roles with drug and insurance companies based upon what’s good for the individual. Along with this push, there is the idea that there must be alternatives to the present western style treatment and drug system. Dr. Robert A. Kornfeld in, “Developing a Sustainable and Functional Medical System,” makes a strong point for the inclusion of integrative medicine when he states that, “the paradigm of integrative medicine seeks to heal mechanisms rather than treat symptoms. This approach is a win/win for everyone who complies.”
Article comments
1 - Mary
The greatest fear Americans have is socialized medicine. If they embraced it health outcomes would improve.
2 - Igor
We need Single-payer UHS. Report after report shows that the USA private medical system is failing.
We spend twice as much as everyone else yet health outcomes are disastrous.
The monopolies in drugs and insurance must be disassembled and eliminated.
3 - Don Ingwerson
Mary and Igor thank you for your comments. I appreciate them.