Hello all, I’ll be putting up this week’s podcast in a day or so. We’re finally bringing home our son from the hospital so I’ve been wrapped up with that.

I remember when the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program was really popular. We had program officiators come to our school to tell us to “just say no.” Well they were implying “street drugs” or “illegal drugs.”

We’ve taken a detour from being addicted to street drugs to being addicted to prescription drugs. The drug dealer has changed from the guy hanging out on the street corner to the pharmacist in your local drug store. Granted you still need a doctor’s prescription to get these drugs, but that doesn’t solve the problem of addiction.

Our commercials are laden with advertisements by pharmaceutical companies hocking the latest pill to “cure” erectile dysfunction, seasonal allergies and depression. These companies spent close to $5 Billion in advertising in 2006 alone. Studies have shown that people are more likely to ask their doctor for the medications they are more “familiar” with because they saw it on TV.  In 1997, there was a change in the “direct-to-consumer” advertising laws and thus we saw a huge increase in drug ads on television.  By 1999, the average American was exposed to at least 9 drug related commercials per day.  (Overdosed America Dr. John Abramson)

• In 2007 US prescription drug sales were $274.9 billion (up 5.8% from 2005)
• In 2000 US prescription drug sales were just over $100 billion
• The average American spends roughly $350 per year on prescription medications

Drugs and the Elderly

The cost of prescription medications really takes its toll on the elderly.  Here are the top 5 most commonly prescribed drugs:

(Source: “Enough to Make You Sick: Prescription Drug Prices for the Elderly” from Families USA)

Drugs…the cure for everything?

I must say that not all drugs are “bad” per se.  The advent of certain medications such as antibiotics helped us to control diseases such as tuberculosis and other infectious diseases.  You hardly see any of these types of diseases and if you do, they’re pretty isolated.  Pain medications can be really helpful when you’re in acute pain, or if you’ve gone through some type of trauma.

We have the best “emergent care” doctors in the world, but when it comes to managing and treating chronic illness most medical doctors fall short.

That’s because we’re trying to fix a problem with the wrong tool.  Most drugs are only effective for acute care and does nothing to solve the chronic condition.  (We’ll talk about this in another post)

Ask yourself these 4 questions before going on any medication

1. Will this medication “correct” my problem?
2. How long will I need to take this medication?
3. What side effects does this medication have?
4. Will my body function better after taking this medication?

Be cautious of any type of foreign chemical you put into your body.  Get the facts.  Understand what it does and it’s side effects.  Be informed so that you can make a good decision for the future of your health.

The FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients that it has found hazardous levels of selenium in samples of certain flavors of the dietary supplement products “Total Body Formula” and “Total Body Mega Formula.” Analyses of samples by FDA have found most of the samples contain extremely high levels of selenium — up to 200 times the amount of selenium indicated on the labels of the products. The FDA has received 43 reports of persons from nine states who experienced serious adverse reactions using these products. The adverse reactions generally occurred after five to 10 days of daily ingestion of the product, and included significant hair loss, muscle cramps, diarrhea, joint pain, deformed fingernails, and fatigue. Consumers should stop taking the products and consult their healthcare professional if they experience any adverse events associated with the use of the products.

Read the complete MedWatch 2008 safety summary, including a link to the FDA News Release, at:
http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#TotalBody

Dr. Mike’s comments:

It really bothers me that there are supplement companies out there who do not take adequate quality control measures. I mean come on 200 times the indicated amount of the label!

I’ll write another post about how to choose a good nutritional supplement, because obviously you cannot trust how these companies advertise their products.

If you’re reading this post I’d like to take the time to say THANK YOU for your time. I’m very honored that you take time out of your day to read the posts that I put up and the podcasts that we do. I get a kick out of every person who emails me with either a comment or question. Pass on the love to another person today. Say thank you and show your gratitude for someone.

Technorati Tags: GPD08,Good People Day