Reducing Healthcare Costs in America

[HysteryDiagnosis]

Make this book and others like it mandatory reading in high school.

http://www.amazon.com/Prescription-Drug-Alternatives-All-Natural-Options/dp/0470183993
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/517G8T2Rk3L._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA240_SH20_OU01_.jpg

Product Description
James Balch and Mark Stengler, coauthors of the hugely successful Prescription for Natural Cures, and Robin Young Balch have teamed up to create the most comprehensive and up-to-date book available on natural alternatives to prescription medications. The book provides natural, safe, and effective ways to treat a wide range of common ailments, including ADHD, allergies, diabetes, depression, erectile dysfunction, eczema, heart disease, headaches, and PMS. You’ll read in-depth information, not found in any other popular book, about the pros and cons of prescription and over-the-counter drugs compared with natural treatment alternatives ranging from diet and lifestyle changes to supplements and herbal medicines.

"This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to take charge of his or her health. Read it to live long and well. "
—Hyla Cass, M.D., author of Supplement Your Prescription: What Your Doctor Doesn't Know about Nutrition

"An outstanding resource for comparing common pharmaceutical and holistic treatments."
—Ronald M. Lawrence, M.D., coauthor of Preventing Arthritis and The Miracle of MSM

"A must-read for every person who wants to achieve better health and avoid the dangers of synthetic medications. The authors do an exceptional job by telling you everything you need to know about getting well and how to use supplements correctly and safely."
—Suzy Cohen, R.Ph., author of The 24-Hour Pharmacist

[Lorien]

1. Thanks! I'll see if my library has it

I've been unemployed most of this year and can't afford meds. I hope they have an alternative for Wellbutrin!

[HysteryDiagnosis]

2. Be careful there... very very careful. Something that you might

be able to add that is very inexpensive....


http://www.namiscc.org/Research/2002/TreatmentAlgorithms.htm
OMEGA-3

A NY TIMES interview with Dr Joseph Hibbeln of the NIH, a champion of omega-3, notes:

* Infant monkeys fed baby formula supplemented with omega-3 are stronger and more alert even at less than a week than monkeys given standard baby formula.

* Depression is 60 times higher in New Zealand, where the average consumption of seafood is 40 pounds a year vs Japan, where a person consumes nearly 150 pounds of seafood a year.

* Postpartum depression is 50 times more common in countries with low levels of seafood consumption. During pregnancy, a woman's body becomes depleted of fatty acids, which are transferred to the fetus.

* Omega-3 seems to be critical to the growth and maintenance of brain cells, especially cell membranes.

* When omega-3 is not available, the body uses omega-6, which produces cell membranes less able to cope with neurotransmitter traffic.

* And of course the famous 1999 Harvard pilot study.

http://199.97.97.16/contWriter/yhd7/2002/04/18/medic/9159-0014-pat_nytimes.html


LIGHT THERAPY

A Yale University study of 16 pregnant women with depression has found three weeks of light box therapy improved depression symptoms by 49 percent. Those who continued the treatment for five weeks experienced a 59 percent improvement.

http://my.webmd.com/content/article/1663.52988

[Lorien]

3. Already have

been taking Omega3 as icelandic fish oil, plus adding flax for 10+ years. I live in Florida; all the "light therapy" I need for free. I also take about 15-20 other supplements (including organic muli-vitamins, B-complex, co-Q 10, DHEA, Alpha-lipoic acid, MSM Acetyl L-carnatine, calcium, magnesium, L-tyrosine and probiotics) , eat a non inflammatory diet that excludes meat, dairy, sugar, soy, caffeine and gluten (taste too, for the most part) and is high in organic fruits, vegetables and brown rice, I never eat anything artificial, I meditate, exercise regularly, do self hypnosis, use an Alpha-stim SCS daily, clean with organic bio friendly cleaners, and have plastered the house with positive affirmations. Still no luck.

[kenny blankenship]

4. Let me guess: VITAMIN D CURES EVERYTHING!

Or was it kelp enemas?

[RC]

5. Both!

You will notice however the health nutz do not live any longer than the rest of us and die of the same stuff.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

8. Facts are stubborn things RC

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/10/why-does-the-us-rank-29th-in-longevity/

Why Does the U.S Rank 29th in Longevity?
By STEPHEN J. DUBNER

Yes, the U.S. healthcare system is full of inefficiencies which lead to bloated costs. But no, that’s not the reason that U.S. longevity ranks only 29th in the world.

That’s the gist of a working paper (abstract here; pdf here) by Samuel H. Preston, a health demographer at Penn, and Jessica Y. Ho, a health economist.

As summarized in the NBER Digest:

The authors demonstrate that mortality reductions from prostate and breast cancers have been exceptionally rapid in the United States relative to a set of peer countries. They argue that these unusually rapid declines are attributable to wider screening and more aggressive treatment of these diseases. Screening for other cancers also appears unusually extensive, and five-year survival rates from all of the major cancers are very favorable. Survival rates following heart attack and stroke are also favorable (although one-year survival rates following stroke are only average), and the proportion of people with elevated blood pressure or cholesterol levels who are receiving medication is well above European standards.

[cbdo2007]

6. Why make anyone take personal responsibility for their health? That doesn't usually make sense on DU

You know how many Billions of $$$ are spent by non-smokers and those of us who eat healthy on the rest of the slobs out there who smoke and eat like shit??? Many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many many Billion$$$$$$.

Unfortunately, those of us who take care of ourselves are the ones who get screwed financially out of the whole deal. And we'll probably end up getting killed by a drunk driver. Nah...it's not worth it.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. Woah.... such emotional responses. I'm thinkin' some 303's

could be in order here... they smell funny, don't taste bad but they do calm you down a bit.