Standard Medicine versus Holistic Medicine: which is the most effective, and what are their flaws?
Over the next several substacks we are going to discuss holistic medicine and herbs versus standard medicine practices using drugs and surgery.
If you ask your doctor about herbs, can I take herbs for my blood pressure or for pain, they will tell you no. They will discourage you from using herbs, claiming they are a waste of your time and money. They will say herbs are not tested enough, don’t have valid research studies, don’t have enough human studies, may have unintended side effects, the dosage is not specific, and that they are neither safe nor effective.
Let’s have a discussion on these criticisms. I have decided to spend the next 3 or 4 substacks discussing these different points. Are they valid? Is there truth in them? Where are the untruths? Why are doctors so afraid of people using herbs for their health issues?
Standard Medicine versus Holistic Medicine: which is the most effective, and what are their flaws? This picture was AI-generated.
To clarify, I am not opposed to all standard medicine. I think it does a great job dealing with emergencies, broken bones, heart attacks, lung failure, hip surgery, and critical care situations. If my lung is collapsed, it is ER time.
So, to make this crystal clear, if I am hit by a Mack truck, I am going to the hospital. Certain deadly infections require antibiotics. If you are in horrible pain, herbs generally aren’t strong enough to take away the pain of that level.
My husband sees a very good cardiologist because he has a sloppy heart valve, which will need intervention sooner or later. I can’t see my husband's heart function, so he gets an echo and several tests once a year.
There is a place for both herbal medicine and standard medicine working together to heal the patient.
I wish the doctors here in the US would open their eyes to that possibility. Some doctors on Substack have more open viewpoints.
Where standard medicine fails is that it does very little other than to treat patients with drugs during all the months and years leading up to your heart that fails or your blood pressure which becomes an emergency.
Where is the preventive treatment..the treatment before you are in a critical state?
Your doctor’s view is that standard medicine and drugs are the only means to treat heart and blood pressure issues. His view is that herbs are neither safe nor effective for use for any serious health issue.
You need to know there are two health care systems…standard medicine and holistic medicine.
In some countries, such as China and Asia, both systems are sometimes combined to benefit the patient. We will talk about this in the next substacks.
Today’s blog will first examine the success of standard medicine in this country, using statistics. The next blogs will address the critical complaints about herbal and holistic medicine.
Please read all of my Substacks and subscribe so you don’t miss this critical information.
Is the health of Americans improving? So, is holistic medicine ever needed, and why? Here are some stats on the state of our health in the US. I am quoting directly from these sites.
“All statistics below are based on the 2023 estimates from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) National Diabetes Statistics Report, unless noted.
Prevalence: Over 40 million Americans, or 12% of the population, are living with diabetes.
Over 2 million Americans are living with type 1 diabetes, including about 314,000 children and adolescents
Diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes: Of the 40.1 million people living with diabetes, 29.1 million had been diagnosed, and 11 million are undiagnosed.
Prevalence in Americans 65 and older: The percentage remains high, at 28.8%.
New cases: An estimated 1.5 million Americans are diagnosed every year.
Prediabetes: Over 115 million Americans age 18 and older are living with prediabetes.” https://diabetes.org/about-diabetes/statistics/about-diabetes
“More than 2 in 5 U.S. adults have obesity. The prevalence of obesity increased from 30.5% in 1999-20002to 41.9% in 2017–March 2020. During the same time, the prevalence of severe obesity increased from 4.7% to 9.2%.” https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/adult-obesity-facts/index.html
Obesity leads to heart problems as well as other health problems.
Rates of Heart Attacks and High Blood Pressure in the US
The majority of doctors, standard medicine doctors, are not educated in medical school except on drugs, surgery, chemo, radiation, and diagnostic techniques.
They are trained to treat disease rather than prevent it or control it without drugs during the pre-emergency stages.
They get a few hours on nutrition.
The average doctor spends 15 to 30 minutes with the patient. If your symptoms do not show up on lab tests, x-rays, or other tests, you are not sick. They may give you antidepressants, saying it is depression.
They may send you to other specialists. If nothing appears, you will not be helped. Chronic Lyme is one of those examples.
Do you really think 15 to 30 minutes is enough to properly evaluate a patient’s whole health picture?
The sale of prescription drugs was 20 billion in 2022!
“New York , Dec. 04, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global hypertension drugs market size is estimated to attain at 4% CAGR from 2023 to 2035. The market is expected to garner a revenue of USD 40 billion by the end of 2035, up from a revenue of USD 20 billion in the year 2022.” https://finance.yahoo.com/news/hypertension-drugs-market-revenue-reach-120000967.html
If you have anxiety, they give you a prescription; if you have high blood pressure, you get one or more prescriptions; if you are obese, you get a prescription for weight loss pills.
Does any of the staff or the doctor discuss your diet, if you exercise, if you drink enough water, if you drink, smoke, or have other lifestyle habits that are impacting your health? They have 30 min at most.
If they do ask those questions, they don’t have time to discuss the answers.
How many billions would the drug companies lose if you choose to be healthy through exercise and lifestyle choices?
How long would a doctor in this country stay in business if you were healthy?
The sale of drugs makes drug companies rich and helps doctors stay in business. They run patients through the systems in 15 to 30-minute time slots.
How does the US rate against other countries in health?
“Among the 10 countries included in the report, the United States ranked last overall, with Americans having the shortest life expectancy (77.5 years) and higher rates of death and disease despite having the highest healthcare spending. The three top-performing countries were Australia, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.”
“Annual heart disease deaths decreased by 2.7% between 2022 and 2023 -- from 941,652 to 915,973, according to the report.
However, cardiovascular disease still killed more people in the U.S. than cancer and accidents combined. “
Over 900,000 people in the US died from heart disease, despite the standard treatment of drugs and surgery.
I would say the US has nothing to gloat about with its standard medicine treatments. It does a lousy job of helping people with their health until it is critical situation and you have a disease state.
Herbs and holistic medicine can fill this huge gap between health and the journey toward sickness, imbalance, and disease.
You need to understand the value of using holistic medicine and the huge differences in patient care between the two systems.
See you in the next blog!