The first step
in becoming healthy, well, and whole is to retake control over your life in
every aspect—physically, mentally, and spiritually. You cannot rely upon the
world to have your best interests at heart. Nowhere is this more profound than
in the discerning evaluation of every prescription medication that you take. Virtually
every medicine is a foreign substance in your body, which may have a beneficial
effect, but also likely has numerous unwanted side effects, some of those
potentially dangerous, toxic, life-threatening, or addicting. The more
medicines that you are on and the longer you are on them significantly
increases your risk for drug-interactions, toxicity, and trouble.
It should be no surprise that the
pharmaceutical industry is big business, and Western medical doctors are taught
to prescribe a drug for whatever ails you, regardless if that is in your
overall best health interest or not. Rarely do doctors try to take you off medicines
and recommend natural alternatives—and natural alternatives abound—not always
as effective as drugs, but certainly with fewer deleterious side effects.
Don’t get me wrong! As a part of the
health-care system, I certainly know the pros and cons firsthand. My son would
not be alive without precision surgical intervention and a liver transplant and
life-long anti-rejection medicines to sustain his life. Yet people die every
day, commit suicide, or are severely and sometimes permanently damaged by taking
prescription medicines. So for the majority of us, we would do better to
educate ourselves and ask appropriate questions and investigate viable
alternatives.
And I’m here to help you do just
that. To start, here are a set of questions that you should investigate or ask
your health-care provider concerning every prescription medicine that you take:
1.
What is this medicine for and how long must I be
on it? Is there a lower dose, less toxic alternative in a different drug, or
natural alternative or nutraceutical that might be as effective or help
alleviate this problem or condition? Can I at some point safely and slowly
taper off this medication?
2.
What are the side effects, especially long-term,
from taking this medication? Do the potential benefits truly outweigh the risk
of negative side effects from taking this medication?
3.
Am I, in fact, taking this medication to
counteract the negative side effects of another prescription medication that I
am already taking? (And herein lies the tragic reality of why some people are
on so many drugs. It’s an unrelenting and vicious cycle. And that is why
doctors are hesitant to change your prescriptions or taper you off them.)
4.
How can I reduce the number of medicines that I
am taking and how can I safely and slowly taper off some or many of these
prescription medications?
5.
Finally, if you have a science background, it is
helpful to know how the drug actually works—its mechanism of action—its precise
chemical action in the body to bring about the desired effect. Many times,
believe it or not, this is unknown—the drug has been shown to work in clinical
trials and approved by the FDA, but we have no complete understanding as to what
its interactions in the body truly are. The mechanism of action is helpful to
know if you are contemplating a switch to a different drug, trying to taper
off, or trying to supplement or augment the desired effect with natural
nutraceuticals (nutritional supplements).
Start today by asking these
pertinent questions to your doctor, pharmacist, and health-care providers. No
one should know your body’s functioning and needs better than yourself. It is
essential, of course, that you do not discontinue or taper off any prescription
medication without consulting your doctor first. Most importantly, a plan and
methodology would need to be in place as to how you would perform a drug taper
and the alternate substitutes or nutrients needed to balance your body’s chemistry
and physiology appropriately during such taper and the means to measure and
monitor your progress through blood tests or other means.
Here are some resources that you can
access on your own for a wealth of information. Most of this information requires
a strong science background so you may need some assistance in understanding this
information and the implications thereof.
Smartphone
Apps:
1.
Drugs.com This is an
excellent app and has both a layperson and professional option for information
access.
2.
WebMD This also is a
good reference.
3.
Medscape This is very
technical and geared for the professional. (You may need to set up login
information.)
Remember,
every drug has a “generic” chemical name and a Brand name. All the above apps are free. There are many other
professional pharmaceutical apps (I personally use Epocrates) and also many nursing drug-reference apps but most of these
require yearly subscriptions.
Book
References:
1.
Solid, safe, conservative information:
Moyad, Mark, MD, MPH. The Supplement Handbook: A Trusted Expert’s Guide to What Works &
What’s Worthless for More Than 100 Conditions. New York: Rodale, 2014.
2.
Moderate, with great information on common
prescription drugs:
Mindell, Earl, RPh, PhD. Prescription Alternatives: Hundreds of Safe, Natural, Prescription-Free
Remedies to Restore and Maintain Your Health. 4th ed. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2009.
3.
Aggressive, a wealth of nutritional information:
Balch, Phyllis, CNC. Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Fifth Edition: A Practical A-to-Z
Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & Food
Supplements. New York: Avery,
2010.
www.jeffhoracek.com
