What You Don't Know About Your Doctor Can Kill You

I spent over a decade working in the pharmaceutical and medical device industry. Although I believe many physicians enter the profession with a desire to help their fellow man, the health care industry is designed to drive dollars.  Here are some interesting facts on the "sickcare" industry:

• Nearly 20 percent of American doctors get paid by drug companies to be consultants or speakers.
• On the drug companies' payrolls, nearly 200 Georgia doctors, pulled in over $2.2 million last year.
• In 2009, seven reporting pharmaceutical companies paid $109 billion dollars to doctors to promote their drugs at peer-to-peer meetings.
• A recent review found that about two-thirds of academic medical centers hold equity interest in companies that sponsor research within the same institution (JAMA 2008).
• A study of medical school department chairs found that two-thirds received departmental income from drug companies and three-fifths received personal income (JAMA, Sep 2008)
• A study of 200 panels that issued practice guidelines found that more than one third of the authors acknowledged that they had some financial interest in the drugs they recommended.
• Many members of the FDA’s 16 standing committees that advise the FDA on drug approvals also have financial ties to drug companies.
• Over half of Continuing Medical Education seminars are funded by the drug industry.
• Go here to find out if your doctor receives money from drug companies: http://projects.propublica.org/docdollars/

This little summation is not to put all the blame on the doctor but, let's face it, you are suppose to be in a "trusting relationship" with your doctor.  The drug companies did not take an oath to keep you safe and healthy.  Further, they have never hidden the fact that they are a BUSINESS that is FOR PROFIT with strategies designed to deliver results to shareholders.

Clearly, this is not a system designed to cure disease as there is no money to be made from healthy people.

Now consider these facts:

• Less than 6% of doctors get adequate nutritional training during medical school. They are trained to treat disease with pharmaceuticals.
• Our healthcare system is the THIRD largest killer in America claiming over 250,000 deaths per year.

12,000 due to unnecessary surgery

7,000 due to medication error in the hospital

20,000 due to other hospital errors

80,000 due to hospital based infections

106,000 due to adverse events from prescription drugs

• Degenerative diseases are nearly non existent in wild animals unless their raw food supply has been altered.
• Commonalities of people who live in Blue Zones (unique places where people live long without disease) are gardening, primarily plant based diets, lots of sunshine, and consumption of superfoods.
• Doctors such as Dr. Gabriel Cousens, MD, boast a 90% cure rate of Type II diabeties when patients follow a raw, plant based diet (no person has been cured with pharmaceuticals).

As much as we'd like to point the finger at doctors, drug companies, insurance companies, and the whole health care system - it's time to take a serious look at OUR responsibility in our health.  You CAN take CONTROL of your wellbeing!

I've never sold a drug that cured anything, but I have seen miracles happen with food.

www.rawkstarlivingfoods.com
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Corporate Sponsors and Medical Associations: Don't Bite the Hand that Feeds You or Your Patients

There is a lot of finger pointing in our health care system.  Fingers are often pointed at the pharmaceutical industry, the managed care organization, medical teaching institutions, etc.  Rarely does the finger land on the doctor or their organizations such as the AMA or the AAFP.  Recently the American Academy of Family Practitioners announced a corporate partnership with The Coca-Cola Co., in which the beverage giant will provide a grant for the Academy to develop consumer education content related to beverages and sweeteners for the AAFP's award-winning consumer health and wellness Web site, FamilyDoctor.org.  Having spent over a decade in the medical industry I can assure you that Coca Cola will not casually stand by and have sweeteners (high calorie or low calorie) tarnished in any fashion.  Partnerships do not happen in any business unless there is a mutually beneficial outcome.

These partnerships are nothing new.  In March 2008 that American Diabetes Association (check out the press release) proudly declaring: American Dietetic Association Welcomes The Coca-Cola Company as an ADA Partner! Is this a conflict of interest or a case of don't bite the hand that feed you?

Several months ago I published a blog quoted research from University of Texas in regards to the metabolism and storage of aspartame in the liver.  The results of the study were not good and indicated that aspartame is metabolised into formaldehyde and then stored in the fatty tissues of the liver as an unrecognizable compound.  The long term implications of this were fatty liver disease.  I wonder if this will be part of the alleged consumer education funded by the Coca Cola grant.

Most people understand what happens when people consume too much sugar - weight gain, insulin fluctuations, etc.  Most think they are safe to consume artificial sweeteners which is absolutely false. Below is a compilation of different sweeteners and their potential sides effects as indicated by studies:

Aspartame (NutraSweet & Equal)Used in: Diet sodas, breath mints, sugar-free gums, frozen yogurt
What is it: Aspartic acid and phenylalanine
Tastes like: Chemical tasting
Strength: 150-200 times stronger than sugar
Calories: 0 calories
Possible side effects: Unless you have a rare genetic condition that does not allow your body to process phenylalanine (phenylketonuria), you should be fine. Although, some studies are trying link a multitude of illnesses such as headaches/migraines, dizziness, nausea, weight gain, muscle spasms, depression, fatigue, insomnia, heart palpitations, vision and hearing problems, anxiety attacks, vertigo, memory loss and joint pain, Emotional Disorders, Multiple Sclerosis, Lupus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, brain tumors, brain cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease, Epilepsy, birth defects, and diabetes to the overuse of aspartame.
Saccharin (Sweet ‘N Low)Used in: Some toothpaste like Crest and Colgate, as well as diet sodas
What is it: Sulfur dioxide, chlorine, ammonia, and biochemical acids
Tastes like: Bitter with a metallic finish
Strength: 400-500 times stronger than sugar
Calories: 1/8 calorie per teaspoon
Possible side effects: In 1977, the FDA made all products containing saccharin 
add a warning label stating that it was determined to cause cancer in laboratory 
animals. In May of 2000, it was removed from the National Toxicology Report on 
Carcinogens.
Sugar Alcohols (Low Carb Products)Used in: Low carbohydrate products
What is it: sugar with an added hydrogen molecule
Tastes like: Similar to sweetness of sugar
Strength: Similar to sugar, but with less impact on blood glucose levels
Calories: 25% less calories than sugar
Possible side effects: Deleterious effects such as bloating, gas, diarrhea, vomiting
Sucralose (Splenda)Used in: Numerous low carb or sugar-free products
What is it: Sugar bonded with chlorine atoms
Tastes like: Slightly chemical tasting
Strength: 600 times sweeter than sugar
Calories: 0
Possible side effects: Although there are many accusations, no side effects have been confirmed in 113 studies over 20 years. The upper limit is considered to be 1,500 12 once diet sodas a day. It’s important to note that although splenda contains chlorine atoms, it differs in the way it is structured and therefore does not resemble household chlorine. The human body also contains its own natural chlorine in the form of KC1 and NaC1.  However, Spenda is a chemical substance, not inherent to the body, and should be treated as such.

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DIE-t soda

I admit that I use to be a consumer of diet soft drinks - not a heavy consumer but one or two a day.  This is one habit that I am ecstatic that I gave up.  The evidence against sodas in general is mounting.  Regular soda is being charge with causing obesity among other things. In fact, new studies out of California indicate that 62% of people who consume one soda per day is, indeed, overweight. 

While diet soda may not directly cause immediate obesity at the same rate as its sugar-filled sister, diet drinks are not off the hook.  The San Antonio Heart Study concluded that the more diet soda that a person consumed the greater their risk for future obesity.  In fact, for each diet soda consumed per day the likelihood of becoming overweight within the following 7 years increased 65% (becoming obese in the same time period increased at a rate of 41%).  Hardly a diet soda but certainly a DIE-t soda!

If the potential of becoming "larger than life" is not enough to get you off the juice, how about fatty liver disease?  Studies have indicated that the methane component of aspartame is converted into formaldehyde.  The body doesn't know what to do with formaldehyde so it is stored in the liver. Because the body doesn't know formaldehyde, the fat where it is stored cannot be processed for use as energy.  In essence the body cannot get rid of the fat no matter how badly it is needed to supply energy to the body. This could be one reason many people cannot lose weight even with exercise and healthier diets.  Additionally, in other studies diet soda has been linked to metabolic disorders and type-II diabetes.  Studies participants who consumed diet soda at least daily had a 36% greater risk for metabolic syndrome and a huge 67% greater risk for the development of type-II diabetes.

Still thirsty?

Even a low-dose vitamin D pill cuts breast cancer risk by 24 percent

The evidence is mounting on the importance of Vitamin D to help prevent cancer and other diseases. There aren't any fruits that contain significant amounts of Vit D but mushroom do contain a little. You best bet? Do you self a favor and grab some beautiful sunshine sans sunscreen!!!


Even a low-dose vitamin D pill cuts breast cancer risk by 24 percent