It's ALL Good!

I keep hearing that phrase in reference to a wide variety of situations. Lately I’ve been thinking that perhaps this flood of information in the form of glossy print advertising, telling us the secret to good health, extended years of life, energetic old age, etc. is ALL good information. After all, “they” all claim that there has been a ton of research or at least they provide page after page of testimonials from the thousands who have turned their lives around using a certain exercise product, nutritional supplement, aromatic candle, or mind-altering CD. How are we to know just what is good and what is not? How are we to decide which new product is the one we have been needing to resolve our nagging health concerns, or help us avoid future health concerns? We are clearly suffering from information overload, especially those of us who are part of the baby boomer generation who have eased into that stage of our lives when we finally start paying attention to our health. Oh, we now understand that we should have been paying attention to it a few decades ago, but we cannot turn back the clock. Well, some marketers are now telling us we can even do that if we just sink a chunk of change into their latest gadget or gimmick. With so much information coming at us how is it that I can say that it’s all good? I say it’s good because at least it is causing a few of us to pay attention, and to start asking questions. It’s stimulating some of us to take charge of our own health, instead of leaving it all to chance. But let’s say that you agree with me that there are certain nutrients that you probably should be concerned about, and that there are those that might help you with certain health issues. How can you decide what to take and what to avoid? If we invested in all the wonderful nutrients and herbs and vitamins we read about, we would probably create a few new problems to deal with. For one, we would be broke. So what should we do? Here’s my humble opinion. I am not a medical professional. I cannot, and do not, give medical advice. So what I am about to say is worth every penny you are paying for it.
First, do your own research. Second, ask your doctor or nutritionist. Third, work on only the one or two most important health concerns you have at a time. It is amazing how often resolving one major issue leads to a cessation or noticeable reduction of other problems. To illustrate, here’s a scenario that has been repeated countless times.
Ada Z goes to the doctor because she is tired all the time, she has no energy, her back hurts, her ankles ache, she gets headaches in the afternoon, she is a little lightheaded when she gets up each morning, she get indigestion all the time, her head is stopped up constantly. The list of complaints goes on and on. Ada Z (A to Z) has a very good doctor who takes the necessary time to actually do a good workup on Ada. He orders a few simple tests, and gives Ada a call when he has all the information he needs to help her. Ada visits the doctor and after hearing his recommendations, pays for the visit and leaves, silently vowing to find another doctor. Why? Well, Ada is upset and disappointed that after spending money for the office visits and getting all that lab work done, all this very good doctor did was tell Ada that she needs to lose about 30 pounds and drink more water. Ada is indignant. She knows that she is a little heavy, but that’s what happens as you get older, right? And besides, he didn’t even give her a prescription!
Sadly, that is the reaction of far too many people in similar situations. Sadder still is the fact that some doctors succumb to the pressure put upon them by patients and pharmaceutical companies to write prescriptions. Patients demand drugs, and not just ANY drugs. They want the one they saw on TV this morning. Drug companies have invented illnesses and given them names so they can sell some new concoction and do what they are all in the business for – make money for their shareholders. But this very good doctor knows that Ada is chronically dehydrated, and this causes many of her body systems to function at less than peak efficiency. In addition to that, Ada is putting a lot more strain on her back and her ankles, and soon her knees and hips, because of the “little bit of extra weight” she is carrying around. A drug to put her to sleep, a drug to clear her nasal passages and sinuses, a drug to ease the joint pain, a drug to relax the muscles, a drug for vertigo for her light headed mornings, a drug for her indigestion, a little something for those headaches, and Ada would have left the doctor’s office feeling like she was already on the road to recovery. But she would have still been overweight and under-hydrated. And all those symptoms would have simply returned as soon as she ran out of the drugs, and maybe they would be even worse on the next go ‘round.
So here is my opinion, my non-medical advice. Be honest with yourself. Do some research for yourself. Find and learn to appreciate and listen to a good doctor who is not so quick on the draw with that prescription pad. And last, either be determined to do what you need to do to maintain good health or correct the problems you can correct, or learn to endure those things you cannot or will not address. Along the way, there may be an occasion for some properly prescribed medication. Strep throat comes to mind. Otherwise, quit being satisfied with treating symptoms instead of getting to the root cause of your problems and seriously attacking those. Ada could probably manage to drink another few glasses of water each day without any major disruption to her life. She could probably park a few rows further away from the grocery store, maybe walk up a flight to get to her office and avoid the elevator, and maybe skip a bowl of ice cream or two along the way. But that would mean that she had to make her health her responsibility.