The "top 15" illnesses out of 370 account for a whopping 56 percent of the $200 billion jump in health-related spending from 1987-2000. This is according to a recent Washington Post article. Most of the listed illnesses are preventable by lifestyle and dietary changes.
Of those 15 conditions, the following five diseases alone account for a third of the increase:
- Heart disease
- Pulmonary conditions
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Mental disorders
Experts have argued through numerous studies that the investment Americans made on health care -- more than the citizens of any other industrialized nation -- hasn't made them any healthier. That's why more experts are seeing massive opportunities to improve the cost, effectiveness and value of health care.
About 15 percent of this nation's gross national product (GNP) -- $1.6 trillion -- was spent on health care, a four percent climb from just 15 years ago. Health insurance costs have risen more than 12 percent annually over the past three years. Due to those increases, nearly 44 million Americans currently have no health coverage.
Authors of the study cited three reasons health care spending has increased:
- More people suffer from disorders like diabetes and asthma
- Some disease states are more costly to treat
- The incidence of people being diagnosed with these popular illnesses has risen
One expert pointed to diabetes as a great example of a disease whose overall debt to the American health care crisis could be significantly lowered if patients followed established guidelines on exercise, diet and preventative measures. Another added that more emphasis on prevention and following a stricter "best practices" regimen would lessen cost increases and, generally, improve the health of Americans.
Most people see health care as a "reactive" process in which people go to a doctor only when they're sick instead of taking proactive approaches to prevent disease. That's regrettable, because most of the "top 15" illnesses could be prevented by taking simple and affordable measures.
Washington Post August 25, 2004
Nearly every day we see more and more reports in the media of how our lifestyle choices effect our health. It's true most of todays debilitating and deadly illnesses could be avoided or controlled by making the correct lifestyle, nutritional and activity choices early on.
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There are generally two approaches that can be taken to health care, allopathic, or what is typically considered "traditional" medicine or wholistic which encompasses most all those practices usually considered "complimentary or alternative". Wholistic practices include chiropractic, naturopathy, homeopathy and traditional chinese medicine, to name a few more common.
We in this country still have, for the most part the right to chose the health practices that we feel are best suited for our needs and conditions. These choices are made based on a number of circumstances; possibly what friends and family members have recommended, what studies have shown as being more effective for certain conditions, unfortunately, limitations of insurance coverage or most likely the understanding and appreciation of the differing
view points, goals and approaches of each system. A brief review and comparison between conventional medicine and chiropractic is found You will no doubt notice in the chart to the right differences in goals.
The growing number of people turning to alternative therapies is growing stronger and is becoming more and more the chosen form of medical treatment among Americans.
Just consider these statistics:
* One out of every three Americans uses some kind of alternative medicine
* There was a 47 percent increase in visits to alternative practitioners, from 427 million to 629 million, between 1990 and 1997. This bypassed the estimated total number of visits made to all conventional primary care doctors in 1997
With the rapidly increasing number of people choosing alternative therapies as a form of treatment, the debated question among the health care industry is, "Why don't more conventional doctors recommend alternative medicine?" The answer is many fold.
Pharmaceutical Ties
The pharmaceutical industry is the driving force behind the continuing growth of conventional medicine, embraced by both doctors and pharmacists, who calculate their worth through treating disease by prescribing medications.
Medical Schools Receive Funding From Drug Companies
Most medical schools receive a huge chunk of funding from the pharmaceutical industry that has a vested interest in marketing their medicines. Pfizer Inc, a company that develops produces and markets the leading prescription medications for humans and offers several scholarships and grants to American Medical Schools.
The Mass Media and Drug Advertising
Pharmaceutical companies and the mass media are all about making profits, this is clearly exposed in the high numbers of drug commercials consumers are exposed to every day. Drug ads equal profits for the media.
Even the American Medical Association maintains a relationship with the pharmaceutical industry. If you go to their homepage you will find a sizable advertisement for the statin, Crestor.
Research Discrepancies
Medical research funding is disproportionately tipped to favor conventional medicine over alternative medicine. An example of this could be seen in the 0.08 percent of the British National Health Service research budget set aside for alternative research.
The Office of Alternative Medicine receives a mere $5.4 million out of $12 billion allocated every year to the National Institutes of Health by Congress.
The lack of alternative medicine research funding results in three critical consequences:
* The prevention of relevant research projects
* It negatively affects the creation of a research infrastructure similar to the one of conventional medicine
* Deters well-trained career scientists from entering into the field
Questionable Research
One of the biggest complaints the conventional medical industry has against alternative medicine is the lack of scientific research to support their practices.
Much of the research on conventional medicine, however, has raised many speculations over validity issues. Hundreds of articles published in top medical journals claimed to be written by academic researchers that are actually written by ghostwriters working for agencies, which receive large amounts of money from pharmaceutical companies to market their products. These are the very journals medical professionals rely on when determining treatment options.
The conventional medical model is fatally flawed and is largely profit-driven by the pharmaceutical industry that influences the media through drug advertisements. Evidence that the American public is becoming discouraged with conventional medicine has become obvious in the growing numbers turning to alternative treatments for answers.
Convincing doctors and the media the value of alternative medicine might be a long way off considering their tight ties with drug companies. Profit-hungry drug companies won't hurry to change the attitude of conventional doctors any time soon. There is too much money at stake for them to lose. That leaves it up to us to take control over our own health and make the changes.
Review the comparison chart above and see if one sounds more in tune with how you want to live life?
The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
The French eat a lot of fat and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
The Japanese drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
The Italians drink excessive amounts of red wine and also suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
CONCLUSION:
Eat and drink what you like. Speaking English is apparently what kills you.
Family is important, but maybe not as important as friends! This appears true at least as far as one study on longevity indicates. Australian researchers assessed how economic, social behavioral and environmental factors affected the health and wellbeing of senior citizens over the age of 69. Some 1500 seniors were surveyed about the amount of personal and phone contact that they had with children, friends, family and confidants. The survival rate of this group was monitored at least 6 times over ten years.
Factors such as socioeconomic status, health and lifestyle were also considered.
Results Showed ...
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Close contact with children and relatives had minimal impact on survival rates.
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Those with a strong network of friends and confidants lived longer than those with relatively fewer friends/confidants.
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The beneficial effects of friends on longevity persisted despite personal losses (i.e. death of a spouse, the relocation of friends to other parts of the country).
Why friends seemed to help people live longer, researchers aren't sure. They suspect that friends may influence people to engage in more healthy behavior, such as not smoking or not drinking too much; friends may also help boost people's self-esteem.
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health July 2005; 59(7):574-9
Science Blog June 16, 2005
