What would you do if you went to the doctor and he or she examined you, drew blood, ran a few more tests, and then threw his or her hands up into the air and said….”I really don’t know!” Well… in most cases we should probably shake their hands and tell them thank you doctor for being honest and then promptly exit the office!!!
There is a name for the diseases that we mysteriously obtain after seeing the doctor, or spending time in a hospital. It is Iatrogenetic Disease. These are the diseases that we obtain as a result of seeing a doctor. I know this sounds profoundly backwards and counter intuitive, but, never the less, it is true.
The following is an article by a master herbalist by the name of David Christopher. He sheds light on this disturbing situation, and it is worth reading. I believe that we should spend a little more time examining our OWN health, tuning into our OWN bodies, and placing less trust and in some cases EVERYTHING we have in the hands of physicians who are quite possibly not as educated in what makes our bodies well and healthy as you may think. Balance is very important. As Americans, we have a tendency to push a lot of responsibilities into the hands of others, for example, education. Parents are quite happy to trust their children to educators for sometimes 12 hours per day, while they work two and three jobs in order to maintain a lifestyle that may be nothing more than self gratifying and superficial. Of course, I do not speak for everyone here, I am aware that there are single parent families where this can not be helped. But nevertheless, parents expect their children to be fed two meals, educated and disciplined and all they need to do is pick them up at 4:30, take them home and clean them up so they can return the next day. What is wrong with that picture? Educators go to school to learn to educate… not babysit, or participate in soup kitchen activities. The worst part about this scenario is the parents will then storm up to the school and wreak havoc on administrators and teachers for not “doing it right!” Parent need to take responsibility for their own child rearing and support educators in the realm of teaching and learning.
Another area that suffers greatly is the area of health. Again, we need to take responsibility for our OWN health. There are too many instances of over medication, unnecessary medication, and misdiagnosis. Our bodies are designed to heal themselves when provided proper HEALTHFUL nutrition and the tools to build a powerful immune system. Toxic drugs, and over the counter meds deplete these tools and leave us wide open for disease. Then, like the screaming parents, we blame everyone except ourselves for the behavior of our bodies. So, to answer the question, “Who Knows?” I will have to say, our body knows… listen to it… educate yourself and take responsibility for your own health.
February 3, 2016
Iatrogenisis
David Christopher, M.H.
My most poignant confirmation to the reality of medical fallibility and iatrogenisis occurred when I was privileged to attend a lecture presented by the renowned Dr. Robert S. Mendelsohn M.D. Among many accolades he had 38 years of pediatric practice, was professor of preventive medicine at the University of Illinois School of Medicine and national director of Project Head Start Medical Consultation Service. He dedicated the last decade of his life warning people of the dangers inherent in the practice of modern medicine. Yes, I know he has his detractors (almost all of the entire medical field) but I found him to be totally genuine; especially after personally getting to know him at a one on one luncheon.
Iatrogenic disease (iatro = medicine or physician; genic= caused) is a disease that the patient did not have but acquired from his doctor. Between 98,000 and 800,000 deaths occur each year as a result of doctor-caused diseases. These are not random figures pulled out of thin air as are so many medical declarations. The low figure of 98,000 medical errors comes from the Institute of Medicine, which has received a lot of criticism for being unrealistically low. However, it is a figure which is accepted by the American Hospital Association so we will go with it. We then would have to add in 106,000 patients dying from correctly prescribed drugs, which is not medical error, and way underreported. Another 115,000 die from bedsores, which they did not have prior to entering the hospital and 88,000 deaths from hospital acquired infections. So far we have only included hospital patients so we would have to add in outpatient statistics amounting to 199,000. We are already amassing large totals and we haven’t even considered deaths from unnecessary procedures, surgeries, suicides from S.S.R.I depression drugs, vaccinations and etcetera. Even just holding to these low figures, iatrogenic diseases would place third in disease caused deaths in the United States behind only cardio vascular disease and cancer. (For more information click here)
I present this information as a clear warning to not accept any mandates or even suggestions from the medical profession without doing personal research to determine its safety and or efficacy. I am certainly not suggesting medical abstinence because their skills and tools are unprecedented worldwide. However, my point is that everyone should gain sufficient knowledge to wisely use the medical profession, accepting the good and rejecting the dangerous. Perhaps, one should only use their services in crises situations and for necessary procedures like surgeries.
All other health matters would more safely and effectively be cared for in the comfort of your own home.