I'm going to take a moment in this blog to give you my 'take' on the health care reform debate that is going on in this country. As you know by now, there is a massive and heated debate going on in the U.S. over health care reform. Costs have been spiraling out of control for quite some time - and most agree that something must be done. But that's where the agreement ends. A very common argument is that everyone should be covered, and have access to the health care system for 'free'. This is a misnomer because we all know there is no such thing as 'free'. Someone has to pay for it. And with a price tag estimated at approximately 1 Trillion dollars, someone must pay dearly. But, what if the biggest problem with our health care system is not the amount of people covered? What if it was something else altogether? Sound crazy? Hear me out. For example - the medical system in the U.S. is exceptionally good at emergency and crisis care. If you have a heart attack, our system is amazing at saving your life. The same is true if you are in a car accident and many other emergencies. But, there is a big difference between emergency crisis care, and prevention and wellness care. Unfortunately, our medical system fails miserably when it comes to prevention and wellness.
Many doctors agree and research proves, that many, if not most conditions, can be prevented or significantly reduced with lifestyle changes. Yet, the practice of traditional medicine is not about prevention. It is about treatment once you are injured or sick, and that is where the root of the real health care crisis lies. Everyone Needs To Take Personal Responsibility For Their Health!
You see, the solution is not getting everyone covered by a system that waits until you are sick, and then to administer expensive treatments. That is the problem!
The solution is what Chiropractors and other alternative health care professionals have been teaching for over 100 years. Chiropractic founders had a theory of 'dis-ease'. And dis-ease is very different from modern medicine's 'disease'. In a nutshell, dis-ease is when your body is not functioning properly, but you do not have any noticeable signs and symptoms. You can also be in a state of 'dis-ease' and not have anything show up on medical examinations or tests. Here's a great example: Heart disease starts years and years before you have a heart attack. In the very beginning, it is undetectable to doctors' tests. This is the 'dis-ease' stage. As time goes on, it progresses to the stage where doctors can detect indicators and/or risk factors of heart disease such as high LDL cholesterol, etc... As time goes on, and the heart disease gets worse, you get a physical symptom (chest tightness, pain, shortness of breath, altered sensation in your left arm). This is called a heart attack. Now, what makes more sense: Making the appropriate lifestyle changes when you are in the 'dis-ease' state and never having a heart attack, or waiting until your cholesterol is high and taking drugs (that may or may not work and have side effects), or waiting for the heart attack? Which approach would be more cost effective? Heart disease is the number one killer in the U.S. Open-heart surgery and drug treatments are extremely expensive. Can you imagine the savings if just 50% of Americans made simple lifestyle modifications, like eating right and exercising, and drastically reducing the need for drugs and surgery as crisis care?
That is the REAL issue. Unless you have a genetic predisposition, most real health care is already very inexpensive. It's called prevention and wellness, and that's the best insurance you can ever have.
