How to Manage Medication without Getting Sick?

How to manage medication without getting sick? This is a rather strange question. For me, the question explains 3 things.

First, it’s best to learn to manage medication when we are not sick. Second, it’s good to understand that medication, when not properly administered, can get us very sick. This is why we should only use official medication which is prescribed by a medical professional.

Third, it is important for us to understand that we also have a responsibility of our own. Once we accept a specific medical therapy, we need to discipline ourselves to follow suit. The lack of medication therapy compliance often hampers the healing process.

When during this process you get the idea something is wrong, you’re not getting better, you perhaps think you get sicker from the medication, don’t hesitate, report back to your GP.

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How to Manage Medication without Getting Sick?

• Take the trouble to inform yourself, before you get sick;
• Approach any information positively, yet critical;
• Understand the limits of your personal knowledge, consult a medical professional.

Can we avoid medication?

I will illustrate how we can manage our medication by covering, one by one, some serious ailments. For every ailment, I focus on two things. First I will explain what causes the ailment and what is there to learn from these causes.

Next, I will, if possible, try to describe which conditions enable a specific drug therapy. This makes some sense because this might be an indication of how a specific ailment can perhaps be prevented altogether, so we perhaps can avoid medication.

Starting with hypertension, I will then deal with high cholesterol, gout, and finish with being overweight. This is only a very limited number of examples, but they explain my point.

Moreover, there is a relation between these 4 ailments. To battle, these ailments with the right medical therapy will therefore never be easy because any such therapy intervenes with the next. This also explains how essential it is that we consult a medical professional.

“Klappe Halten, Impfen Lassen”

Most people don’t like medical therapies. Medical therapy is always associated with being sick. This means that when our doctor prescribes us medical therapy, that is not always the best time to question such a prescription.

Perhaps it’s better we try to inform ourselves before we get sick. The internet is an interesting and very patient source. Although we have to be very careful about its reliability. In doubt, consult a medical professional.

Notwithstanding professionals can also confuse us. Take the following quote of a German top researcher. He, of course, tries to motivate everybody to get a vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2-virus:

“Klappe halten, impfen lassen.”

Translated in English this literally means: “Shut up, get vaccinated.”

I’m not sure whether this top researcher will actually motivate people with his cry-out. Actually, I think he will not. It is probably an explanation of what the virus is, what it causes, what the vaccine is, and what it will cause, can do a better job.

With the following examples, I hope to show that appropriate information is possible and not that difficult. All information is based on an official pharmaceutical handbook, which is used by medical professionals. However, again: when in doubt, consult a medical professional.

Hypertension

Hypertension (high blood pressure), diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol), and smoking cause cardiovascular disease. A consequence of all this is arteriosclerosis.

This is the thickening, hardening, and loss of elasticity of the walls of arteries. As a consequence, it is more difficult for the blood to pass through the veins and our heart gets less oxygen.

Before initiating high blood pressure drug therapy, the patient should be asked to lower his body weight (BMI <30) and to reduce his alcohol consumption (in males <20-30 g alcohol per day, in females <10-20 g alcohol per day), to stop smoking and to limit the daily intake of table salt (to <6 g NaCl per day).

It’s better to take the risk of cardiovascular disease seriously. It is one of the most common causes of premature death. Moreover, it can cause strokes and a heart attack.

That is something you do not want to experience. It is excruciatingly painful and very frightening. Moreover, once you have a heart attack you have to be hospitalized and will be loaded with medicine.

High cholesterol

The link between hypertension and cholesterol is obvious but very complicated. Statins are the most commonly known type of medication to lower cholesterol levels.

There are various kinds of statins. In 2008 the now very famous American pharmaceutical company Pfizer reported sales of 12.8 billion US dollars of atorvastatin.

The problem with high cholesterol is that most cholesterol is produced by the body, rather than the diet. The interesting, but unproven issue is that oyster mushrooms and red yeast rice are believed to lower cholesterol levels.

Statins are only recommended when at high risk of cardiovascular disease or when our body produces an abnormal amount of cholesterol. Both can only be determined by professional doctors. And often only after extended laboratory analyses.

Gout

A gout attack is unpredictable and very painful. An attack is caused by the inflammation of, usually, the joints of the big toe of the left foot. This is because the temperatures of the feet are under the average body temperature.

But also because uric acids do not easily dissolve in joint fluids. In combination with the low temperatures, uric acid crystals deposit on the joints. There they cause very painful inflammations.

An acute attack can be stopped with the alkaloid colchicine. This is made from autumn crocus or meadow saffron also called Naked Ladies (Colchicum Autumnale). The autumn crocus is a toxic plant and not a crocus. Colchicine is made from the bulbs of the Naked Ladies.

There are 2 ways to lower chronic gout. Allopurinol is the best-known type of medication. But it is also possible to lower the purine intake with a diet. This worked for me. Although off late some scientists doubt whether a strict diet is required to counter chronic gout.

Related: Red Food and the Health Benefits of Antioxidants.

Overweight

Overweight? Is there any medication against being overweight? There is. But let’s first try to understand what causes being overweight. This one is simple: appetite.

Appetite can be caused by the lowering of the blood sugar level or an empty stomach. The use of hashish and marihuana can also raise appetite.

There are of course also more ‘psychological’ triggers. To eat activates our reward center by inciting feelings of lust. Unconsciously learned behavioral patterns and enjoyable circumstances associated with eating can also incite appetite.

There is an appetite suppressant medicine. The problem with this medicine is that with prolonged use, psychiatric side effects may occur. Such as fears, depressions, and risk of suicide!

My advice: it is best we first reflect on our diet ourselves. What do we learn from that? Next, we best discuss any doubts about our diet with a medical professional.

Related: How to Lose Weight without Hunger in a Practical Way.

Shut up, get vaccinated

Back to our top researcher. “Shut up, get vaccinated.” This is a very problematic call from a professional. It does not only downgrade people’s own judgment, it also sounds rather dictatorial.

For one thing, this is a professional who we do not have to listen to. He has got nothing serious to offer. In contrast, there are many professionals who are worthwhile. For instance James Le Fanu, about whom I presented a short video in my previous article.

He wrote an outstanding book about the accomplishments of medical science during the decades just after the Second World War: The Rise and Fall of Modern Medicine. It reads like an exciting detective.

This book is a well-balanced account of the, often serendipitous, accomplishments of very dedicated and creative medical professionals. It is also on offer as an eBook. Read it, and enlighten yourself.

What sources of information do you use to reflect on your health? Please tell us in the comment box below.