Tdr_seo0109_10drugs

TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs:TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs 11/13/08 2:37 PM Page 1 from William Campbell Douglass II, M.D.
10 drugs you should never take!
We’re in the age of what I call “conveyor-belt medicine.” The mainstream medical system is set up to allow your doctor just enough time to give you a quick diagnosis followed by a pre-scription or a needless procedure. Rarely does it allow you the time to discuss much of anythingthat could give you a true foundation for good health—and, ironically enough, even if your doc-tor did take the time to do this, his advice would probably be way off base.
The fact is, profit-bloated drug companies are at the helm of our health care system. They exist to serve their bottom lines—not your health needs. They’re vested in your sickness—notyour health.
Nowhere is that more evident than in the rampant over-prescribing of prescription drugs. Not only is it adding a tremendous burden on the health care system—the side effects are makingpeople even sicker than they were to begin with.
Frankly, I’m sick of it. I can’t stand doctors who are willing to sell their souls to line their pockets. Don’t be too naïve to think that your doctor isn’t one of them.
As for me, I’m retired now. I’m not in it for the money. No drug company reps in their fancy high-heeled shoes and flashy smiles are trying to lure me into selling their latest product. Evenwhen they did, I’d turn my nose up and slam the door in their faces.
It’s high time you knew which drugs are the worst of the worst. I’m sure I could write a book on it, but for today, I’ll just stick with the 10 worst drugs you should never take.
1) Statins
Everyone’s worried about high cholesterol these days, so it’s hardly surprising that choles- terol-lowering drugs like Lipitor are big business. No one seems to care that the statin drug hasbeen associated with the highest risk of adverse reactions—such as severe muscle breakdown,decreased cognitive function, and erectile dysfunction. And that’s just the short list.
The worst part of this is that you shouldn’t even be worried about your cholesterol levels to begin with. Over the last 50 years, the “high cholesterol/heart disease” theory has been shot downtime and again, but the establishment still pretends not to know it.
One of the greatest nutritionists of the century, George Mann, M.D., the co-director of the Framingham Heart Study, said, “The diet-heart idea [the notion that saturated fats and cholesterolcause heart disease] is the greatest scientific deception of our times. This idea has been repeatedlyshown to be wrong, and yet, for complicated reasons of pride, profit and prejudice, the hypothesiscontinues to be exploited by scientists, fund-raising enterprises, food companies and even govern-mental agencies. The public is being deceived by the greatest health scam of the century.” Visit us at www.DouglassReport.com
TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs:TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs 11/13/08 2:37 PM Page 2 Forget about cholesterol levels, and pay attention to your homocysteine levels instead.
Normally, homocysteine is used to build and maintain tissues. But too much in your bloodstreamliterally shreds your arteries from the inside out, allowing fat and cholesterol to stick.eventuallyleading to total blockage, followed by a heart attack or stroke.
Vitamins B6 and B12 and folic acid (which is also a B vitamin) are the keys to maintaining nor- mal homocysteine levels. Folic acid is the most important of these B vitamins in attacking and neu-tralizing homocysteine.
Take at least 800 micrograms a day. Keep in mind that doses up to 5,000 micrograms—and more—are safe and will do you even more good. I take 5,000 to 15,000 micrograms a day.
2) Beta-blockers
I think that most doctors are forgetting (if they ever knew at all) that hypertension isn’t actually a disease in itself—it’s only a symptom of some other malfunction in your body.
The REAL problem here is that just because the drugs have made the hypertension go away, it doesn’t mean you’re “cured”—or even safe, for that matter.
Beta blockers reduce the force of the heart’s contractions. Basically, the heartbeat slows in reac- tion to the drug, and that lowers your blood pressure. So keep in mind that you’re dealing with adangerous cardiac drug, not “just blood pressure medicine.” Your doctor probably didn’t dwell onthis significant fact, but you need to know the truth. He didn’t necessarily lie to you: He just didn’twant to spend too much time on unpleasant things that might have caused you to toss the pills inthe trash—or not get the prescription filled at all.
OK, class—pop quiz: Being cardioactive drugs, what might you expect in the way of side effects from beta blockers? You’ve got it—signs of serious heart disease. You may experience anyor all of the following symptoms: congestive heart failure, which will lead to pulmonary edema, agood old-fashioned heart attack, or arrhythmia. And, of course, all of these irregularities can befatal.
Beyond the heart, there are many ways these drugs could do more harm than good. There’s a strong possibility that you’ll experience a stroke, which could cause partial paralysis or death. Andasthmatics should never take beta blockers, since they may trigger life-threatening airway spasms.
All this is a mere sampling of the possible side effects that you may experience from these 3) NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)
A lot of people turn to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Ibuprofen or Aspirin to try to get inflammation under control or to treat minor aches and pains. You don’t even need a doc towrite you a prescription for these—you can get them right over the counter—which makes them allthe more dangerous. Many people assume that OTC drugs are safer, which means they’re morelikely to take too much, too often.
The fact is, over 15,000 people die each year as a result of these seemingly benign pills, due to bleeding from their now-compromised protective mucosal layers in their stomachs and intestines.
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TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs:TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs 11/13/08 2:37 PM Page 3 Long-term regular use can also damage the kidneys. One study from the Archives of InternalMedicine even found that NSAIDs increase the risk of congestive heart failure.
A natural way to control inflammation is by getting omega-3 fats from fish oil—2 to 3 grams 4) Painkillers
Painkillers are now considered the second leading cause of accidental death in the country. Yet that fact hasn’t stopped doctors from handing out these painkillers like candy for every conceivableache and pain. But there’s nothing sweet about these drugs. They come with serious side effects,like confusion, lethargy, dependence, and respiratory depression, just to name a few.
The simple truth is that if you’re not suffering from chronic, debilitating pain, chances are you don’t need a painkiller such as Vicodin or Oxycontin. And many times, even if it is chronic, youstill don’t need a drug.
Take arthritis, for example. When it comes to arthritis pain, I normally prescribe fish oil (2 to 3 grams of total DHA and EPA daily). Most cases of arthritis will respond to these two remedieswithout the need for prescription or even over-the-counter painkillers.
As far as other types of pain, like lower back pain, shoulder and neck pain, and headaches, most will respond to physical therapy, chiropractic treatment, massage therapy, and osteopathic manipula-tion. The point is, taking a dangerous painkiller should your last resort—not your first one.
5) Antidepressants
Over the past few years, there has been a huge increase in the use of serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants such as Zoloft and Paxil. Docs are quick to write prescriptions forthese pills—even when all you may have is a case of the blues. What you’re getting is an Rx forweight gain, decreased sexual desire, and possibly even thoughts of suicide.
Take action by trying the simplest remedies first: talk therapy, exercise, and cutting down on You might even want to try an adaptogen called Rhodiola rosea. It provides an overall balanc- ing effect to the body and can help normalize mood problems.
6) Diabetes drugs
Widely prescribed drugs for type-2 diabetes, such as Actos and Avandia, work by increasing your body’s insulin sensitivity. Unfortunately, they can exacerbate heart problems, they canincrease your risk of heart failure, and they can lead to accumulation of fluid in the legs, ankles,and lungs. In some extreme cases, they can lead to liver failure. They’ve also been known to causeweight gain.
It’s frustrating to me that so many people expose themselves to these potentially deadly side effects to treat something that’s heavily influenced by lifestyle.
One of the best ways to keep your glucose levels stable is to use the Glycemic Index as a guide when planning your meals. It will make you re-think overly processed foods that don’t provide Visit us at www.DouglassReport.com
TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs:TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs 11/13/08 2:37 PM Page 4 good nutrition or any health benefits. Start pairing foods that will work together to manage yourglucose levels––like spreading real butter on your roll at dinner. Healthy fats and proteins canmake some of your favorite “taboo” foods work for you rather than against you––no drugs neces-sary.
7) Sleeping pills
Here’s a newsflash: Insomnia isn’t caused by a sleeping-pill deficiency. Of course, Big Pharma and its boob tube campaigns would have you believe differently. You can hardly watch yourfavorite TV show anymore without seeing some commercial pushing something like Ambien orLunesta.
People who are desperate enough to try sleeping pills are probably delirious enough to glaze over at the long list of side effects caused by these dangerous pills—things like dizziness, loss ofbalance, falls, and morning sedation; daytime fatigue; and adverse cognitive events like memoryloss, confusion, and disorientation.
The Food and Drug Administration mandated that stronger warnings to be placed on 13 of the most common prescription sleep drugs. They’ve routinely been getting reports of people makingphone calls, Internet purchases, and having sex under the influence of sleep medications—allclaiming they have no memory of their actions! Luckily, most insomnia is behavioral—meaning you’ve just got some bad habits to turn around.
Here’s a list of tips guaranteed to help you get a better night’s sleep: ➤ Try eyeshades and super-light, molded, foam earplugs to reduce noise.
➤ Use light-blocking shades on your windows.
➤ Buy a white-noise machine or run an air cleaner to mask bothersome noises.
➤ Soak in a warm bath. Try a little bath oil to help you relax.
➤ Cut out all caffeine after lunch.
➤ Sip a little warm milk or herbal tea.
8) Bone-building drugs
The FDA recently notified medical professionals that “bone builders” (such as Fosamax, Actonel and Boniva) can cause excruciating bone and muscle pain. Their long-term use has beenlinked to osteonecrosis—which means the bone dies, and it happens especially in the jaw. So muchfor bone building.
Osteoporosis is an over-treated condition. What docs should be looking at is your vitamin D level. This vitamin is more important than even calcium when it comes to protecting and buildingbones. Vitamin D (which is actually a hormone) improves the absorption of calcium and phospho-rous, which are essential for healthy bones. It also helps your muscle coordination, which improvesyour balance. Have your doctor check your 25-hydroxy vitamin D level. You’ll want it in a healthy30+ range. To get it there, take 1,000 to 2,000 IUs of vitamin D per day.
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TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs:TDR_SEO0109_10Drugs 11/13/08 2:37 PM Page 5 9) Weight-loss pills
You want to lose weight, but you’re being pushed to swallow a risky solution for the sake of a few pounds that are highly likely to be re-gained within a year. Why? You can’t stay on weight-losspills forever! Weight loss occurs with the loss of bad habits, replaced by newer, healthier ones. It’snot rocket science.
But let’s set aside for a minute the fact that these pills are the lazy man’s answer to weight loss.
Try this on for size: Many of these weight-loss pills have been found to substantially raise bloodpressure and heart rate.
One of the latest pills to hit the market, Alli, can have what the drug company has coyly named “treatment effects.” Those include “gas with oily spotting, loose stools, and more frequent stoolsthat may be hard to control.” Well, here’s the REAL icing on the cake: All of these pills come with disclaimers saying you STILL need to diet and exercise in order to see real results anyway. So why not just skip the dan-gerous, ineffective drugs and their weighty “treatment effects” and go straight to the source of realweight loss: cut out the processed, sugary junk foods, and eat plenty of animal protein and dairy.
10) Treatments for irritable bowel syndrome
Patients who take popular prescription meds such as Zelnorm and Lotronex for IBS gain only marginal benefit that comes with significant costs, including an increased risk of diarrhea, colitis,and obstructed or even ruptured bowels.
In the hands of an experienced gastroenterologist, these meds might be okay for a very small number of tough-to-treat cases. But only after the doctor has done a proper nutritional evaluationand given you stress-reduction techniques. Otherwise, forget it.
The most natural treatment of all is adding more fiber to your diet. Many people think they’re getting enough, but are surprised when they start actually reading food labels––many of the foodsthey’re eating have less than 1 gram of fiber per serving. Reach for 5 grams per serving everychance you get when you choose breads and cereals.
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