[Villages PL]

I'm not sure; I've been doing some reading and trying to learn. What I've come up with so far is that MDs treat symptoms rather than getting to the root of the problem.

Here's an example: Years ago I got to know a friend of the family. His arteries where slowly getting clogged. His doctor told him he needed a stint so he complied. Every so many years he would get another stint. And finally the doctor told him he couldn't get anymore stints, he needed a bypass operation.

This is good repeat business for the doctor. He just sits back and waits for all of these procedures to be needed.

It might be the same with blood sugar issues. I always had blood sugar that was in a normal range. Then on one test, a couple of years ago, my blood test result was 100. According to the lab it was the highest it could be and still be in normal range. It was higher than usual but my doctor didn't say anything about it. I decide on my own to take action and got my number down on my next blood test.

That, in my opinion, is how medicine is practiced. The doctor just sits back and waits for trouble to unfold. When and if it gets bad enough, he/she will prescribe medication. Instead of being proactive they are reactive.

It was the same with my thyroid: I stopped using iodized salt because I thought Real Salt would be healthier. Real Salt is a non-processed salt that is available in health food stores and has no added iodine. Little did I realize that I might be subject to an iodine deficiency and proper thyroid function requires a supply of iodine. When I got tested for the first time for thyroid function, my TSH was above 8 which indicates that I was hypothyroid. He said there would be one more test in 3 months to make sure it wasn't a lab error. If the next test had the same result he would start prescribing medication that I would have to take for the rest of my life.

When I asked my doctor if there was anything I could do to get my thyroid function back to normal, he said, "No, it's just something that happens as we get older."
But when I got some library books on the subject of thyroid, I soon learned there were some things I could do. So I made some changes in my diet and on my next blood test my TSH was cut in half, a little over four.

When I first heard about the plan to build the Villages Clinics, to revolutionize health care, I had high hopes that they were going to make some changes to address this issue of just being reactive, waiting for symptoms to show up so they could prescribe medication. When I heard that the doctors would have plenty of time to talk to patients, to get to know them, I thought it meant "the whole person" - the whole lifestyle.

But now I no longer think that's the case. Am I wrong?

[sunnyatlast]

"That, in my opinion, is how medicine is practiced. The doctor just sits back and waits for trouble to unfold. When and if it gets bad enough, he/she will prescribe medication. Instead of being proactive they are reactive."

No. It's the other way around. Patients themselves are the ones who choose when to go to the dr. or not, and whether to actually follow doctor's orders.

I know people who decide to avoid going to the dr. and who avoid doing what they're told, because some radio or t.v. "dr" said this or that broad statement. I know people who have decided to take themselves off needed medicines because their neighbor's mother-in-law in Timbuktu was taken off that med for reasons specific only to her.

Some probably even consult TOTV and then decide to eliminate all foods that taste good to themselves, because this one guy who's not a dr. posts a lot about how terrible our food intakes are.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by sunnyatlast

No. It's the other way around. Patients themselves are the ones who choose when to go to the dr. or not, and whether to actually follow doctor's orders.

My opening post was intended for people who actually go to see their doctor on a regular basis, not for people who don't go. Speaking of "doctor's orders" I'd like to know if doctors at the clinics are giving any orders other than "take your medicine".

[ping]

Doctors are the product of Medical Schools. They are not trained in preventative medicine. Prescribe drugs to cure all your ills....eat a balanced diet (oxymoron), exercise is their only advise. They don't think outside the box. Medicine is not an exact science. Therefore, you are smart to research everything and combine your knowledge with theirs. Might just find your own cure....as you already proved. You're in partnership with your doctor...but don't expect them to prescribe alternative medicine...it's not their area of expertise.

[rubicon]

You pose a question whose answer is so varied and complex that the word "depends"can be inserted often.

First depends on how and where doctors were trained.

Second depends on how and where the doctor works i.e their policies

Third depends on how the insurance company involved interacts with the doctor.

Fourth depends on how the government interacts with the doctor.

Basically far too many agencies and insurance companies are interfering with the doctor/patient relationship. The demand for a paperless medical record is a good thing but it has compromised the relationship because the doctor is so involved with recording the event that the doctor has little time even to study a patient's body language, essential in medical investigation because the doctor is on a computer. A side bar the cost for this technology is very expensive.

You made mention of salt and because of warnings went to a slat substitute.
A recent study now indicates that too little salt actually increases chances of heart attack and stroke. Experts also claim now that meat (beef) protein is essential and that people who do not eat meat risk becoming anemic. I do not advance n argument here but just want to illustrate that experts are sometimes the problem

Personally i believe until the government began meddling with our health care system that while ot perfect it was better than the rest. Now with ACA
the health industry is getting turned upside down which has created problems for everyone and will cost policyholders much more with more stop losses such deductibles coinsurnce and premium. Welcome to utopia

[graciegirl]

Thank God for good doctors, it is the responsibility of each of us to find them.

I think the answer to your problem is buying a television.

[pleverich]

I was once told that doctors today have only two tools: a pen with which to write prescriptions and a scalpel.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Thank God for good doctors, which there are very few.

I think the answer to your problem is buying a television.

Yes, if the doctor had taken the time to get to know me better he might have written a prescription for a big flat-screen TV. And then if my HMO would cover the cost (TV + monthly cable bill) I would gladly comply.

[marianne237]

Hubby and I were just talking about this yesterday. His doc up north actually visited him while DH was in the hospital. He followed the charts and records that were ordered, and then discovered a major problem that showed up in hospital reports and tests. This problem would not have made an "appearance" for a number of years if not correctly diagnosed when it was. DH is on meds for the rest of his life to keep this serious situation under control. Our doctor was really concerned and cared.

We both visit our doc in TV area regularly, have the requested tests when its time, but still wonder if he and we are doing all that can be done to keep us healthy. The concern and care doesn't feel the same.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by pting

Doctors are the product of Medical Schools. They are not trained in preventative medicine. You're in partnership with your doctor...but don't expect them to prescribe alternative medicine...it's not their area of expertise.

Unfortunately, I think most doctors take the "easy way out" by prescribing medication rather than delving deep into a patient's history.
They just don't have time.
As more Boomers become Wrinklies, the health system will become even busier.
Files get lost, results are misinterpreted, we need to keep copies of all test results.
We need to schedule mammograms and colonoscopies and bone density tests.
Luckily there are many health-related classes and clubs and lectures available in The Villages.
I think that self education is the key to maintaining good health as we age.

[courtyard]

It was the same with my thyroid: I stopped using iodized salt because I thought Real Salt would be healthier. Real Salt is a non-processed salt that is available in health food stores and has no added iodine. Little did I realize that I might be subject to an iodine deficiency and proper thyroid function requires a supply of iodine. When I got tested for the first time for thyroid function, my TSH was above 8 which indicates that I was hypothyroid. He said there would be one more test in 3 months to make sure it wasn't a lab error. If the next test had the same result he would start prescribing medication that I would have to take for the rest of my life.

When I asked my doctor if there was anything I could do to get my thyroid function back to normal, he said, "No, it's just something that happens as we get older."
But when I got some library books on the subject of thyroid, I soon learned there were some things I could do. So I made some changes in my diet and on my next blood test my TSH was cut in half, a little over four.

I'VE BEEN USING "REAL SALT" FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, ALSO. WHAT THINGS DID YOU DO TO CUT YOUR TSH IN HALF.

[tippyclubb]

Originally Posted by courtyard

It was the same with my thyroid: I stopped using iodized salt because I thought Real Salt would be healthier. Real Salt is a non-processed salt that is available in health food stores and has no added iodine. Little did I realize that I might be subject to an iodine deficiency and proper thyroid function requires a supply of iodine. When I got tested for the first time for thyroid function, my TSH was above 8 which indicates that I was hypothyroid. He said there would be one more test in 3 months to make sure it wasn't a lab error. If the next test had the same result he would start prescribing medication that I would have to take for the rest of my life.

When I asked my doctor if there was anything I could do to get my thyroid function back to normal, he said, "No, it's just something that happens as we get older."
But when I got some library books on the subject of thyroid, I soon learned there were some things I could do. So I made some changes in my diet and on my next blood test my TSH was cut in half, a little over four.

I'VE BEEN USING "REAL SALT" FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, ALSO. WHAT THINGS DID YOU DO TO CUT YOUR TSH IN HALF.

I would also like to know what changes you made for your tsh. According to my doctor over 4 is high and keeps my level between 1-3. 1 being ideal, which is where I am now. How did you feel when your tsh was 8?

[billethkid]

But why do they call it PRACTICE?

[dbanks50]

To me the key word here is "practicing." They run a boatload of test and diagnose through process of elimination. Also, now everything requires a specialist. I never went to an OBG-YN. My family doctor did it all - even my husband's vasectomy. No telling what specialist does that now.

[NYGUY]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

....What I've come up with so far is that MDs treat symptoms rather than getting to the root of the problem....

Waiting for and treating symptoms is the way medicine is taught and practiced in the U.S. It is my understanding that in Europe, medicine is pro-actively practiced (i.e. doing certain tests at certain times of an individuals life cycle). The European approach makes more sense to me.