Which medical break through do we need most?

I was asked the other day, “Which medical break through do we need most?” And my opinion on whether stem cell research can help alleviate the many ills we suffer from. Well, here is what I have to say about that.

Stem Cell Research:

First, I could write a book on how stem cell research will one day lead to a breakthrough treatment for conditions like spinal chord damage, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS, CP, MD, etc…, but I won’t because it’s already been done and can be found all over the net.

Which medical breakthrough do we need most?

What I would like to do is have a little fun with the idea of “medical breakthrough we need the most.” What if, a research institute somewhere invented a therapy that when applied would make the recipient ethical, moral, responsible and they couldn’t lie. Then in a double-blind, placebo, cross-over study they administered the therapy to the top executives of every pharmaceutical company, the FDA, NIH, government office and insurance company.

This therapy once applied and given a year or so, we should start to see real advancements in the research and treatment of disease. No longer will a drug that only treats a symptom be used like candy. Insurance companies would start to pay for preventative care rather than disease care. Research grants would be given to the NIH for research on foods and supplements for the prevention, correction and treatment  of disease. The positive outcomes from this research would become national standards of care and applauded by the FDA, US government and the insurance industry.

The American population would fall in love with their government, gladly pay their taxes and we would all live happily ever after.

Marcus Ettinger DC, BS

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I read a quote today, “All things must change to something new, to something strange” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

It’s quite random but I thought as an exercise in logic, how could I apply it to my profession of recruiting, and this is what I came up with.

The law of conservation of matter says, matter cannot be created or destroyed, although it may be rearranged. Longfellow’s quote is quite similar to that universal law and can also be applied to all things, tangible and intangible, including ‘recruiting’. What was used in our past, let’s say pen & paper and the phone is now e-mail, faxes and social networking sites. If you would have told someone 70-80 years ago that it will one day be possible for them to communicate with or find people from all over the world, in any profession, with just a key-stroke, they would most likely have found that person and idea strange.

Nothing ever stays the same. The second a thing is created (an idea or an object, including ourselves) it begins to decay or at least change from its original form, into something new, for a moment; it may even be a bit strange.

Marcus Ettinger DC, BS

What would you consider to be the 3 most important healthcare concerns that need to be addressed?

1. HIV/AIDS and malnutrition in Africa
2. Public health (sanitation/immunization) and malnutrition South Asia
3. Dependency on, and cost of, pharmaceuticals in the United States

In the United States, we talk about the high cost of health care, or the lack of access to health care, and the high cost of medication…. These are just symptoms, not health care concerns. Why do most individuals need a medication, or a doctor, or surgery? Because they have a symptom. Why do they have the symptom? Because of the lack of preventative medicine/health care.

I feel the most important health care issue in the U.S. is the lack of a comprehensive preventative medicine/health care program. Here is just one illustration of where a preventative program would be more effective than the standard approach.

99% of medications only activate or suppress reactions within the body they do not rebuild or regenerate. One does a little so let’s look at it.

Let’s take the drug Fosamax for instance. It claims to rebuild bones in patients with osteoporosis. Why do most people develop osteoporosis? Most develop it because they are sitting more (non-weight bearing) and since the body remodels according to the stress placed upon it, and they are not placing stress on the hips and spine, osteoporosis develops. What is the more logical approach, advise the person to perform weight bearing exercise thereby increasing the stress on the weight bearing joints thereby promoting new bone formation? (and if you really want the hedge your bets, give the person some inexpensive Vitamin D, calcium and boron). Or, advise the person to continue with their sedentary lifestyle and just take a medication? The choices: exercise with all of its benefits and $5 worth of supplements or Bingo, a hip fracture and $30 worth of medication.

Just think if the government actually implemented a program that got people to eat right and exercise. That’s our universal health care program right there. It’s cheap, it’s easy to follow and there is almost no paperwork. Billions would gained in increased production and billions more would be saved by tax payers who don’t have to buy as many medications every month or spend money on co-pays. That saved money will now go right back into the economy.

I don’t know if it will ever happen but it would be nice if it did.

Marcus Ettinger DC, BS

What programs are being implemented to combat childhood obesity at your child’s schools?

I am a doctor, practicing holistic medicine for over 18 years and the problem you are mentioning is just getting worse, not better. I have lectured at many schools, in front of hundreds of teacher’s and parents. I feel I am doing well if I can get through, touch, and influence just one or two. I live in southern California where the pace of life is so fast that parents are lucky if they can even have one meal with their children. It’s a sad and true fact.

The schools do have a part in this but the school and government bureaucracy is such that teachers have their hands tied. With these programs, the decisions come down from the top but never get implemented or fully implemented or are totally watered down. We just got vending machines out of the schools here. Why were they ever there in the first place?

Parents are the real answer to this problem. Get the kids outside for one; stop the TV, MySpace, computer games, X-Box, Play Station….. Parents should be parents and not become the effect of their children and give into their uneducated food choices and demands. Parents should also be held accountable for their children exceeding an appropriate BMI by more than, let’s say 50%. Allowing your child to become morbidly obese is a type of child abuse, because they are almost certain to develop premature degenerative diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke.

I recommend limiting simple carbohydrates, following a low glycemic diet, exercise a little or a lot everyday, no sodas, stay away from boxed or canned foods unless they have just water, salt and peas (corn, beans….), lastly get educated. There are tons of great books out there. Read them and share what you’ve learned with your kids. It will be money and time well spent.

Marcus Ettinger DC, BS