Dear Doctor:
I know I’ve been on a tirade about the transgressions of organized health and the dangerous overmedication of our society. I just can’t help it – it’s one of the worst travesties of our culture, and as long as billions are being made, it’s unlikely that the medical cartel will voluntarily
relinquish their position.
The latest horror show is described on the front page of this weekend’s USA
Today – an FDA committee urged a mandate to place “the strongest type of
warnings possible on widely prescribed stimulant drugs for attention
deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD.”
The FDA asked the committee to research the connection between popular (and
massively profitable) drugs like Ritalin, Adderall, Focalin, Methylin,
Metadate, and Concerta, and the risk of sudden death, heart attacks and
strokes. There were twenty-five reported sudden deaths after taking these
drugs, including children, and the committee concluded that there was enough
of a correlation to recommend that these precautions be taken and warnings
to that effect be prominently displayed.
It particularly infuriates me that Adderall, a drug that brought its
manufacturers almost a billion dollars in 2005, was banned in Canada a year
ago, only to be returned to the shelves shortly thereafter.
I won’t belabor the doubletalk, misinformation and medspeak propaganda
offered by the perpetrators in their defense, because my point really isn’t
that these drugs should be eliminated. As long as people are led to believe
that their problems need to be treated with drugs, they’ll only keep looking
for safer or more effective drugs to replace the outlawed ones. Wellness
pioneers recognize that the real need isn’t for better drugs – we need a
shift in paradigm that allows doctors and patients to view health and
wellness as a function of lifestyle choices first, with heroic intervention
only when necessary, after establishing a baseline of well physiology.
Overcoming the cultural hypnosis to the contrary has become a mission worth
committing to – even with stronger warnings about the very real possibility
of death and serious damage, many patients are going to follow their
doctor’s orders anyway. At least, the warnings may help some patients avoid
tragic repercussions.
But that isn’t any more than a small stopgap – to make a bigger difference,
and contribute your part to the movement toward real wellness, please look
thoroughly at the message you are conveying with your practice, and adjust
your delivery of service to match your real beliefs and values. And inform
people about the potential harm from the use of toxic medicines, so they can
make an informed decision whenever possible.
Dennis Perman DC, for The Masters Circle
PS If you relate to the above perspective, you need to know about the work
of Dr. James Chestnut, a brilliant young neuroscientist who has been our
guest speaker at our first quarter seminar, “Stairway To Success.” His
model of wellness will move your practice into the Twenty-First Century, and
skyrocket both your clinical certainty and your philosophical congruency.
His last appearance in the series is coming up in March – for information or
to register, call 800-451-4514 or go to www.themasterscircle.com
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