Some say our healthcare system needs to make a U-turn, a radical shift in its approach. Are we curing hypertension with our medications? Our approach to many musculoskeletal problems consists of masking symptoms, which is generally what’s happening with an anti-inflammatory, orally or injected. In effect, we’re hoping that mother nature will eventually heal the problem so the patient can discontinue the drug.
Read MorePain is a common sensation, experienced by most of us at some point in our lives. When the discomfort lasts more than 12 weeks, it is classified as chronic, experienced by about 20 percent of the population. 50 million US citizens live with it…..but how much do we really know about chronic pain? The answer may lie in how well we (don’t) deal with it.
Read MoreThere is an abundance of unexplained medical conditions in the world, although our understanding has advanced tremendously. There is much we don’t know about the human body and don’t let anyone pretend otherwise. How about an explanation for “Stiff Person Syndrome” or Morgellon’s with the strange skin fibers? We don’t even understand something as common as migraine headaches. Schizophrenia and many disorders of the brain remain a mystery.
Read MoreSome years ago, a beat cop patrolling our streets was called a flatfoot. Was this because they developed a flattened foot from walking the pavement all day? That particular variation on human anatomy used to be sufficient to keep someone out of the military. And yet, Walter Payton, the famous football player, had flat feet and it certainly didn’t stop him. How bad can it be to have a flatter foot type?
Read MoreYou are what you eat…..or so goes the often cited platitude. But this isn’t just a meaningless cliché: every second of every day, the cells of your body are working to maintain their viability, to run the body, repair the damage of daily life. To perform these tasks, you need energy as well as the materials to build new tissue. Foodstuffs are needed for these tasks since humans can’t live on air and water.
Read MoreToo many Americans are living with pain. Certainly, there are innumerable reasons for people to experience discomfort from some specific part of the body. But one in particular, affecting far too many Americans, and often inadequately addressed, is the scourge that is chronic joint pain. Unfortunately, far too often, recurring pain from some joint is explained away, completely minimized, by being labeled simply as our old friend “Arthur-Itis.”
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