Have you had any positive health benefits from alternative medicine (for example herbs, chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, etc.) that was not specifically recommended by your doctor?
Definitely. I am young, but have a bad neck and 100% have been helped by decompression and massage. I would be on pain meds if I didn't do this.
Also, had headaches most of my life until I started taking magnesium about 5 years ago.
Eastern medicine has had the cure for cancer for 200 years. The man who developed it has other chores to his credit. They determine what started the cancer, and give me the herbs to pull it out of your system. They treat the source and not the symptom. People in Japan have cancer smashes Americans, but they utilize the cure
I've had a lifetime of health issues. I used to rely on Dr visits & Rx, trying to address them while my health continued to deteriorate. I'm a realist: if what I'm doing isn't working, I try something different.
When I have an acute infection or something is broken or bleeding profusely, I go to a "regular Dr." Otherwise, we've found a collection of "home medicine" that strengthens our immune system & overall has reduced our incidence of illness & helped our body fight more effectively when we do get sick so we aren't as sick & get well far more rapidly... for significantly less cost.
After changing from "traditional American medicine" to, first, an Environmental Medicine specialist then to a couple Naturopaths - plus doing my own research - my health *finally* started to turn around... substantially & for less expense. I learned about the things in my diet that wasn't helpful & what alternatives would help my body work as designed & be better able to heal itself, rather than taking Rx med that just masked/treated the symptoms w/o ever addressing the *reasons* I *had* the symptoms... & that too often was exacerbating the root problems.
Have you had any positive health benefits from alternative medicine (for example herbs, chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, etc.) that was not specifically recommended by your doctor?
That's a very complex Q cuz there was a lot to address! But, as far as daily life changes, eliminating as ma ny pre-packed products as possible, *especially* white sugar/flour products & unnecessary additives like food coloring & preservatives... which had comprised way too much of my diet.
Diet became 60%-75% fresh fruits, veggies, nuts & seeds; more fresh fish than meats & looked for meats that hadn't been treated w/antibiotics (easier to find now than it was then); no hyper-pasteurized dairy products, no antibiotic treated dairy products (also much easier to find now).
I had been on so many antibiotics & steroids & other "systemic upsetting" medications of one kind or another my own immune systems had been all but destroyed. So the plan was to eliminate as much as possible any direct & indirect source of antibiotic or steroid, unless their was an acute & urgent necessity for them (like pneumonia).
Combined with that was supplements to restore the natural health-building bacterias that had been pretty well wiped out with all the medical treatments & my diet that had made that worse.
So added to my diet was any naturally fermented (not by chemical additives) & probiotics: fruit-sweetened no sugar added yogurt, kefir, etc; non-sulfur dried fruit like dates & figs & prunes; home-fermented veggies... anything that added natural probiotics.
For a long time I required high potency B-complex, ester-C, magnesium (which I still take every day by capsule & in drink form), probiotic supplements & a variety of herbal supplements to support immune & organ function in a variety of ways.
But the primary change for me was staying as far away from antibiotics as possible as much as reasonably possible & changing the things I put into my body that further deteriorated my immune system & response.
For a long time I required high potency B-complex, ester-C, magnesium (which I still take every day by capsule & in drink form), probiotic supplements & a variety of herbal supplements to support immune & organ function in a variety of ways.
But the primary change for me was staying as far away from antibiotics as possible as much as reasonably possible & changing the things I put into my body that further deteriorated my immune system & response.
I am extremely skeptical of any doctor who immediately reaches for a script pad w/o a *single* Q about my dietary or physical activity habits & especially so of any that dismisses out of hand that what I do or don't do on a daily basis apart from downing Rx chemicals - including rational common sense "natural" supplements - makes a certain kind of sense.
Rx medicine has it's place & absolutely should be on the table. But read the label of *any* Rx medicine & realize the canard that *food* & food-based treatment is "dangerous" or "useless" as a particularly cynical form of propaganda.
I buy ultra pasteurized organic milk. It has no antibiotics. I've been using this for over 25 years. Is this healthy? I'm not much of a meat eater. Barely. But I also eat minimal chicken and even less fish. I have several chronic illnesses and with one I have no choice but to take the Meds.
For my other things when I ask my RA Doctor they always brush it off. Dr Weil recommends turmeric and a diet similar to yours. I grew up eating little processed food - always fresh never canned so that's no problem.
I have a high cholesterol but since August I have cut back on butter and my LDL has gone down 10 points. I won't take statin but again no advice on supplements. I just take vit D3. And I have Raynards which has gotten very bad this year. No help from 3 doctors when asked.
Yes, I turned my health around many years ago by not listening to MD's for health advice and taking their prescription drugs. I found my own way with herbs, diet changes, and just learning to listen to my own body.
My sister is big into essential oils.
She sends me stuff occasionally, I don't know exactly how much it might help, but we have one of those defusers to put them in.
Although not typically endorsed by western doctors, I and several people I know have benefitted from eastern medicine. Embracing the best aspects of both could really improve the overall health of the general population.
They were trained to alleviate symptoms which is what Big Pharma does...most are not versed in non-Western medicine & don't attempt to treat the illness/disease, but rather the symptoms.
But it's true. Bear claw, Tiger, gall bladder are powerful in Asian cultures. The snake Gall Bladder is dropped in a whiskey and drunk. Ever see Mondo Cane? youtu.be/VruhmUBo5Vc
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