(W)HEALTH Management

The title of this article says it all. When the established system of medical practice is viewed realistically, it must be concluded that two objectives are in play.  “Health”Management in the sense of achieving physical wellness and “Wealth” Management in the sense of optimizing associated financial rewards, which are clearly at odds with each other. It is a critical issue with regard to medicines. Should both objectives merit equal consideration or does public health demand priority on ethical grounds?  Given the choice of how tax revenue is applied, a majority would likely put health matters in first place or jointly alongside national defense.  Addressing these objectives depends on resolution of opposing views between “government managed” or “privately operated” systems.   Read More

True Medicines: By Design or Nature?

In order to distinguish between “medicine” referencing the practice of diagnosing and healing bodily ailments on the one hand and specific remedies such as prescription drugs and dietary products on the other, the following definitions are proposed.  The term “medicine” should apply to the practice of medicine specifically and the plural form “medicines” to remedial substances.  Consequently, the subject title “True Medicines” refers solely to remedies.

Since the dawn of human existence, there has been an instinctive and observed realization that survival depends on food in its available forms. Hunting and farming provided a means of maintaining and prolonging life while defending against predators and the environmental hazards of the times. For our forebears as for us, food provided energy, physical mass and defense against disease through a biological immune system.      Read More