Re: treating with nutrition rather than drugs.

It's not ALL the doc's fault for pushing the pills so much.

First, several studies have been done that show that patient demand medication for their various ailments. They'd much rather pop a pill than make any dietary or lifestyle change.

Second, non-medication treatment often means closer monitoring by the physician....and most don't have the time to properly monitor the patients they currently have. More frequent monitoring means more freq appts, so longer days. They also run a risk with ins companies, who might find additional appts unnecessary....or from their partners if they're in a "global" fee (they get a set fee, regardless of if a patient is seen once or fifty times in a benefit period, usually 1 yr)arrangement with the ins company .

Third, alternative treatments often take longer to show a change. People today want to see immediate results....especially if they spent money for the doc, and treatment. Stop eating something that causes an imflamation response in your body....like arthritis. If effective, it will probably be several days or weeks before a difference is noticed. OR....take a pill and get relief in 20-30 min.

There should be a national push for more "alternative" treatments, be it therapy, diet, exercise, whatever. There should also be closer monitoring of these patients....and that can be done less expensively with groups or clinics.

The medical profession, as well as the american public, wants a quick fix for everything! If you can diet for a few weeks to notice improvement in a medical issue....like blood sugar levels....or take a pill that will show results within hours, MOST people are going to take the pill. And MOST docs will too, because they get almost immediate feedback, and s/he may feel their patients are "safer" becaue the immediate threat is removed.

It's a coplex issue. Americans feel entitled to "have it all". They want to eat what they want and not have to worry about it. They don't want to "have" to do anything they don't want to do. They are also always looking for a quick fix....and will praise a treatment based on how fast it works, not the long term implications. Too many americans live in the present only and do as little long-term planning as possible. Many don't want to think about what their actions might impact down the road....because they'd rather ignore the fact that the road is even there.

Just my 2 cents.....ok 10 cents!