Friday, February 1, 2008

How To Treat Yourself When You Are ILL

People Are Their Own Doctors

If people went to doctors for all their ailments, doctors would be overwhelmed and would be able to deal with only a fraction of their cases. In actual practice, however, for well over half the cases of illnesses, people usually become their own doctors and medicate themselves.

Advertised Cures Are Big Business

The enormous pharmaceutical concerns of the world which are now multi-billion dollar industries make numerous patent medicines to cure various types of diseases. These cures are vigorously advertised through newspaper advertisements, TV and radio. The cost of the advertisements alone runs into many millions of dollars but in spite of this the pharmaceutical firms make huge profits. There is always a vast and gullible public which is very willing to pay large sums and purchase such highly advertised patent medicines. These medicines are usually purchased direct by the public from chemists' shops — and in most cases they are entirely unnecessary. This just proves what high-pressure advertising can do, especially when one is not well.

Most Medicines Not Necessary


Most medicines are entirely unnecessary — in fact, one could go so far as to say that in most cases one would be better off without any medication whatsoever


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One can safely say that 90 per cent of illnesses cure themselves. They take their course. In most such cases, there is no need for medicines; and if medicines are taken, they probably have a marginal effect as far as quickening the cure is concerned, but they may help to make the patient more comfortable.

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For example, the average cough-mixture has no real effect on curing a cough. It may, however, relieve the hoarseness in the throat or congestion in the chest and therefore make the patient feel more comfortable. At best, it may tend to cure a cough only a little quicker than if no cough-mixture was taken. But even a relatively harmless cough-mixture taken in excessive amounts may cause unpleasant side-effects. And that is why a growing number of wise people now-a-days never take medicines of any kind.

Interaction Of Drugs Dangerous


The interaction of a number of drugs on the body is such that even a physician cannot really understand it fully. Extreme caution should, therefore, be exercised when taking drugs, especially antibiotics which often give rise to serious side-effect. In fact, drugs should not normally be taken unless it is absolutely necessary. In most cases it is better to let an illness take its course: a
cure is bound to come. But, of course, if an illness continues, then one should go to a doctor.

Vast Consumption of Aspirin


Aspirin or other such analgesics may help to bring down a fever and make the patient more comfortable, but they will certainly not cure a malady: the disease itself is not being treated by taking analgesics or anti pyretics.


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Over half of all the patented medicines sold over the counter without prescriptions are analgesics or pain-killers of various types. Most of these contain aspirin in some form or other. The amount of aspirin consumed is vast. It is estimated that for the population of Britain, on an average two tablets are taken by every member of the population every week and a small percentage of both men and women take aspirin every day of their lives. It is interesting to note that the well-known British physician Lord Horder has said that aspirin is the most valuable weapon in the doctor's armamentarium.

Aspirin: The Super-Drug


Aspirin is a super-drug but as we have said earlier, it does not cure — it only makes a patient's life much more comfortable. It is the base medication of all the analgesics. Its maximum effect occurs in about two hours. Aspirin in its various brands is probably more used than all the other types of medicines put together.


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Aspirin is a relatively safe drug. It is extremely difficult for an adult to kill himself with an over-dose of aspirin.

- Moreover, aspirin has few side-effects. If taken in very large quantities, it might lead to bleeding in the stomach. That is why it is best to take it after a meal.


Drugs And Saving Money


A good physician can save you a great deal of money you are buying drugs. The cost of a generic drug such as aspirin will be much cheaper than an entirely similar drug, which, however, has a special brand name. In most cases there is no need to to take an expensive brand name at all. A physician should know the relative costs of alternate drugs and he can recommend a drug which serves the purpose but which is much less expensive.


Drugs And The Future


If a physician gives you no medicine, consider this a a very good thing. The present practice of using drugs to control symptoms may be a temporary phase in the history of medicine. Some doctors think that in the future, the taking of drugs may be considerably reduced, except, of course, in the case of operations and other similar types of serious treatment.

3 comments:

Clintb said...

The Internet is slowly changing the manner in which the medical profession performs. For instance, body temperature is a defense mechanism and when reduced can cause an illness to be prolonged. Of course in the rare case when it gets excessively high, permanent damage can result so that doctors limit their legal liabilities by overprescribing.
Cancer, Alzheimers, Epilepsy, Diabetes, Parkinsons and many other conditions the medical profession does not have a handle on have effective cures listed on the web if you have the initiative and time to sort them out...Clintb

Clintb said...

The Internet is slowly changing the manner in which the medical profession performs. For instance, body temperature is a defense mechanism and when reduced can cause an illness to be prolonged. Of course in the rare case when it gets excessively high, permanent damage can result so that doctors limit their legal liabilities by overprescribing.
Cancer, Alzheimers, Epilepsy, Diabetes, Parkinsons and many other conditions the medical profession does not have a handle on have effective cures listed on the web if you have the initiative and time to sort them out.

Clintb said...

The Internet is slowly changing the manner in which the medical profession performs. For instance, body temperature is a defense mechanism and when reduced can cause an illness to be prolonged. Of course in the rare case when it gets excessively high, permanent damage can result so that doctors limit their legal liabilities by overprescribing.
Cancer, Alzheimers, Epilepsy, Diabetes, Parkinsons and many other conditions the medical profession does not have a handle on have effective cures listed on the web if you have the initiative and time to sort them out.