I met today with a brilliant and very professional web designer from The Eye Works, named Ramir Camu who is designing the website upgrade to prepare for the book launch and software release of the "Natural Health Coach."? It is one thing to put information out on the web that helps people and a totally different thing to start to seriously plan on changing the lives of thousands.? It is an exciting time to be able to push ideas out into the world through the media of books, software and the worldwide web.? The classic doctor's practice would be able to influence the lives of a few thousand people and help each person manage some of their health issues.? With the opportunity to go to the "next level" comes the possibility of releasing healing power through the each person's own individual experience.? There's no better health coach than someone who's been healed!

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Instead of reaching a person at a time it becomes possible to influence whole communities of people, whether virtual or real.? A book makes people comfortable with the thoughts and character of an individual.? So, my book "Dying to Be Healed" is being crafted for release this fall (hopefully) to support the launch of our software upgrade.? The Better Body Brighter Mind System?has been?helping people throughout the U.S. and overseas with groundbreaking technology that makes it possible to focus on health and avoid disease.? This turns the medical model on its head.? Instead of waiting for disease to become manifest, the system magnifies the body's responses to life's little pressures and uses computerized artificial intelligence to draw a graph to show which of the body's functions are the most likely to need support.? By focusing on subtle imbalances in the body's control systems it's possible to see health enhancement as a method to avoid disease rather than waiting for serious symptoms like chest pain and shortness of breath to produce the stimulus for change in diet, exercise and nutritional support.? The website is the third piece of the plan and has free information for people who just want to get introduced to the concepts?of wellness and healing from the "top down!"

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I'm really excited that the things we learn everyday in the care and interaction with our patients can be shared with the whole world.? By paying attention to the details of getting healthy we find that most of our patients start to lose some of the symptoms of illnesses that weren't even the target of our efforts.? Frequently we'll treat mild depression with fish oil and herbal support to give an alternative to medication in those who would prefer to avoid a drug therapy approach.? When the joint pain form their arthritis goes away we always point out the obvious connection that good overall health has to each of the body's systems.? It's really pretty simple when you stop to think about it.? Since the body heals itself every day you must have one powerful healing system.? Why not use it so you can move from focusing on fear of disease to move up to "the next level!"

A recent article by Daniel Federman M.D. from Harvard Medical School?reveals why so few physicians can begin to move past the old model of disease management into the clean fresh air of health and wellness.? Dr. Federman makes several very good points in his article "A Broader View of Medicine."? My favorite is that there is an expectation for a flawed system to provide nearly flawless care.? He acknowledges that there is a fundamental problem with the principles of medicine?as it?is practiced.? Unfortunately his premise is that our system in the United States is focused too much on the individual, not too little.? His prescription for improving health and the delivery system is to diminish the attention on the individual and transfer wealth to provide universal coverage for all people, not just United States citizens.? This is clearly a broader view of medicine because it presumes to spread a limited resource over an infinitely expanding consumer base.? Instead of acknowledging the absolute biological necessity of individualized nutrition, activity and supplementation Dr. Federman seeks to spread the misery of disease care into every facet of human existence.? I'm all for hygienic control and judicious use of medical treatments to halt the spread of epidemics but I am diametrically opposed to worldwide welfare medicine in the name of promoting health.? I am also a bit disgusted by the droning about morality and its misapplication by the purveyors of individual freedom.?

A broader view of medicine ideally would include:

1. Sanitary sewer for all the earth's people

2. Fresh wholesome water for all

3. Adequate high-quality food to meet caloric needs

4. Supplementation to restore regional deficiency conditions (selenium or iodine to replace soil nutrients that are missing in certain areas of China or the American West)

5. Medical care for those who chose to spend their personal resources to acquire it, whether through risk-sharing pools or traditional insurance

6. Charity care through an unfettered, state-neutral religious and privately funded, liability exempted "Good Samaritan" system.

7. Tax credits for all charity care given through private physician offices throughout the U.S.A. as an example for the world to follow.

Instead of building huge bureaucracies that MUST by their very nature excel in administration I would recommend compassionate and inspirational examples of high-integrity health and wellness projects, programs and teaching.? The medicalization and institutionalization of all things relating to health would be the final death knell for excellence in the healing arts.? Just today the British Health Service released its most recent study revealing the lack of compassion, quality and health outcomes in their national system.?

The most excellent systems must be built around the individual.? To apply the same health strategies to me that you would apply to a 14-year-old schoolgirl is beyond foolish.? Though it would be politically correct and non-discriminatory it would also be exceedingly wasteful of time and money.? That doesn't even take into account the obvious reality that a man in his 40's who participates in "whole-life" fitness and nutrition enhances productive output and years of paternal capability in child-rearing and family support.? The 14 year-old girl would require very?little health care if she is not overly medicalized and given antibiotics for every sniffle and?immunization for every non-lethal disease that can be imagined.? A?regular program?of dietary counseling to avoid "anti-nutrients" and some encouragement to exercise and she'd be ready to go!? Imagine the results if the private sector could be charged to produce lean kids "at a profit!"? It would happen if you could get the socialized medicine folks out of the picture.? Regulatory nightmares would absolutely crush the effort if ANY governmental bodies got involved.

The program for me would be different because I might have family history to deal with and some other issues that would actually require some professional medical care.? The foundation of community-based fitness and nutrition programs would already be in place and the things that wouldn't be addressed through these systems would be much more responsive in a healthy individual.? When the responsibility for health is placed on the physician (or, God forbid, the public) a grand opportunity is lost.? Instead of receiving the instruction and benefits of health enhancement each person would be entitled to their government ration of substandard treatment (also known as non-care).? Since?resources would be?consumed to treat the results of destructive behaviors like smoking, promiscuity and drunkenness it would leave precious little for wellness.? I say let the smokers and other risk-takers shoulder the burden for their choices.? I, for one, am willing to accept the possibility that my aggressive driving may result in a ticket.? The outcome of health behaviors shouldn't be likewise exempted from reality!

"A Broader View of Medicine" is supported with opinions and data from esteemed scientists who are known for their big-government concepts and programs.? All of their ideas aren't bad.? I just have a problem funding their largesse through the taxation of people who fight to reduce their own medical costs with excellent diet and activity.? The medical community has spent an inordinate amount of time being indoctrinated in the liberal concept that any health decisions should take the least common denominator of health into account.? Since I offer my patients?a shot at maximized health status it is terribly discouraging to see so much effort focused on sick care.? Maximum disincentives are being offered for optimum health while the impact of poor health choices is being mitigated by efforts to fund the payment for their consequences through someone else's work.? The payments will probably come from the same guy who is working so hard to stay fit just to pay for someone else's illness.? I think public policy should encourage the best behaviors and penalize the worst.? For those who have genetic problems or disease that is unresponsive to good health practice (no problem that I have ever heard of....), there should be affordable insurance and charity services to meet their needs.

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I was surprised today?by one of the staff members in our office when she told me about her grandfather's recent visit to his cardiologist.? He went into the heart doctor's office to have his exam for what had been diagnosed as congestive heart failure.? The doctor did his evaluation and EKG and gave him a puzzled look and asked him what he was doing differently.? Her grandmother asked "Why do you ask?"? The doctor replied that all the signs of congestive heart failure were gone and his heart was healthier than it had been in the past several years.? Her grandmother couldn't help but be thrilled that what looked like misfortune had turned into a major victory for her and her husband.? She told the cardiologist that her husband had started taking supplements for his "overall health and well-being."? The treatment he received was the result of?my work with him.? It included CoQ10, fish oils, arginine (an amino acid) and some vitamin therapies.? The funny thing was that we were treating him to enhance his health, not to improve his heart disease exam.? The reality is that you can't help one system without affecting all of them.? When natural non-toxic treatments are used all of the systems can benefit together.

Her grandpa had been sick in the hospital with a reaction to antibiotics and had some trouble thinking clearly after the episode.? He came to see?me at the Center for Hope and Healing to make sure that his nutrition wasn't preventing him from rapidly regaining his keen wit and sense of humor.? He had always been "really sharp" and seemed to have lost some of his enthusiasm and most of his "edge."? I asked him to complete the Better Body Brighter Mind System so?I could speed up his evaluation process and it showed some interesting things.? Mostly, he needed major changes in his diet and strong supplementation to reverse deteriorating health signals.? He faithfully followed our recommendations and followed up with his cardiologist to make sure his "ticker" was keeping up with the rest of him.? Then I got the great news that not only was his mental edge restored but we got a bonus of reversal of his heart failure.? I can't be sure exactly which nutrient or dietary change made the difference but it doesn't really matter to a man who has been given a new lease on life.? (After the diagnosis of congestive heart failure the average person will be dead within two years.? When that heart failure is reversed the average person returns to the regular herd and is likely to live as long as anyone else at his age.)? This is the kind of thing that makes my job a true joy!

If you ever wonder whether or not it is worth the effort to eat well and take your supplements and sleep when you're tired, Don't!? This is one of thousands of cases that show me that we don't need to wait for peer-reviewed literature to make good common-sense decisions about our health.? Take great care of yourself and you'll do the insurance company a big favor by never using your benefits!? Blessings to all!