A brother of one of my friends was missing from his home earlier this year. When he did not return from a walk, his wife became alarmed and alerted the police. Two days later, a search team found him in a wooded area not far from his home. He had committed suicide.
The family is still in shock. His suicide was totally and completely unexpected and uncharacteristic. His wife eventually began researching his medication(s). After heart surgery two years ago, his doctor put him on a medication for his heart condition. Immediately, he began having severe nightmares which kept him from sleeping. Digging, his wife found that a class action suit exists against the makers of this drug because of apparent suicides associated with taking it. Is this drug responsible for ______'s death?
Glynn and I often laugh about the side effects that are mentioned during a TV commercial spotlighting a particular pharmaceutical drug. "Let's see, I'll take this pill for my heartburn even though I may get cancer or have seizures or have a heart attack or uncontrollable diarrhea. My skin may peel or I could lose my vision. Then there's always the chance of an erection lasting longer than four hours....."
Obviously, there is a time and place for pharmaceutical drugs. They do save and change lives! (Without my daily thyroid hormone I would be unable to crawl out of bed each day.)
It's important, however, to do our due diligence prior to taking any medication (or supplement or herb, for that matter) so we know what to expect.
I was pleased to listen in on a conversation between four women over the age of 60 who were expressing their dismay (and condemnation) of two popular drugs taken to prevent bone loss. They knew that these drugs cause brittle bones resulting in broken hips, femurs, even jaws. (Our bones are constantly in a state of flux - breaking down and building up. These drugs inhibit one of these functions.) Each woman stated she would never take Fosamax or Boniva. Instead, each chooses to exercise via resistance training to keep her bones healthy as she ages.
I'm encouraged that we Americans appear to be 'waking out of our slumber' to no longer blindly accept the advice of doctors who, once they leave medical school, receive much of their training via pharmaceutical reps or seminars and conventions that are sponsored by pharmaceutical companies. We are demanding changes in our food supply - No more pink slime! - and exposing toxic practices involving antibiotic use in our livestock as well as chemicals dumped in our ground and sprayed on our plants.
Surf the Web. Read. Educate yourself. Then spread the word.....
So true.
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