I recently commented on a post I saw about antimicrobial resistance. The article said this would be an emergency worse than the recent pandemic. It said we must act now. It said we must fund new drugs with a shiny new "subscription-based business model."
You know what it did not say? The same thing that was not said during the pandemic - namely, that a robust immune system has a tremendous role to play, and that the engines of Nutrition, Movement, Connection, and Rest help the immune system be a strong antimicrobial and also help reverse many diseases.
We seem to be accelerating into a worldview that says healthcare in the form of pills, procedures, and shots are the only answers. I think this is an insult to all of us. It assumes we are capable of so little, of understanding so little, of having so little agency.
I don't believe that's true. I believe each of us has a tremendous amount of power. Education and change in behavior are powerful solutions. It won't be easy because there is so much marketing telling us how powerless we are. But when I look into the eyes of my patients, I still see glimmers of hope, even when they're weighed down by a collection of diagnoses and a mountain of medications.
You have tremendous power.
Here's the article:
This was the comment I wrote in response to the post:
"I see antibiotic resistance in the ER often enough to know that it's important to have drugs that work. However, we also need to look beyond the idea of more drugs and new drugs. Let's also remember and declare to patients and the public that a robust immune system is a fantastic antimicrobial agent. While we develop better drugs, let us also put money towards educating the public on the engines of Nutrition, Movement, Connection, and Rest and how they can contribute to fending off infections. I believe it is the responsibility of every company that is making money off of people's illnesses to do this. Otherwise, we are simply applying short-term bandages to wounds that will regardless make the organism succumb in the long-term, all while industry benefits from a shiny new "subscription-style business model."
"As a secretary of Health and Human Services and FDA commissioner in different eras of American politics and for different parties, and as an infectious diseases physician who sees firsthand the devastating effects of AMR on patients, we all agree that combatting AMR must be a policy priority for everyone."
Where is the policy priority to educate the public on how to heal from diseases and not be dependent on medication?"
Commentaires