The side effects of prescription drugs: It’s sink or swim.

Content by: Guy Lawrence

Prevention_CureBy 180 Nutrition

A friend said to me the other day that when pharmaceutical companies name a new drug, they either put the letter X, Y or Z in the name… He said it now sounds scientific and complicated and it must be able to do wonderful things!

This was said in a tongue-in-cheek manner, but then I saw this picture (left) on FaceBook and it did make me wonder.

I recently read here that over 50% of US citizens are taking some form prescriptive drug, amazing!

Do you fit into this percentage? Could you be doing more to look after your health?

People complain that they are run down and often unwell, yet they never really look beyond quick fixes to resolve the underlying issue. I understand everyone’s circumstances are different, and pharmaceuticals can be of benefit in some cases… but where’s the line?

Naturopath Tania Flack wrote a great article, The future of Australian health care and the stats seems to show that we have a habit of only valuing our health once it’s gone.

Goldfish bowl: Sink or swim

There’s an analogy we often use during our health seminars… Think of a goldfish swimming around in it’s goldfish bowl (let’s name him ‘Spike’), and the water is dirty and Spike isn’t looking too great. In fact, Spike’s looking pretty limp and he’s just about getting by (know anyone like this?).

If Spike was yours, how would you treat him?

Goldfish BowlNo matter how much we treated Spike with whatever illness he’s developed, if we did not change the water I wouldn’t fancy his chances. He might kick on for a while longer from the treatment, but what about his quality of life?

Naturally we would want to take preventative measures. If Spike was really struggling we’d change the water and treat him at the same time. We could then stay on top of it and change the water once a week, feed him well and Spike would probably have a swimmingly good time in there.

I often get asked ‘what’s the key to good health’ like there’s a magical and mystical secret formula only the very few and privileged know of.

From working in the health & fitness industry there’s been a few common denominators that have stood out for me when it comes to great health. The main one is this:

Do the basics really well

Sexy I know! So what are the basics? Search the blog and I cover most of them. But here’s a few…

  • NO SUGAR!!! (This is a must, and cuts out most supermarket foods).
  • Cut out processed foods (Yes, breakfast cereals and tomato ketchup too) and limit most white foods (flour, rice, pasta etc).
  • Avoid chemicals in food as much as possible… Yep, that means most bread is gone too (Because you’ve now cut out sugar, flour and preservatives/chemicals).
  • Check the ingredients of everything you buy. If you don’t recognise them, don’t eat it.
  • Eat more like your grandparents would have when they were young.
  • Support your local businesses like the butcher etc. instead of buying packaged processed low grade meats. Local veggie shop instead of raiding the long isles in the supermarkets! Fresh fish, fresh eggs, fresh is best.
  • Cook your own food from scratch! Actually get to know what you are eating.
  • Eat veggies like they are going out of fashion (Yes even for breakfast if you have time).
  • Natural fats are your friends
  • Avoid low fat which normally means high sugar.
  • Don’t binge drink alcohol. In fact, don’t binge anything. If you want to treat yourself, earn it first. Keep it 80/20 minimum.
  • Move and exercise daily.
  • Don’t take it all to seriously and laugh a lot. (Life’s to short!).
  • Sleep

I’ve probably missed a few things but you get the idea… Keep it simple.

Surely a little investment daily is required as our health is at stake? Quality food and some exercise far outweigh the cost of your health and medications that harbour side affects like the T-shirt cleverly points out… So if you are in Spikes shoes, is it sink or swim?

What one thing do you/don’t you do daily to keep your water clear? Would love to hear your thoughts…

Recommended reading:

Primal Body, Primal Mind: Beyond the Paleo Diet – Nora Gedgaudas

Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It (Vintage) – Gary Taubes

Big Fat Lies – David Gillespie

Guy Lawrence

This article is brought to you by Guy Lawrence. Guy is a qualified fitness trainer with over 10 years of experience in the health industry. Guy worked at the UTS Fitness Centre in Sydney Australia where he specialised in exercise nutrition and obtained his Certificate in Exercise Nutrition and Certified... Read More
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