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Vibrant Living, Issue #146 Healthcare Crisis, Raw Food Testimonies & Raw Reci October 08, 2013 |
Greetings Health Seekers,Welcome to the VIBRANT LIVING NEWSLETTERWith the arrival of autumn, the days are still mostly warm here, but some evenings see the mercury dip with the chill in the air. The summer bounty is still plentiful at the farmers market and the persimmons are just beginning to show up. Life is good, food is abundant, friends and family are well….there is much to be grateful for in this world and I hope you are enjoying the same blessings as I am. In this issue of Vibrant Living I’ve written an article on what I see as the real issue with healthcare in the US. I share two Wonderful testimonies highlighting the power of raw foods, which I hope will be shared with friends and family. There are several new raw recipes for your enjoyment and rating….and of course some amusing quotes from people more knowledgeable than I. Enjoy!
The best decision I ever made.
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Healthcare Crisis: What’s the Real Issue at Hand
With all the discussion of health care in the news lately it’s easy for one to be caught up in the “game” and choose sides along political party lines or based on short snippets of distorted information in the media, when the real discussion should be about why medical costs are so high, and not who should pay them. Medicine or healthcare has become an industry in itself. The bigger it has gotten and the further away from the local independent family practitioner the more expensive it has become. I believe doctors should make a good income. They spent many hard years in school and training and should be fairly compensated for their hard work then and now in dealing with many unpleasant situations. I think they can make a good wage and healthcare can still be affordable. That aside, it’s the layers of bureaucracy and regulations which create massive cost and stifle a healthy medical system. Each one of those layers adds cost, takes decisions further away from the doctor/patient relationship, and is another opportunity for fraud and abuse. How crazy is it that doctors can have their medical license taken away by the state for simply sharing alternative protocols for disease with their patients?
The US Health Care System Is Fundamentally Flawed Americans spend twice as much on health care per capita than any other country in the world; in fact, according to a series of studies by the consulting firm McKinsey & Co, the US spends more on health care than the next 10 biggest spenders combined: Japan, Germany, France, China, the U.K., Italy, Canada, Brazil, Spain, and Australia.
Other astounding statistics include: • The US spends more than 17 percent of our gross domestic product (GDP) on healthcare • If the US health care system was a country, it would be the 6th largest economy on the entire planet • While the US makes up only five percent of the world’s population, Americans consume over 50 percent of all the world’s pharmaceutical drugs • Overall, Americans also pay 50 percent more than other countries for identical drugs, as a result of laws and regulations preventing the US government from reining in drug prices like other nations do Despite all of this spending and pill-popping, the US ranks dead last in terms of quality of care among industrialized countries, and Americans are far sicker and live shorter lives than people in other nations. Clearly, we have taken a wrong turn down the wrong road somewhere... A review of US healthcare expenses by the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) revealed that 30 cents of every dollar spent on medical care is wasted, adding up to $750 billion annually. For perspective, the defense budget proposed by the Pentagon for 2014 was just under $527 billion. The IOM report identifies six major areas of medical waste: Unnecessary services; inefficient delivery of care; excess administrative costs; inflated prices; prevention failures; and fraud. Also, as stated in the featured Time Magazine article “A central reason U.S. health care spending is so high is that hospitals and doctors charge more for their services and there’s little transparency about why. There is no uniformity to the system, in which public and private insurers have separate, unrelated contracts with hospitals and doctors. The result is a tangled, confusing and largely secretive collection of forces driving health care prices higher and higher. This isn’t possible in many other countries either because governments set prices for health care services or broker negotiations between coalitions of insurers and providers.“
back to my article As you would imagine, I believe very strongly in living as close to nature and natural laws as possible, and by doing so providing the body with the ideal environment to thrive and heal itself. If everyone in the world lived more in accord with natural ways we wouldn’t even be having a healthcare discussion today. Worldwide, study after study shows a direct correlation between good diet and good health, yet most choose the path that leads to sickness, disease, and premature death, and then they want someone else to pay their medical expenses. I believe everyone should have access to affordable healthcare, but don’t think government mandated healthcare is the answer. Big government equates to higher prices and poorer service, ripe with fraud and waste, just look at any government program and it’s clear as day. It’s well documented that Medicare is rife with waste, abuse, and fraud to the tune of billions every year. Government already reaches into our lives in so many ways controlling aspects of life that clearly would be best left up to the individual or perhaps the local community. One example is the FDA forcing US almond farmers to pasteurize their raw almonds before sending them to market. I should be able to choose whether I want to buy raw almonds and take any associated risk. The GMO issue is another where our own government is actively promoting their use both here and abroad when in 2008, then senator Obama said he believed everyone should know what’s in their food and supported GMO labeling. We have to all understand one critically important point, it does not matter whether the party in power starts with a “R” or and “D”, they are both part of the same bloated and corrupt government that serves lobbyists first so they can line their own pockets before casting a few crumbs to the masses in the form of some bill that usually takes away more of our god given freedom. Here in the US there might be 50 men and women in a congress of 535 that actually set the best interest of the country above all else. Sadly most of the masses are so wrapped up in the “game” they keep re-electing the same corrupt representatives to further enslave them, and create the major challenges we have today like who will pay for the outrageous cost of healthcare. I would encourage everyone to vote on the issues and the person, and not whether a “R” or an “D” follows their name. When I say the person, I mean the candidate that has character, values, and ideals that don’t change with a straw poll, and that won’t be bought by lobbyists. Candidates that will rein in excess spending and cut government waste, which will lead to affordable healthcare and affordable living in all areas of our lives while preserving freedoms like having access to non-pasteurized food and a GMO free country. I believe strongly in the libertarian ideal of smaller government exhibited most recently by Ron Paul in the 2012 election, who had an “R” behind his name, but was far from the stereotype. This ideal calls for fiscal responsibility in government, encourages individual responsibility, and the protection of individual rights. A system of government where we stop being the world’s policeman and quite intervening in every disagreement around the world. A system where farmers are not sued because GMO crops infected their crops. A system where elected officials truly look out for the wellbeing of the citizens, and billions in foreign aid are spent mostly at home if and when needed. There will be people of character who show up over the next few years as this overall world crisis deepens. The only question is, will they be recognized and given a chance to give all of us a chance? Definitely food for thought.
There is of course the obvious that most can do, and most of you reading this are already doing, and that is to live as close to nature as possible and stay healthy, vibrant, and active for the rest of your life.
As President John F Kennedy said in the early 60’s, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” I say what you can do for your country is take care of your good health and be as self sufficient as possible, while voting in people of character that will rein in excess spending and cut government waste. Talk with friends and neighbors and let’s start voting using the common sense method instead of the R and D method. Be Well and Wonderful, Hugh
“The best and most efficient pharmacy is within your own system.” ~Robert C. Peale
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Although I believe strongly in a diet comprised mostly of fresh raw foods, I do supplement with super green powders, nuts, seeds, sea vegetables, and the occasional dried fruit such as goji berries. If you’re like me you’re always looking for a good deal on quality food whether it’s fresh from the farmers market or purchased online, so I thought I would share with you where I make most of my online purchases. You may already be aware of the Raw Food World and their “at cost” specials, but if not here you go. When you go to purchase supportive foods like those listed above you can save money and get “at cost” special pricing by going to the link below and clicking on the “at cost” specials tab. This also allows you to save up to 14% on every order of their already good deals. The important thing to remember is that fresh is best and these products are supportive and should not be your mainstay. Enjoy!
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There are a number of new testimonies at the website which I hope you will read and pass on to others when you feel they would benefit. And please feel free to leave your own story if you feel moved to do so. You need not be 100% raw to share a testimony; the fact is most people on the raw diet are not 100% anyway. Your story may inspire someone else, perhaps from the other side of the globe, to give the raw food diet a try.
Success stories.
Please send me your health questions, they can be submitted anonymously if you prefer, and you may help someone else improve their health and quality life.
Your questions.
Be Well and Wonderful, Hugh
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hugh@raw-foods-diet-center.com MEDICAL DISCLAIMER The contents of my website and my newsletter are gleaned from my experiences and observations, meant only for educational purposes and not intended to replace medical advice, consultations, or treatment of any kind. I recommend you see your professional health care provider if you suspect you have an illness or disease of any kind. I'm not medically trained, and I would never suggest or imply that I know what is best for someone else's body or overall health, ultimately each of us is the only one who knows what's best for us. |
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The following statistics are taken from an article at mercola.com, which helps explain the issue and put things in prospective. I finish my article below the Mercola article and explain why we’re in this mess and how we can extract ourselves from it.
