Confusing Diagnoses II

In my last blog, I described how complicated the diagnosis of diabetes is getting, but how some doctors insist that it's the same old disease of high glucose just different. However, this flawed thinking keeps people sick and dependent on pharmaceutical solutions that don't work. The reason is that these solutions focus on the lab test number and not on the patient. In other words, getting the fasting glucose below 126 is the goal. Sounds simple enough. But what if the patient is obese, has fatty liver disease, smokes, eats processed foods, and doesn't exercise? Because most disorders of metabolism are life style induced diseases, there is no permanent cure without the major clinical focus on diet, exercise, and nutritional supplementation to provide key nutrients to improve body chemistry.

But, is diabetes, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndromes that only confusing diagnoses? By no means! Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, thyroid conditions, autoimmune disorders of the connective tissue, fatigue syndromes, migraine, allergies, fibromyalgia, and many more illnesses are just as confusing to conventionally trained medical and osteopathic doctors.

The next question is does the search for a clearly defined medical diagnosis with the correct terminology and precise clinical reasoning mean any thing to the patient? Unfortunately, other than having a label for their condition, which is still often diagnosed incorrectly, the answer is NO. The reason for this is that the current medical model is based on a paradigm of pathology rather than biological function. These conditions, unlike infections, are caused by disruption of function (rather than infecting microorganisms) in body systems or combinations of systems. For example, a thyroid disorder could be largely in the gland itself or it could be linked (and usually is) to other endocrine glands like the pituitary, or could be even more complicated with age-related changes, stress, oxidative damage from environmental toxins, or damage from radiation. This condition, rather than classical hypothyroidism, becomes a neuroendocrine immune disorder.

Still complicated? Many internet marketing companies use this confusing medical situation to their advantage and offer simple natural solutions for a reasonable price that don't work. Let me tell you right now that after over 25 years of clinical experience with more than 135,000 patient visits, 3 health books, over 100 articles and papers, and thousands of hours of research that there is no simple easy quick answer. The solution lies in understanding the problem and appreciating the complexity.

In my next blog, I'll explain some of the entry level therapeutic strategies for the underlying causes of these conditions, and begin to outline some integrative solutions to help you regain your health.