Medical Health

Taxonomic Class

Araliaceae

Common Trade Names

Multi-ingredient preparations: Bio Star, Cimexon, Energy Rise, Fast Lane Herb Tea, Gincosan, Ginsana, Ginsatonic, Ginseng Action, Neo Ginsana

Common Forms

No standards exist for ginseng despite availability of chromatographic assays for ginsenosides and ginseng polysaccharides.

Capsules: 100 mg, 250 mg, 500 mg

Extract: 2 oz root extract (in alcohol base)

Root powder: 1 oz, 4 oz

Tea bags: 1,500 mg ginseng root

Also available as a cream, eye gel, nutrition bar, and oil. The root is available in bulk by the pound.

Source

The most common species is Panax quinquefolius, commonly known as American or Western ginseng. Sought after most commonly for its root, the plant’s other characteristics (wild or cultivated) and the shapes of the root make it more valuable. Traditionally, ideal plants are at least 6 years old. Panax ginseng is known as the Asian, Korean, or Japanese ginseng. Asian ginseng usually undergoes treatment, such as drying and curing, before it is sold; the American variety undergoes less manipulation and carries less distinction.

Chemical components

Ginseng is composed primarily of ginsenosides, also known as panaxosides. About 12 major panaxosides have been isolated but are found in only minute quantities and are difficult to purify on a large scale. Other components of the plant isolated for pharmacologic effects include a volatile oil, beta-elemine, sterols, flavonoids, peptides, vitamins (B 1 , B 2 , B12 panthotenic acid, nicotinic acid, and biotin), fats, polyacetylenes, minerals, enzymes, and choline.

Actions

Several pharmacologic effects have been noted that vary with dose and duration of treatment. The panaxosides, found in the root, are thought to be the pharmacologically active agents. Although they are similar in structure, sometimes these compounds exert opposing pharmacologic effects. For example, ginsenoside Rb-1 has analgesic, anticonvulsant, antipsychotic, and CNS depressant effects; stress ulcer-preventing action; and acceleration of glycolysis and nuclear RNA synthesis. Ginsenoside Rg-1 has antifatigue, CNS stimulating, hypertensive, and stress ulcer-aggravating activities. These opposing features form the basis for the theory that ginseng serves to "balance bodily functions."

Another example of these opposing actions is that Rg and Rg-1 enhance cardiac performance, whereas Rb depresses cardiac function. Other ginsenosides have shown antiarrhythmic activity similar to that of verapamil and amiodarone. Oral ginseng was found to reduce cholesterol and triglyceride levels, decrease platelet adhesiveness, impair coagulation, and increase fibrinolysis in cholesterol-fed rats. Ginsenosides may reduce stress by acting on the adrenal gland.

Hypoglycemic activity in rodents has been documented, but the mechanism of action has not been proved . Extracts of ginseng have shown antioxidant activity on human erythrocytes in a laboratory model and prevented the development of morphine tolerance in rats. Some studies in animals have documented ginseng’s anti-inflammatory and antiviral activities and its hepatoprotective effects at low doses (destruction at high doses) in a rat model, whereas others found that tumors in mice were suppressed by components of ginseng.

Reported Uses

Ginseng is popularly claimed to minimize or reduce thymus gland activity. Other claims include its use as an antidepressant, an aphrodisiac, a demulcent (soothes irritated or inflamed internal tissues and organs), a diuretic, a sedative, and a sleep aid. Short-term use of the herb may improve concentration, healing, stamina, stress resistance (adaptogenic), vigilance, and work efficiency; long-term use is claimed to improve well-being in elderly patients with debilitated or degenerative conditions. Few claims have supporting data from animal studies and fewer still have data from human studies.

Although studies conducted in humans were mostly small and poorly designed, results suggest that ginseng has several beneficial effects. Improvement in appetite, emotional lability, sleep, and work efficiency in animals and humans indicates the ginseng’s ability to enhance physical and mental performance. Ginseng may also indirectly exhibit corticosteroid-like effects.

Ginseng decreased fasting blood glucose and hemoglobin Ale levels in both diabetic and nondiabetic patients such that some diabetics were free of insulin therapy for the duration of the study . The herb has also been shown to be beneficial in patients with hepatic dysfunction, hyperlipidemia, and impaired cognitive function.

Dosage

Dosages vary with the disease state; usually, 0.5 to 2 g of dry ginseng root P.O. daily or 200 to 600 mg of ginseng extract P.O. daily in one or two equal doses.

For improved well-being in debilitated elderly patients, 0.4 to 0.8 g of root daily P.O. on a continual basis.

Adverse Reactions

CNS: headache, insomnia, nervousness.

CV: chest pain, hypertension, palpitations.

EENT: epistaxis.

GI: diarrhea, nausea, vomiting.

GU: impotence, mastalgia, vaginal bleeding.

Skin: pruritus, rash (with ginseng abuse).

Interactions

Antidiabetic agents, insulin: Increased hypoglycemic effect. Use together cautiously.

MAO inhibitors (hypericin, parnate, phenelzine, selegiline, tranylcypromine): Adverse reactions include headache, mania, and tremor. Avoid administration with ginseng.

Contraindications And Precautions

Avoid using ginseng in pregnant or breast-feeding women; effects are unknown. Use cautiously in patients with CV disease, diabetes, hypertension, or hypotension and in those who are also receiving steroid therapy.

Special Considerations

Monitor the patient for signs and symptoms of ginseng abuse syndrome. This syndrome occurs when large doses of the herb are taken concomitantly with other psychomotor stimulants, such as tea and coffee. Symptoms include depression, diarrhea, edema, euphoria, hypertension, insomnia, loss of appetite, rash, and restlessness. The existence of this syndrome is debatable.

Monitor the diabetic patient for signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia. Advise him to monitor his blood glucose level closely until effects are known.

Advise the patient not to take ginseng for a prolonged period.

Instruct the patient with preexisting medical conditions to check with his health care provider before taking ginseng.

Urge the patient to watch for unusual symptoms (diarrhea, insomnia, nervousness, palpitations) because of the risk of ginseng toxicity.

Advise the pregnant or breast-feeding patient to consult a health care provider before taking ginseng because safety has not been established.

Points of Interest

Ginseng has been given a positive evaluation from the German Commission.

It is estimated that 6 million people in the United States use ginseng regularly. In oriental cultures, it has been used for its medicinal properties for more than 2,000 years.

Although it was abundant in eastern North America, American ginseng is now considered threatened because of aggressive harvesting for commercial sales.

Commentary

Public interest in ginseng has been increasing. Although the herb appears to have promising uses, additional human efficacy, toxicity, and interactions data are needed. Ginseng has an interesting and unique pharmacologic profile, but ingestion of the plant is not without risk, despite its use for centuries.

Botox otherwise known as Botulinum Toxin is one of the most toxic substances in the world. Although it is considered to be poison, in minute doses, it is very useful in cosmetic treatment of the face. The toxins is a neurotoxin protein, that is it causes paralysis to the facial muscles therefore reduces the effect of wrinkles to the face.

The poison was originally discovered by a German physican Justinus Kerner, between 1817 and 1822. He extracted the toxin from badly handled or ill-prepared meat products. Until lately, researcher’s hadn’t found any practical use of the toxins.

In the 1950’s, researchers experimented decreasing muscle activity with tiny quantities of Botox. The results were spectacular, the muscles was unable to contract for about four to six months.

In 1989, the FDA approved the drug to be used in treating strabismus (uncontrollable blinking). Then in 2002, the FDA approved the drug for cosmetic use. After the approval of it’s use for cosmetic treatment, there was an explosion of interest all around the world. It became so popular that some affluent people begin to have ‘Botox parties’ so they could look younger.

Although Botox is popular, it is a poison with serious side effects. In America, between 1989 and 2003, there were 28 deaths caused directly by Botox. There are two main side effects with it’s use. The first side effect is that it may cause the paralysis of the wrong muscle group. In particular, if the toxins reaches the diaphragm, the person may not breathe properly because it cannot pump air in/out of the lungs. In addition, if there is too much toxin applied to the cheeks and masseter muscles, the person will lose function of his jaw muscles and therefore is unable to chew solid foods. The positive thing about this is that it will wear off after six weeks.

The other side effects is an allergic reaction to the toxin. Although it is very rare, it may cause death or the person place in hospital for weeks.

Apart from cosmetic use, Botox has many other practical uses such as treating migraines, disorders of the nervous system, jaw syndromes and many others.

One of Most powerful exercises you can perform in order to build really Big Biceps is Alternating Dumbbell Curls. As you may know from your or your friend’s experience, biceps, as often used muscle group, reacts quite fast on overload from weight lifting. Then, after about 2-5 weeks of training, it is adjusting and without proper form and method it is very difficult to build really massive and strong biceps.

I decided to go over most important details and help you with knowledge and save you from committing most common made mistakes. In our Natural Muscle Mass Building system proper and effective method is explained in detail.

Here I want to give you the details of this exercise. You will feel the difference from this exercise if you are serious and if you follow this instructions.

Proper Execution:

Take your dumbbells firmly. While picking them up off of the ground, please use your legs to help lift the weight. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, having solid balanced position. Dumbbells should be at your side with your palms facing each other.

You should rotate your palm forward while curling one dumbbell at a time. After full contraction of the bicep, lower down the dumbbell keeping control while rotating your hand back to its original position.

Repeat the same move with the opposite arm. Alternate back and forth until you have completed your desired repetitions. With attention set the dumbbells down.

Proper Form:

Please move naturally through , have what we call Loose Form.

When you start, your upper body should be leaning slightly forward. As you curl, let your back move to an upright position. If you try to keep your back totally still while curling, you will be limiting the amount of weight you can use. Plus ultra strict form will actually leave you more susceptible to injury because the movement is not natural.

Loose form doesn’t mean "spaced out" or out of control. It is just allowing your body to move in a natural way as you lift the weight through the range of motion.

Proper Range of Motion:

Always perform full range of motion! Your biceps should feel really good stretch at the bottom of the movement and a full contraction at the top - lift end. But don’t ever curl the weight past the point where you don’t feel the tension in your biceps.

Conclusion:

Standing alternate dumbbell curls are a great exercise for biceps. Unlike using a bar, dumbbells allow you to rotate your wrist bringing into this game the rotational aspect of the biceps.

I like to include this exercise in every bicep workout. You can place a heavy load on the biceps and take it through a full and natural range of motion.

Whether you’re trying to build big, muscular biceps at home or at a gym, you must understand the limitations and drawbacks of standard barbell curls. Like many beginning bodybuilders, when I started my arm training I thought barbell curls were best for building big, muscular biceps. But it wasn’t long before I learned that this exercise is extremely limited for reaching this goal. This limitation results from the following 3 problems that often occur with barbell curls.

First, most guys perform barbell curls in a free-standing position. This means that the exercise is done while standing upright without leaning back against a wall. The problem with this position is that it allows your upper body to jerk or sway and use momentum to move the weight through the curling motion. Each repetition completed this way deprives your biceps the work they’re supposed to get during this exercise.

If you insist on doing barbell curls, one solution to this problem is to perform this exercise with your back leaning against a wall. This back support will prevent the torso movement that enlists too much help from your back and shoulders. But even when you do barbell curls in this superior technical position, you may still encounter the second problem that I experienced with this exercise.

When I first started doing barbell curls, I noticed that they caused sharp pain in the deep tissue on the back of my forearms. I then discovered that the hand position required to do this exercise put extremely painful stress on my forearms. Though I suffered no actual injury, I had to find a way continue building my biceps that wasn’t so painful. At this point I discovered the cambered or "EZ Curl" bar and my forearm pain disappeared!

If you find that barbell curls cause pain in your forearms, try doing your standing curls (with your back against a wall) with an EZ Curl bar. You’ll find that the narrow and wide grip positions are much more comfortable than working with a straight barbell.

Additionally, for preacher curls - which are the best biceps builders ever - the EZ Curl bar is far superior to the straight barbell. The preacher bench position makes it nearly impossible to control a straight barbell without putting painful stress on the wrists. But the EZ Curl bar allows you to control the weight comfortably throughout the curling motion.

The third and final problem I’ve found with standard barbell curls is the limited angle of resistance placed on the biceps. Surprisingly, I still find that when I ask guys to describe what they do to build up their biceps, many of them say barbell curls and little or nothing more. These same guys then complain that they’re completely frustrated with their lack of arm training progress. The problem, of course, is that you can’t build big, muscular biceps with barbell curls alone. To add maximum size, strength and shape to your biceps you’ve got to train them from every possible angle - and that means you’ve got to workout with dumbbells!

No biceps building program can succeed without heavy emphasis on dumbbell training. To this end, your workouts should consist primarily of concentration curls, dumbbell preacher curls, seated alternating curls and my signature Winston Curls. If you’re really serious about building big, muscular biceps, there’s no getting them without heavy doses of dumbbell work.

So, don’t worry if you’re having problems building up your biceps with barbell work alone. Just start working with an EZ Curl bar and dumbbells and you’ll see immediate improvement. In fact, you’ll probably find that you don’t need to do any barbell curls to build big, muscular biceps. How do I know that this is really possible? Because I built my 20-inch GUNS without using barbell curls at all.

Reviews on anti aging creams are great source of information for men and women who need to know more about wrinkle creams. Choosing the correct wrinkle cream can sometimes be a difficult task. Reviews on wrinkle creams provide valuable information about wrinkle creams.

You should weigh all the pros and cons before you zero in on a particular anti aging product. No company would come to you and tell you that its products are not good for your skin. One should not blindly follow what a review on a wrinkle cream says.

Trust only those wrinkle cream reviews which come from the desk of well known and knowledgeable research scientists and dermatologists. Randomly surveying a few hundred women about the effects of a particular wrinkle cream cannot give you proper information about that cream.

You should consider those wrinkle cream reviews which have been written by popular beauty salons and beauty experts. Moreover, a review coming from a beauty-parlor which is quite popular among hundreds of women does not produce any doubts about its authenticity.

There are innumerable beauty and fitness magazines which carry wrinkle cream reviews by certified skin care experts and dermatologists too. Such reviews are not printed for making money. Hence, you can definitely trust such reviews. Online reviews on wrinkle products are also helpful at times.

There would be millions of women who would have used the same product which you are using. Look for the comments of those women for better insights into the nature and effectiveness of the product you are using. You can also talk to people in your neighborhood about a particular anti-aging skin care product for getting sound advice.

You can find many web sites which specifically target wrinkles and wrinkle creams. Such web sites carry hundreds of articles on wrinkle creams. Reading a few articles will also help you increase your knowledge about wrinkle-treatment. You can answer the question best wrinkle cream only when you have thorough knowledge of wrinkle creams.

The best anti aging wrinkle cream cannot be found in a day or two. You need to cultivate patience in order to choose the best product. Thousands of skin care products arrive in the shops every day. Isn’t it a little complicated task to choose the best out of those thousands?

The modern chiropractor is the only doctorate level health practitioner in the world that is drug and surgery free. Having a very similar in training to the Medical Doctor, Chiropractic Doctor has about ten times more nutrition training, along with more radiology and diagnostic training. The first consideration when picking the right chiropractor for you is technique or services offered. About 70% of the chiropractors in the world use "Diversified" which is a collection of various spinal manipulations, generally using "motion palpation" do determine when and when to manipulate the spine. Gonstead is another manipulative method, but is considered to be more precise and gentle. There are techniques that focus on the upper cervical (neck) region, like "Atlas Orthogonal", "Blair", "Grostic" and NUCCA. Upper cervical practitioners are are rare, lower force, and considered to be excellent. There are other methods that focus on the opposite end of the spine, the sacrum and the pelvis, "Logan Basic" is an excellent example. "Activator", "Torque Release" and "Pro-Adjustor" are techniques that use a mechanical device between the practitioner and patient, and are generally considered to be lower force. In my opinion, the creme de la creme of chiropractic is "Network Spinal Analysis", originally networking ideas from the major technique branches together into a scientific whole, it now has grown beyond that box, and is considered to be one of the leading body-mind modalities ever. Patients love the "self-correcting" nature of the work that happens after visits. A three year study of more than 2800 patients found benefits beyond reduced pain, eczema, and allergies; patients reported reduced stress in all areas of their life, and more satisfaction in their relationships of all kinds. The better chiropractors will be proud to share all the extra training they have had after completing their doctorate. You want a practitioner who continues to develop professionally.

The second factor in choosing the right chiropractor for you is personal connection. I urge you to try out various chiropractors and see how you like them in person. Keep in mind that the falsely cheerful persona makes a good impression at first may be aggravating after the first few visits. You don’t need to be buddies with your chiropractor, but you do need to have confidence in their clinical skills, honesty, and sincerity.

The third factor is convenience, if you spine really needs work, it may be better to have the second best chiropractor who is a few blocks away rather than your first choice that is a two hour drive away.

The fourth factor is cost. This can be affected by their participation in your HMO, and how much they charge, and what they recommend in terms of a care plan. Do be aware that there may be a false economy with the Doctor who only recommends care until your symptoms are better. My father-in-law saw one of those chiropractors for thirty years. He would go see him for two or three visits, until he was "better" and told him to come back when his symptoms flared again. When I took Xrays of his spine at age 70, there were bone spurs and degeneration throughout, which could have easily been prevented had his chiropractor cared to do more than just get him out of his symptoms. I believe my father-in-law’s chiropractor failed him. This is what I mean by false economy. Good luck finding the right chiropractor for you.

The National High Blood Pressure Education Program is an association that consist of professional, public, voluntary and federal agencies. This association has established guidelines with regards with the type of common blood pressure medication to be used to control your high blood pressure.

There a huge number of drugs available that are used as common blood pressure medications (Antihypertensives). Each of the different medication has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Below are the association guidelines for common blood pressure medications to be used. Bear in mind that the actual drug that your doctor prescribed might be different due to the complexity of individual situations.

If you have stage 1 high blood pressure (140/90 to 159/99)

If your systolic pressure (top number) ranges from 140 to 159 or your diastolic pressure (bottom number) ranges from 90 to 99, or both your top and bottom numbers are in this range; you have stage 1 hypertension.

Diuretics might be the first type of medication that your doctor might ask you to take. Diuretics are also called water pills. This drug works by getting rid of excess water and sodium from your body. This will effectively lower your blood pressure. This drug together with a move to a healthier lifestyle might be sufficient to control your blood pressure.

There are mainly three types of Diuretics available in the market. One of the first choices among the three is usually a thiazide diuretic. Thiazide diuretics are chosen over the other two as they usually have fewer side effects as compared. Moreover, they are able to prevent other conditions such as stroke and heart failure to a certain extent. High blood pressure can often result in such undesirable conditions.

Diuretic could be the only common blood medication that you need to take. However, under certain conditions, your doctor might recommend taking another medication. Complement your medication together with a healthy lifestyle in order to effectively control your high blood pressure.

Some of these choices include:

Calcium channel blockers: Stops calcium from entering both the heart and blood vessel muscle cells. This allows the cells to relax and thus lowering blood pressure.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors: These works by eliminating the production of a hormone that causes blood vessels to constrict. Thus, they keep the blood vessels relaxed.

Angiotensin II receptor blockers: Enlarges blood vessels by preventing a hormone called Angiotensin from affecting vessels.

Beta blockers: Lowers blood pressure by lowering the total amount of nerve signals going from the heart to the blood vessels.

Complementing one of the medications from the above list with Diuretic might be helpful in lowering your blood pressure at a faster rate. Thus, probability of developing complications from high blood pressure is lowered.

Another point is that by taking two medications instead of one might allow you to consume a lesser amount of each drug. This might work to reduce the side effects experience and could possibly allow you to lower costs. The choice of medication used in the combination depends on individual condition.

Why are we as sick as we are?

There is no simple straight forward answer but one thing you must know to put it simply;

A diet low in essential vitamins, minerals and antioxidants

+ Free Radical Damage to our Cells

= Serious Disease that Degenerates and Ages Us Quickly.

OK, so what does that mean in every day speak?? What do I mean by Degenerative Disease? Disease that degenerates (or literally breaks down the body) are the modern day illnesses that everyone of us are touched by in one form or another such as cancer, heart disease, alzheimers, parkinsons disease, diabetes, stroke, hypertension, arthritis, osteoporosis, endometriosis, mononucleosis, irritable bowel and the list goes on are typical examples of Degenerative Disease. This means the body is "not at ease, it’s dis-eased" and it’s organs are suffering damage and breaking down.

And before you go thinking they’re just ‘old age’ diseases, think again.

Medical evidence sourced from the journals listed above is rife that many of these illnesses are creeping into our younger generations. Cancer and Diabetes are now evidenced as childrens diseases. Osteoporosis is a teenage disease. No longer ‘looked forward to’ as an ‘old lady’ condition. There are 20 year olds with Osteoporosis.

In young teenage girls the body must have high doses of calcium and magnesium

for bone and muscle formation. With the takeaway junk foods that most of the kids are eating today, there’s little chance that the average 16 year old is getting her appropriate levels of calcium. And NO, a McDonalds thickshake is SO not a source of calcium nor is the milk poured on her sugar filled breakfast cereal. If the muscles aren’t getting the right doses of calcium, they literally ’steal’ from the bones - hence Osteoporosis is becoming very evident in teenage girls. Typical sources of calcium are yogurts, dairy products and green leafy vegetables. You may think you feed your kids well and I’ve no doubt you do but there’s no way she’s getting what she should be to keep bones strong while going through the growing teenage years.

You’ve heard the term ‘RDA’s’? It means Recommended Daily Allowances? They came about over 50 years ago. Even back then, they were considered the absolute minimum that the human body needed to prevent diseases like Ricketts and Scurvy. These RDA’s have not been updated all this time. We now live in an age where the toxic overload is greater than it’s ever been while at the same time the nutrient level in our soils have all but been harvested and sprayed out completely.

No other generation but this one, throughout all of history, has ever had to deal with more toxins, pesticides, depleted soils, contamination, processed foods, transfats, stress and other environmental pollutants. There’s little wonder that free radical damage is out there creating the havoc that it is. We need to start thinking now about our health and our kids health.

So couldn’t I just go take a pill?

Drugs treat the symptom. They have one direction to treat one thing. They do not cure. Most have side effects. The next step would be to take another pill to treat the side effect. And before you know it, you’re taking a cocktail of pills that are making you feel worse. One of the major causes of death in the United States is death by prescription drugs. There’s a fabulously informative (albeit a little depressing) book by Dr Ray Strand that’s well worth reading. It’s entitled ‘Death By Prescription’ and is readily available. It’s so well worth knowing what our drug cocktails are doing to us and to take your health into your own hands. This is where our future must be - to take our health into our hands and not leave it completely up to drugs and doctors. I love Dr Strands books as he lets us know what alternatives are available to us.

Nutritional Medicine

is by far going to be the way of the future where we take a preventative course rather than a curative one. Its never ever too late to start. If we go see the doctor about a suspicious lump and he tells us it’s cancer, that’s when it’s too late. Cancer takes decades to develop. He’s only managed to get us at the diagnosis stage, once it’s already grown and taken form. I don’t know about you, but sure as heck want to feel great, look better and maintain energy as I age. I’ve no intention of accepting ageing as a horrible painful process dotted with regular trips to the local doctor’s surgery who just wants to put me on a drugs ‘menu’ list .

In the years since 9/11, those in disaster planning, preparation, education, response and recovery have concentrated all their effort on convincing private healthcare corporations and non-healthcare corporations alike to adopt an all hazards approach to adversity and disaster.

Perhaps because 9/11 and anthrax were the impetus for the funding of this push, corporate America has associated this large expense with what they believe to be an unlikely threat, terrorism. The 2004 – 2005 hurricane seasons gave the southeastern regions of the United States a clear focus for disaster preparedness in the forms of hurricanes Charlie, Francis, Ivan, Jeanne, Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Unfortunately with this focus came a tendency to prepare for hurricanes, certainly not an all hazards approach.

The simple fact missed by all but a very few in the disaster community and even fewer in the disaster planning, preparation, education, response and recovery industry is that the word “disaster” does not belong in the title. We are not a “disaster” community, nor are we in the “disaster” planning, preparation, education and recovery industry; rather we are the “All Hazards” planning, preparation, education and recovery community.

Before you assume this is simply a matter of semantics, think about what we seek to accomplish. Our “All Hazards” community does not just seek to prepare for the possible of a terrorist attack or a natural disaster, we seek to fundamentally change attitudes and behaviors so that when adversity strikes or disaster looms large on the horizon, our citizens, our communities and our infrastructure are prepared. Our true goal is to never again see a line at Home Depot or the grocery store the day before or the day after a disaster.

This is not a new concept. The practice of vulnerability analysis and risk assessment is well established in many safety sensitive industries and in the military. The Institutes of Medicine first applied this practice to the healthcare industry in the 1999 To Err Is Human report. Far from a treatise on disaster preparation, To Err is Human was the warning siren that brought the issues of patient safety and medication errors to the public forum.

Although voluminous, the main thrust of To Err is Human was to review the lack of reporting systems and fail safes in the healthcare system as a whole and to correlate the current state of safety in healthcare to that of other industries. To Err is Human goes to great lengths to detail “public-private” safety efforts, but overall the report proposes the groundwork and a justification for governmental intervention and federal regulation of healthcare safety and by implication, healthcare quality/certification.

If this sounds a lot like the trio of 2006 Institute of Medicine reports on the state of Emergency Medicine and disaster preparedness, it is very similar. The 2006 reports when combined with the 1999 To Err is Human report demonstrate the similarity between community wide disasters and patient centered disasters. A true “All Hazards” approach to preparedness thus should include patient safety, medication safety, fire safety and personal safety in addition to the current concentration on terrorism and disaster preparedness.

There are a number of advantages to this expanded “All Hazards” approach to safety, planning and preparedness. The greatest of these is the integration of patient safety initiatives and disaster preparedness training allowing healthcare professionals to practice disaster preparation skills as part of their daily routine. This has applications in team building, triage, safety reviews, command structures, patient throughput and literally every aspect of hospital operations.

The implications go far beyond the immediate process improvements that come from an “All Hazards” training program. The mind set that is instilled in those trained in an “All Hazards” approach to daily operations lends to innovations in operational processes and streamlining of previously entrenched systems.

“All Hazards” training also creates the “common safety investment” that the To Err is Human states is missing from healthcare, but common to such industries as air travel and railroads (pilots and engineers share the same “safety investment” as passengers). Those who have received “All Hazards” training come to understand and internalize that reality that any risk that exists for a patient exists for the healthcare professional as well.

Finally, recognizing patient safety issues and all the other safety issues in healthcare as hazards under an “All Hazards” approach will result in better success in achieving both sets of goals. Patient safety initiatives celebrate their seventh anniversary this year, but even the CEO of the Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) admits that medication error and wrong site surgery have grown exponentially in that time. Despite a virtually limitless budget and the best efforts of the best minds in patient safety, healthcare has not gotten better, it has gotten more dangerous.

At the same time, the past five years has seen hospital and healthcare disaster preparedness change only marginally. The 2006 Institute of Medicine reports severely criticizes healthcare for failing to invest in “All Hazards” preparedness despite the fact that it has been proven effective not only in increasing security, but increasing surge capacity, safety and efficiency. For “All Hazards” preparedness, the problem is not having the budget to apply a proven and effective solution.

Dealing with patient risks, medication errors and surgical mishaps as another category of hazards under an all encompassing “All Hazards” approach promises to solve the problems for both programs. Patient safety will benefit from the proven efficacy of an “All Hazards” approach designed specifically to mitigate multifactorial risk while “All Hazards” training programs will finally have the budget priority and funding needed to ensure system wide implementation.

The only question remaining is whether those who have made their careers in patient safety as it has been practiced for the past seven years are prepared to adopt a broader view of the world and whether the “All Hazards” community is ready to be truly “All Hazards” in their approach.

Just the other day, an eminent heart surgeon announced on a news program that Vitamin C, E, and Beta carotene should not be taken as they contribute to heart disease. Well that’s news!

He related this news in the context of his discussion on heart disease and women. In fact, you may have seen a blurb at the bottom of your TV screen on one of the cable news channels stating that “Every women is at risk for having a heart attack,” according to the American Heart Association. More good news!

Everywhere you look online, there are sites devoted to these vitamins, and have been included in every dietary article and program out there. Doesn’t it seem that every day more and more vitamins and supplements; diets and pills; shakes and liquids are being dismissed by most doctors? Moreover, look up heart disease and you will find more men than women are at risk. Why the sudden urgency in pronouncing every woman is at risk now?

While we all know that smoking, high blood pressure, cholesterol, stress and other factors contribute to coronary heart disease, and we all know that obesity has become a pandemic in our society; and with the rising cost of health care in this country and the difficulty with which most older people cannot afford good health care or prescription drugs, one has to wonder why health care has not become universal in our country.

Yes, the pharmaceutical companies are getting rich; the unions are incorporating companies who contradict doctor’s prescription medications in order to sell what the pharmaceutical companies want them to sell; and now the very vitamins we have been taking for years have been taken out of the mix. Is this another attempt by the pharmaceutical companies to prescribe their own drugs to increase earnings? Perhaps this is being a bit sinister, but there is clear evidence that certain drugs are highly marketed which yield the most benefit to the drug companies.

One really has to wonder what kind of system we are living in which doesn’t take care of our elderly; approves drugs contrary to doctor’s prescriptions; and is slowly raising the cost of drugs which, one day, none of us will be able to afford. With baby boomers soon retiring, they will find the cost of drugs has skyrocketed. While some may be able to afford it now, will they be able to in the future?

Maybe the problem lies in there being too much health information. The internet is saturated with it; one day a drug is recommended only to find it is taken off the shelves the next day. Perhaps we should return to the days of our parents when they never took pills, but incorporated sensible diets and exercise. Perhaps we have become too dependent on pills for every problem we encounter. What’s your thought on this subject?