Questioning the band-aid approach
Recently Wal Mart and other drug stores removed the over the counter heartburn medication, Zantac, and it’s similar generic counterparts off the shelves due to the FDA finding a “probable human carcinogen” in it. NDMA (N-nitrosodimethylamine) is the “known environmental contaminant” that is found in ranitidine, otherwise known as heartburn medication. Used by millions of people across the United States, ranitidine is found both over the counter and as a prescription to prevent the uncomfortable sensations of heartburn.
When this news broke I heard several of the news anchors wondering what they were going to do without Zantac. Hearing those comments led me to write this blog today.
Nobody wants to be taking a medication (or any substance, so beware) that could potentially cause cancer, that is obvious. The bigger, but less obvious point that I would like to address is putting band-aids on chronic symptoms rather than addressing and fixing the root cause of a health issue, heartburn being just one example of this.
A Whole Integrated System
Much of our medical care today comes in the form of handing out a prescription drug for whatever ails you. If you experience heartburn, until recently, you would take Zantac. If you get headaches frequently, most likely you take ibuprofen or NSAIDs, if you can’t sleep at night, taking Ambien is a band-aid for that issue. All of these issues and the multitude of chronic problems that people suffer from today are SYMPTOMS of a problem, not the CAUSE. Looking at this from a functional health perspective, it doesn’t make any sense to view wellness as managing various, seemingly unrelated parts. Approaching wellness as a whole interrelated system to be addressed holistically avoids the multiple band-aids, multiple medications approach.
Finding and addressing the root cause of your dis-ease allows your body to ultimately return to a balanced state rather than endlessly covering up the symptoms.
If your kitchen is on fire you don’t just walk into the living room and pretend everything is ok, you’ve got to put the original fire out or the whole house will burn! The same holds true for your health, how long will you put band-aids on to mask the symptoms? What are the side effects of those “band-aids”? Are they negatively impacting your overall health while hiding a specific symptom but never addressing the cause? If a “band-aid” stops a symptom but is a known contaminant, is this approach worth the risk? These are all great questions to think about.
Yes, finding the root cause of a health issue takes a bit more work than simply pill-popping, but living and thriving with a body in balance is a long-lasting benefit everybody can appreciate!
Contact me to learn more about the functional approach to wellness!