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Opioid Crisis: Explosion and Solutions

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The Opioid epidemic is one of the most damaging health crises of our era.

According to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control, between July 2016 and September 2017, the locations under study (across 45 states) had a 30 percent increase in Opioid-related fatalities. 1

Even overall life expectancy is now in decline, in part from the spike in deaths caused by Opioids, according to a staggering report by NPR in December.2 You probably know someone that has been affected by it.

One of the major factors driving the Opioid abuse epidemic is the frequency with which these potent and addictive drugs are prescribed by doctors. Through a series of mistakes, aggressive marketing, and poor judgment among medical professionals, Opioids like Oxycodone were deemed ‘safe,’ and distributed like candy to unsuspecting patients.

The results were predictable, but shocking nonetheless. Patients visiting their doctor for chronic back pain or taken to the emergency room after a mishap on the softball diamond, ended up addicted to a pernicious drug. The cycle, aided and abetted by drug companies, marketing firms, and often unsuspecting doctors, has exploded into an expanding public health nightmare, and a terrifying rise in addicted individuals. Yet despite the awareness at hand, it is a problem we will be combating for decades to come, and at a cost of many billions of dollars.

After a recent procedure for a root canal, one patient refused a prescription for hydrocodone no less than five times, and they still included the prescription in the take-home paperwork. With medical errors now the third-highest cause of death in the United States,3 incidents like this can further erode our faith in those entrusted with our welfare.

The Hippocratic oath has become the hypocritical. Something has to change!

According to @Dr. Jay Holder, the President of the American College of Addictionology and Compulsive Disorders, Addictionology is not a new field as the ACACD, www.ACACD.com, has been training chiropractors and other healthcare professionals for 28 years. Some policy makers are beginning to see the light, acting in response to intolerable human and economic costs. In West Virginia, where the Opioid crisis is rampant, and few families are untouched by its ravages, the state has recently mandated that in considering options for pain management, alternatives to Opioids— including physical therapy, acupuncture, massage therapy, osteopathic manipulation, chiropractic care or pain management-be part of the equation. Discussing complimentary alternative practitioners, like chiropractors, with the patient is mandated prior to prescribing Opioids.4

Consequently, the National Drug Control Policy (@ONDCP) is taking political leaps towards the government analysis to the issues surrounding the Opioid crisis point and by providing evidence towards the need to increase the use of non-drug options as a first line of care to find safer and more effective solutions to addiction treatment recovery and prevention. Not really changing one drug for another. Part of the change that is needed is cultural and it starts with the way we approach our well-being and lives as a whole. We have to get away from the idea that there is a simple, one-step solution to problems. As consumers, we have been trained to believe that somewhere out there is a quick fix whatever ails us.

Pain has a place in the human organism; it can be a warning or a deterrent to injurious conduct. How we deal with pain is a choice. Rather than succumbing to pharmaceutical to turn off the pain, choose to attack the cause of pain and address the problem at its root. Instead of masking what our body is trying to tell us, we need to listen, and take action that addresses the underlying issue. To claim our longevity birthright, we have to make smart, holistic choices about our health and the way we live our lives each day and stop chasing the illusory notion that we can fix ourselves without investing in ourselves.

We will be delving deeper into these important and complex issues and the way they are affecting our society and our lives in a future article. For now, if you or someone you love is struggling with Opioid dependence, know you are not alone. There is help, and the first step, reaching out, is the most important one.

Currently, organizations like the Florida Chiropractic Association are holding panel discussions at their National Convention on this issue in front of thousands of doctors to create awareness amongst Doctors of Chiropractic who can provide real solutions and more importantly prevention on the ground. Organizations like the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin has provided a video on the Opioid Crisis.

Our world is in desperate need of new health care and community leadership. We believe it is important to move away from being a drug culture to a new culture that nurtures human potential through every phase of life. It is certainly true that if you’re going to live to 80, 90, 100 years and beyond, then you are going to have to not die. If you are going to enjoy quality years, then avoiding drugs except as a very last resort is optimal.

Chiropractic care can provide a corrective answer for pain and all types of health problems. The Critical Transition to Lifestyle Care can help you function healthy and drug free throughout your lifetime. Schedule an appointment for you and your family members.

Don’t be afraid to get the help you need for yourself or a loved one in order to break your addictions. Make healthier choices today and enjoy a sensational century.

References

1 Report: All of U.S. Saw Opioid Overdose Rises, U.S. News & World Report, March 6, 2018.

LINK https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2018-03-06/cdc-report-nowhere-in-us-was-immune-to-Opioid-overdose-increases

2 Life Expectancy Drops Again As Opioid Deaths Surge In U.S.; NPR, December 21, 2017.

LINK: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/12/21/572080314/life-expectancy-drops-again-as-Opioid-deaths-surge-in-u-s

3 “Researchers: Medical errors now third leading cause of death in United States,” Washington Post, May 3, 2016

LINK: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2016/05/03/researchers-medical-errors-now-third-leading-cause-of-death-in-united-states/?utm_term=.9b3e4843313b

4 “West Virginia Governor Signs Opioid Reduction Act,” Mitchell News, April 8, 2018

LINK: https://www.mitchell.com/mitchellnews/id/1545/west-virginia-governor-signs-Opioid-reduction-act

Image “Combatting the Opioid Overdose Epidemic,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, August 30, 2017

LINK: https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/epidemic/index.html

Problematic Painkillers

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Have you ever taken ibuprofen (Motrin/Advil) or naproxen (Aleve/Naproxen) to alleviate pain? Well if so, you are like millions of others who often seek pain relief from these popular medications. These drugs as well as the Cox-2 inhibitors Vioxx, Bextra and Celebrex are known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Serious side effects of NSAIDs have been known for a while. A December 1, 1998, story in USA Today noted that 16,500 people died from bleeding stomach ulcers brought on by NSAID use and that 80 percent of those had no symptoms prior to death. A Danish study published in the British Medical Journal in January 2001 found a strong link between the use of prescription NSAIDs by pregnant women and miscarriage.

However, it has been discovered recently that NSAIDs cause another life-threatening side effect: cardiovascular disease. This risk is so substantial that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning on April 7, 2005, urging the public to limit the use of NSAIDs and to strictly adhere to label directions. Furthermore, the FDA asked drug manufacturer Pfizer to voluntarily withdraw Bextra from the market and urged manufacturers of all other NSAID products to strengthen warning labels.

A study sponsored by The National Institute on Aging to determine whether Celebrex or Naproxen could prevent Alzheimer’s disease was halted when it became apparent that those taking Naproxen developed a 50 percent higher risk of heart attack and stroke than those taking a placebo. In fact Naproxen is so detrimental to one’s health that those who have been taking the over-the-counter version, Aleve, for nearly three years are now advised to stop using it, while those who want to start taking it are advised to limit their use to no more than 400mg per day for no longer than ten days.

People who have been taking Naproxen should be particularly concerned since the previous recommended daily intake was 1500mg. If you are taking an NSAID for pain relief you will want to consider finding a healthier option, as the drug you are taking could actually take your life. For millions of Americans, even those suffering from chronic arthritic pain, wellness chiropractic care is that healthier option. The health choices you make today will affect your quality of life tomorrow.

Stop Chasing Symptoms

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Isn’t it time you stopped chasing symptoms? These signals that you get from your body are frequently misunderstood. More importantly, treating symptoms without getting to the cause of a problem can lead to mismanagement of your health and more severe health problems as you age.

When you get sick, for example, and your temperature goes up, your body is naturally fighting off the infection. Bacteria thrive in a climate that is 98.6 degrees so your body’s Innate Intelligence raises your temperature to help fight off the infection on its own. The symptoms of this elevated temperature can be muscle aches, fatigue, weakness and general malaise. At the first sign or symptom of a fever, many people will immediately panic and try to bring the temperature down with medication, treating the symptoms rather than letting the body do its job and heal itself.

The medications that are used to treat these symptoms can lead to side effects and even weaken the body’s natural immunity. In recent years, the overuse of antibiotics has created an epidemic of superbugs within individuals that are untreatable and pose a serious threat to our long term health.

The CDC states, “If antibiotics are used too often for things they can’t treat-like colds or other viral infections-they can stop working effectively. Antibiotic resistance has been a concern for years and is considered one of the world’s most critical public health threats. Widespread overuse and inappropriate use of antibiotics is fueling an increase in antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

In the U.S., antibiotic-resistant infections are responsible for $20 billion in excess healthcare costs, $35 billion in societal costs and $8 million in additional hospital days.”(1)

A report commissioned by the Canadian Coordinating Committee on Antimicrobial Resistance estimated that infections caused by antibiotic-resistant organisms increased direct hospital costs in Canada by $15-25 million annually(2).

Many experts say that it is better to give the body a chance to heal itself with rest and fluids along with chiropractic adjustments that remove pressure from the nervous system. Unless there is an extreme elevation in body temperature, and depending on other symptoms, allowing your body to heal itself naturally helps your immune system build the resistance it needs to keep you healthy and fight infections more effectively.

Consider the case for “referred pain.” This means you can feel a symptom in one part of your body while the cause or the origin of that pain is somewhere else. For example, very often the cause of arm, hand or finger pain is in the neck. Leg and foot pain will often originate from a problem in the back. Problems with the gallbladder will often refer pain to the spinal nerve roots in the middle part of the spine and vice versa.

Because chiropractic works to restore health and vitality to the nervous system, we are always amazed at how the entire body often becomes free of symptoms through our work with the spine. Since nerves control every cell, tissue and organ of your body, problems in the nervous system can cause or mimic nearly any and every symptom imaginable.

It is very common to hear our practice members say things like “I know I came because my neck hurt, and my allergies and headaches are gone too.” or “I didn’t even tell you about my menstrual cramping but since I’ve been getting adjusted, my cramps have been reduced dramatically.” or “I sleep so much better since beginning my care.”

The list goes on and on. Isn’t it time you stop chasing symptoms and get to the cause? You will enjoy a much healthier life when you do.

Side Effects or Direct Effects of Medication

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The most common question that individuals ask before they ever take a prescription drug is, “What are the side effects?” Before you pop another pill, you must understand how medication side effects directly affect your body today and in years to come.

Medications are tested in a laboratory until the chemical reaction that they are designed to achieve is reproducible. The direct effects of this lab testing must be consistent before these chemicals are ever tested on animals or people. Once human testing begins, scientists measure the impact of these medications to see if they cause the same direct effects that were induced in a laboratory. If these effects are reproducible, the testing continues to see if any other effects occur. These are called “Side Effects” because they were not present in the laboratory setting and their impact on humans was outside of their intended effect. In actuality, these side effects are direct effects of these drugs on the body. Because we are all unique in our body chemistry, direct effects, labeled side effects, impact people differently, and they are much more common than people think.

The direct effects of Lipitor, for example, are constipation, gas, headaches, stomach pain, weakness, rash, hives, itching, difficulty breathing, chest pain, swelling of the mouth or face, bone, joint or tendon pain, change in urination, fever, chills, sore throat, flu like symptoms, joint pain, muscle pain, tenderness, weakness, bowel changes, skin changes, swelling of the hands or feet, yellowing of the eyes or skin. This “incomplete” list, according to drugs.com, shows that while Lipitor may affect cholesterol levels in the body, there can be dozens of other direct effects that impact you in an unhealthy way.

Drug companies prepare a list of side effects for the consumer, while also listing additional side effects that doctors should be aware of. If you go to drugs.com and type in any drug, then select “side effects,” you will notice that the side effects to the consumer take up half a page while the side effects/direct effects for the physician to be aware of might be up to a dozen pages. Most people are unaware of all the effects that medications can cause, and often treat these symptoms with other drugs. This is dangerous because the interactions between drugs can cause even more severe direct effects. Too many people unknowingly go down this road until their body chemistry and health is completely screwed up.

Additionally, as in the case of Lipitor, there are twelve different listings of side effects/direct effects showing adverse reactions in greater than 2 percent of the cases. When you add the numbers of each direct effect, you will notice that nearly 60 percent of cases are experiencing at least one of these effects.

The direct effects of these medications, combined with the reality of our extended life spans to 80, 90, 100 years and beyond, and knowing that drugs only need to be tested for about 8 years before they are brought to market, makes it obvious that living a lifestyle that keeps you independently healthy and free from the need for medications is your best long-term option.

Thomas Edison saw this coming over 100 years ago stating, “The doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease.” The future is now. Our office will help you and your loved ones adjust your lifestyle so that you enjoy good health for a lifetime.

Tylenol is Not Candy

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For many people, at the first sign of a fever, headache or other minor discomfort, the “go-to” remedy is acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol. Since pain is a sign that something is wrong, covering up the symptoms without getting to the cause is not a good plan and often creates more serious problems. Helping the body to heal itself without drugs is a much better option.

Google “acetaminophen dangers” and see what comes up. The results are scary, especially if you take acetaminophen like candy. According to the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, “some symptoms of acetaminophen overdose mimic flu-like symptoms, resulting in the individual continuing to use acetaminophen.”(1) It is scary to know that the symptoms of an overdose might cause you to take even more and aggravate the problems.

Tylenol is not candy! Is the risk of extreme side effects and liver damage worth taking a quick fix drug that has the potential to quickly and permanently make things worse? Drugs.com provides 12 pages of side effects from Tylenol and other acetaminophen based drugs ranging from unpleasant digestive issues and mood swings to seizures, hives and dizziness.

“Acetaminophen overdose is one of the most common poisonings worldwide. People often think that this pain-relieving medicine is extremely safe. However, it may be deadly,” says the U.S. National Library of Medicine.(3) Since we humans come in all shapes and sizes, the standard dose for one may not be right for another and let’s be honest: How many people really wait 4-6 hours before taking the next dosage?

On WebMD’s internationally recognized website, an article entitled Acetaminophen (Tylenol) Poisoning by Dr. Michael Ameres and Dr. Daniel Crough states that, “Too much acetaminophen can overwhelm the way the liver normally functions.”(2) So how much is too much?

Slightly increasing the recommended dose can be dangerous and can happen unintentionally. McNeil Consumer Healthcare issued a press release in July 2011 announcing plans for new dosing instructions. Tylenol’s recommended dose per day is being dropped by 1000mg because of people taking other medications that have acetaminophen as an added compound.

Recently published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, a research project by Dr. Kenneth Simpson of the University of Edinburgh revealed little known information about the dangers of “staggered overdose.” The research indicates, “People experiencing pain who repeatedly take slightly more Tylenol than they should are in danger of suffering a staggered overdose. They haven’t taken a massive overdose taken by people who try to commit suicide, but over time the damage builds up and the effect can be fatal. These patients were more likely to have liver and brain problems, require kidney dialysis and were at a greater risk of dying that people who had take a single overdose.”(4)

Instead of reaching for the pill bottle or the tablespoon to measure out the next dose, and risking taking too much or giving too much to a loved one, contact your 100 Year Lifestyle Provider or go to www.100yearlifestyle .com to find a provider near you and experience how Chiropractic Care can help you live the healthy drug free lifestyle you deserve.

References:
CDER’s Acetaminophen Hepatotoxicity Working Group. Acetaminophen Overdose and Liver Injury – Background and Options for Reducing Injury. May 2009.

www.emedicinehealth.com/acetaminaphen_tylenol_poisoning/article_em.htm

Medline Plus Medical Encyclopedia, Acetaminophen overdose
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002598.htm

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/238220.php

Consumer Reports Backs Non-Drug Measures

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In the March 2012 issue of Consumer Reports, there is an article that matches common prescription drugs to their side effects. Provided as a quiz, medications such as Lipitor, Viagra, Cymbalta, Advair Diskus and others are separated from their possible side effects so that you, the consumer, can test your recall from the four billion dollars in advertising costs that the drug companies spent last year. Their bottom line is to “exhaust non-drug measures” first.

In the article, Consumer Reports pokes fun at the manner in which drug companies communicate their list of serious side effects calling them “so-scary-they-are-almost-funny lists over images of couples posing in bathtubs.” While the Food and Drug Administration requires drug companies to list their most serious side effects, they do not require the manner in which they are displayed.

It is up to you, the consumer, to sift through the sensationalism to find the facts. Here are a few examples of the drugs that Consumer Reports lists and their matching side effects…

Lipitor, a high blood pressure medication, can cause muscle pain or weakness, liver damage, kidney problems and/or kidney failure.

Cialis and Viagra, for erectile dysfunction, can cause back pain, muscle aches, and sudden loss of vision or hearing.

Cymbalta is prescribed for depression, general anxiety disorder, chronic osteoarthritis or fibromyalgia and can cause dizziness, liver problems, low blood pressure and fainting, higher blood pressure, problems with urine flow, or suicidal thoughts in young people.

Advair Diskus, which is prescribed for asthma and COPD, can cause severe or fatal worsening of asthma symptoms, reduced adrenal function,declined bone density, weakened immunity, or slowing of growth in children.

In all, the article lists a dozen drugs that are utilized for treatment of many conditions ranging from asthma and arthritis to smoking cessation. I wonder how you will do when you take this quiz, which is located on page 11 of the magazine. Fortunately, many of us are waking up to the fact that drugs are dangerous and should be a last resort. It is nice to see Consumer Reports backing up this non-drug first approach.

The United States consumes more drugs than any other industrialized nation in the world, yet according to the CIA Fact Book, the US has dropped to 50th in life-expectancy and 48th in infant mortality. Keeping yourself and your family healthy through positive lifestyle choices including good nutrition, exercise and a healthy spine and nervous system can help you eliminate your need for prescription drugs and maximize your health potential. Have a serious discussion with your doctor about the risks versus the benefits of any medication and do everything you can to keep yourself healthy and drug free.

For 117 years, chiropractors have been helping people of all ages heal quickly and enjoy the opportunity of a healthy, drug free life. Don’t wait for a crisis to make different choices. Make the Critical Transition to Lifestyle Care and make your health your top priority.