Doctor Mark Hyman Decries Conventional Medicine in HuffPo: The Rising Awareness of Lifestyle Medicine

Dr. Mark Hyman (M.D.) practices medicine and writes bestselling books (he's made the New York Times Bestsellers list four times so far). Dr. Hyman also founded The Ultra Wellness Center, and is considered to be a world-wide leader in "functional medicine" - so when he writes an article for the Huffington Post (the top blog in the country per Technorati), people pay attention. 

The article is entitled, "Millions Die Due to Withheld Medical Treatment" and if you can't read it at the link (it will be archived at some point), feel free to check Dr. Hyman's website or contact me -- I've saved a copy in OneNote because I don't want to lose it.)

Practicing Physician Claims Conventional Medicine Corrupted by Greed

You should, too.  Why?  Because Dr. Hyman is standing up against a huge contingent of his peers when he writes that conventional medicine today is corrupt: that by its co-dependence upon the big pharmaceutical companies, the true cures for such major diseases as diabetes and heart disease lies in lifestyle medicine. 

What is Lifestyle Medicine?

Since lifestyle medicine isn't as profitable as conventional methods, it's being ignored according to Dr. Hyman and the result is akin to the Tuskegee Experiments of the 1920s (and if you don't know about this  horror, it's worth your time to stop and read what Dr. Hyman's written - just to learn about this).  

Dr. Hyman's providing lots of information on the web to help people - his website is great, so is the UltraWellness Center.  For example, check out his free series of articles online, "7 Keys to Ultrawellness."  Great stuff in here. 

Lifestyle Medicine Incorporates Simple Living.  Wow. 

Dr. Hyman promotes many of the things that simplifiers value.  Things like eating whole, fresh, organic foods.  Foods that you cook yourself in ovens and on stovetops.  Avoiding bad stuff like high fructose corn syrup and mercury.  Exercising.  Getting enough rest.  Avoiding stress.  Drinking lots of good water.  Taking vitamins. Taking herbs, too. Understanding detoxification. (Did you know that internalized stress can make you fat? Wow.) 

Want to Learn More About Lifestyle Medicine?

To learn more, check out his personal site or Dr. Hyman's UltraWellness website (where he offers a free ebook and lotsa free videos), follow him on Twitter (http://twitter.com/markhymanmd), or surf around for "lifestyle medicine" where you'll find good sites to learn from, including: 

American College of Lifestyle Medicine
Harvard Medical School's Lifestyle Medicine Institute
The Institute of Lifestyle Medicine

Cooking With the Sun: Solar Ovens

The first time I saw a solar oven was on Ed Begley, Jr.'s television show, "Living With Ed," and it looked like a cool science project -- no wonder Ed is friends with Bill Nye, the Science Guy (who's guested on Ed's show). Something fun for the kids sort of thing -- but now, with oil prices soaring, meaning electricity is costing more and more ... well, maybe solar ovens are something I should ponder more seriously.

Come to find out, solar ovens come in all shapes and sizes, and you can make one from some pretty cheap materials as well as buy one, ready-made. SolarCooking.Org gives all sorts of examples - square ones, round ones, collapsible ones, there's even one with dual settings.

Last year, America's Test Kitchen's Chris Kimball (the guy that's so hard to please) tried out several solar ovens for CBS's The Early Show --- he roasted a chicken, made some chocolate-chip cookies, and cooked up some rice along with some broccoli. The result? Stuff that slow-cooks well tends to be best for solar cooking: the roast chicken turned out well. The broccoli never made the grade. Seems there are variables to contend with: clouds passing over, the amount of sunlight available (10 to 2 are the best times, and some months are much better than others, you get the idea). The cookies? They did okay.

The USDA warns that "solar box cookers" may not get foods hot enough, or fast enough, to be safe from bacteria and suggests that everything be monitored with food thermometers. (Their microbiologists are concerned with how long foods stay in the "Danger Zone" of 40 - 140 degrees while in a Solar Box Cooker.)

Manufacturers are almost zealots in the marketing of their solar oven products. SunOvens sells its model for $279 online, and promotes its product as not only reducing one's energy footprint, but also helping rebuild deforested areas as well as women and children in developing countries.

You can also buy the Sport Solar Oven from the non-profit organization, the Solar Oven Society. It's $150.00 (includes shipping) and only weighs 10 pounds.

Finally, you can make one of these things pretty darn cheap. And easy. There are lots of sites that give instructions for this, but my favorite has to be the Pizza Box Solar Oven made by students at Union Elementary School in Montpelier, Vermont. Their site shows the kids lined up with their Pizza Box Solar Oven, and gives detailed instructions on how they did it. Maybe you can't roast a chicken in one of these things, but their mention of English Muffin Pizzas and S'Mores sounded like lots of fun ...

(Image: the Sport Solar Oven, sold by the non-profit organization, Solar Oven Society.)

Sunlight and Darkness: Simple and Necessary

Your body needs complete darkness in order to produce melatonin, and even then, this will occur only after it has enjoyed some quality sunlight during the day. Melatonin is one of the most powerful antioxidants and has been found key to the prevention of certain cancers - including those attacking the breast and prostrate.

Even the tinest bit of light (a nightlight, a streetlight casting a glow through the window) will prevent melatonin production. Sleep in darkness - like everyone did until the last century or so.

As for sunshine, you need it. Not only do the UV rays lessen stress but sunlight acts to reduce blood pressure. Sunlight also acts to reduce death by Multiple Sclerosis by 76% as well as fighting against rheumatoid arthritis and tuberulosis. How? Sunlight causes your body to create Vitamin D, and this nutrient is very important for an effective immune system.

Bottom line: Get one hour of sunlight a day; you can set in the shade on a bright day and this will work. Sleep in total darkness for 8 hours. Simple, free, needed.


Sources: ThomasJeffersonUniversityStudy, Earthtimes.org, mercola.com, AmericanHeartAssociation, mercola.com [citing Lancet].

Stop Osteoporosis With Sunshine

Your body will create enough Vitamin D for itself, if you will give it 15 minutes of sunshine, three times a week. Without sufficient Vitamin D, you risk osteoporosis if you're an adult, and rickets if you're a child. In America, many people can't (read that won't) get themselves outdoors to even meet this minimal need - so practitioners like Dr. Andrew Weil are recommending supplements at 1000 mg or more of Vitamin D to meet the insufficiency. Sunshine is free.

Source: MedlinePlus, Dr.Weil.Com.