Welcome back!
On today's program,
00:00:02.76\00:00:05.03
we're talking
about medications...
00:00:05.07\00:00:06.94
And Dr. Marcum, we've
got a lot of questions
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that have come in from our
website - so we're going to
00:00:08.90\00:00:10.64
jump right into those.
Okay - let's jump into it!
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Our first viewer
asks: How do I come off the
00:00:12.31\00:00:14.64
sleeping pill "Ambien?"
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Yeah, well the
sleeping pill "Ambien,"
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helps people
sleep well at night.
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The benefit of it
is it knocks you out.
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The risk is that it
might hurt your cognition
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and your ability to drive a car.
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Well, if we want to get off
of it, let's figure out ways
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we can help a
person sleep better.
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What's the cause of
them not sleeping well?
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Is it sleep apnea?
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Is it a medicine making
their blood sugar go low?
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Is it a stimulant
like caffeine or alcohol,
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eating late at night?
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Is it television? Is it light?
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Those are the things if
we can find out the cause
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of them not sleeping well,
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maybe we can get the
ability to taper that
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medicine to off so maybe they
won't have to take that pill
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the rest of their
life. Great question!
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But again, it just lets
us know that it is possible
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if someone will
work with you to come off
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some of these
medications. How about a statin?
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Remind us what is a statin and
is it possible to come off of.
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A statin is a medication
to lower cholesterol. Okay
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So, if you can
lower your cholesterol
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with a natural means and your
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risk-benefit
profile is acceptable,
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that's another one
you might be going off.
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So let's say that, Nick,
you don't have any medical
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problems and you come to me
with an LDL cholesterol of 200,
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that's too high and
I'm going to say, Nick...
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"You have an option,
you can either start eating
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right and exercise or
you could take a statin."
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A statin will lower
your risk, so at that point,
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it's probably beneficial to you,
but if you can lower your risk
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other ways, maybe you won't
have to be married to that.
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Now some people that
have genetic problems,
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need to be on
medicines like that.
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Okay, well that was an easy one.
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How about Coumadin,
I hear a lot of people
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talk about not
wanting to take Coumadin.
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Why do people shy away from it?
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Coumadin is a blood thinner,
and Coumadin has a risk of
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bleeding and the generic
Coumadin called "warfarin,"
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it is rat poison - they
used to use it to kill rats.
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That's not good. Right
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But Coumadin does prevent clots.
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So if a person has a
blood clot in their heart
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which could pump up to
their brain and cause a stroke,
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or a blood clot in
their legs which could pump
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to their lungs and
cause a pulmonary embolism,
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then the risk of
Coumadin might be worth it.
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Now I don't like to
give people that medication,
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but if it's very risky,
we do, but we monitor it
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very carefully - we
monitor for bleeding.
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We let them know
about the risk and benefits;
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we let them know if
other medications interact
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with it and we monitor
their blood very closely
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to make sure it doesn't
get too thick or too thin.
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Now sometimes,
it might be possible
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to come off the
Coumadin, but it's a rare person
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that can come off that
because usually when they are
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putting them on it,
means they have gotten
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a blood clot.
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So to get off that medicine,
you've got to eliminate
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the chance of a blood
clot coming back again,
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sometimes that's
very hard to do. All right
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We've got another question...
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This viewer asks: "What
is the safest antibiotic
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and is it true that
many allergies to penicillin
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are not true allergies?"
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First of all, many allergies of
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penicillin are
not true allergies.
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You know, people
just say they are...
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We can certainly have a
person go to an allergist
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and test for that...
The first question is:
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"Antibiotics," are
they safe antibiotics?
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Well, there are safe antibiotics
but the best thing about
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antibiotics is
try not to use them.
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Many antibiotics are
given for virus infections...
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they don't even need to
be given and people become
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resistant to antibiotics,
especially people that
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eat animals!
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Seventy to 80% of all
the antibiotics used are
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passed on to us in some
form from animals that we eat.
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So we get sort of antibiotic
resistance when we have
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some low grade antibiotics in us
all the time - that's not good!
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So we've heard about antibiotic
resistance in our society.
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We've heard about
methicillin resistant staph...
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things of that
nature, so we want to limit
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our exposures to
antibiotics and take them
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when we really need
it, but if we really don't
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need an
antibiotic - if it's a virus,
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we won't want to take
antibiotics from animals;
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we don't want to
take those type of things,
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then antibiotics
can be used effectively,
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but nowadays, we're not
using them too effectively.
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If we use them
ineffectively, we can damage our
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bacterial flora and it damages
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the trillium
bacteria's that messes us up.
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When those bacteria
damages, they turn on chemicals
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that puts stress on our body
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causes all sorts of
problems with that. Right
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Some people even
have to take probiotics,
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things of that nature, if
they're on lots of antibiotics.
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Now, why might some
people think they have
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an allergic
reaction to penicillin,
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but it's maybe
not really allergies?
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Well, they might get a
little rash when they take it,
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and that's not a real
anaphylactic reaction.
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Just a minor...
Yeah, a minor reaction.
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Some people get it to
a generic preparation.
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It might not be the
allergy to penicillin,
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but it might be the packaging
or the delivery system.
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Remember, when a medicine
is invented, not only is it
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the active ingredient,
but the delivery system,
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how is it packaged...
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how is it
delivered in the system?
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it takes chemicals - they might
be allergic to those chemicals.
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Generic medicines have
different delivery systems
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than pure medications sometimes.
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Now it seems, most
medications have side effects,
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but are there any that
don't have side effects?
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I have no medicine
that doesn't have a
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side effect to some degree.
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Now, some are safer
than others like - you know,
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we talked about Tylenol,
that has a few side effects
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on the liver,
but it's very safe.
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Advil, Motrin - some
of them have side effects,
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but they're not terrible.
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The ones I see
have side effects, Nick,
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are the ones that
people use chronically.
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Prolonged exposures to
medications raise the risk
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of side effects. Right
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Getting you over the
hump usually doesn't have
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as many side
effects unless you have
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one of these terrible immune
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reactions to it.
Good information!
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Our next viewer has a
question about blood pressure.
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They've been on 3
different medications,
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and they want to
know which medication
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may have the least side effects.
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And, you know, the approach
to blood pressure is, of course,
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find our what's
causing your blood pressure;
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try to have some
natural remedies to lower
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blood pressure
- like exercising,
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a plant-based
diet, lots of water,
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no processed foods,
things of that nature.
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Some people still need
to be on some medications
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at least to get
them over the hump. Sure
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One of the medicines
that I use that's very safe is
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one called, "Norvasc."
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That does not slow
the heart rate down.
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It makes the
arteries a little bit bigger.
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Now I can also accomplish that
by people eating lots of greens,
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and cutting back fat
as well, but some people
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cannot do that and if
they can't do those things,
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then the risk of high
blood pressure is greater
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than the risk of the medicine.
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They might benefit to
that, but at the same time,
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I would watch that very closely.
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Another medicine I use quite
a bit for blood pressure is
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called, "the beta blockers."
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A person that has blood pressure
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because they are
stressed out a lot - you know,
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that blocks adrenalin's
effect on the blood vessels,
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that might help a lot.
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In someone that's
anxious, we might use that.
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Of course, I'd want
them to do some other things,
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maybe taking deep
breaths, relaxing - you know
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those things that will lower
the blood pressure as well,
00:07:01.65\00:07:03.75
but if they
can't do those things,
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then sometimes the medicine
is worth the side effects...
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But those are two
that are fairly safe.
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But every medicine
does have side effects.
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The blood pressure
medicines, of course,
00:07:12.83\00:07:14.16
can make it go too low.
00:07:14.20\00:07:15.86
So if you're dehydrated or
if your kidneys quit working
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or if your liver
doesn't work, and you still take
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the medicines, your blood
pressure could go too low,
00:07:21.30\00:07:24.01
and you could pass out,
you could hurt yourself,
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so there are side effects
to each of these medicines,
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and I think what patients
need to know is, first of all...
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hopefully, they can try
to change their chemistry
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so they don't
need a medicine. Sure
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Then if they do need the
medicine and their physician
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thinks the risk
is worth the benefit,
00:07:37.59\00:07:39.25
know about the risk.
00:07:39.29\00:07:40.62
Know when to take it,
know what to look for,
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know what the complications.
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And I think when people
learn about their medications,
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they can take them much safer.
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That's good advice! Okay
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We have another viewer who asks:
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"I take
medication for my stomach,
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is there a chance I
can come off of this?"
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And again, it's according to
why they take the medications
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for the stomach, okay?
00:08:00.54\00:08:02.24
I assume it's for acid. Okay
00:08:02.28\00:08:05.15
The body makes extra
acid, it causes reflux...
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that's a bothersome.
00:08:09.18\00:08:10.52
And a lot of people
take these antacids,
00:08:10.55\00:08:12.72
and there are a bunch of
different ones on the market...
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Nexium, Prilosec, different
ones, some you can even buy
00:08:14.86\00:08:17.56
over-the-counter. Right
00:08:17.59\00:08:19.69
We weren't really made to take
these for the rest of our lives.
00:08:19.73\00:08:24.73
And some of those can change
the calcium content of the body,
00:08:24.77\00:08:29.30
and so we try to
get people off of those.
00:08:29.34\00:08:32.07
Well, if you can
get at the cause.
00:08:32.11\00:08:33.74
You know, if it's because
we're eating big at night
00:08:33.78\00:08:36.34
well, quit eating
big at night. Sure
00:08:36.38\00:08:37.98
If it's because there's
an infection in the stomach
00:08:38.01\00:08:39.95
called, "H. pylori,"
well have that treated.
00:08:39.98\00:08:42.72
If it's because they're
eating high protein diets...
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you know, with lots of
fat which makes the body
00:08:45.99\00:08:48.62
more acidic, maybe if
they can get off that medicine.
00:08:48.66\00:08:51.83
If they're under a lot of
stress and worry and concern,
00:08:51.86\00:08:55.66
and that's contributing to
their body making a lot of acid,
00:08:55.70\00:08:58.83
maybe that's
something they can do.
00:08:58.87\00:09:01.24
So is there a chance
they can get off this? Yes
00:09:01.27\00:09:04.01
And sometimes people only
have to take the medicines
00:09:04.04\00:09:06.37
for a short period of time
until they can get at the cause.
00:09:06.41\00:09:09.64
I have a lot of people, Nick,
that will just quit drinking
00:09:09.68\00:09:12.51
caffeine and the acid production
00:09:12.55\00:09:14.05
will come down,
they won't need it.
00:09:14.08\00:09:15.52
I have some people
that will lose 20 pounds,
00:09:15.58\00:09:17.95
and that will help. Yeah
00:09:17.99\00:09:19.52
I have some people
that won't eat big at night,
00:09:19.55\00:09:21.82
and then their acid
production will get better.
00:09:21.86\00:09:23.59
I have some people
that will quit eating meat,
00:09:23.63\00:09:25.63
and then that will get better!
00:09:25.66\00:09:27.20
So is it possible? Yes...
00:09:27.23\00:09:28.70
But what I've seen is...
a lot of people aren't even
00:09:28.73\00:09:31.53
given the options...
00:09:31.57\00:09:34.87
I explained the
risks and the benefits,
00:09:35.27\00:09:36.81
and why this is, I
think, a good choice for them,
00:09:36.84\00:09:40.14
but some people say,
"Nope, I don't want to do it,
00:09:40.18\00:09:42.28
I would rather take the
medicine and do what I want."
00:09:42.31\00:09:44.31
Well that is their right
and I'm still going to love them
00:09:44.35\00:09:46.85
the best I can and
still encourage them
00:09:46.88\00:09:49.78
and try to move
them on other steps.
00:09:49.82\00:09:51.59
I'll say, "Well, if you
won't get off the medicine,
00:09:51.62\00:09:53.59
maybe you'll drink more
water and dilute the acid,
00:09:53.62\00:09:56.29
or maybe you will
drink one less coke that day,
00:09:56.32\00:09:59.53
and not have so
much phosphoric acid
00:09:59.56\00:10:01.56
which is adding even
MORE acid to your body.
00:10:01.60\00:10:03.83
So these are the little things
00:10:03.87\00:10:05.20
that we do that
can work with people.
00:10:05.23\00:10:06.70
And I know a common
question people ask is:
00:10:06.74\00:10:08.30
"What if I forget
to take my medication,
00:10:08.34\00:10:09.84
what should I do?"
"Should I double up?"
00:10:09.87\00:10:11.71
Nope! I wouldn't...
It's according to what
00:10:11.74\00:10:13.54
the medicine is. Okay
00:10:13.58\00:10:14.94
For instance, if you
forget to take your medicine,
00:10:14.98\00:10:17.78
and it's a very
important medicine,
00:10:17.81\00:10:19.35
then you want to talk
to your doctor and ask them
00:10:19.38\00:10:21.65
what they want you to do.
00:10:21.68\00:10:23.15
If it's a medicine
that's not important,
00:10:23.18\00:10:25.02
then maybe you
can just miss a dose,
00:10:25.05\00:10:26.39
and then resume the next one.
00:10:26.42\00:10:28.12
For instance, if it's a
blood pressure medicine,
00:10:28.16\00:10:29.99
I tell my patients to...
"Well, you missed one dose,
00:10:30.03\00:10:33.06
let's just
resume with the next."
00:10:33.09\00:10:35.86
If it's a blood
thinner medicine,
00:10:35.90\00:10:37.47
and the blood is
going to get too thick,
00:10:37.50\00:10:38.93
I'll have them come
into the office and check it,
00:10:38.97\00:10:40.74
and see if it's too
thick or too thin. Right
00:10:40.77\00:10:42.67
If it's an antibiotic and they
are at the end of the infection,
00:10:42.70\00:10:45.84
I might say, "Well, the
infection is pretty much over,
00:10:45.87\00:10:47.91
that's okay, but if it's in
the beginning of the infection,
00:10:47.94\00:10:51.01
I might say, "Well, you
missed a dose - you double up."
00:10:51.05\00:10:53.08
So it really depends on
the individual situation...
00:10:53.11\00:10:56.32
to know what they should
do if they miss a medication.
00:10:56.35\00:10:58.82
Do you find that happens
commonly with your patients?
00:10:58.85\00:11:00.56
Yes, 70% of patients do not take
00:11:00.59\00:11:03.39
the medication
as you tell them to.
00:11:03.43\00:11:05.73
Seventy percent -
that's a big number.
00:11:05.76\00:11:07.10
Yeah, they either
forget the medicine...
00:11:07.13\00:11:09.06
they usually forget it,
they don't take it on time,
00:11:09.10\00:11:11.07
they mix and match it
with things that interact
00:11:11.10\00:11:13.00
with the medicine... so
a large number of people
00:11:13.03\00:11:15.60
don't take the
medications as you prescribe it.
00:11:15.64\00:11:17.91
That's why I try to give
alternatives for medicines
00:11:17.94\00:11:21.31
and a lot of people make
mistakes with their medicines.
00:11:21.34\00:11:24.21
Just like you do... "Oh,
I take one and it made me
00:11:24.25\00:11:26.01
feel a little bit better...
I'm going to take three." Sure
00:11:26.05\00:11:27.88
I had a lady who was
taking a beta blocker
00:11:27.92\00:11:30.02
that slowed her heart down.
00:11:30.05\00:11:31.39
She was taking it
for blood pressure.
00:11:31.42\00:11:33.05
She wasn't taking it
because she had a heart problem.
00:11:33.09\00:11:35.06
And bless her heart,
Nick, she felt bad...
00:11:35.09\00:11:37.29
She said, "Oh, there must be
something wrong with my heart."
00:11:37.33\00:11:39.49
So she took another one
and it slowed down her heart
00:11:39.53\00:11:41.96
5 or 6 beats a minute,
and then she felt even worse.
00:11:42.00\00:11:44.73
So she took another one
and she kept taking them until
00:11:44.77\00:11:46.97
her heart started
going down into the 30s.
00:11:47.00\00:11:49.60
That was not good, but
that happens quite a bit.
00:11:49.64\00:11:52.44
People don't take the medicines
quite like they should,
00:11:52.47\00:11:54.84
and these
medicines do have risks.
00:11:54.88\00:11:57.61
That's why we have to
be very, very careful.
00:11:57.65\00:11:59.61
And when there is 4
billion prescriptions out there,
00:11:59.65\00:12:02.75
and all the over-the-counters
you can get now,
00:12:02.78\00:12:05.09
you get a lot of this,
you know, the amphetamines
00:12:05.12\00:12:08.06
you can get over-the-counter;
00:12:08.09\00:12:09.42
you can get stuff that
would make methamphetamines
00:12:09.46\00:12:11.16
over-the-counter.
00:12:11.19\00:12:12.89
You know, Tylenol, if
you take too much Tylenol,
00:12:12.93\00:12:15.03
that can damage your liver.
00:12:15.06\00:12:16.40
If you took too much of
anything, it can cause bleeding.
00:12:16.43\00:12:18.80
Lots of things
can cause bleeding.
00:12:18.83\00:12:20.40
The energy pills - that
can speed up your metabolism,
00:12:20.44\00:12:23.77
and make your
heart go out of rhythm.
00:12:23.81\00:12:25.14
So every medicine
does have some risk,
00:12:25.17\00:12:27.28
and they must be
used responsibly.
00:12:27.31\00:12:29.38
So I'm glad people are listening
to this so maybe we can
00:12:29.41\00:12:31.61
at least we can't give
every scenario, but we can say,
00:12:31.65\00:12:34.35
"Be careful -
everything we put in our body
00:12:34.38\00:12:36.69
has a chemical change
whether that be a food,
00:12:36.72\00:12:39.25
a medicine, an herb,
a supplement, a thought,
00:12:39.29\00:12:41.96
everything we do has some
00:12:41.99\00:12:43.56
chemical
reaction inside our body.
00:12:43.59\00:12:45.59
Last question
of the day here is:
00:12:45.63\00:12:47.43
"What is the
difference between a
00:12:47.46\00:12:49.16
medication and an herbal
remedy and which is better?"
00:12:49.20\00:12:52.37
Well that's an
interesting question.
00:12:52.40\00:12:54.17
I get that a lot because a
lot of people think that if
00:12:54.20\00:12:56.71
something is
"natural," it's better.
00:12:56.74\00:12:58.84
They always think that,
and I struggle with that
00:12:59.47\00:13:03.58
because natural is
good and it has a place,
00:13:03.61\00:13:05.68
and I really think natural
is good when it comes to food.
00:13:05.71\00:13:08.35
Eating food that
has antioxidants,
00:13:08.38\00:13:10.45
it has those chemicals in
it, but some people, the herbs,
00:13:10.49\00:13:13.09
a lot of people don't know
what the herbs do in the body,
00:13:13.12\00:13:16.39
and they don't know the
dosage, how much to use,
00:13:16.42\00:13:19.03
they don't know the
timing, they don't know the
00:13:19.06\00:13:20.63
delivery system -
what is interacting.
00:13:20.66\00:13:22.83
So I look at an herb just
like any other medication.
00:13:22.86\00:13:26.87
Some herbs have been
shown to be very dangerous,
00:13:26.90\00:13:29.80
and "foxgloves" is one
that is very dangerous.
00:13:29.84\00:13:32.54
There's an herb that
we make digoxin from,
00:13:32.57\00:13:35.98
that's another herb
that can be very dangerous
00:13:36.01\00:13:38.21
because it can make
the heart go too slow.
00:13:38.25\00:13:40.48
I had a person that
was taking that one time,
00:13:40.52\00:13:42.75
and they dropped
their heart rate into 20
00:13:42.78\00:13:44.69
because they were taking that
herb - it made it go too slow.
00:13:44.72\00:13:47.59
Some of the ones that
interact with each other can
00:13:47.62\00:13:49.62
be a problem as well.
00:13:49.66\00:13:51.26
So, is there a difference
between medication and herbs?
00:13:51.29\00:13:53.96
There is a difference
and one of the differences is
00:13:54.00\00:13:56.30
medications have been studied;
we know how much they used,
00:13:56.33\00:13:59.67
and they are
regulated. Right Herbs are not.
00:13:59.70\00:14:02.20
Now I'm not saying that
herbs don't have a place,
00:14:02.24\00:14:04.57
but if you're
going to use an herb,
00:14:04.61\00:14:06.04
make sure you go to
someone that knows what it does,
00:14:06.07\00:14:08.64
how it should be given,
where they're getting the
00:14:08.68\00:14:11.21
herb from - whether
it's a good supplier because
00:14:11.25\00:14:13.38
remember they are not regulated,
00:14:13.42\00:14:14.88
and if it's going to
interact with anything else
00:14:14.92\00:14:17.15
you're eating or
bringing into your body.
00:14:17.19\00:14:19.15
Those are some very good
things before you get on some
00:14:19.19\00:14:21.56
herbal supplements,
but some of them are
00:14:21.59\00:14:23.39
very useful - I'm
not saying they're not.
00:14:23.43\00:14:25.46
Colace is one
that's very popular.
00:14:25.49\00:14:27.36
I use hawthorn,
I use a few others,
00:14:27.40\00:14:29.56
but you want to know
what it does in the body.
00:14:29.60\00:14:31.57
I would encourage people
to try not to have to take
00:14:31.60\00:14:34.80
any of that if they can
and find other natural remedies
00:14:34.84\00:14:38.47
... you know, eating the right
foods, staying away from that
00:14:38.51\00:14:41.68
because remember, those
things are for disease states,
00:14:41.71\00:14:44.31
and for people
that are not having
00:14:44.35\00:14:45.95
the nutrients that they need.
00:14:45.98\00:14:47.32
Well it sounds like a
thing that we really need to be
00:14:47.35\00:14:50.09
careful while
taking and only follow our
00:14:50.12\00:14:52.29
doctor's
orders. Well be careful!
00:14:52.32\00:14:54.46
All right... we're going
to be back in just a moment
00:14:54.49\00:14:56.69
as Dr. Marcum
closes with prayer.
00:14:56.73\00:14:58.39
I hope you have learned
something on today's program,
00:15:05.00\00:15:07.70
something that will help
you do better in your health,
00:15:07.74\00:15:10.24
and I want to pray for
you because I think prayer
00:15:10.27\00:15:12.57
is a very valuable
treatment for all diseases,
00:15:12.61\00:15:16.14
so let's pray together...
00:15:16.18\00:15:17.51
Father God,
There might be someone
00:15:17.55\00:15:20.25
out there that needs help making
a change one step at a time.
00:15:20.28\00:15:24.39
Please continue to help
them and grow with them,
00:15:24.42\00:15:27.76
and please add Your healing
force to their lives, Father.
00:15:27.79\00:15:31.39
And please help us to try
get back to Your original plan
00:15:31.43\00:15:34.96
is our humble prayer... Amen
00:15:35.00\00:15:37.20
You know, getting back to
God's plan - that perfect plan,
00:15:38.43\00:15:42.60
is so important
because it changes literally
00:15:42.64\00:15:44.67
the chemistry
of the entire body.
00:15:44.71\00:15:46.54
Even though we might not
understand all the chemistry
00:15:46.57\00:15:49.28
behind God, God
knew what He was doing.
00:15:49.31\00:15:52.01
So I want to
thank you for watching
00:15:52.05\00:15:53.58
"The Ultimate
Prescription" and we're praying
00:15:53.62\00:15:56.02
for your good health.
00:15:56.05\00:15:57.39
Until next time,
I'm Dr. James Marcum.
00:15:57.42\00:15:59.59