BLUE JIMMY & BLIND DOG OZZY'S HEALTH & FITNESS BLOG

"BLUE" JIMMY: PUBLIC HEALTH ADVOCATE

BLIND DOG OZZY: NEUROTIC CHIHUAHUA

"BLUE" JIMMY: A family member was recently prescribed a medicine for a common ailment and the accompanying instructions contained this warning: "May cause ...

fever, chills
body aches
flu symtoms
sores in mouth and throat
joint pain or swelling
swollen glands
skin rash
changes in mood or behavior
hearing loss
swollen tongue
burning eyes
upset stomach
gas
diarrhea
nausea
headache
dizziness
unpleasant taste in your mouth
severe liver damage and oh yeah ...
death

BLIND DOG OZZY: Nice!

"BLUE" JIMMY: The ailment this family member has? ... Toenail fungus. These are the label warnings for turbinafine (Lamisil) an oral medication for discolored toenails.

BLIND DOG OZZY: Better to cut off your foot!

"BLUE" JIMMY: I hesitated for a few years to write an article challenging "Big Pharma" (the pharmaceutical industry as a whole) but after watching my big brother die with a dozen or so vials of prescription medicine at his bedside, I have become emboldened.

BLIND DOG OZZY: Preach!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Growing up in the 60' and 70's, I remember aggressive propaganda against drugs. As schoolchildren, we were told that drugs were bad ... except the ones that "the doctor" gives to you. There is no doubt that certain modern drugs have changed history and saved countless lives: aspirin; insulin; penicillin. But the line between drugs and DRUGS has become blurred throughout the decades.

Here is a small sample list of drugs that your friendly doctor once prescribed:

Opium: The original Drug with a capital "D." Used for a variety of painkilling and mood elevating purposes since ancient times, people found early on that you could use it to just get good and f**ked up.
Methamphetamine: was prescribed as a diet aid and to keep tired people perky and has kept the trucker industry going for countless years.
LSD: used as a breathing aid and to fully enjoy Hendrix's set at Woodstock.
Cocaine: as a stimulant and anesthetic and as legend tells us, was an ingredient in the original Coca Cola ... "Have A Coke And A Smile" is right!
Heroin: was used as a very effective painkiller and an ingredient in cough medicine ... although it doesn't seem to have done Keith Richards any good in that respect.
PCP: was used as a surgical anesthetic. The problem was, the doctor could cut off your head and you wouldn't feel it.
MDMA (Ecstasy): supposedly used by some psychiatrists for medical purposes until it was banned in the 80's for having no medical purpose other than to inspire hoards of badly-dressed people to crowd into old warehouses and dance to loud DJ music.
Peyote: Although the doctors who prescribed this medicine were not exactly Marcus Welby M.D., the Native American shamans and healers who got you into a "spiritual place" were able to use this drug in their traditional ceremonies legally until 1970, when the government ruined everything and banned it. No wonder there's no Jim Morrisons anymore.
Amanita Muscaria (Magic Mushroom): another drug with ancient origins and uses, it was called "Shrooooommmmmmsssssss!" by every stoner I knew in high school and despite its spiritual and ceremonial uses by cultures all over the world and the fact that it grows in the wild without cultivation, it is still illegal in the U.S. One of the most fascinating theories about Magic Mushrooms is that its use in the Middle East by various holy men inspired the story of Jesus Christ and that the Magic 'Shroom was actually a metaphor for Jesus himself. This theory was actually put forth in a book entitled, "The Sacred Mushroom And The Cross" (1970) by John Marco Allegro and despite much criticism from his peers and regret from his publisher, has not been completely dismissed by scholars.
Marijuana: ask your local stoner (who knows more about the history of Marijuana than anyone else),

Marijuana is yet another drug that has been used for medicinal purposes since ancient times for almost every malady. In early America, it was legally used by doctors and country healers in tinctures, potions, balms, oils, poultices and every other form to treat: headache; menstrual cramps; gout; arthritis; epilepsy; anxiety; depression; MS; loss of appetite; drug and alcohol addiction; insomnia and most importantly, to decipher Pink Floyd lyrics ...

BLIND DOG OZZY: ... I'm still working on "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn."

"BLUE" JIMMY: The lowdown is, yesterday's medicine can often become today's DRUG with all the stigma and societal disapproval attached. But today, we have a different situation which is mainly that the pharmaceutical industry (which conspiracy theorists call Big Pharma) seems to have a stranglehold on the medical (healing) profession and anyone who offers a non-toxic, non-surgical, non-pill cure is labeled a "quack," "fraud" or "snake oil peddler."

BLIND DOG OZZY: Case in point: Dr. Fereydoon Batmanghelidj who authored the books, "Your Body's Many Cries For Water" (1992)

and "You're Not Sick, You're Thirsty" (2003). His books claimed that most chronic ailments (e.g. diabetes, arthritis, asthma, bronchitis, ulcers, headaches, chronic body pain of all types) were the result of undiagnosed dehydration and that simply drinking enough water could cure these ailments. Born in Iran and educated at St. Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, his credentials, medical practice and research was often called into question even though he submitted all his findings to the AMA (American Medical Association) WHO (World Health Organisation) and anyone else he could think of who might verify his findings. Time and again he was told NOT THAT HE WAS WRONG but that they were not interested in any "alternative" cures that didn't involve some pharmaceutical product that could be marketed and sold. This, despite countless cases in which he was able to cure patients of "incurable" diseases using ordinary tap water. He was criticized by some skeptics for not having peer-reviewed scientific research but yet, he spent most of his life

presenting his findings to anyone who would listen. Keep in mind he did not recommend any type of cloistered, oxygenated, vitamin-enriched, lemon-infused, flavored, bottled or even purified water which might connect him to an industry or commercial venture. He simply advised patients to drink ordinary tap water.

"BLUE" JIMMY: An interesting addendum to this story is the fact that years ago, I heard a major-network evening news report which advised people not to drink any additional water in their daily regimen and to not expect any health benefits from drinking water. The Journalist in me thought this sounded suspicious. Why would an evening news report advise people not to drink water? I did the research and found that this news report was sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry.

BLIND DOG OZZY: The plot thickens!

"BLUE" JIMMY: I did further research and found that this is a common tactic in major-network news reporting. Basically, you cannot report anything that would make any one of your sponsors look bad. Like any television program that is not community supported, they operate on the largesse of their sponsors and diligent as their reporters may be, they are instructed in no uncertain terms to not bite the hand that feeds them. If Diet Coke contained a toxic chemical ( and it does, aspartame) and one of your sponsors is the Coca Cola Company, I guarantee you will not hear about it on the evening news.

BLIND DOG OZZY: Bastards!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Another story relevant to this topic appeared in the book "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You To Know About" (2004) by Kevin Trudeau

and was not actually part of the main text but was known as Appendix B in the back of the book. Entitled "No-Hunger Bread: A True FDA Horror Story," it basically told the tragic story of a man who came up with a brilliant, useful commodity and was mercilessly shot down by government bureaucracies. In 1977, A man named Ben Suarez literally, stumbled into the invention of a product that seemed to have no downside. His wife had read an article that shared a recipe for a type of bread made and eaten by the Hunza people. The Hunza people are an isolated, mountain-dwelling people of Pakistan/India who have strong cultural traditions and whose rudimentary lifestyle is thought to make them very healthy and long-lived.

They make a type of bread that is very dense and filling and sweetened with honey which Suarez' wife tried to duplicate while tweaking the recipe just a little.

BLIND DOG OZZY : That's all it takes!

"BLUE" JIMMY: The result was a sweet, very satisfying bread which sat like a brick in the stomach and had the unexpected effect of causing Suarez' family, friends and coworkers to lose significant amounts of excess weight without feeling deprived of food.

He then, in a very efficient and professional manner, tried to market the bread as an aid to weight loss. You would have to read the whole story to believe it but basically, Suarez ventured into an area inhabited by only a privileged few and his clever and homemade business idea was prosecuted with the full fire and fury of government agencies usually reserved only for child sex-traffickers and major drug cartels.

All because he claimed that the bread could help you lose unwanted weight, which it did without toxic chemicals or harmful side-effects. But small businesses like his don't stand a chance against corrupt government agencies like the FDA and FTC and he was ordered to destroy all of his product which he was willing to give to charity and estimated would have fed more than a million people. The bread was nonetheless, destroyed.

BLIND DOG OZZY: And he took it in the butt!

"BLUE" JIMMY: The last cases I have chosen ( and there are thousands) were revealed to me in a book entitled, "SURPRESSED INVENTIONS & OTHER DISCOVERIES: True Stories Of Suppression, Scientific Cover Ups, Misinformation And Brilliant Breakthroughs" (1999) by Jonathan Eisen.

In section I, entitled "The Suppression OF Alternative Medical Therapies," the author has written chapters that deal with unorthodox but seemingly, very effective treatments for a host of diseases: Dr. Max Gerson's nutritional therapy which as far back as 1946, was being reviewed by a Senate sub-committee and was being considered as a legitimate treatment for cancer and other diseases until The American Medical Association hounded him and his treatment out of existence in The United States and he was forced to leave the country; Harry M. Hoxsey's family formulas for external and internal cancer which he demonstrated to medical doctors, only to have them try to make him sign over his family formula over to them and take credit for his family treatment; oxygen therapy, in which a patient's blood is infused with oxygen to combat AIDS, cancer and other immunological diseases but is still illegal in the United States despite apparent success among many patients; Gaston Naessenes, who invented a microscope much more powerful than science had ever seen which allowed him to create a disease theory and treatment outside-the-box which was rejected outright by the medical establishment. He was arrested and faced prison rather than back down and relinquish the treatment he believed in his whole life.

BLIND DOG OZZY: These are only a few examples!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Yes, there are quacks and frauds who dupe desperate people and take their money but there are many others who have spent an entire lifetime developing treatments (not miracle cures) who made every effort to have their treatments legitimized by scientific testing only to be persecuted, arrested and shut down because they didn't have the backing of the medical industry for all the wrong reasons.

BLIND DOG OZZY: WTF!

"BLUE" JIMMY: The pharmaceutical industry has many tactics to increase their profits. It thrives on sick people. There is absolutely no benefit to drug-producing companies to produce a cure which you can take for a short time and experience relief. Their method is to manufacture drugs which can relieve symptoms on a short-term basis and have doctors prescribe those drugs to their patients on an indefinite basis. One such tactic is "evergreening." A pharmaceutical company may produce a drug which is effective but is expensive and they will hold the patent to that drug for many years. When their patent expires, other pharmaceutical companies may reproduce their drug and offer it at a significantly lower price. These are known as generic drugs.

These generic drugs are sometimes all low-income patients can afford as well as those whose medical insurance has become strained. A drug company can, at this point, merely tweak the formula of their drug or even just change the dosage and receive a new patent on their drug which prevents competitors from producing a generic version.

BLIND DOG OZZY: And sick people get screwed!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Also, pharmaceutical companies send salesmen to doctor's offices and hospitals with boxes of sandwiches and coffee to promote certain drugs and offer kickbacks to doctors who promote their drugs, many times offering free samples for doctors to give to patients.

Back in grade school, I remember those anti-drug abuse films they would show us about how pushers would give you a little taste to get you hooked and then make you sell your soul to get more ...

BLIND DOG OZZY: "...I'm your mama, I'm your daddy, I'm that nigga in the alley
I'm your doctor when in need, want some coke, have some weed
you know me, I'm your friend
your main boy, thick and thin
I'm your pusherman ..." - (Curtis Mayfield)

"BLUE" JIMMY: It's illegal to pay doctors to prescribe a certain drug but it is not illegal to pay a doctor to "promote" the drug. Pharmaceutical companies take advantage of technicalities like this and make big money.

BLIND DOG OZZY: ???

BLUE JIMMY: Another tactic used by pharmaceutical companies is called "disease mongering." In her book, "Disease-Mongering: How Doctors, Drug Companies And Insurers Are Making You Feel Sick" (1992)

health & science writer Lynn Payer, describes disease-mongering as "trying to convince essentially well people that they are sick, or slightly sick people that they are very ill." Some examples of questionable "diseases" doctors might prescribe drugs for are: erectile dysfunction; osteoporosis; attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); irritable bowel syndrome; baldness; chronic fatigue syndrome; gambling addiction; sex addiction; et al.

BLIND DOG OZZY: "... I got the rockin' pneumonia and the boogie woogie flu ... " - (Huey "Piano" Smith)

"BLUE" JIMMY: There is no doubt that many people suffer from these conditions and that they can cause a fair amount of grief. The question is, do these conditions need to be treated with drugs? Here is a fairly recent list of (FDA approved) prescription drugs which were recently pulled off the market due to certain "problems."

Acutane (acne) may cause: birth defects; miscarriages; premature births; inflammatory bowel disease; suicidal tendencies.
Baycol (cholesterol reduction) may cause: kidney failure.
Bextra (pain relief) may cause: serious cardiovascular adverse events; risk of serious skin reactions; gastrointestinal bleeding; death.
Cylert (ADHD) may cause: liver toxicity.
Darvon & Darvocet (pain relief) may cause: serious toxicity to the heart.
DBI ( anti-diabetic) may cause: lactic acidosis.
DES (synthetic estrogen) may cause: cancer of the cervix and vagina; birth defects.
Duract (pain relief) may cause: severe liver damage.
Ergamisol (worm infestation, colon and breast cancers, rheumatoid arthritis) may cause: low white blood cell count; blood clots.
Hismanol (antipsychotic) may cause: Tdp, a heart condition.
Lotronex (irritable bowel syndrome) may cause: inflammation and injury of the large intestine; inflammation and injury of the small intestine; severe constipation requiring surgery; death.
Meridia (appetite suppressant) may cause: increased cardiovascular and stroke risk.
Merital & Alival (antidepressant) may cause: haemolytic amemia; death due to immunohemolytic anemia.
Micturin (bladder incontinence) may cause prolongation and potential for cardiotoxicity.
Mylotarg (AML or bone marrow cancer) may cause obstruction of veins and increased risk of death.
Omniflox (antibiotic) may cause: severe low blood sugar; blood cell abnormalities; kidney disfunction; allergic reactions causing life-threatening respiratory distress.
Palladone (pain relief) may cause: slow or stopped breathing resulting in coma or death.
Permax (Parkinson's Disease) may cause: valve regurgitation resulting in shortness of breath, fatigue and heart palpitations.
Pondimin (appetite suppressant) may cause: abnormal echocardiograms; valvular disease; heart valve disease.
Posicor (hypertension) may cause: fatal interactions with at least 25 other drugs.
Propulsid (heartburn) may cause: serious cardiac arrythmias.
PTZ & Metrazol (schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions) may cause: uncontrollable seizures; pulled muscles; fractured bones; spine fractures.
Quaalude (sedative and hypnotic) may cause: mania; seizures; vomiting; convulsions; death.
Raplon (anesthetic) may cause: bronchospasms and unexplained deaths.
Raptiva (psoriasis) may cause: PML, a rare and usually fatal disease that causes inflammation or progressive damage of the white cell matter in multiple locations of the brain.
Raxar (antibiotic) may cause: cardiac repolarization; QT interval prolongation; ventricular arrythmia.
Redux (appetite suppressant) may cause: abnormal echocardiograms; valvular disease; heart valve disease.
Rezulin (antidiabetic and anti-inflammatory) may cause: liver failure.
Selacryn (blood pressure) may cause: hepatitis; severe liver and kidney damage.
Seldane (antihistamine) may cause: life-threatening heart problems when taken in combination with other drugs.
Trasylol (antifibrinolytic to reduce blood loss during surgery) may cause: serious kidney damage; congestive heart failure; strokes; increased chance of death.
Vioxx (pain relief) may cause: increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
Xigris (severe sepsis and septic shock) may cause: no survival benefit
Zelmid (antidepressant) may cause: Guillain-Barre syndrome; higher risk of suicide.

Zelnorm (irritable bowel syndrome with constipation; chronic idiopathic constipation) may cause: heart/chest pain; higher chance of heart attack; stroke.

Source: PROCON.org The Leading Source Of Pros & Cons Of Controversial Issues

BLIND DOG OZZY: There ain't THAT many dangerous chemicals in a nuclear waste dump!

"BLUE" JIMMY: I don't know anyone over the age of 30 who hasn't gone to the doctor for a minor complaint and not come out of the office with a big bag o' pills. For every year you age, the bag of pills seems to increase exponentially until like my late brother, you have a dozen or more bottles of pills, liquids, drops, syrups or god knows what at your bedside.

And I am convinced that many medical doctors only take minimal considerations about drug interactions and label warnings when prescribing a drug or they would not prescribe a deadly poison to a 92 year-old woman with discolored toenails like the example I gave at the beginning of this article. When they prescribe drugs like this to elderly people they probably figure that the person is going to die soon anyway and they might as well get some cash from their insurance company.

BLIND DOG OZZY: Bastards!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Let it be known right now that I am not a representative of the alternative/holistic health industry. If I get shot in a drive-by shooting, I don't want any hoodoo swamp woman waving magic crystals or burning sage over me.

I need the best medical attention available. But for CHRONIC conditions such as: asthma; arthritis; obesity; migraine headache; high cholesterol; high blood pressure; dementia; depression; various addictions ...

BLIND DOG OZZY: ... And poor weiner performance? You need to get rid of that fat, ugly mama!

"BLUE" JIMMY: There are other treatments a standard medical doctor may not even consider (e.g. nutrition, hydration, oxygenation, exercise, stress reduction) because those treatments cannot be patented, bottled and sold in pill form. Also, I have noticed that many doctors will not even examine you or put their hands on you for fear of malpractice. They refer to your charts which almost all doctors have online and play it safe. One advantage alternative/holistic healers have is that they will take everything about you into consideration. For example, If you go to a standard doctor who is an ear, nose and throat specialist and mention that you are getting severe gout pains in your foot, forget it. They don't want to hear about it. Book an appointment with another specialist. (this actually happened to my late Dad). An alternative/holistic doctor will ask you what kind of pains you are having, what you are eating, what you are drinking, how you are sleeping, how your relationships are going, are you under any undue stress, what are you dreaming, where you want to go in life ... they take it all in and decide what you need.

BLIND DOG OZZY: A shot an' a beer!

"BLUE" JIMMY: One last solemn point about the Pharmaceutical Industry that I hesitate to mention to all my brothers and sisters throughout the world who have lost loved ones and cry every day due to gun violence and mass public shootings ... ALMOST EVERY SINGLE documented case of public mass shootings in recent years, has been committed by individuals who were once taking, currently taking, erratically taking or withdrawing from taking prescription psychiatric drugs. These drugs include:
Prozac (which is on the World Health Organization's list of essential medicines)
Paxil
Luvox
Pritiq
Effexor
Zoloft

and many others which have been know to cause: aggressive/hostile behavior; psychosis, mania; hallucinations; anxiety; depression; paranoia; hearing voices; delusions of grandeur and suicidal tendencies among other symptoms which would cause a distraught person to go into a public place with a weapon and do the unthinkable.

This is not my opinion. The facts of this matter are well documented by medical researchers and writers. But you have to go looking for it ... deep.

BLIND DOG OZZY: You will not hear this on the 6 o' clock news!

"BLUE" JIMMY: Remember what I said about network news outlets being silenced by sponsors ... when one of these mass shooting occurs, you will never hear the words, "prescription medicines," "pharmaceuticals" or "DRUGS." And politicians will never mention it either. Why? Because it's not sexy for politicians to condemn drugs which are legal and approved by the FDA. That's too big a can o' worms to open. It's much easier to discuss gun control and get yourself a Pro/Con discussion on a news show where you got a 50/50 chance of coming out looking good. Guns are only half the issue here. There is a whole 'nother side of the crazed public shooter story which needs to be investigated ...

BLIND DOG OZZY: ... And "BLUE" JIMMY & BLIND DOG OZZY got your backs!

"BLUE" JIMMY: But I've already said too much. This Journalistic Investigation is not over. There will be updates as necessary. I have already taken the precautions most Investigative Journalists take. I have a safe deposit box with the names and info of all the principals involved. If anything happens to me, BLIND DOG OZZY knows where the bodies are buried. And you can't get to him because he's already dead.

BLIND DOG OZZY: Yeah, I'm pretty dead.