Doctors Part 1
Which doctor would God Choose for me and my family?
There are many types of doctors, and many different medical philosophies. Which philosophies are supported by the Bible, and does God oppose any medical philosophies? Does God even care what medicines we use and what doctors we see? We would like to suggest that God has not been silent on this very important subject. But let me first share one of our first experiences in actively choosing a doctor.
Shary and I were very fortunate to live a few blocks from Forest Grove Community Hospital. This hospital had osteopathic doctors who functioned under an osteopathic philosophy of medicine. So, without any in-depth decision making, we chose our doctor and hospital because they were close. When we started having children, Forest Grove had a mandatory class for mothers and fathers who wanted to give birth at their facility. When Shary told me that I had to attend classes so I could be at the birth, I said I didn’t need to be at the birth. I would be happy to wait in the lobby. The reason for my reaction, was that up to this point in my life, the only experience I had with birth was downright scary.
During college I had worked as a janitor for Good Samaritan Hospital in Corvallis, Oregon. My few trips to do cleaning in the birthing wing were not pleasant. I have vivid memories of young women screaming in agony as I mopped and polished floors.
So, back to my dilemma, Shary told me that the class was called “Husband Coached Childbirth”, and all the other dads would be taking the class and that if I didn’t go she would be the only mother who was alone. Talk about a guilt trip, wow, what could I do? Just give in and join her? Nope, I am not that good, I decided to go to the first class, and then get busy so I couldn’t make it to the rest. But wouldn’t you know it, in the first class we were shown a movie called, “Childbirth for the Joy of it.”? In the movie five women were having their first babies without medication and seemed to be enjoying the experience. We were hooked, after having two children at Forest Grove, Shary got certified and became one of their teachers. We taught Husband Coached Childbirth together for years.
When we moved to Astoria, we interviewed a number of doctors, trying to find someone who would let us give birth without medication. We did not find any who would do it. One doctor told us, “If that is what you want, you can go hang from a tree and give birth like your ancestors.” I was about to let him know that he was the only monkey in the room, but Shary could see I was getting angry and wouldn’t let me speak. We ended up driving ninety miles back over the coast range to have our son Nathan at Forest Grove Community Hospital. Not all doctors are created equal. It matters who you go to for your medical care. That one difference, is why we have thirteen awesome children instead of two.
So What Does The Bible Have To Say About Doctors?
“She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.” Mark 5:26
“In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the Lord, but only from the physicians. Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his fathers.” 2 Chronicles 16:12-13
“Go up to Gilead and get balm, (a compound for healing) O Virgin Daughter of Egypt. But you multiply remedies in vain: there is no healing for you.” Jeremiah 46:11
Even though these passages from the Bible are well over 2000 years old, they could be written about millions of people today. We often remark what a better health care system we have today than in the past…but… do we really have better health care? Think about it, the people of the United States have the most expensive health care in the world; we spend more money on doctors and medicine than any other nation in the world (17.6% of our gross national product). That is almost double the amount that Norway spends and Norway is the second highest spender. We have the most scientifically advanced health care in the history of mankind, so why did we rank 17th in overall healthfulness out of 33 industrialized nations, 23rd in the percent of live births and 32nd out of 33 in birth defects?
I believe the reason our healthcare is costing us more and giving us less, is found in this…. we are getting farther and farther away from a Biblical philosophy of health care and the statistics seem to bear witness to that fact.
So what is the USA’s philosophy of health care? What is the basic belief system that most Americans are following? In order to answer that question, we need to analyze our options.
Medical doctors, all over the world, function out of a variety of belief systems. The five most widely followed belief systems are; Allopathy, Homeopathy, Osteopathy, Naturopathy and Chiropractic. The following definitions are taken from The Random House Dictionary of the English Language College Edition.
Allopathy is “The method of treating disease by the use of agents (drugs and chemicals), producing effects different from those of the disease treated (opposed to Homeopathy).”
Homeopathy is “The method of treating disease by drugs, given in minute doses that would produce in a healthy person symptoms similar to those of the disease (opposed to Allopathy).”
Osteopathy is “A therapeutic system based upon the premise that restoring or preserving health can best be accomplished by manipulation of the skeleton and muscles.”
Naturopathy is “A method of treating disease, using food, exercise, heat, etc., to assist the natural healing processes.”
Chiropractic is “A therapeutic system based upon the premise that disease is caused by interference with nerve function, the method being to restore normal condition by adjusting the segments of the spinal column.”
Allopathy, the use of drugs and chemicals to produce effects different than the disease, is the primary belief system of the American Medical Association.[1] The American Medical Association is the primary health care provider for the United States. Judging by our terrible health care record, 17th out of 33 in healthfulness and 32nd out of 33 in birth defects, could it be that we have chosen the wrong belief system?
If we are talking about medical assistance for accidents; car accidents, sports accidents, work accidents, then the American Medical association has the best track record in the world. They can sew you up, set broken bones and reduce trauma and put you back together better than any doctors in the history of mankind. The American emergency room is where I want to go if I am injured. Allopathy is my first choice if I am in a car accident. But……. if we are talking about disease, and preventative medicine, then Allopathy and its infatuation with drugs and chemicals, quickly drops to the bottom of the list.
When it comes to disease, we need to stop looking to allopathic doctors and scientists for a new miracle drug, pill or cure. God used the prophet Jeremiah to rebuke the Daughters of Egypt for “multiplying remedies”, for searching the world for the latest “balm.” If God rebuked them through Jeremiah, what is God saying to us today?
The pharmaceutical business is a multibillion-dollar business in the U.S. There are balms, drugs and remedies that promise you everything from virility to weight loss and all without pain or a change in lifestyle. But… have you ever spent the time to read the contraindications or the harmful side effects of these miracle drugs? Every drug, by law, is supposed to have warnings in or on the box. Yes, there is a reason these warnings are in small print. There is a reason they read the harmful side effects on TV and radio ads so fast that you can’t quite catch what they are saying. If we comprehended all of the ramifications of taking these medications, we would never touch them. For example, anti-depressants can cause depression and in some cases suicide.[2][3] Is that crazy or what?
Here are a few in the pain reliever category…
- Aspirin causes gastric bleeding and can in rare cases cause death.
- Tylenol causes 50,000 cases of kidney failure each year.
- Ibuprofen can cause liver damage, which can lead to a liver transplant.
What about drugs used for other things besides pain relief? Here are a few with their corresponding side effects. All this information was taken from the manufactures own small print.
- Concerta (for ADHD) can cause nausea, vomiting, dizziness, nervousness, tics and psychosis (abnormal thinking and hallucinations).
- Nexium (for heartburn) can cause enlarged abdomen, headache, chest pain, back pain, confusion and aggravated depression.
- Relpax (for migraines) can cause dizziness, nausea, tiredness, pain in the throat or chest and heart attacks.
- Lunesta (for insomnia) can cause amnesia, worsening of depression, aggressive behavior and it is addictive to the point that it’s makers said users, “may find that they have to keep taking the medicine either at the prescribed dose or at increasing doses just to avoid withdrawal symptoms.”
We are told that one of the biggest killers of medical patients comes from unexpected drug reactions, that is, people were told that a particular drug would be beneficial but it actually killed them. According to a 2005 article in JAMA ( Journal of the American Medical Association), adverse reactions to medicine, causes 98,000 deaths each year.[5] In a study by Ralf Nader the number was between 150,000 and 300,000 deaths.[6] Harvard Medical School wanted to challenge those findings so they hired the Rand Corporation to do an independent study. The study was published in the November 5, 1996 addition of USA Today. That article stated that doctors kill 180,000 people each year in US hospitals alone as a result of medical negligence.[7]
Those who did the study wanted to know why the American people weren’t up in arms about this. If any other profession killed that many people, there would be a huge outcry. What they found was shocking, only 1.5% of the families of those killed, were ever informed that it was because of the doctor’s negligence, that their loved one died.
My mother was in the hospital a number of years ago. During her stay she began to lose weight at an alarming rate. She could not keep any food in her body, the situation became life threatening. If it had continued much longer, they would have lost her. Fortunately, my dad took charge and got a different doctor to give him a second opinion. As soon as the second doctor examined my mom, he halted the prescription drug she was taking and she immediately recovered. The medication would have killed her if my dad had not intervened.
You might conclude that the problem is only with improperly prescribed medication. But according to Marianne J. Legato, MD, professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New Your City, “Americans have somehow come to believe they should get the best medical care with the latest remedies with no side effects. Well, guess what? There is no drug that doesn’t have side effects.” (April 2005 Readers Digest) A “side effect” is an unwanted, harmful reaction to a particular drug.
What Dr. Legato was trying to get across to us is that we are living in a fantasy world if we think that we can solve our problems with drugs, because every, may I repeat, every drug has an unwanted side effect. That is…there is no drug that doesn’t have a dangerous and or life threatening or life shortening side effect! Some are just quicker and more noticeable than others.
All drugs have harmful side effects. You may get some short term benefit, but you will pay for it in the end, with a harmful side effect. God, on the contrary, does not work that way. Solomon said it this way, “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich and he addeth no sorrow with it.” (Proverbs 10:22)
God’s solutions to disease are without harmful side effects. When we try to find answers outside of the Word of God we forfeit a lot of wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 2:3 teaches that, In Jesus Christ ”are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
When you remove Jesus Christ and His Word, you remove a vast resource of wisdom and knowledge. A lot of what we call American medicine, is just foolishness. God loves us and has great plans for us and he has given us all that we need to live out those plans healthfully.
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD. Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
Our family has almost eliminated the need for Allopathic doctors, and has eliminated the need for health insurance. One of the most expensive accidents we have had was when our daughter Leah received a broken arm after getting bucked off a horse, and the bill was less than one month’s insurance payment. The savings of time, money and unnecessary pain that we have received by following God’s advice are way beyond any benefit we could have ever thought or imagined.
Jesus is the great physician, He created our bodies and He2 created our food. He also wrote the owner’s manual for how much rest and exercise we should get. He has instructed us in how we are to treat each other and how that effects our health. Jesus is, “The Word’ that instructs us in how we are to treat this incredibly complex machine we call our bodies. His advice can be trusted. He has no ulterior motives, no financial gain; he is motivated only by love.
Though my wife came from a family with a history of miscarriages, she never miscarried. She gave birth to thirteen healthy children, most of them never saw a doctor. We did take our daughter Leah to the hospital after she fell off a runaway horse. We believe Allopathic doctors are the best at dealing with injuries of that nature. But, if you want optimal health, we do not believe that drugs are the answer. In next week’s blog, we will discuss further what the word says specifically about drugs.
Biblical Concepts
- Doctors Are Not Gods.
- Pharmacia (Drugs) Are Not Your Savior,
- If you listen carefully to God’s advice, he has promised to remove all sickness from you.
If you have a doctor who’s first reaction is to write you a prescription for medication, we would suggest you find one who’s first reaction is to find out what is making your immune system weak, and who suggests changes in your lifestyle rather than drugs.
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:18-19
Our purpose for writing each week is to obey Matthew 5:19, providing you with biblical advice on the care and feeding of your body. We do it because this advice is so rare. We also do it, because we see thousands of good Christians, whose lives have been cut short, simply because they were never taught what the Word of God and the Law of God had to say about health and wellness. We have also seen Christians who have been taught what God says about health and wellness thrive.
Chris and Shary at a wedding with kids and grandkids.
If you believe God knows best, join us and the Wellness Gospel team; register for our weekly newsletter, then spread the word by sharing this with your friends on social media and may God bless you richly.
If you want to keep improving your health, and enjoy this kind of biblical scientific information, then I would like to recommend three must-read books.
- “None of These Diseases” by S. I. McMillen, M.D. and David E. Stern, M.D. http://tinyurl.com/hh7ezs2
- “Let’s Play Doctor” by Dr. Joel Wallach http://tinyurl.com/j8ybt8r
- “God’s Guide To Biblical Health and Healing” by Rev. Chris & Shary Schauermann http://tinyurl.com/zvkbfau
You can get all these books at Amazon.com
References
- The different philosophies of medicine. http://www.boogordoctor.com/definitions-homeopathy-naturopathy-osteopathy-chiropractic-ayurveda/
- Anti depressant drugs cause depression http://www.cbsnews.com/news/do-antidepressants-cause-depression-what-new-study-says/
- Antidepressant drugs cause depression and suicide http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00159/full
- Causes of arthritis and cures http://wellnessgospel.net/index.php/2016/10/01/vitamins-minerals-2/
- 98,000 deaths JAMA http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/194039
- Ralph Nader http://essential-book.org/books/silent/pdf/Chapter_I.pdf
- John’s Hopkins http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/05/03/476636183/death-certificates-undercount-toll-of-medical-errors