It's rare to find comprehensive and personalized medical advice in a five-minute doctor visit, yet drive-through checkups are commonplace in the U.S. This quick-fix healthcare approach spawns far too many overmedicated and overfed patients to ignore. How can one cope with hurried doctors and biased pharmaceutical companies, who may push medicines without understanding a patient's unique condition or lifestyle? Author Phyllis A. Balch has an empowering solution: sometimes, the most helpful prescription is for a mere nutritional makeover.

 

In stores as of this week is Balch's "Prescription for Nutritional Healing, fifth edition: A Practical A-Z Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs, and Food Supplements." Certified by the American Association of Nutritional Consultants, Balch has been a leading nutritional counselor for over two decades. Considering how many studies and websites are saturated with partisan claims from the pharmaceutical industry, Balch's collection of apolitical advice is an invaluable view beyond special interest groups.

 

Pharmaceutical companies push for healthy people with disease risks to begin medication before they even acquire a condition. These prevention medications increase market share, yet they often distract consumers from healthy diet and lifestyle choices that lessen the need for drugs. Rushed doctors also tend to prescribe quick solutions before explaining the nutritional remedies available.

 

The price of overmedication is no minor concern. Approximately half of U.S. adults are on prescription drugs. Each year, 783,936 people in the U.S. die from conventional medicine mistakes and one hundred thousand people die from prescription medicine effects. A recent study found that 21.3 percent of patients 65 years and older were on at least one inappropriately prescribed medicine, meaning a drug with risks outweighing benefits considering their condition. What's more, the World Health Organization estimates that eight percent of drugs imported into the U.S. are conterfeit, unapproved or substandard.

 

For every major sickness, disease or condition imaginable, Balch lists preventative diets, warning signs, nutritional remedies, appropriate vitamins and supplements and further treatment options for necessary cases. Such a comprehensive collection of knowledge and preventative measures may help families dodge overmedication and excessive doctor visits, along with the frivolous expenses they bring. While online medical information is difficult to sift through or believe, all of Balch's suggestions are well substantiated and thorough. Consulting a reputable health book for family emergencies may also be smarter than last-minute sifting through questionable internet sources.

 

Balch recommends the use of supplements, but only for informed consumers. The supplement industry was traditionally criticized because the FDA could not hold claims to the same standards and regulations as pharmaceutical drugs. In result, many supplement bottles contained filler ingredients and health claims unsubstantiated by scientific testing. Yet dietary supplement manufacturers must now follow the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), which are guidelines more similar to those of the pharmaceutical industry.

 

Despite improved regulations, Balch recommends using only high quality supplements from reputable sources. Lower-priced supplements often signify lower quality. Also, supplements not labeled "natural" may potentially include excess fillers, coal tars, artificial coloring, preservatives, sugars, starches and other additives. Reliable supplements are naturally produced with nutrients obtained from food sources.

 

Most people have witnessed or tasted some part of the raw food revolution. Uncooked or lightly cooked foods retain more nutrients, while overcooking depletes food of virtually all important nutrients. Yet Balch reminds readers that overcooking doesn't just lessen nutrition; it can increase risk of cancer. When foods are cooked to the point of browning or charring, their organic compounds undergo changes in structure and produce carcinogens. This is especially prevalent in barbecued meat, in which charred proteins develop a significant amount of carcinogenic material. Balch estimates that most Americans consume some amount of overcooked food every day.

 

Aside from prevention and treatment advice, Balch offers a detailed breakdown of the science and significance behind items in a balanced diet. She especially recommends a diet rich with fresh produce — organically grown when possible. She also notes that the riper a fruit or vegetable, the more nutrients it has. Organic produce often contains more nutrients, as well.

 

Balch reminds readers that artificial additives and processing can counter the nutrients a food is supposed to contain. As of now, the average American consumes about five pounds of additives per year. If sugar is included in the measurement — the most popular additive — this number turns to 135 pounds per year. Balch suggests avoiding additives whenever possible and consuming mostly unprocessed, whole foods.

 

Something to keep in mind while reading is that one should not isolate nutrients from the context of the entire diet. Although Balch pinpoints nutrients and minerals for specific health concerns, they are beneficial only when part of a balanced overall diet. Obtaining necessary nutrients only through targeted supplements while neglecting the interactions of meals can leave behind essential micronutrients within complex, unprocessed foods. Balch also suggests taking supplements with large meals that contain similar nutrients so that absorption rates are higher.

 

The book's emphasis on interconnected diet components and chemical reactions in food suggests a holistic approach to curative diets. Her advice is not meant to replace artificial quick fixes with natural quick fixes; it is meant to spur long-term changes that build up one's health knowledge and immune system. Instead of mere cures, Balch is proposing a lifestyle.