Mr. President,

May God bless you and keep you in your efforts to aid our ailing nation. I am a Chiropractic physician in central West Virginia where the cancer, heart disease, and diabetes rates are double the national average. I am advanced certified in Sacral Occipital Technique which includes protocols for treating organ dysfunction with reflex points and nutritional support. I have successfully treated allergies, digestive disorders, and hormonal imbalances since 2002. My passion is providing affordable, quality health care to those who need it most.

As you know, chronic degenerative illness is the single largest drain on our health care system. The U.S. now ranks 34th in the world in life expectancy while leading the world in per capita health care costs by an unbelievable margin. Undoubtedly the quality of care in our country is unsurpassed in certain areas such as infectious disease control, emergency treatment and many forms of surgery. So why are we so inept at dealing with chronic, degenerative ailments? Please consider my humble opinion.

In today’s health care environment, insurance companies, managed care and big pharmacy have the most influence over a patient’s care plan. The motives of these special interest groups are mostly financially based. If a doctor wants to get paid and limit liability for adverse outcomes, they must fall in line with the wishes if these institutions. For this reason our practice doesn't accept third party payments. We simply do the minimum paper work to comply with existing laws and provide receipts with proper insurance codes to our insured patients so they may get reimbursement directly from the insurance company.

This cash-for-service arrangement keeps costs and paperwork down and allows the doctor to use techniques that, while shown to be effective in clinical studies, do not have the benefit of billions in research dollars to legitimize them in the eyes of insurance companies. It saddens me that most doctors have little or no training in nutritional healing, vitamins, mineral and herbal therapies.

Although research is more than adequate to prove the effectiveness of these approaches, the volume of this research is a small fraction of the avalanche of information provided by big pharmacy to promote their patented products. True pharmaceuticals save lives, but prescription drug interactions are also a leading cause of death in our country. The American College of Emergency Physicians states that a patient taking eight or more prescriptions has a 100% chance of adverse reactions that will result in hospitalization. These events result in 23% of all hospital admissions. Yet I find it common in my practice to see patients with a dozen or more prescribed drugs, many of which are unnecessary, in my opinion.

Here are a few examples: According to Lynn August, M.D. and lecturer on nutritional healing, excess stomach acid is rarely the cause of heartburn and acid reflux. More often it's too little stomach acid, leaving undigested food to back up and leak into the esophagus. A teaspoon of vinegar is often as effective as proton pump inhibitors to relieve symptoms of heartburn. Of course, no one has a patent on vinegar.

Another cause is hiatal hernia. We fix this condition 90% of the time without surgery in one $30.00 office visit. Admittedly not a great business plan, but our patients really appreciate it. Reducing stomach acid with drugs impairs the body’s ability to absorb nutrients and leads to premature aging and vulnerability to disease.

Staten drugs are a valuable tool in reducing heart disease. Unfortunately, they have side effects such as muscle and joint pain and liver damage. The current guidelines for "normal cholesterol levels" were lowered drastically in 2004 by a panel of "experts" with strong financial ties to the drug industry. In response to these new lower levels, 34 other experts wrote a letter of protest to the National Institute of Health complaining that the new guidelines had no basis in research.

Most doctors follow the new guidelines because they don't understand the research. Research statistics is not a required course at most medical schools. If I haven't taken this course, I wouldn't know a well designed study from a poor one that is little more than an advertising campaign for a patented product. Indeed, modern doctors get most of their information from sales departments of big pharmacy (about 75%-80% compared to 25% as little as 20 years ago).

Although pharmaceuticals are an important component of modern health care, natural alternatives should be considered first. Estrogen therapy has been shown in numerous studies to increase cancer and stroke. Natural and bio-identical hormones often work just as well.

Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors can relieve symptoms but have side effects. Giving the body the nutrients needed to make more serotonin can be just as effective and is more compatible with a persons total health . Vitamin and herbal remedies should be tried before risking serious side effects. Arthritis drugs that repress the immune system leave the body open to infection and disease. In Europe, doctors get much better pain relief by cleansing the digestive system. (Over 75% of immune system receptors are in the digestive track.)

The Chiropractic model of health acknowledges three kinds of stress that will cause the body to break down. Physical, chemical or emotional stress in any combination are at the root of the disease process. Modern health care all but ignores the chemical toxicity that is rampant in our country. The chemical, pharmaceutical and food processing industries all share in the blame. Type II diabetes was very rare until refined sugar became a staple.

Hydrogenated oils (transfats) are now illegal in New York, California, and Canada for certain foods. If they were prohibited nationwide, I predict heart disease, diabetes, and cancer rates would drop dramatically. The research is out there.

In your campaign, Mr. President, you promised to stand up to the insurance, and pharmaceutical industries. Add the food processors to your list and I believe you can make amazing changes. I wish you all the best in your efforts.

Sincerely yours,

Dr. Richard Magly

Dr. Rick Magly graduated from Life University College of Chiropractic after completing the pre-med program at W.Va. State College. He operates Total Health Chiropractic (304-286-2905) and is certified in Soft Tissue Orthopedics, Organ Reflex Therapy & Activator Technique & received training in sports medicine, nutrition and advanced YOGA.