All I am saying is that with a little effort you can find a load of information conflicting what Western doctors are promoting. The case study of myself is only one, but for me, it’s the most important one.
I disagree. A case study of ONE does NOT conflict with trad med. A case study of thousands is required for that.
And I did look at the links you provided. Thanks, but they don't make much of a case that I can see. They are filled with flawed logic.
A) Just because a DEFICIENCY of Vit C results in heart disease, it does not follow that above 'normal' doses will provide more protection than 'normal' doses. 'More' is not always 'better' than 'enough'. Try adding 5 extra quarts of oil to your car's crankcase.
B) They draw conclusions from small samples - '
USAF flight surgeon Duane Graveline, MD, believes that the statin drug Lipitor caused his own case of transient global amnesia'
Do I think there is a conflict of interest between Doctors and the Pharma industry? Yes (although I certainly will not accuse all doctors of abusing this). There are conflicts of interest everywhere we turn (I think I said this on another thread), we need to try to deal with them., but not throw the baby out with the bath water.
And I don't buy the conspiracy theories of suppression of data on Vit C. You talked about how expensive 12 G of Vit C is. Seems to me there is plenty of economic incentive for the Vit C group to go out and fund a study and take all that money away from the mainstream Pharma industry. Good old capitalism at work.
If I were to believe this train of thought, I would also believe that Polio vaccine studies, for just one example, would have been suppressed. After all, the medical community could make so much more money treating polio than vaccinating against it. etc, etc, etc.
We all must take responsibility for our own decisions and health. Again, I would not have believed my results except that I am seeing them.
Agreed, but I am curious about something. How do you know the Vitamin C and L-lysine are really responsible for a 25% decrease in your LDL? Those numbers vary reading-to-reading. There could be many things responsible for it, unknown to you. Have you tried eliminating the Vitamin C and L-lysine to see if your LDL goes back up?
NOTE: I just looked at my records. I have had changes of -18% and increases of 26% between sequential readings (every 6 months), with no known lifestyle changes. What to make of that? Some larger changes when I did changes lifestyle (diet, exercise).
I didn’t retire at 38 following what everyone else was doing. In fact when everyone goes one way it scares the heck out of me, and I tend to look for alternatives.
Sure, but we need to be careful how we apply that. Silly analogy to make a point: Every living person I know breathes. So is that a bad thing? IMO, you are painting with very broad brushes.
Again, I have NO problem with seeking alternatives. What I don't understand is why those alternatives are not held to the same standard of scrutiny for efficacy/risk as the mainstream approaches. If I am going to follow an alternative investment approach, I want some data to back my decision. Buying one penny stock and seeing it double does not mean buying penny stocks is a good plan.
A cardiologist I know swears by the niacin route, and tells me he would never take a statin. He’s retired and sailing around the world. So, what do we make of this?
Nothing. Again, a very small sample.
I hope it does not seem as if I'm trying to do battle with you here, Billy. Do as you see fit. I just have a tendency to question (and seek input) on claims that appear to go against my understanding of science, logic and statistics.
-ERD50