Few people in American history have saved more lives than Dr. Sidney Wolfe. Dr. Wolfe and his small staff at the Health Research Group of Public Citizen have taken on Big Pharma and the FDA to pull over two dozen dangerous drugs and countless hazardous medical devices off the market, not to mention putting numerous incompetent doctors out of business. Over the course of his storied career, Sid worked relentlessly for workplace safety and with his best-selling book and subsequent newsletter
Ralph talked about prevention. Sounds like Sid was a big proponent of prevention.
Nothing does more for prevention than a whole food plant based lifestyle.
It'll be a great day in our country when processed food, meat, and dairy is heavily taxed and fresh fruit, plants, vegetables, and whole foods are heavily subsidized.
It'll be a great day in our country when entrepreneurs are given tax credits for bringing whole food plant based living to people. In particular, areas of the country such as the south where people are in the poorest health.
Speaking of the south. North Carolina and Mississippi and other red states are full of poultry and pork industrial farms. These operations use heavy amounts of chemicals that they dump into the atmosphere and waterways. They get away with it because red states don't believe in regulations. When it rains in these states, it literally rains down chemicals on citizens. It's criminal.
Just like Gaza, Americans have been lied to about food and health for years. Generations. Americans have been told meat is good for them. Or the famous dairy commercial, "Got Milk"? Someone should put out a commercial called "Got Evidence"?
Ever notice when you go into a gas station (where are really just junk food dispensaries) much junk food is stacked near the cash register? This should be heavily taxed.
There's a reason why it's against the law to publish critical information of meat operations. It's because the meat industry has bought off the politicians, same as the Israel Lobby has done.
Or go into a hospital cafeteria to see how much junk food is sold and cooked. The hospitals are getting paid to fix your health problem, and to create new health problems. Hospitals are where you go to die. Live your life to avoid them.
It'll be a great day when I can upload my BMI, height, weight, and vitals to get a discount on my health insurance.
I believe the annual cost of lifestyle disease is over $1 trillion now. Experts have estimated that this annual cost could be cut by 60% with whole food plant based living.
I believe more than half of the American population is now obese, defined as their BMI is 30+. Big food is literally killing Americans.
Here's to hoping Ralph does more podcasts on this. In the name of Sid.
"It'll be a great day when I can upload my BMI, height, weight, and vitals to get a discount on my health insurance."
It'll be an even better day when the concept of health insurance is replaced with a comprehensive public healthcare system such as what the UK has with their decades-old National Health Service. This is completely achievable right now in the US and that would eliminate the need for healthcare 'discounts'.
That said, there are many good points and observations made about the pervasiveness of unhealthy food. This is not just a US issue, China has almost 5,000 McDonald's locations. Japan has almost 3,000. France, Germany, and Canada have around 1,500 McDonald's in each country. England alone has over 1,000 McDonald's locations. That's just mentioning one source of less than ideal food. The positive message is that at least there are many policy directives which can be taken, and ways to fund them, to make meaningful change.
The UK’s National Health Service is under attack by its own government with for-profit health insurance waiting in the wings. Making the change for the US would be a huge push against hungry corporations with an army of lobbyists and media hounds. I don’t think Americans really get how hard the change would be to make *and* hold on to. We need to be able to shift the idea that our health is something that can be asset stripped. I think the era of Sidney Wolfe was a period of pushing back against ill health management. A different era than what’s ahead. Who will be the next SId Wolfe?
I partially agree with the statement that the UK’s NHS is under attack by the Tories and Starmer’s Labour Party. There is a lot of nibbling around the edges of the NHS in attempt to privatize aspects of it, but the NHS is loved by the citizens of the UK and even the most ardent austerity merchants in the UK know that there’s only so much that can be done with the NHS. After all, the NHS did survive the otherwise crippling neoliberalism of Thatcher and New Labour.
The NHS is much like Social Security in the US or any number of socialized aspects of US society. There are always attempts to undermine it, with some success by the neoliberals such as with Medicare Advantage, but these programs will never be eliminated entirely since they are so loved by the public. Sometimes the public votes against these programs with the thought that they are actually supporting it by voting for corrupt figures like what will probably happen in the UK with Keir Starmer and his austerity policies. That is always a problem, but ultimately, support for the NHS in the UK is extremely high and so Starmer’s probable austerity efforts will be less focused on the NHS than other areas.
As far for things here in the US, not only is there corporate resistance to healthcare reform in the US, but individual doctors, and the AMA broadly, are quite resistant to NHS-like single-provider healthcare reform. In fact, this might well be the biggest barrier to reform.
Thank you for the program referencing antimicrobial resistance. This should be something that should be stressed since the country has gone through an economic debilitating pandemic, now down graded to endemic status.
To aid in this endeavor the CDC has required many hospitals to have an antimicrobial stewardship. It is required by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, Infectious Disease Society of America. And it seems rural based hospitals may not have enough funding for this on site and fall between the cracks, and if it can be done onsite they should do it remotely via telemedicine, still falls between the cracks
The antibiotic stewardship consensus paper goals/ guidelines are:
1. Reduce Clostridium Difficile infections
2. Reduce rates of antibiotic suscetibility to specific antibiotic therapy
3. Patient outcomes which should also include monitoring/ maintenance
4. Reduce health disparities/ inequity
The antibiotic stewardship states:
1. We can’t rely on didactic training only
2. Doctors require pre authorization for antibiotics/ audits
3. Faculty specific guidelines for clinical practice
4. Stewardship should target specific infections
5. AIDS in dosing, duration, routes of administration
These antimicrobial stewardship are important due to rates of gram negative infections such pseudomonas aeruginosa in the inpatient units, not to mention MRSA horrors
References:
CDC
Infectious disease society of America
It is encouraging to hear about folks that see the actual picture and not the ignorance many choose to respond to.
This was a very good tribute and good program. I would wish that many medical schools would enlighten their curricula with. public interest physicians as a career pathway and recognize achievements/possibilities of Dr. Sidney Wolfe. He definitely has encouraged me in this field via this program.
Excellent program as usual. Unfortunately the pharmaceutical companies have hijacked the healthcare system which looks a lot more like sickcare to me. Statins have proven to be largely ineffective with many nasty side effects, just one example of poor health protocols that many doctors are made to recommend. https://johnmandrola.substack.com/p/why-i-changed-my-mind-about-preventing
Let's not forget that Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, said that our foods should be our medicines, not highly profitable, powerful drugs where natural health and healing are hijacked to treat the symptoms for quick results. Americans are largely overweight and prone to lifestyle diseases.
Still I have not seen this substack site address the alarming signals that the covid vaccines have been showing in many studies and much statistical data that has been coming out. Here is a summary by the inventor of the optical mouse: https://kirschsubstack.com/p/a-summary-of-the-evidence-against
Rest In Power, Sid.
Ralph talked about prevention. Sounds like Sid was a big proponent of prevention.
Nothing does more for prevention than a whole food plant based lifestyle.
It'll be a great day in our country when processed food, meat, and dairy is heavily taxed and fresh fruit, plants, vegetables, and whole foods are heavily subsidized.
It'll be a great day in our country when entrepreneurs are given tax credits for bringing whole food plant based living to people. In particular, areas of the country such as the south where people are in the poorest health.
Speaking of the south. North Carolina and Mississippi and other red states are full of poultry and pork industrial farms. These operations use heavy amounts of chemicals that they dump into the atmosphere and waterways. They get away with it because red states don't believe in regulations. When it rains in these states, it literally rains down chemicals on citizens. It's criminal.
Just like Gaza, Americans have been lied to about food and health for years. Generations. Americans have been told meat is good for them. Or the famous dairy commercial, "Got Milk"? Someone should put out a commercial called "Got Evidence"?
Ever notice when you go into a gas station (where are really just junk food dispensaries) much junk food is stacked near the cash register? This should be heavily taxed.
There's a reason why it's against the law to publish critical information of meat operations. It's because the meat industry has bought off the politicians, same as the Israel Lobby has done.
Or go into a hospital cafeteria to see how much junk food is sold and cooked. The hospitals are getting paid to fix your health problem, and to create new health problems. Hospitals are where you go to die. Live your life to avoid them.
It'll be a great day when I can upload my BMI, height, weight, and vitals to get a discount on my health insurance.
I believe the annual cost of lifestyle disease is over $1 trillion now. Experts have estimated that this annual cost could be cut by 60% with whole food plant based living.
I believe more than half of the American population is now obese, defined as their BMI is 30+. Big food is literally killing Americans.
Here's to hoping Ralph does more podcasts on this. In the name of Sid.
"It'll be a great day when I can upload my BMI, height, weight, and vitals to get a discount on my health insurance."
It'll be an even better day when the concept of health insurance is replaced with a comprehensive public healthcare system such as what the UK has with their decades-old National Health Service. This is completely achievable right now in the US and that would eliminate the need for healthcare 'discounts'.
That said, there are many good points and observations made about the pervasiveness of unhealthy food. This is not just a US issue, China has almost 5,000 McDonald's locations. Japan has almost 3,000. France, Germany, and Canada have around 1,500 McDonald's in each country. England alone has over 1,000 McDonald's locations. That's just mentioning one source of less than ideal food. The positive message is that at least there are many policy directives which can be taken, and ways to fund them, to make meaningful change.
The UK’s National Health Service is under attack by its own government with for-profit health insurance waiting in the wings. Making the change for the US would be a huge push against hungry corporations with an army of lobbyists and media hounds. I don’t think Americans really get how hard the change would be to make *and* hold on to. We need to be able to shift the idea that our health is something that can be asset stripped. I think the era of Sidney Wolfe was a period of pushing back against ill health management. A different era than what’s ahead. Who will be the next SId Wolfe?
Edye Hoffmann,
I partially agree with the statement that the UK’s NHS is under attack by the Tories and Starmer’s Labour Party. There is a lot of nibbling around the edges of the NHS in attempt to privatize aspects of it, but the NHS is loved by the citizens of the UK and even the most ardent austerity merchants in the UK know that there’s only so much that can be done with the NHS. After all, the NHS did survive the otherwise crippling neoliberalism of Thatcher and New Labour.
The NHS is much like Social Security in the US or any number of socialized aspects of US society. There are always attempts to undermine it, with some success by the neoliberals such as with Medicare Advantage, but these programs will never be eliminated entirely since they are so loved by the public. Sometimes the public votes against these programs with the thought that they are actually supporting it by voting for corrupt figures like what will probably happen in the UK with Keir Starmer and his austerity policies. That is always a problem, but ultimately, support for the NHS in the UK is extremely high and so Starmer’s probable austerity efforts will be less focused on the NHS than other areas.
As far for things here in the US, not only is there corporate resistance to healthcare reform in the US, but individual doctors, and the AMA broadly, are quite resistant to NHS-like single-provider healthcare reform. In fact, this might well be the biggest barrier to reform.
Thank you for the program referencing antimicrobial resistance. This should be something that should be stressed since the country has gone through an economic debilitating pandemic, now down graded to endemic status.
To aid in this endeavor the CDC has required many hospitals to have an antimicrobial stewardship. It is required by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, Infectious Disease Society of America. And it seems rural based hospitals may not have enough funding for this on site and fall between the cracks, and if it can be done onsite they should do it remotely via telemedicine, still falls between the cracks
The antibiotic stewardship consensus paper goals/ guidelines are:
1. Reduce Clostridium Difficile infections
2. Reduce rates of antibiotic suscetibility to specific antibiotic therapy
3. Patient outcomes which should also include monitoring/ maintenance
4. Reduce health disparities/ inequity
The antibiotic stewardship states:
1. We can’t rely on didactic training only
2. Doctors require pre authorization for antibiotics/ audits
3. Faculty specific guidelines for clinical practice
4. Stewardship should target specific infections
5. AIDS in dosing, duration, routes of administration
These antimicrobial stewardship are important due to rates of gram negative infections such pseudomonas aeruginosa in the inpatient units, not to mention MRSA horrors
References:
CDC
Infectious disease society of America
It is encouraging to hear about folks that see the actual picture and not the ignorance many choose to respond to.
This was a very good tribute and good program. I would wish that many medical schools would enlighten their curricula with. public interest physicians as a career pathway and recognize achievements/possibilities of Dr. Sidney Wolfe. He definitely has encouraged me in this field via this program.
More on Dr. Wolf
https://www.democracynow.org/2024/1/5/ralph_nader_on_the_rebellious_ceo
Note there are 3 other episodes available on this site (right side bar)
As a disillusioned RN it was wonderful hearing about this exceptional heroic doctor who took the do no harm mandate to heart.
Excellent program as usual. Unfortunately the pharmaceutical companies have hijacked the healthcare system which looks a lot more like sickcare to me. Statins have proven to be largely ineffective with many nasty side effects, just one example of poor health protocols that many doctors are made to recommend. https://johnmandrola.substack.com/p/why-i-changed-my-mind-about-preventing
https://metatron.substack.com/p/cholesterol-and-statins
Let's not forget that Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, said that our foods should be our medicines, not highly profitable, powerful drugs where natural health and healing are hijacked to treat the symptoms for quick results. Americans are largely overweight and prone to lifestyle diseases.
Still I have not seen this substack site address the alarming signals that the covid vaccines have been showing in many studies and much statistical data that has been coming out. Here is a summary by the inventor of the optical mouse: https://kirschsubstack.com/p/a-summary-of-the-evidence-against