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America’s Top 5 Most Prescribed Drugs and Their Natural Counterparts

7/4/2013

6 Comments

 
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People in the U.S. take too many prescription drugs. That’s not a distortion of the truth – that’s a fact.  Let’s look at the statistics:

According to an IMS Institute report titled The Use of Medicines in the United States: Review of 2010 (published April 2011), Americans spent more than $307 billion on medicines in 2010.

This is out of control. That’s a ton of money to throw down the drain, especially considering that many medications merely mask symptoms instead of resolving the real issue.

If we’re going to spend that much money, I think we should spend it on something that will bring us real health - lasting changes, less side effects, less invasiveness.

Fortunately, there are plenty of natural alternative remedies to prescription drugs.
Here’s a list of America’s top 5 most commonly prescribed drugs and their natural counterparts:

The #5 most commonly prescribed drug in America: Amlodipine Besylate
What is it?
 An Angina/blood pressure drug. (Angina is chest pain or discomfort that occurs when the heart does not receive enough blood.)
# of prescriptions purchased in 2010: 57.2 million.
Natural alternative: Work with your integrative physician or doctor to create a personalized supplement regime based on your body’s specific needs. Increase your potassium intake to 500 mg per day (available in 1 banana, 1 cup of tomato juice, or 1 cup of coconut water) and/or magnesium intake to 200 mg per day. Taking 200 mg daily of Coenzyme Q10 – an antioxidant shown to lower blood pressure by dilating the blood vessels – may also help.

The #4 most commonly prescribed drug in America: Levothyroxine Sodium
What is it?
 A synthetic thyroid hormone intended to treat hypothyroidism – a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormone.
# of prescriptions purchased in 2010: 70.5 million
Natural alternative: Correct possible mineral deficiencies in your body by increasing consumption of iodine, iron, or selenium. A natural thyroid glandular supplement, such as BMR Complex by Integrative Therapeutics, may also help.

The #3 most commonly prescribed drug in America: Lisinopril
What is it?
 A blood pressure drug.
# of prescriptions purchased in 2010: 87.4 million
Natural alternative: Decrease your refined sugar intake, and increase your consumption of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables. Excessive sugar intake raises blood sugar, which is known to increase blood pressure. Fruits and veggies contain flavonoids – compounds that can dilate blood vessels, thereby lowering blood pressure.

The #2 most commonly prescribed drug in America: Simvastatin
What is it?
 A statin drug (i.e., a drug that lowers cholesterol). Statins stop your liver from producing cholesterol by blocking a specific enzyme.
# of prescriptions purchased in 2010: 94.1 million
Natural alternative: Improve your diet. Certain anti-inflammatory foods such as red wine, dark chocolate, garlic, and olive oil can lower the amount of  “bad” cholesterol (LDL) in your body, while raising the “good” cholesterol (HDL).

The #1 most commonly prescribed drug in America: Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen (e.g. Vicodin)
What is it?
 A pain killer.
# of prescriptions purchased in 2010: 131.2 million.
Natural alternative: Healing physical touch. Try getting healing massages, chiropractic therapy, and/or acupuncture. “Pain can be caused by an interference in our body’s nervous system,” says Sungwon D. Yoo, a chiropractor and acupuncturist, “so manipulating the body’s main nervous system channel to the brain—the spine—can help remedy aches.”

Now that you’re aware of natural alternatives to the top 5 most commonly prescribed drugs in America, you can make more informed choices when it comes to addressing any of the health ailments listed above.  As always, though - always check with your doctor before making any major medical decisions.  After all, your doctor knows you better than I do, unless I’m your doctor, of course!

After reading this article, do you think you’ll give natural therapies a try? Do you already find home natural remedies are more effective for you and your family than prescription drugs?  We welcome your comments on this blog.
6 Comments
Mike
1/25/2014 06:27:33 am

There is another alternative for the pain treatment that mentally and physically works better without having the thought of putting man-made chemicals into the body. It is a natural herb found in southeast Asia known as Kratom. This herbal product is all natural and organic that does not allow the body to build up a tolerance to it. Yes it does act as an opiod, its alkaloids in the plant bind to the same receptors as opiates do. The thing that I live about this plant is that it is great for people with chronic pain. Most doctors I have talked to say that this plant is harmful and can cause addiction. Lacking the evidence to prove this otherwise. I have been using this plant since 2002 since i no longer wanted to deal with the pills and chemicals. I can go for as long as I want without it and not have any kind of withdrawal whatsoever. It does give a little bit of a "opiate high" if taken at larger doses but people that do this intentionally for abuse are just stupid and should go ahead and rid themselves from the gene pool. It is definitely worth looking into and could possibly change your life as ot did mine.

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Mikaela
2/13/2014 08:11:20 am

Mike, thanks for the comment. How is this regulated in the United States? Any FDA or Department of Health warnings, etc.? Is the mechanism of action in the human body well understood?

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ganeshan link
10/25/2014 02:08:55 am

I use regularly Garlic , Ginger , Lemon , Curd , Dates for different symptoms whenever I feel bad to my health ..... I think someone need to know at what time these things can be use as your medicine .Do not use Lemon Curd same time . curd and dates(only 3 or 5 ) are very good combination for iron deficiency , Ginger and Lemon in warm water in early morning , Raw Garlic 3 pulse mince in warm lemon water ..... this is how I use Try it ..... Thanks

Dr. Char and Staff link
10/25/2014 09:23:23 pm

Hi Ganesha,

Thanks for the feedback on what you do personally. Just curious, at what times do you take your lemon/garlic drink and what kinds of results did you get from ingesting this combination? Please explain for the rest of us, thanks.

Reply
Ganesh link
11/2/2014 04:46:29 pm

I use garlic warm lemon juice in the morning after I finish my simple exercise , it is relieving heaviness in chest and body ,

Reply
GHO-AHK CORPORATION link
6/21/2021 07:13:20 pm

Hi. Thank you for sharing this very informative and useful article. Btw. I wanna share my experience about Genuine Haarlem Oil for Human since when I was started to using it for my health problems. Their products are very helpful both human and animals good for immune system booster.

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    Dr. Char is a holistic wellness practitioner, holistic dentist, and homeopathic physician.  He most often comments on the modern healthcare environment, holistic wellness, natural and alternative medicine, and noninvasive therapies for pain, disease, and discomfort.

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