Nutrition vs Medication: The Happy Medium.

Many people are extremists when it comes to medication, or natural. I personally know many people who take medication for everything, and just as many who will not touch medication even if there is nothing else that will help. Personally I like to think there is a happy medium and I like to think I am in it. This proposal is to show how to be a part of that happy medium, and why it is the best way to go. It can be hard to find the happy medium, but here is the best way I have found.

We all have our personal views when it comes to medicine and natural resources. Often many people are extremists and not very open to other points of views. Some people are all about Medication, and too much of it can ruin the system. Some people are all about Natural, and some things need medication because it can cause worse problems if not taken care of.

Many people have one of two views, Extreme Natural, and Extreme Medical. Unfortunately, most people have their views and don’t consider the other side. Here are the two extremes in which most people fall into.

If you are a medical extremist, then this may be what your views are. You also need to consider that too much medication can kill your body system. Ibuprofen and Tylenol (two of the most common over the counter drugs) slowly kill your liver and kidneys. If you just have a small headache, don’t take Tylenol, but use peppermint oil and lavender to put on your head, or even just smell. It helps just as much! If you need an anti-inflammatory, use fish oil instead of ibuprofen. I completely agree with using medication for some things though. Take strep throat for instance. If you let it run its course it can cause deeper problems and mess up your body even more. So why not take a round of antibiotics?

If you are an extremist for natural things these may be your views. You may realize that oils are amazing for us. You may also let harmful sicknesses run their course. If you or your child gets ear infections, then you may stick a little bit of garlic oil in their ear and give them peppermint for the pain and just let it go. But if the ear infection is bad enough the ear drum will burst so the ear can drain and you will now have scar tissue forming in the ear. This is not good for the ear in any way. If the answer to this is ruin the ear or take a round on antibiotics, take the antibiotics. A way to counter the antibiotics is to take probiotics when you are done. The antibiotics take out more than they should, so the probiotics will put it back when done.

Choosing the happy medium can be a lot of work, but it can be very rewarding too. There are many dos and don'ts. Vitamins and supplements are great for you, but some are only meant for women, and some are only meant for men. Women tend to need a lot more iron than men, therefore a woman’s supplement will not be good for a man. Medication can help you in so many ways, but a doctor may give you a medication that will cost a fortune that you could buy over the counter. A doctor may tell you need every shot created, so you could go home and see what each one is for, and decide what is truly needed. He may tell you to get a chickenpox shot, but if you have already had them there is no reason to.  A friend who knows everything about every supplement may say that you need to take biotin because it helps your hair and nails grow better, but you already have luscious hair and thick nails which means your biotin levels are great! Why would you take something you don’t need? As I stated before it can be a lot of work to be in the happy medium, but whatever you do, DO NOT GIVE UP! It is so rewarding in the end, and it helps you live a great life.

Here are just a few things you can do to help with everything I have previously mentioned.

1. Schedules are amazing at any stage in life and especially when we are crazily busy adults. If we plan out our week we can make sure we have time to cook meals, we make sure we take our medication and supplements, and we are sure to have enough time for everything which helps with stress levels. Scheduling also ensures that we get enough sleep which is very important for our health.
2. Meal plans make life just a little bit easier when we utilize them. If you can plan out your meals for the week and know what you will make each night it helps when grocery shopping, when making sure you have everything for dinner, and it helps us eat healthy because we then know what we are doing for dinner and don’t go grab some fast food. Meal plans also help for when we need food for lunch at work. If we have a meal plan for each night, that means we have left overs for each day too.
3. Do you ever forget to take your medication or your supplements? I know I do! Setting an alarm every day at the same time helps you to get into the habit of taking them every day. Having an alarm can be annoying if it goes off when you are busy, but it is nice when you haven’t taken them and it is necessary to!

There are many costs to this, but they are costs you would be paying no matter what path you choose, they would just be in different areas. One major area would be yearly checkups. If you have insurance then I believe these are a great idea, but if not then you won’t die without them. Eating healthy is definitely more expensive, but it can prevent you from getting overweight which can cause other things, it can also prevent diseases when you are older. Some supplements can be expensive but they can also be very helpful at times so it is worth it. If you work out and you prefer to use machines then a gym is not a bad idea, but it can get expensive. Some are about $10 a month, and some are close to $100 a month. Or you can buy the free weights for your home and go running outside or buy a treadmill for your home. The last price I have up here is not monetary, but it is a price you have to pay. Eating healthy can become time consuming when you are in school and work. The best way I have heard is to devote Sundays (or any day) to doing meal prep for the next week so all you need to do is grab things on the go, or stick it in the oven/ on the stove to cook it. There is no definite amount, it differs for everyone. The price is definitely worth it though!

There are so many benefits of eating healthy, exercising, and medication. Eating healthy Helps us feel all around better, and happier. It can help someone who is depressed to get out of depression. It also gives us more energy because we are burning fat and getting energy from that. The saying “Abs are made in the kitchen” means that most of weight loss is a result of healthy eating. Lower weight, and more energy can help lower risk of disease. Also eating healthy instead of processed foods and lots of bad sugars and bad fats can help prevent diseases too.  If you have horrible allergies that you need medication for, it is helpful to take the medication because it can prevent worse sickness such as sinus infections. Exercise helps burn fat which gives you more energy. So even though you feel tired after a hard workout, you actually will have more energy in the end. Because you sweat so much while working out you actually sweat out toxins in your body.