The Non-Debatable Science of Chronic Illness: Let’s Bring It Home

I read an article recently about how researchers at the University of Iowa Health Care Carver College of Medicine found that vitamin C increased the survival rate of patients with late-stage metastatic pancreatic cancer. Vitamin C, an inexpensive, well-known vitamin, is effective at killing cancer cells, according to the lead researcher.

This took me back more than 40 years to one of the first books I ever read – Vitamin C and the Common Cold by Linus Pauling, which was published in 1970. Pauling claimed vitamin C prevents and alleviates episodes of the common cold. He was proven correct through clinical research. 

Linus Pauling was named one of the 20 greatest scientists in history by New Scientist. He is the only person to ever win two unshared Nobel Prizes – for chemistry in 1954 and for peace in 1962.

Linus Pauling was also essentially blackballed by the medical and pharmaceutical establishment for having the audacity to say that food is medicine. Nutraceuticals, lifestyle change, healthy exercise, and stress reduction contribute to good health, while highly processed foods are toxic and cause chronic illness. 

Those of us in the functional medicine community who have stood on the shoulders of Linus Pauling for decades have been similarly dismissed by corporate healthcare, big pharma, and big food companies that profit from chronic illness. 

Of course, basic biology, physiology, and biochemistry have not changed since Linus Pauling was awarded his first Nobel Price 71 years ago. The Pyramid of Health and Triad of Health that form the foundation of Natural Healthcare Center’s integrative approach to care have not changed since the center opened in 2003.

This is not alternative healthcare. This is simply the most effective way to take care of yourself and your family.

I’m grateful that these conversations are finally happening in our federal government on a national scale. People are actually talking about limiting or banning hydrogenated corn oils and high-fructose corn syrup like other countries have already done. These and other manmade substances have been scientifically proven to make people sick.

Unfortunately, most people would rather yell at the TV and fight each other than examine a problem objectively and identify a science-based solution.

I suggest turning off the TV. Meaningful change must begin at home with the decisions we make every day.

People typically spend the vast majority of their lives within five miles of home. Where do you live? Where do you shop for food? What are you buying? How are you preparing meals for your family?

Where do you work? How are you managing stress? Where do your kids go to school? What are you and your children eating for meals and snacks at home, school, and work?

When it comes to vaccines, for example, there are strong cases on both sides that make the topic worthy of respectful debate centered on scientific evidence. 

When it comes to our food supply, lifestyle choices, and chronic illness, the facts are non-debatable. You can’t look at scientific data about chronic illness from the past 50 years and argue that processed foods are just fine, a sedentary lifestyle is just fine, and prescription medication will make us healthier. 

Let’s bring these conversations to our living rooms and kitchen tables. Become better educated and build health literacy in your family. Start making more informed health and lifestyle choices at home, one person and one family at a time. 

That’s how we’ll create a society that can feel better, function better, and live longer.