Does informed medical consent really exist?

(NaturalNews) It could be argued that informed consent establishes the basis of any doctor patient relationship. It is defined as permission given to a physician to perform any type of treatment after the patient has been told all of the possible risks and benefits of that treatment. It is permission granted with full knowledge of possible outcomes.

This implies what we often forget - that we are responsible for our health (and our children's health). We hire and consult with health care providers, we ask for and receive their learned opinions, and then we make our own decisions based on the information we are given.

There are three issues that impact informed consent

1. Too often we pay no attention to risk factors, blindly believing that the FDA would not approve a drug that would hurt or kill us or our doctor would not recommend a treatment that would hurt or kill us.
2. Our health care provider does not give us the full facts with all of the possible side effects.
3. Our health care provider does not know all of the side effects or does not know the statistical probability of an adverse outcome.

There is inherent risk in using any drug, from over-the-counter pain relievers to prescription drugs, including vaccines. Each is accompanied by information that lists ingredients, proper usage, warnings, and potential side effects. We, as consumers, tend to ignore this information.

Every drug commercial on TV talks about how safe and effective their drug is, and yet, at the end of the commercial, the announcer quickly runs through a frightening list of potential side effects. Often death is one of the potential outcomes. And yet, when all is said and done, the only words most of us remember are "safe and effective."

Pharmaceutical companies do not have a good track record for consumer safety. They do have a well-documented history of putting profits above all else. These same companies that have paid billions and billions of dollars in fines for fraud are the same companies that provide the list of potential side effects or adverse reactions for their drugs. They have been fined for encouraging doctors to use prescriptions for conditions the drugs were never tested for or approved to treat. In other words, even our health care providers are lied to and information is withheld from them that is therefore never passed down to us.

Your Health, Your Responsibility

Whether you follow the practices of alternative medicine or conventional medicine, your health is your responsibility. Do not make any hasty decisions when faced with treatment options.

Many drug information sheets list side effects and then state that your physician is recommending this drug because he or she has determined that the benefits of this drug outweigh the risks. Deciding whether the benefits outweigh the risks is not and should never be your physician's role. You need to be the one to make that decision. You need to know the facts and make truly informed decisions, taking full responsibility for your health.

Health is Gained and Maintained through a Healthy Diet

A diet low in toxins and high in nutrients provides the basis of health. A truly healthy diet, whether vegan, vegetarian, or omnivorous, is a plant-based diet. A full 80% of the food you eat should be fresh, raw, organic produce - more vegetables than fruit. Your diet should be as clean as possible with no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives, no MSG, GMOs, artificial sweeteners, trans fats, or refined sugar.

A truly healthy diet is packed with nutrient dense, whole foods, healthy fats, plenty of clean water and the best nutritional supplements. If you are ill and you have not been eating a clean, healthy diet, your gut health is a primary, immediate concern because Candida overgrowth and a leaky gut is probably undermining your health.

To learn more about a healthy diet read the 80% Raw Food Diet. Also, be sure to check out how to detox from vaccinations, and how to detox from antibiotics.

Sources:

http://www.organiclifestylemagazine.com

http://truthwiki.org/Medical_Kidnapping

http://truthwiki.org/Vaccine_Fanaticism

About the author:
Allene Edwards first became interested in alternative medicine and holistic treatment modalities when she successfully used diet therapy to manage her children�s ADHD. Later when she became chronically ill with an auto-immune disease that multiple doctors could not identify, much less cure, she successfully treated both the symptoms and the cause through naturopathic treatment and nutrition. She is the Managing Editor of Organic Lifestyle Magzine and a regular contributor.