Dr. Robert Drapkin addresses the state of healthcare in the U.S. and offers a solution in his new book, Over 40 and Sexy as Hell!.
The current medical culture in the United States focuses on treating the symptoms of the sick and does little to prevent to most common chronic diseases that are the leading causes of death. They are completely preventable.
Tampa Bay, FL (PRWEB) March 08, 2016
Prescription medication use continues to climb among adults; however, Dr. Robert Drapkin, MD, board certified physician in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology and Palliative Care, says that dependency on prescription medication is not part and parcel of healthy aging. Per Dr. Drapkin, prescription medications hide the disease, rather than cure it, giving the patient a false sense of security and enabling him to continue unhealthy lifestyle habits. The septuagenarian has recently published a book entitled Over 40 & Sexy as Hell! urging Americans to make healthy lifestyle choices and get rid of unnecessary medications.
A Mayo Clinic survey found that almost 70% of all Americans take at least one prescription drug, and more than half of Americans take two or more prescription drugs. (1) Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), medications for cardiovascular disease and high cholesterol are the most common prescription drugs among adults. (2)
“Many people are told that the symptoms they feel are part of 'growing old' when they are not,” says Dr. Drapkin. “The current medical culture in the United States focuses on treating the symptoms of the sick and does little to prevent to most common chronic diseases that are the leading causes of death. They are completely preventable.” Dr. Drapkin lays out four warning signs that are commonly mistaken for “part of the aging process” in his book.
- Difficulty falling asleep. This is likely due to stress and the subsequent elevation of the “stress hormone,” cortisol. Sleep is your body’s method of recovering from daily stress, but if the stress is too great, cortisol levels remain high and insomnia results.
- Getting shorter. Your height decreases because your bones are losing calcium due to a dietary lack of calcium (poor nutrition) or a Vitamin D deficiency. These nutritional deficiencies allow your spinal bones to flatten (compression fractures). Adult height loss can also be caused by curvature of the spine (kyphosis), which is due to nutritional deficiencies as noted above, as well as muscle weakness.
- Your body is shaped like an apple, with abdominal girth (waist size) being bigger than hip measurements. Visceral body fat accumulates around the waist and correlates well with the development of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and coronary heart disease.
- Little energy. Fatigue can be caused by a variety of problems, such as low thyroid, low testosterone, poor nutrition, and/or abnormal metabolism.
Over 40 & Sexy as Hell! addresses these warning signs and delineates the solutions as to what to do if they should occur.
“It's essential to listen to what your body is telling you. Many problems could be handled through a change in diet, proper exercise and the appropriate supplements,” adds Dr. Drapkin. “Both today's society and the fitness industry as a whole are permeated with myths about diets, health, and fitness. Some of these myths are innocuous, while some are flat out harmful.”
Through his book, Dr. Drapkin seeks to debunk these health myths and provide proper solutions for those in search of healthy aging.
In addition to literally writing the book on the subject, Dr. Drapkin practices what he preaches. Inspired by his own unhealthy habits and his sick patients, Dr. Drapkin went from living an unhealthy lifestyle to educating himself on diet and exercise and became a premier bodybuilder at an age when most people think their health should be declining. Now, at 70, Dr. Drapkin is an active world-class bodybuilder. Dr. Drapkin has placed in the top five in six out of the last seven shows that he has participated in dating back to 2009.
Over 40 & Sexy as Hell! is currently available for Kindle and in paperback on Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Over-40-Sexy-as-Hell-ebook/dp/B01BQN6CBA.
About Robert Drapkin, M.D., F.A.C.P.:
Robert Drapkin, M.D., is a health care provider who is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology and Palliative Care. He is in active practice, working to save lives and improve quality of life through the education of his patients. He provides up-to-date knowledge and guides his patients through their illnesses, exercises and diets. He has been in active practice as a doctor for over 36 years. Dr. Drapkin is currently 70 years old, and started training as a bodybuilder when he was in his fifties. He has been a competitive body builder for 17 years, and has won many titles and contests. He recently trained for a national event in July, 2015. Dr. Drapkin is the author of the book Over 40 and Sexy as Hell! available on Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Over-40-Sexy-as-Hell-ebook/dp/B01BQN6CBA. For more information, visit http://drrobertmdfacp.com.
(1) “Studies Show 70 Percent of Americans Take Prescription Drugs”. CBS News; June 20, 2013. cbsnews.com/news/study-shows-70-percent-of-americans-take-prescription-drugs/
(2) “Theraputic Drug Use.” WebMD.com; February 3, 2016. cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/drug-use-therapeutic.htm