|
By
Dr. Ben Lerner
You cannot be common, The common man gets nowhere; You've
got to be uncommon--Herb Brooks, U.S. Olympic Team Hockey Coach
It's been a thrill for me to teach and adjust the U.S. Olympic
wrestling team over two Olympics and six World Championships. It's
been particularly thrilling because we've won four gold, six
silver and four bronze medals between Atlanta in 1996 and Sydney
in 2000 and numerous medals in the World Championships in which
I have participated.
The excitement that surrounds the Olympics is truly amazing. Thousands
of athletes and hundreds of thousands of spectators flew literally
all the way around the globe to represent or cheer for their country.
People painted their bodies and waved their flags with such awe-inspiring,
enthusiastic patriotism that it made me even prouder to be a human
being and gave me even greater hope for world peace and mankind.
All the super powers down to tiny African nations were there, walking
side by side without altercation in the spirit of fair competition
and peace.
Being the Best You Can Be
You cannot imagine my excitement watching one of the guys I have
been adjusting and helping to train for weeks, months and, in some
cases, years go out there and defeat the best opponent from another
country and go on to be crowned on the medal stand as they raise
your flag.
One thing I found in common with the American fans at both the
Atlanta and the Sydney Olympic games is that our typical cheer is
to point up your index finger and say, "We're Number 1!"
Unfortunately, as a doctor for the team, I couldn't help but
think of the fact that while we may or may not be Number 1 in all
of the events at the Olympics, this nation is consistently tops
in many other areas. For instance, we're consistently Number
1 in:
- Infant mortality
- Years of potential life lost
- Allergy, asthma and learning disorders in children
- Alzheimer's
- Diabetes
- Many forms of cancer
- Back surgery
- Intake of prescription and non-prescription drugs
We are regularly at or near the top of the world in all of the
Olympic events. This is due to the fact that our coaching and training
technologies are some of the best, if not the best in the world.
Therefore, our common, conventional wisdom on preparing athletes
for competition is a good one. On the other hand, we are at or near
the bottom of the world in all of the important health care statistics.
Therefore, our common, conventional wisdom on preparing people
to be healthy is a bad one. A very bad one ...
Although America makes up only 5 percent of the world's population,
it consumes well over 50 percent of the medication. If drugs worked
and made you healthier, that would mean America would be Number
1 and we would get the health gold medal.
Drugs Don't Work
A drug can be defined as any chemical compound that exists outside
the body that can stop, change or alter a function inside the body.
As a result, by definition, a drug does not produce health, just
an altered function. Of course, if you take any chemical in the
wrong combination, at the wrong time, or at the wrong dose, the
effects can be lethal. Despite the facts about chemicals, the common,
conventional wisdom in the United States is that drugs bring health.
Drugs used to boost sports performance are very hazardous because
they are engineered to cause radical changes in body function. The
International Olympic Committee (IOC) has identified numerous substances
that are potentially dangerous to an athlete's health or create
an unfair advantage in a particular sport or event.
Although the largest concern of all these drugs are steroids, many
of the other substances are as bad and more likely to be abused
because they are easier to obtain. More than 160 over-the-counter
medications and common prescription drugs contain substances that
are banned for use by the IOC.
The following is a short list of definitions and banned substances.
International Olympic Committee
Banned Substance Classifications (Sydney):
Drug: A chemical compound that
exists outside the body that can stop, change or alter function,
and when taken in excess can cause negative effects or death. (Same
definition as poison.)
Drug Doping
- CNS stimulants (includes Ritalin and over-the-counter cold,
cough, sinus, flu, sleeping, awaking and allergy drugs)
- Narcotics (which includes many common prescription pain-killers)
- Anabolic agents (many of which are found in common body-shaping
supplements)
- Diuretics
- Ephedra (ma huang) and high levels of caffeine (an overdose
of Starbucks)
- Red blood cell (RBC) blood doping
Restricted Drugs
- Alcohol
- Marijuana
- Local anesthetics
- Corticosteroids (cortisone)
- Beta-Adrenergic blockers (heart medication)--effect on cardiovascular
system: Decrease cardiac output, slow heart rate and decrease
function of CNS to heart. Lower performance but increase concentration
and lower anxiety: Archery, shooting, diving, etc.
- Blood doping: adding RBCs
- Specified Beta2-Adrenergic agonists--normally used for asthma,
stimulates CNS and speeds recovery
I am really proud to be an American and help to represent our country
at two Olympics. I was especially proud of the athletes I worked
on who decided to be "uncommon." They enhanced their health
and performance with cutting edge nutritional information, leading
weightlifting data, powerful mental preparation and all-natural,
Olympic-approved, Chiropractic care.
Like Coach Brooks says, if you want to win gold in the health competition,
"You've got to be uncommon."
Dr.
Ben Lerner, Dr. Greg Loman and Dr. Rob Schiffman have three
of the largest chiropractic centers in the history of the chiropractic
profession. Their organization, Teach The World About Chiropractic,
teaches a high-tech, vitalistic chiropractic approach to wellness
care. They also teach a God-centered lifestyle through Dr. Lerner's
New York Times Best Selling book, Body
by God: The Owner's Manual For Maximized Living.
| 