His accusation came during a discussion concerning healthcare. Jim’s position was pretty simple: Government should stay the hell out of healthcare… period. After a few more statements along the same vein, I realized Jim, like many U.S. citizens, had taken the bait. By bait, I mean the propaganda that has become the faulty cornerstone of the so-called “healthcare” debate. What made me a radical in his eyes is that I didn’t accept it. I was interested in discussing “health” care… not “sick” care. Jim wanted to argue about government involvement, insurance companies, hospitals, drug companies and so on… politics.

When you stop listening to rhetoric and start looking at reality (facts and evidence), most “problems” start looking different. Healthcare is no exception. It has little to do with the issues being discussed in Washington or in the media.

Take heart disease. It kills 40% of Americans, more than any other injury or ailment… and it’s been doing so for years. So what is heart disease? One of the key components is plaque that builds up in the coronary arteries. If left untreated, it can completely block blood flow to the heart or rupture and form a blood clot causing a heart attack. Why does this happen? Some people have a genetic predisposition. Since my grandfathers died from heart attacks, and since my father has had three bypass surgeries, a stent and most recently, a pacemaker installed, I am one of those people. So I don’t take genetic predispositions lightly, but I also know genetics only set the stage and do not solely determine our fate.

Another indicator is cholesterol. If your cholesterol level is high, you’re at risk of heart disease. The great news… and the news that made me a radical in Jim’s eyes… is that you can avoid heart disease and most other major diseases as well through a “healthy” diet and lifestyle. Other than fish on occasion, I stopped eating meat several years ago. Within three months of doing so, my cholesterol levels dropped 60 points and have remained low ever since. A recent physical had my cholesterol level at 147 mg/dL (according to currently accepted medical belief it should be under 180).

I addressed the “health” problem… not the symptoms. I exercise and eat a plant-based diet… that’s real healthcare and that’s what Jim didn’t want to discuss. He was too focused on symptoms… not causes. It was after I pointed out the cost of typical bypass heart surgery and medical treatment vs. a healthy diet and lifestyle that he called me a radical.

As I enjoyed my wonderful vegetarian dinner, Jim washed down several pills including his high blood pressure and cholesterol medications before digging into his big chicken dinner with greasy fries. What more needed to be said? Since I value our friendship, I decided to change the subject.

When you look at the typical American diet and lifestyle, the health “problem” becomes pretty clear… so does the “solution.” Surgeries and medications address  symptoms… not the root problem. If looking at reality and making intelligent choices that violate or threaten the status quo makes me a radical… then so be it. I proudly accept the title.

The act of automatically rejecting facts without thought or real consideration is sometimes referred to as the Semmelweis reflex… or “Semmelweis effect.” The name comes from Ignaz Semmelweis, a Hungarian physician who, in 1847, discovered that when maternity doctors washed their hands with a chlorinated-lime solution, the incidence of a type of sepsis related to childbirth was significantly reduced. So here’s where the “reflex”/“effect” part comes in: Despite his efforts and the obvious evidence showing that hand-washing reduced mortality below 1%, Semmelweis’ practice wasn’t accepted until years after his death. Furthermore, in 1865, Semmelweis had a mental breakdown and ended up in an asylum, where he died at age 47.

How could this happen? It’s simple. During his lifetime, Semmelweis’ observations and evidence conflicted with the established beliefs of the day. Medical books and doctors back then were focused on bloodletting as a primary treatment for disease… and in contrast to the evidence, they “believed” bloodletting was the best treatment.

Like today, facts regarding healthcare weren’t discussed back then either. Ironically, if America’s healthcare debate were taking place back in the 1800’s, the arguments would be centered on who qualified for bloodletting and who was going to pay for it!

The real healthcare crisis today is denial, complacency, ignorance and greed. The epidemic America faces is people’s inability or unwillingness to change their beliefs to align with reality.

America has the most obese people in the world. In addition to heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, a recent study shows a strong connection to obesity and certain cancers as well. When you look at the typical American diet (fast food, meat, refined sugar and flour, enriched processed junk and microwave dinners) combined with a sedentary lifestyle, the healthcare crisis is far from mysterious.

In his book, The Game of Life, Timothy Leary, provided this polemic definition of Semmelweis reflex: “Mob behavior found among primates and larval hominids on undeveloped planets, in which a discovery of important scientific fact is punished.” I think Leary’s quote sheds light on today’s healthcare debate.

While I plan to keep on discussing the important role diet and lifestyle play in one’s health, I don’t plan to go crazy hoping everyone will believe empirical evidence : )