Profit vs. Ethics in the Big Pharma View of Business

From a strictly financial perspective, it may be considered a good business strategy for a pharmaceutical company to generate billions of dollars in profits for a particular product, even if they end up paying millions of dollars in fines or lawsuits. However, this viewpoint does not take into account the ethical considerations and potential harm that may result from the company’s actions. We have seen this play out many times in recent years as some very large pharma corps have been fined substantial amounts, but are still allowed to operate and profit. I am not sure how this works exactly, so I did some research.

I would think that it is important for companies to operate with integrity and ethical principles, and to prioritize the safety and well-being of their customers. When companies engage in practices that result in harm or violate regulations, they may face legal consequences and negative publicity that can damage their reputation and erode public trust.

Furthermore, paying fines or settling lawsuits does not necessarily address the underlying issues that led to the misconduct in the first place. Companies should focus on improving their practices and ensuring that their products are safe and effective, rather than solely on maximizing profits. However, we all pretty much know that in the US world of healthcare, most of the money is gained in treating the sick rather than preventing illness. Money talks and bullshit walks.

In summary, while generating significant profits may be a goal for many companies, it is important to consider the ethical implications of their actions and prioritize the safety and well-being of their customers. Engaging in misconduct that results in fines or lawsuits may not be a sustainable or ethical business strategy in the long run. In spite of this concept, big pharma has done pretty well for itself, especially during the recent COVID-19 pandemic where record profits were reported, while being exempt from any liability from its mass distribution of products to counter its infection.

References:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-28212223

https://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/news/2016/03/31/gsk-pfe-bms-nvs-pay-most-in-fines.html

https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/features/these-were-the-biggest-pharmaceutical-deals-in-early-2022/

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Jim Moltzan

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The Weakest Hand & Wrist Positions

These graphic below images show the various hand and wrist positioning that aside form self-defense applications, are common positions that people accidentally fall onto while trying to mitigate falls. Further down, this page details various exercises to help increase strength, flexibility, and dexterity of the wrists, hands and fingers. One can practice these exercises as a form of preventive maintenance.

At the root of all physical conditioning exercises is some level of self-induced or “strategic trauma.” While practice these exercises there maybe some pain and discomfort, which as a positive attribute stimulates the nervous system.

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Jim Moltzan407-234-0119

www.MindAndBodyExercises.com www.Amazon.com/author/jimmoltzan

Head, Stomach, Feet (learn – process – implement)

Many years ago, I was introduced to this concept of “Head, Stomach, Feet,” a Taoist philosophy taught to me by my martial arts teachers. Me and my peers of that time were instructed to use our eyes, ears, nose, taste and touch/feel to observe what was being presented to us. This might have been a particular self-defense technique, exercise method, herbal recipe or maybe complex theories on energetic anatomy, kinesiology or self-awareness and realization. Over some time and repetition of diligent practice, we would be tasked with processing the information and “make it ours.” As even more time, effort and practice was accumulated, we would be able to more wisely discern how we were to use this valuable knowledge, whether for our own benefit or those we also taught, or others we cared to share with.

This concept need not be kept unique to martial arts, but rather utilized by anyone willing to dissect how they themselves learn something new with the intent on putting it to use later. How can we expect to teach someone else something that we ourselves do not fully understand? Can a parent truly teach their child about algebra, nutrition, fitness, stress management, etc., that they themselves have not learned and experienced on some level? Can a sports coach teach players proper form and technique if they have not personally experienced and benefited from such practices? Similarly would someone pursue learning about health, wellness and fitness, from a teacher who themselves is not healthy? Or even trust a healthcare professional that is not an example of what they preach to others about healthcare?

Head: Observe, Learn

The body’s Brain” is the commander of the central nervous system (CNS) that manages most physiological body functions. Input from the sensory organs provides stimulus for the brain to process in order to sustain life, with relative health and happiness.

Stomach: Contemplate, Process, Digest

The body’s “second Brain” is the enteric nervous system (ENS) that manages the gut. This extensive network uses the same chemicals and cells as the brain to help us digest not just food, but sensory input to alert the brain when something is out of order or awry.

Feet: Implement, Put Into Action

Once the brain observes stimulus, and then processes this input, other thought processes determine the “how and why’s” of putting this input either into short-term memory (STM) for immediate usage or stored into long-term memory (LTM) for later access.

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Jim Moltzan

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www.MindAndBodyExercises.com

www.Amazon.com/author/jimmoltzan

How to Increase Hand Grip Strength – No Gym Required

Most people do not exercise, only about 25% of the US population. Of those that do, very few exercise for specific outcomes beyond building muscle strength, cardiovascular health and maybe some light stretching for flexibility and range of motion. What about exercising for breath control, vestibular balance (inner ear), symmetry of left/right. top/bottom, inside/outside, coordination, mobility of the fingers and toes? Most people just don’t put attention to these areas until they start to have issues and then they might look into addressing these imbalances. Very important but often neglected is hand grip strength. When the hand grip is weak, people are less likely to hold onto weights during weight training, so they begin to avoid this type of exercise. A weak grip affects the ability to grab onto something stable when losing one’s balance or falling. A weak grip makes it harder for someone to be independent as they become more and more insecure in themselves and depend more upon others to lift groceries, grandchildren and typical everyday tasks. The below exercise are free, simple albeit effective for those committed to the time and effort required to gain the benefits. Start with a few repetitions, eventually building up to sets of 100 or more. These exercises are safe when practiced correctly with the toes, knees and hips always lined up one atop another with no sideways stress on the knee joints.

Unique to these exercises, is the body posture combined with the correct hand and arm positions, and the extra awareness required to keep the lower body stable while also maintaining the correct body alignments. By squeezing the hands into fist and then opening them moving only the hands and wrists, the fascia trains, the nervous, muscular and skeletal systems are all engaged throughout the entire body. Try to hold the static position while performing the wrist exercise, from steps 1, 2, 3, 4 and back to 1 for consecutive repetitions. Holding the stance generally develops overall strength where as repetitive wrist positions develops stamina, endurance and determination. Relax the body into the positions in spite of any tension in the muscles. Deep and relaxed breathing is essential while performing this exercise. Try 10x each, building to 20x, 30x, 100x 300x. Yes, this is achievable gradually over time and with much effort.

Variation #1; Arms to the sides, engage the muscles of the pectoral, shoulders, and upper back at different angles increasing strength in many directions.

Variation #2; Using either/both of the above arm directions, sink the hips into a horse stance. High , medium and low positions of the hips will greatly increase the difficulty and strength building benefits of this exercise set. Additionally, attempting to stay in this lower body position in spite of the cramping, pain and discomfort, this is a method to develop strength of the nervous system due to so many innervated muscles being engaged at the same time. In energetic practices from martial arts, daoyin and yoga, this practice is called “burning of the chong mai” in reference to the thrusting energy vessel (meridian) that extends from the base of the tailbone upwards towards the top of the head.

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I write often about topics that affect our health and well-being. Additionally, I teach and offer lecture about qigong, tai chi, baguazhang, and yoga. I also have hundreds of FREE education video classes, lectures and seminars available on my YouTube channel at:https://www.youtube.com/c/MindandBodyExercisesMind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47QoJim Moltzan407-234-0119www.MindAndBodyExercises.com www.Amazon.com/author/jimmoltzan

Assuming Responsibility for your Healthcare (sickcare) Decisions

The predominant medical system in the US is the allopathic model. I have found from personal experience that this system works usually quite well for diagnostics, trauma, conditions requiring surgical intervention, as well as treatments for prolonging life.

Where I feel our allopathic model falls short is encouraging prevention of illnesses and avoidable conditions, treating certain types of chronic conditions, and providing quality of life in spite of prolonging it. A wise doctor I visited once told me that a way to make a decision to have or not have a procedure, was to determine if you have more good days or more bad days, within a particular time frame. His next question was, are you willing to live with the outcome if the results are not 100% successful and possibly giving side-effects that are worse than the original issues?

I think many people put all of their trust and faith into their doctor’s opinions or suggestions without doing much research of their own. Therefore, they lack the information to better determine what is best for their individual conditions. When confronted with a serious condition, they feel they lack medical knowledge and therefore options beyond what their doctor might suggest. When things don’t go well with the treatments, procedures, surgeries, etc., they can’t always understand that doctors are human and don’t always make the best decisions in spite of trying their best to do so.

I think if people would take more responsibility towards their knowledge of healthcare and their own health status prior to finding themselves in critical situations, we would have a much different healthcare system. The CDC reported the top causes of death in the US as of 2019 were heart disease, cancer, and unintended injuries¹. Overall, the risks of the top 10 causes of death all can be lowered with lifestyle choices of diet, exercise, and management of stress. A John Hopkins report of 2018 reported that medical errors was the 3^rd highest cause of death in the US². My point in noting these statistics is that if the total number of these illnesses and errors was much less, then there would be less people having to deal with these critical types of decisions with or without their doctor’s input. I am aware that this is really an unrealistic expectation as the numbers go up every year. However, if doctors are to be held to such a high standard of perfection, why shouldn’t the individual have similar accountability for their own level of self-care?

Obviously, some situations warrant a decision at the moment, regardless of how the person got to the point of immediate concern. In this type of event, I would hope that the healthcare professionals involved would have much relative knowledge and medical experience at this point to exercise wisdom in making the correct decisions. From there the patient needs to decide whether to trust in what they know to be true and accurate and/or to have faith in what is unknown and unseen.

References:

¹ https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db395.htm

²https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/study_suggests_medical_errors_now_third_leading_cause_of_death_in_the_us