[Margaret Pilkington]

I think we all have to take responsibility for our own well being.
This can be done in many waysYou go to the doctor and he tells you that your blood pressure is up and he puts you on pills.
What he does not tell you is that over the years what is seen as high blood pressure has had its values revised downward....which means more people will be considered hypertensive.
The same with cholesterol....you get a blood test and you get slapped on statins.
Your body makes cholesterol, your brain relies on it, your muscles need it to work well.
So after a while you may get a foggy memory and muscle aches which we all put down to getting older...when in fact it is the meds we take.
The laughable thing is that statins do not have the great beneficial effect that has been portrayed for them....and drug companies know this, but hide it from you.

You can lower your blood pressure by life style changes...increasing your activities....simple things like walking....same with cholesterol. Keeping your weight steady....all doable without meds.
Although I accept there are some conditions where meds will definitely keep you going.
I am not advocating stopping prescribed meds at all, just that you get as much information as possible about what you are taking....knowing the side effects etc.
So being unmedicated does not necessarily mean a shorter life.
And life....well it should be more about QUALITY.
After all who wants to live to be a hundred if you cannot eat what you like, or have an active life doing things that give you pleasure.
I used to take my Ma for her medical appointments....she was a type 2 diabetic for the last fifteen years of her life.
Her medications to control her diabetes affected her kidneys and brought on heart failure.
Her diet was supposed to be salt free, carbohydrate controlled, sugar free, he heart failure meant her fluids were restricted too.
Her GP wanted her to get her blood sugars down to a ridiculous level....this was when she was in her 80's she could have done it, but she would have had very little pleasure in life.
So we opted for Quality.....and she lived to be 91.