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A Star McDougaller: Physicians Need Help Too
 My
name is Joseph Wysoki, I am a 55 year old osteopathic family physician
practicing in San Antonio, Texas. Up until 3 years ago, I was living
proof that the standard American diet can make you fat, sick and
tired. I ate what I thought was a healthy diet, but I just couldn't
understand why I was overweight, short-of-breath, had high cholesterol,
and was unable to control my blood pressure on three medications.
Dr. McDougall says that physicians like to blame "bad genes"
for these types of problems. My bad genes were that I was born to
a family where my father owned three subsequent meat-packing plants
and a steak restaurant. In our family meat was encouraged and plentiful,
so I must've eaten enough for three people.
When I was in my 20's I finally got sick of beef and swore
it off forever, but I moved onto chicken and fish. I was surprised
when these healthy alternatives made no difference at all! I joined
various weight loss programs and was successful until I reached
my goal. After working so hard to reach that ideal weight, I somehow
thought that I could never gain the weight back, even if I cheated
"a little". The cheating eventually, over time, brought
all the weight back. But I hated those diets anyway. I just felt
starved and denied. There just wasn't enough food in those
plans to satisfy my hunger. I always told my wife, that if I could
just find a diet that offered my favorite foods, like potatoes,
rice and corn, I know that I would stick with it forever. I had
thought of becoming a vegetarian, but my brother was one and he
had multiple health and weight problems, so that must not be any
good.
The opinions I read about weight loss were conflicting and confusing.
It seemed like everyone eventually put out a diet book. One day
I noticed an ad for Dr. McDougall's 12 day program. I also
noted that the program was endorsed by other doctors, (namely the
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine), as the "#1
Weight Loss Program in America." Once I saw John's videotape,
"Five Dietary Myths", I knew I was hooked. Here was an
intelligent, eloquent physician with a common sense approach to
eating. Not only that, but he had proven, scientific reproducible
results. I was definitely going to do this! Even better, was the
fact that it offered, in abundance, food that I loved: potatoes,
rice, and corn, with fruits and vegetables as side dishes. I dove
right in, the pounds melted away (35 of them), my blood pressure
dropped to normal, and my cholesterol dropped from 222 to 121. My
triglycerides are now 118.
My wife, Glen Esther, noticed the dramatic changes, she liked the
approach and started the program as well. Her lifelong constipation
(due to dairy products) resolved within the first week, and the
chronic minor arthritic aches and pains vanished. She went to her
ideal body weight in two months, and hasn't budged once. Her
OB/Gyn physician can't believe her bone density scan is so
perfect because she eats strictly vegan, with no dairy and ingests
zero calcium supplements. Amazing isn't it? Since then, my
son, daughter and sister are all McDougalling. I am still working
on my vegetarian brother.
I definitely wanted to meet John and Mary personally. We caught
up with them on the McDougall Adventure Cruise to Alaska. Glen Esther
and I had a really great time, and I had a chance to speak with
John. I basically told him how hard it was to convince people, and
doctors specifically, of the merits of eating like this. What was
needed, I felt, was a program that allowed physicians to help those
patients who finally decided they wanted to change their life, but
just didn't know exactly how to do it. In that way, physicians
themselves could be educated first. The truth is that doctors, in
general, know little or nothing about nutrition and eating correctly.
They send their patients out the door with instructions to "cut
down" and "watch what you eat". I think that means
to keep your eyes open while you chow down. There is hardly ever
any direction or correct guidelines. Anyway, John said, "Joe,
that is a great idea, why don't YOU do it?" I never expected
that answer, but that is exactly what I did! With John's guidance,
McDougall Right Foods assistance, and my ideas, we formulated a
two-package/sixty day program to introduce people to the McDougall
health-style. This is a physician-only program, dispensed from doctors'
offices, and meant only as a transition to eating healthy without
pre-packaged assistance. As the patient becomes healthier, and medications
become unnecessary, then dropping those drugs becomes a joint decision
between doctor and patient.
Now I REALLY have my work cut out for me! San Antonio is listed
as the Number one fattest city in the United States. Most people
here think that is just as good as an NBA title. When Krispy Kreme
Donuts opened their first store here, it set all time corporate
records for dollars made on a store opening. The lines were so long
that major freeways shut down, and the traffic had to be police-directed
24 hours a day. Texans just don't want to give up their barbecued
steaks and cheese- and meat-laden Mexican cuisine. The resistance
in this city to change from eating high- fat food is horrendous.
Yet the doctors here can't ignore the high degree of problems
caused by eating like this: hypertension, coronary artery disease,
heart attacks, strokes, and diabetes. Yes, we are also the diabetes
capital of the United States. Despite the huge obstacles, I think
that you have to start somewhere, one patient at a time. Doctors
need to be told. I have to believe there are a large number of patients
out there that really want to change, but just don't know how,
and this is because of lack of direction. I hope the new McDougall
Program for Physicians fills that gap.
Fellow McDougallers, I need your help. You all have doctors, or
have doctors as friends or family. Help me get the word out. Please
let them know that there is a specific web site that they can go
to in order to obtain these transition programs for their patients.
The boxes consist of: education, (Johns' DVD, tapes, and books)
dietary menu plans, food diary, and pre-packaged vegan meals. That
web site is: www.rightfoods.com/prohealth.
Lastly, I want to encourage Dr. McDougall in his work. Like John,
I am finding out how hard it is to change peoples' unhealthy
lifestyles, as I know many of you have found out as well. Be committed!
Stay the course. It is well worth it. If you build it, they will
come.
Best Wishes for Health and Happiness, Dr. Joseph and Glen Esther
Wysoki
San Antonio, Texas
jwysoki@satx.rr.com
Many of you have asked me, "How can I find a doctor who practices
like you do?" My answer has been, "You can't, and
the main reason is there is no money in this kind of medicine."
I seriously believe all doctors entered the profession to help
people, but unfortunately they got side tracked along the way
with making money to pay the bills, fear of lawsuits, and most
importantly, the ineffectiveness of their efforts. I believe the
tremendous dissatisfaction with medicine among physicians today
is because we (doctors) so rarely help people. Sure, we prescribe
them drugs and send them off to surgeries, but the results are
dismal – you can't miss the obvious. Our patients are
still fat, lethargic, pasty looking, and feeling sick – the
only difference is they are now on a bag full of pills or recovering
from major surgery.
Dr. Joseph Wysoki has solved the three
major obstacles keeping your doctor from practicing honest medicine.
First, there is now a way your doctor can make a living by helping
patients become well – through selling the education and
support in the McDougall's Program for Physicians. Second,
the program works, as most of you know, so now your doctor will
feel fulfilled as a healer. Lastly, healthy, happy people don't
sue their doctors. Now you have a chance to help your doctor have
a better professional life and at the same time help many people
become truly well. Tell your friends and your doctors to get more
information from www.rightfoods.com/prohealth
about building a new medical model – a real "health"-care
system.
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