There seems to be a trend forming amongst some MD’s. They say that unless you have an indication of a disease, a physical exam is not necessary until the age of 40.
So one of my patients had been off anti depressants for some time and she was feeling like her energy was low and she just wasn’t quite ‘right’. When she asked her MD for some blood work and a physical he said that it wasn’t needed until she was 40. He would happily give her a new script for her depression as that was likely why she was feeling low.
While my patient is quite comfortable with the idea that she may need anti-depressants again, she wanted to be sure that it wasn’t something else first, so she came to see me.
After I did a physical exam and routine blood work based on her history (at LifeLabs), we discovered that she is anemic, has low vitamin D status and has low testosterone levels.
This is an example of where naturopathic doctors can fill in the holes our health care system has.
