A person wrote to me recently and seemed to be berating me for not being a dentist because I talk a lot about dental health. He questioned the quality of my book – which it appears he has never read.
He asked me, “Why don’t you just go to dental school”?
So I thought I would address that question a bit, because it looks like now and in the future, there will be people who will want to know who I am and what I’m about.
I hope this will help to shed light on it:
I learned the basic life sciences as a chiropractic student. However, I’m not a chiropractor. You could say that I’m a chiropractic school drop out. I don’t mind…
I’m not licensed or credentialed in any way, shape, or form and I have never claimed to be nor would I dare to claim any title or credential that I’m not entitled too. I do not put letters after my name. I’m a layman with his own mind and proud of it.
I left chiropractic school with perhaps 1.5 to 2 years left before graduation. I was the student body president at the time. I left for a variety of reasons. One reason was that I was disturbed by my peers and what they really cared about – making money and getting through school. They weren’t focused on patient care and health. Many of my teachers did not have my respect either – though some certainly did.
Because of my background in the life sciences, I was able to recognize that my dentist was not acting in my best interest.
I started doing my own personal investigation and I realized that there is a lot of information that many professionals don’t bother to tell their patients. Perhaps they are unaware themselves? In either case, the net effect is the same.
She could have told me about things like the Hydro Floss , xylitol and other lower cost alternatives to her expensive treatment that probably would have needed to be repeated later.
[I have to add that I respect professionals in all fields. I would like to work in the spirit or cooperation with ethical and caring professionals. No matter what sampling of the population you take, there are good and bad people - that is unavoidable.]
My book is excellent and quality. A periodontist, a dentist, two medical doctors, and a dental hygienist have seen fit to endorse my book.
There are many ways that professionals are restricted. Some is financial, some is by peer pressure. Then there are peer review boards, state boards and other governing bodies. The fear of blacklisting looms large over many scientific and medical researchers.
Some professionals have dared to come out with greater truths about various health related things- but very few when you consider the total numbers. Many others simply want a big paycheck and that is their focus.
I’m over 40 and I do not wish to go back to school at this point. The cost is expensive and locks you in to the need to open a practice and make money the same way most professionals in these fields do. There is nothing wrong with that. What I’m currently doing is different from that.
I will say that whatever you are doing and whoever you are and in whatever field you are operating within – if you don’t value the best interest of your client, patient, or other people in general, then perhaps there is a problem. Looking inside yourself is the only way you will find the right answers to that. Only you can police what you really think and do. No one else can effectively do that.
I hope that answers your question?
-David Snape
Author: What You Should Know about Gum Disease
