Taking ownership of your health

It saddens me that many elderly people simply surrender ownership and responsibility of their health to our so called medical professionals. It would appear that very few doctors are willing to actually look into the cause of illness and actually treat it. Instead they seem intent on reducing symptoms by prescribing drugs and then more drugs to reduce symptoms caused by the first lot of drugs. For instance, many elderly patients (and adults in general) are chronically dehydrated, yet so many are on diuretics. This can lead to other issues which are then treated by yet more drugs. The pharmaceutical industry must love it. How many doctors actually enquire about the state of hydration and nutrition of their elderly patients, which can be the cause (or cure) for many ailments? Instead they reach for the pen, write a script and increase the profits of pharmaceutical companies. Thanks goodness for the internet and freedom of information :)