Counterargument
What if symptoms are medication-driven?
Many GI, mast-cell-pattern, and fatigue symptoms can be produced or amplified by medications (PPIs, opioids, antibiotics, immunosuppressants, antidepressants, hormonal therapy).
Where it is valid
Any case where symptom onset or worsening tracks with medication initiation, dose change, or polypharmacy.
What it challenges
Applying a host-capacity framing before considering iatrogenic contributions.
Host Capacity Model response
Medication review is part of any responsible mechanistic reading. HCM does not bypass it. Where symptoms are clearly medication-driven, the appropriate next step is a discussion with the prescribing clinician, not an educational systems-biology engagement.
Unresolved questions
- How do common medications interact with colonocyte bioenergetic capacity over years of use?
Evidence that would resolve this
- Longitudinal cohorts tracking host-capacity proxies before and after long-term medication exposure.