Using AI for Smart Healthcare

Written By Peter Li-Chang Kuo

Artificial intelligence (AI) is like a good reference book, and we should make good use of it — especially in smart healthcare.

Fig 1: AI should be used wisely

“As one gets older, ailments begin to appear.”

The most painful for me is the stiffness in my neck. Other problems — such as asthma and high blood pressure — actually don’t feel like much, but "neck stiffness" is truly uncomfortable. The cause is typing at the computer. As a scientist, I understand the concept of "torque." The neck mainly bears the weight of the head (W). When we lower our head by 30° (sin θ) to look at the keyboard for the next letter, and then raise our head again to look at the monitor, the distance from the head’s center of gravity to the back of the neck is about 12 cm (d). This offset generates a torque (M) — the gravitational force of the head deviates from the cervical vertebra’s pivot point, requiring the muscles to produce an equivalent counterforce to support it. The simplified formula is:

“M = W × d × sin θ × n”

Torque formula explanation:

1) M: torque the neck muscles must support (N•m);

2) W: head weight (N = mass × 9.8);

3) d: horizontal distance from head’s center of gravity to cervical pivot (≈12 cm);

4) θ (theta): approx. 30° downward angle;

5) n: each character typed requires one “head down + head up” cycle (n = 2).

The head weighs about 8% of body weight.

A person weighing 75 kg has a head weight of about 6 kg (W = mass × 9.8 N).

For every character typed, you perform one downward tilt and one upward lift.

Question: How much torque does the neck endure from typing 1,000 characters?

Answer: The accumulated torque is M = 7,056 N•m.

To clarify the magnitude of this number, AI can convert the “7,056 N•m accumulated torque from typing 1,000 characters” into the equivalent mechanical load of performing biceps curls with a 10-kg dumbbell.

If “lifting up + lowering down = one full rep,” then:

Typing 1,000 characters ≈ doing 120 reps of 10-kg biceps curls.

That is enormous. No wonder the neck stiffness persists — and may even accumulate into inflammation.

I often sit in front of the computer typing for five or six hours straight. No surprise that I once wrote a whole book "Rich Taiwan" in seven days and nights, each writing session totaling about 10,000 characters. That’s equivalent to swinging a 10-kg dumbbell 1,200 times with the back of the neck. Keeping this up — how could the neck not get into trouble?

Fig 2: Book “Rich Taiwan”

In summary, the problem is that I must “take care of myself.”

At some point, I began relying on so-called “all-purpose glasses”— one pair for far, mid, and near distances. But every time I looked at the monitor, my neck locked up instantly. I would painfully finish an article and then have to lie on my “Fengchi Pillow” (Acupoint Neck Releaser) for half a day. In addition to neck pain, I also had eye pain. Foolishly, I went to a Western doctor for injections and medication — no effect. Tried Chinese acupuncture and herbal remedies — again no use. After discussing with an ophthalmologist, he said: “Try changing your eye drops.”

Fig 3: Acupoint Neck Releaser (Custom-made)

After much thought, I suddenly had an insight — and decided to walk into an optical shop specifically to get a pair of computer-use glasses to solve my "neck stiffness." The shop owner proudly said:

“I’m already 56 and my vision is perfect. I don’t need glasses at all.”

He said many ophthalmologists came to him to learn eye-care techniques.

I replied: “When I was 59, I needed to upload a paper to a graduate thesis website, so I reluctantly did a health exam before entering a graduate program. The results showed I was healthier than a 30-year-old — including my vision.”

I told the shop owner: “Your time just hasn’t come yet — maybe be a little more humble.” He clearly did not appreciate the advice.

Back in 1966, the “heart-blind man” abandoned the entire family to me. At that time, the land near Shengdou Theater cost only NTD 200 per ping. Even though I earned four to five thousand dollars monthly for A-Jin to manage household affairs, I myself survived on one dollar’s worth of salted mackerel with rice for a week. Yet she still ran out of money, and my family still must be relied on my grandaunt’s mung bean porridge as food. So, in 1967, I hired someone to cook for the whole family. But I always waited until after the dishes were cleared, and only then scooped a bowl of leftover rice and downed it with leftover soup. Even so, working 20 hours a day, I still went to night school and ranked first — seemingly stronger than any carnivore.

At the beginning of my career, I realized I was surrounded by lethal substances — “potassium cyanate, cadmium, various acids.” I didn’t dare ask anyone for assistance; I handled everything myself. My grandmother could no longer stand up to prepare the “sweet potato starch + brown sugar antidote” for me. Still, I grew stronger. When I served in the military, I was the only one among all the reserved officers of Chengkungling 26th term who could complete 46 pull-ups.

Later, when I visited Koyasan (Mount Kōya) in Japan, an elderly person told me I would live a long life.

But on January 27, 2001, after my company was robbed clean, someone cried and requested me to rebuild what was stolen. In my sleepless effort to fulfill her request, I began noticing that the TV screen looked blurry. The repairman asked: “Has your eyesight deteriorated?”

Only then did I start needing glasses. But when typing at a PC, I still worked without glasses — and that’s how I managed to write "Open the Way for the Next Generation" in a single week.

Fig 4: Book “Open the Way for the Next Generation”

Since 1997, my TES (Tech–Economic System) contribution to APEC helped ease the Asian Financial Crisis.

By the 2009 APEC CEO Summit, I contributed the way of “Rebuilding the Global Economy” to help the world climb out of the abyss of the financial meltdown. During the COVID-19 era, I witnessed the “Ark-like compassion of God toward humanity,” as the world seemed to revolve around my arguments and contributions. But the cartel-like corruption entities shadowed me endlessly, always attacking my vulnerabilities — making it impossible to guard against them. My health declined steadily as a result.

The day before yesterday, I attended an “AI forum” — covering personalized services and virtual assistants, including electronic talismans; content generation and ad optimization; stock analysis, financial risk management, and fraud detection; agricultural forecasting of crop diseases and climate patterns; livestock health monitoring; and intelligent transportation and navigation for autonomous vehicles and drones. Truly, AI is in everything.

Among the topics discussed, the “Backup Mechanism” was almost identical to the lecture notes I wrote decades ago—truly, everything returns to the same principles no matter how much the world changes.

What caught my attention most at the forum was "smart healthcare" — because no matter how intelligent a person is, they instantly become mentally helpless like idiot in front of a doctor.

Therefore, I firmly believe that "introducing AI into smart healthcare" is absolutely necessary.

Our original intention was simply to “create innovative industries and solve unemployment.” We never expected that the TES innovative industry would generate USD 36 trillion in annual cashless transactions during the COVID-19 period, nor that it would help 1.5 billion people earn global income from home.

But as the corrupt cartel watched us give vivid presentations at APEC, they launched a full-scale siege, even threatening: “We won’t let you live past 2004!”

I marched forward with my wounded comrades into a storm of arrows. I survived 2004, 2005, and even made it to the 2006 APEC CEO Summit in Hanoi — after which I embarked on an impossible mission in the United States.

Unfortunately, someone refused to go to the U.S. and insisted on staying on the island to be beaten, forcing me to fight on two fronts. In the end, the cartel’s agents succeeded entirely; I had no choice but to return to deal with the aftermath.

As a result, only after age 60 did I develop "asthma" while living on Dadushan. To relieve the asthma, I strictly followed the doctor’s instructions and took my medication faithfully.

While running around handling various matters, insurance companies often required blood pressure checks — and if my blood pressure exceeded 140, I had to take "antihypertensive drugs."

After a period of taking them, my feet became so "swollen" that I couldn’t even wear shoes.

The doctor then prescribed medication to "reduce edema," which caused "frequent urination."

I visited traditional Chinese medicine clinics for acupuncture and herbal medicine, but the swelling did not improve at all.

After much thought, I recalled that during the Mid-Autumn Festival of 1984, I was hospitalized for emergency treatment due to a specially prescribed treatment, and almost died at Taipei Medical University. The doctor insisted that my strange illness was caused by "tuberculosis" (TB), and I took so much medicine that I could no longer walk. Finally, I had a sudden inspiration and went to get the " Physician’s Desk Reference" to check. I learned that the medicine the doctor prescribed was damaging my internal organs, even my bones and blood. The only reason I am still alive today is that “I threw all the medicine he prescribed into the trash can.”

According to the "Physician’s Desk Reference," and learned that among antihypertensive drugs, the most common cause of foot edema is calcium channel blockers (CCBs) — especially the dihydropyridine (DHP) type. Drugs such as amlodipine dilate blood vessels, increase capillary permeability, and cause fluid to leak into surrounding tissues, leading to peripheral edema — particularly in the ankles and feet. This type of edema is vascular in nature and usually improves after the medication is discontinued. It is not caused by kidney dysfunction.

After discussing it with my doctor, I switched to another blood pressure medication. But after taking it, I gradually developed "dry mouth," which became very severe.

Western doctors said it might be due to a lack of vitamin C or B12, but injections and supplements made no difference; instead, another "sleeping pill" was added.

Traditional Chinese medicine — in both acupuncture and herbal form—was equally ineffective.

After several failed attempts, the TCM physician even prescribed “Ganlu Xiaodu Dan,” (a laxative) which had stronger side effects than the “Three-Yellow Drain-the-Heart Decoction.” After taking it, I almost lost my life.

Our generation is a chosen one — we journeyed from an agricultural society into an industrial society, and then into the information age.

Back in 1960, when I ate at Tianyuan Shoe Store, my cousin older brother Yang Shih-Jung gave me Liu Xingqin’s "Robot" comic book to read while having my meal. Later, he gifted me "The Life of Edison," pushing me to accelerate my self-training of industrial crafts.

That was how, in 1966, I managed to rise above countless global competitors and help Apollo 4 launch into space — turning around a family that had been mocked for 30 years. Even Chiang Ching-Kuo had to come and see what my "precision industry" was doing.

Fig 5: Liu Xingqin’s comic “Robot” (sourced from the internet)

In 1979, upon arriving in New York, I bought a two-volume set of “Home Computers” at Barnes & Noble Bookstore. The book discussed the application of "Artificial Intelligence" (AI) — both software and hardware; the hardware being Liu Xingqin's imagined "robots."

Fig 6: Book "Home Computers"

The book depicted the appearance of "future humans." After completing the development of the "satellite receiver," I worked towards laying the foundation for AI development. Thanks to the widespread commercialization of the contactless "TranSmart Chip" we brought to the world, we truly entered the halfway point of the AI era.

Fig 7: The book's vision of "future humans"

After completing the development of the satellite receiver, I began working to build the foundations for AI. With the global commercialization of our contactless "TranSmart Chip," half of the AI era (semi-AI) truly arrived.

To be honest, before age 65, I had been constantly on the move and never felt the approach of old age. Once, a professor younger than I was asked my scoolmate at the Veterans Hospital: “I feel very dizzy— is there a doctor who specializes in this?”

I couldn’t understand what dizziness even felt like.

But when I received my “Senior Citizen Card” and heard people congratulating me, I suddenly felt like “Urashima Tarō” — instantly a hundred years older. I even crashed my motorcycle for no good reason.

There was a Christian selling meal tickets. My wife bought two and asked me to go eat. I may have eaten something "unclean" because I had severe abdominal pain and could only eat porridge to ease the burden on my stomach. Six months later, when we went hiking in Meiling, I couldn't even walk up the slope, and was dizzy and had difficulty breathing.

Then I was prescribed medications to “protect my brain” — such as Suzin — along with anti-anxiety drugs and statins for lowering cholesterol. Lined up on the table, they looked rather impressive.

Recently, I began experiencing "severe dry mouth," waking up from sleep in discomfort. So I decided to ask "AI" for help — using a process of elimination, removing medications that were unlikely to be the cause.

Eventually, I narrowed it down to the two "blood pressure medications."

After AI analysis, I discovered that the "asthma medication" had triggered the high blood pressure.

Through cross-testing, I removed one more drug and was left with just "Luxtab F.C. 4mg."

AI concluded that its active ingredient, "lacidipine" is a calcium channel blocker. This class of drugs can cause dry mouth primarily because they may affect parasympathetic nerve function, "inhibiting salivary gland secretion" – this leads to dryness of the oral mucosa and increased thirst.

AI further explained that "dry mouth is a common side effect," and patients may discuss symptom relief or dosage adjustments with their doctor.

Seeing “common side effect” made my heart tremble — because I have experienced dry mouth for two years now, and it has affected my daily life.

I can no longer speak for more than “10 minutes” — how can I make a living through speech like this? I had to decline speaking invitations and felt as if I were slowly being forgotten by the world.

The doctor suggested increasing vitamin C and B12 intake and told me to visit a major hospital to check for "Sjögren’s syndrome." At that moment, I truly felt like a mentally disabled person.

After running my medical notes through AI analysis and reviewing them with my physician, I switched to "nifedipine." Although the "dry mouth" eased slightly, the AI issued a warning: among antihypertensive drugs, the most common cause of "foot edema" is the dihydropyridine class of calcium channel blockers (such as amlodipine and nifedipine), and "nifedipine" is one of them.

After integrating all factors, the AI offered what it deemed the best recommendation: given my conditions — "severe dry mouth, disturbed sleep, susceptibility to CCB-induced edema, and early-morning hypertension" —the safest regimen that may improve both dryness and swelling is "Telmisartan 80 mg + Lercanidipine 10–20 mg." However, the clinic said this was difficult to implement and advised me to go to a major hospital.

Returning to the root of the problem: I once thought the air on Dadushan was excellent, yet after the “Longjing Power Plant” began running at full capacity, I unexpectedly developed asthma in my mature years. The doctor instructed me to “take the medication regularly.” In truth, relocating to a cleaner environment is the right path.

So I asked AI for help. Within seconds, the answer appeared: asthma medications fall into two categories — "controller medications" and "reliever medications."

Controller drugs, such as inhaled corticosteroids, are for long-term maintenance to control inflammation and prevent attacks; reliever drugs, such as short-acting bronchodilators, are used for rapid relief during acute episodes. There are also combination drugs with both effects. In short, asthma medications can "raise blood pressure."

Confucius said, "Without a teacher or guardian, one is like facing his parents if he counts on I Chin." This means that even without the guidance of a teacher or guardian, studying well is like facing the teachings of one's parents, instilling a sense of awe, self-awareness, and self-discipline. Nowadays, the world has entered a "semi-AI" era. AI is like a reference book. I urge you to make good use of AI's analytical capabilities. Lay out all the medications you are currently taking and ask AI to analyze them. Perhaps no medication is better than having medication—after analysis, I personally found that "all medications could be discarded!" If we keep pace with the times and elevate our wisdom, we may live healthier and more at ease. Here is to make a poem:

For years I toiled, unaware of time passed by;

Longjing’s Power Plant stirred my asthma ill.

Asthma then drove my pressure high,

Two pills together kept my heart awry.

Dry mouth, stiff neck, and broken sleep,

A “steady-pressure” drug with hidden disaster.

By switching prescriptions, swelling and thirst I outran,

With smart heathcare as shield, live safe and calm.

Peter Li-Chang Kuo, the author created Taiwan's Precision Industry in his early years. Peter was a representative of the APEC CEO Summit and an expert in the third sector. He advocated "anti-corruption (AC)/cashless/e-commerce (E-Com)/ICT/IPR/IIA-TES / Micro-Business (MB)…and etc." to win the international bills and regulations.