A pill for every ill: The unhealthy obsession with medication.
- By R.A.J. (guest)
- Published 26th March, 2008
The government's oft-stated desire to reduce the profit margin on medicine is to
be commended despite its failure to translate intention into firm action. There
is something distinctly distasteful with the accumulation of vast profits as a
direct result of bare-faced exploitation of people's miseries and illnesses. The
threats of looming bankruptcy by vested interests are boringly predictable and
belie the obviously flourishing status of the pharmaceutical industry. One only
has to look at the large number of pharmacies on our main streets to realise
that this business is far from being in the financial difficulties that
pharmacists have been queuing up to assert as the inevitable consequence of
price reduction.
But price reduction can only be a short term solution to a much wider problem; it is high time now for us to look at the whole issue of medication and pose the most obvious question on this controversial and sensitive issue: have we become a nation of pill poppers? Have we become conditioned to believe that we must take some medicine for even the most trivial discomfort? Have we become so obsessed with the so called magical power of medication that we instantly put medical labels on routine phenomena that are simply part and parcel of the human condition? Are we relying too much on medicinal "cures" rather than adopting the preventative measures that will stop the illnesses in the first place?
Let us look at the two biggest killers in our population: diabetes and heart disease. The major cause of both illnesses is obesity and a sedentary lifestyle and yet we insist on eating the very food that will add inches to our waistlines whilst screaming abuse if the increase in the price of petrol forces us to abandon our cars and to walk instead. A diet of fast foods, high in fat and calories, taken by people who prefer to drive rather than walk is almost guaranteed to lead to the onset of diabetes and severe cardiac problems.The government provides subsidies for rice and flour, two food items that fill us up with far more carbohydrates that our life styles can cope with, and the surplus is converted in the fat which sits uncomfortably with most of us but which looks ever so natural on politicians eating greedily at our expense. Greasy Kentucky and cardboard tasting MacDonalds are considered trendy foods despite their poor nutritional value and high fat content; they are also enormously expensive, but who cares as we continue to delude ourselves that we live in a very rich country? And when our hearts and pancreas start giving up on us, we have a large array of medicines to choose from in the false belief that they will cure us. This blind faith in the power of medicine leads to the ludicrous situation where the diabetic follows a generous helping of sugar-laden ladoos and gulab jamuns with a metformin tablet in the hopeless belief that the medication will counteract the poison he has just gobbled up with such relish.
We are all at times subject to difficult and traumatic life circumstances and display grief and torment when faced with distressing personal events; that is a perfectly natural, human reaction to a change in one's personal circumstances and in the vast majority of cases we soon revert to our normal selves and cope with life with renewed vigour and optimism. But an expensive 10 minute consultation(I am being generous with the time here as I can only afford a cheap, inaccurate watch) with the medical expert is bound to medicalise this normal reaction and will inevitably conclude with an even more expensive prescription for anti depressants which his relative running the pharmacy next door will dispense with a smile as he takes your money. You then find out a month later that you have become hopelessly addicted to these antidepressants and return on a regular basis to the same doctor's surgery and the same pharmacy for medication to alleviate the symptoms of the original treatment that you never needed in the first place!
Our blind faith in the power of medicine is best exemplified by a visit to the perenially overcrowded casualty/ emergency departments of our main hospitals. The 10% of genuinely urgent cases is overwhelmed by a vast number of people who have taken the day off because of
a
cold or flu, a headache, or my favourite one, gagne gaz. If you do not
suffer from these conditions, try to avoid these places as you are likely to
breathe in one of the numerous free-floating germs from people keen to impress
the person in the next chair that his illness is worse than anyone else's. And
for God's sake, steer clear from the person who has gagne gaz as this
one man weapon of mass destruction will be keen to give olfactory proof of his
socalled medical condition! Why do these people believe that salvation for what
is part and parcel of the human condition comes from a tablet or a syrup that
tastes vile? There is no known cure for the common cold but we somehow feel
better if, following a long wait in casualty, we spend good money on an
expensive Beecham's Powder or a Lem-Sip, or if we are given anti biotics that
will have no effect whatsoever in getting rid of that cold; we would derive far
more benefits from the humble citronelle boiled with a nice lump of
ginger and perhaps some honey but that is not trendy enough. And in any case, if
the neighbours are taking Lem-Sip, then so should we!
Doctors will continue to prescribe inappropriately because we believe that no hospital visit is worthwhile unless we come out with the precious prescription. Antibiotics are dished out for the most trivial infection which means that prolonged and regular use of these vital medicines reduce their effectiveness and become useless when we need them to treat a really serious illness. A minor twinge or headache is turned into a terrible personal challenge which can only be overcome by some chemical means. We have forgotten how to override pain by simply using our brains and bodies to overcome it; the endorphins released by a long, brisk walk or a swim are far more efficient to get rid of the 'lifestyle' illnesses and pain that plague our casualty units than any prescription.
But we would rather sit in our cars and curse the long traffic queues ahead of us than take the half hour walk that will be far more beneficial for our health; we prefer to eat fast food because the neighbours are doing it and we have been doing it for so long that the resultant obesity has made us too lazy to cook the wholesome, nutritious food that sustained our parents and kept them in good health. We have become so obsessed with food that a lunch taken one hour later than usual gives rise to this gagne gaz nonsense, which is rather a good excuse to justify our contribution to the greenhouse effect.( the only charitable thing to say about this gaz business is that at least the methane is coming out from the right end, as opposed to our politicians who emit it every time they open their mouths!).
We have become a nation of hyponchondriacs with wholly unrealistic expectations that the government should do everything for us, and we have a tragic propensity to blame everyone but ourselves for the sorry state of our health. We continue to drink vast amounts of alcohol and smoke like chimneys and then blame the government for not providing adequate treatment for the cancers and cirrhosis that accompany such a lifestyle; we eat rubbish food in quantities that our bodies cannot cope with and decry the lack of adequate facilities for the treatment of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease; we sit on our fat backsides with trays of Kentucky in our laps, a large rhum in one hand and a cigarette in the other, and moan about everything. And when we fall ill, it is every one else's fault apart from our own.
Writing this has made me feel a bit depressed and I can feel a mild headache coming on; was that a rumble I just felt in my stomach? I should have taken my lunch at the usual time instead of wasting precious minutes with my friends complaining about everything. I think I'll get in the car and go to casualty. I better take the dog with me as I would need to blame someone when the gaz from the late lunch comes out, and Medor does not really mind carrying the can for his master; he just sniffs away contentedly and knows how to put on that guilty look whenever I accuse him of something that he has not done. Let us hope I get to see the same doctor who likes prescribing all these medicines every time I visit the hospital. He really does have a pill for every ill! And the chances are the pills will be out of date, counterfeit, and as much use as eating chalk...
R.A.J.
Email: servipei@yahoo.com
But price reduction can only be a short term solution to a much wider problem; it is high time now for us to look at the whole issue of medication and pose the most obvious question on this controversial and sensitive issue: have we become a nation of pill poppers? Have we become conditioned to believe that we must take some medicine for even the most trivial discomfort? Have we become so obsessed with the so called magical power of medication that we instantly put medical labels on routine phenomena that are simply part and parcel of the human condition? Are we relying too much on medicinal "cures" rather than adopting the preventative measures that will stop the illnesses in the first place?
Let us look at the two biggest killers in our population: diabetes and heart disease. The major cause of both illnesses is obesity and a sedentary lifestyle and yet we insist on eating the very food that will add inches to our waistlines whilst screaming abuse if the increase in the price of petrol forces us to abandon our cars and to walk instead. A diet of fast foods, high in fat and calories, taken by people who prefer to drive rather than walk is almost guaranteed to lead to the onset of diabetes and severe cardiac problems.The government provides subsidies for rice and flour, two food items that fill us up with far more carbohydrates that our life styles can cope with, and the surplus is converted in the fat which sits uncomfortably with most of us but which looks ever so natural on politicians eating greedily at our expense. Greasy Kentucky and cardboard tasting MacDonalds are considered trendy foods despite their poor nutritional value and high fat content; they are also enormously expensive, but who cares as we continue to delude ourselves that we live in a very rich country? And when our hearts and pancreas start giving up on us, we have a large array of medicines to choose from in the false belief that they will cure us. This blind faith in the power of medicine leads to the ludicrous situation where the diabetic follows a generous helping of sugar-laden ladoos and gulab jamuns with a metformin tablet in the hopeless belief that the medication will counteract the poison he has just gobbled up with such relish.
We are all at times subject to difficult and traumatic life circumstances and display grief and torment when faced with distressing personal events; that is a perfectly natural, human reaction to a change in one's personal circumstances and in the vast majority of cases we soon revert to our normal selves and cope with life with renewed vigour and optimism. But an expensive 10 minute consultation(I am being generous with the time here as I can only afford a cheap, inaccurate watch) with the medical expert is bound to medicalise this normal reaction and will inevitably conclude with an even more expensive prescription for anti depressants which his relative running the pharmacy next door will dispense with a smile as he takes your money. You then find out a month later that you have become hopelessly addicted to these antidepressants and return on a regular basis to the same doctor's surgery and the same pharmacy for medication to alleviate the symptoms of the original treatment that you never needed in the first place!
Our blind faith in the power of medicine is best exemplified by a visit to the perenially overcrowded casualty/ emergency departments of our main hospitals. The 10% of genuinely urgent cases is overwhelmed by a vast number of people who have taken the day off because of
Doctors will continue to prescribe inappropriately because we believe that no hospital visit is worthwhile unless we come out with the precious prescription. Antibiotics are dished out for the most trivial infection which means that prolonged and regular use of these vital medicines reduce their effectiveness and become useless when we need them to treat a really serious illness. A minor twinge or headache is turned into a terrible personal challenge which can only be overcome by some chemical means. We have forgotten how to override pain by simply using our brains and bodies to overcome it; the endorphins released by a long, brisk walk or a swim are far more efficient to get rid of the 'lifestyle' illnesses and pain that plague our casualty units than any prescription.
But we would rather sit in our cars and curse the long traffic queues ahead of us than take the half hour walk that will be far more beneficial for our health; we prefer to eat fast food because the neighbours are doing it and we have been doing it for so long that the resultant obesity has made us too lazy to cook the wholesome, nutritious food that sustained our parents and kept them in good health. We have become so obsessed with food that a lunch taken one hour later than usual gives rise to this gagne gaz nonsense, which is rather a good excuse to justify our contribution to the greenhouse effect.( the only charitable thing to say about this gaz business is that at least the methane is coming out from the right end, as opposed to our politicians who emit it every time they open their mouths!).
We have become a nation of hyponchondriacs with wholly unrealistic expectations that the government should do everything for us, and we have a tragic propensity to blame everyone but ourselves for the sorry state of our health. We continue to drink vast amounts of alcohol and smoke like chimneys and then blame the government for not providing adequate treatment for the cancers and cirrhosis that accompany such a lifestyle; we eat rubbish food in quantities that our bodies cannot cope with and decry the lack of adequate facilities for the treatment of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease; we sit on our fat backsides with trays of Kentucky in our laps, a large rhum in one hand and a cigarette in the other, and moan about everything. And when we fall ill, it is every one else's fault apart from our own.
Writing this has made me feel a bit depressed and I can feel a mild headache coming on; was that a rumble I just felt in my stomach? I should have taken my lunch at the usual time instead of wasting precious minutes with my friends complaining about everything. I think I'll get in the car and go to casualty. I better take the dog with me as I would need to blame someone when the gaz from the late lunch comes out, and Medor does not really mind carrying the can for his master; he just sniffs away contentedly and knows how to put on that guilty look whenever I accuse him of something that he has not done. Let us hope I get to see the same doctor who likes prescribing all these medicines every time I visit the hospital. He really does have a pill for every ill! And the chances are the pills will be out of date, counterfeit, and as much use as eating chalk...
Email: servipei@yahoo.com
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2 Responses to "A pill for every ill: The unhealthy obsession with medication." 
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said this on 30 Mar 2008 3:11:44 PM MUT
Dear R.A.J.
The rant was beautiful and very eloquent! But, what if we add to it the more important ingredient that will inform us all about who the real culprits are? By the way, are we here talking of “halâl” Kentucky Fried Chicken and halâl McDonald fast food and “halâl” cigarettes and alcohol? When we say “WE”, we have to be very cautious and not generalize. It was Hindu culture that made alcohol and prostitutes harâm (in some cases even cigarettes) for fifty years in the cinema industry, but never missed a film to show people drinking, smoking or mingling with prostitutes. This had the result the film magnates expected. Today, Hindu cinema is replete with drugs (cigarette, alcohol, cannabis, bhang, etc.), whores, prostitutes, and the superior western, Christian and Atheist life-styles. I heard that homosexuality and lesbianism had even been introduced. The cinema and the controlled media are two instruments of mind control in all societies. People are made to do things that they normally would never ever think of doing. And, “elected” governments are always there to provide the necessary permits. Dr Loraine Day and others we do not hear of in the mainstream media have a lot to say about how governments (THE GUILTY ONES!) work for the pharmaceutical industry which deliberately (WITH GOVERNMENT APPROVAL) flood the country with useless and very harmful “medicines”. And the mainstream media make sure that the crimes of the pharmaceutical mafia are rarely revealed to the public. The people’s life-styles are manufactured BY THE GOVERNMENT and their dependency on “medicine” too! Do we know why THE GOVERNMENT bans medicine sent by people to their families in Mauritius or requires us to obtain a GOVERNMENT PERMIT? Do we know why we elect a government that would give a licence to criminal landlords and their serfs to plant tobacco, manufacture cigarettes and sell them to the public, (likewise with rum, beer and other alcoholic beverages)? They are proven intoxicants, addictive drugs, poisons, and killers! I remember the Biology teacher (who was already campaigning against smoking and nicotine addiction) and wrote to the Government and said: “You sell the drugs (tobacco) and you have the gall to ask me to waste my time campaigning against smoking?” The Government complained to his boss and he was not reprimanded but told that he should be more courteous with the Government (THE DRUG TRAFFICKERS!). Do we know that a few people who officially campaigned against drugs were said to have committed suicide and another one jailed and tortured for three years and then released without charge? In the USA, we know (some of us) that the government (CIA-MOSSAD) is the main drug trafficker. In France, we know that the government is at the head of the prostitution racket. So, we should divert our attention more to the real culprits than to their victims – the people or sheeple! So, if we say: “We continue to drink vast amounts of alcohol and smoke like chimneys and then blame the government…”, it would not be fair. See the logic of western ideology. They sell cigarettes and they warn the smokers (their victims) on the packet: “SMOKING KILLS”! They are telling us they are murderers, and we do not give a damn about it! And the Mauritian government is quite happy to authorise the sale of those “weapons of mass destruction”! Well, enough for now, R.A.J.. You have done a great job. Thank you. Regards Ghyslaine ROC 30/3/2008 |
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said this on 30 Mar 2008 5:06:36 AM MUT
Good diagnosis Mr. R.AJ. ! I will add to it by saying if we do not change our lifestyles and eating habits, we will be digging our graves with our mouths. If folks medicines do not work miracles, consult with a good longaniste which is the Mauritian equivalent of an uncertified psychologist !
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