The "Corporal Jones" Approach to Health

[Acrylic-bob]

For that most fascist of all fascists, Adolph Hitler, the physical bodies of the German people belonged to the state. And, since the State was in effect the Fuhrer, he, quite logically, believed that ultimately they belonged to him. Consequently he insisted that, for the good of the state, they had the responsibility, nay, duty even, to the Fuhrer, who personally followed a most abstemious lifestyle, to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. And so, for the dozen or so years of his ascendency, Health, the vigour of the Master Race and eurythmic excercise were the rule of the day. Thus Hitler became the first Health Fascist. Sadly, though his political philosophy is now reviled the world over, and quite rightly so, his views on public health appear to have outlived him and have gained an increasing currency as the years have passed.

This last few years we have been subjected to an increasing barrage of education, advice and general nagging and nannying on the subject of health and longevity - much of which it must be said is partial, contradictory and confusing and is often imparted in a sensationalist manner by a crisis hungry media. The latest blitzkrieg to be visited on us came this week with the publication of a UN sponsored report that fingers the humble rasher of Bacon in particular, and all processed meat in general, as potential carcinogens and thus as comodities to be avoided like the plague itself. Those of us who are a little longer in the tooth than we might care to admit and are thus to be considered veterans in this war on ill-health and careless care-free consumption can remember similar strictures on the use of sugar, for which saccharin was hailed as an acceptable substitute, until it was found to be a carcinogen. Caffiene in coffee was similarly placed beyond the pale until the antioxident properties of coffee and tea were found to have a counteractive effect. Then it was butter, then it was margerine, then it was animal fats, trans fats, lipids, LDL and HDL colesterol, fish oils, red wine, white wine. Too much alcohol. Not enough alcohol. culminating in the admission last week that the guidline amounts for alcohol consumption were not based on science or observation but had been plucked out of thin air by the committee which had been designated the responsibility of examining the subject, for no other reason than that they had to be seen to recommend something.
It seems strange that at a time when spending on the health service has increased over three times since the level of 1997 that the general health of the population appears headed in a general downward spiral into catostrophic ill-health. We face looming crises with obesity, cancers of all sorts, heart disease and diabetes. So much so that the health service is considering making the sufferers of what it terms "Lifestyle diseases" pay for their care before thay receive it. Doctors no longer wish to treat patients as and when they need it. Nurses cannot be bothered to keep hospital wards clean and hygienic, or even to wash their hands between patients. The wait at the few A&E departments still functioning as such is scarcely less than it was 20 years ago and hospitals are places where it seems more probable that you will get ill and die rather than get better. And yet there is still this manic insistance that life; any and all life, must be prolonged to the last possible syllable regardless of the cost to the patient, their dignity, their family or the budget of the health service. Why should it be the case that just because we can prolong life, we must always prolong it.

Where will it all end? Because this is not all. Last week saw the publication of yet another UN sponsored report; this time into the likely effects of climate change. Basically the upshot of the report is that there are just too many of us for the planet to be able to support, we eat too much, we make too much mess and we breed too fast. Something needs to be done, the report concludes, if, having sown the wind, we are not to reap the whirlwind.

One of the reasons for Hitlers insistance on the health of "Dem Deutchen Volk" was obviously to better equip them for their role in his envisaged domination of the world. The other reason was purely economic. The more healthy people you have, the more they can work, the more they work, the bigger the economy grows. Bigger economies mean more government revenues from taxation and thus gives more latitude to politicians wishing to make their mark on history to act. That is as true of Britain in the 21st century as it was of Germany in the 1930's.

In life there are few certainties. Of those certainties, three are fundamental and inescapable: we are born, we live for a brief span and then we die. We meddle with this ineluctable rule at a cost, not only to ourselves, but to the economy and ultimately to the planet itself.
One of the things that really puzzles me is the apparent inability, or unwillingness, of government to join the dots. More is not always better. Quality is always to be preferred over quantity. The solution to climate change and the rape of the planet's resources is a considerable reduction in the current population and zero to negative population growth. The choice we have is not whether we use technology to limit the impact on climate of our outrageous lifestyles, but whether we allow millions to die unattended now, before the planet takes the decision out of our hands.

[MargaretR]

Very well put!!!
also......We need to realise that medical profession are not infallible. Often prescribed meds can damage health. We should not just accept blindly whatever is said to be 'good for you'. Now we have the web we have the opportunity to find out for ourselves what is best for us.

[Acrylic-bob]

It is begining to look as though I spoke too late....

Climate wars threaten billions | Environment | The Observer

[jambutty]

A combination of “Logan’s Run”, “Soylent Green” and “Big Brother” is rapidly becoming a reality.

It isn’t a question of if but when.