When it comes to our health, are we poorly informed?
Is it fair to say that all of us would rather be healthy and avoid illness? Are we really lazy and not wanting to do the type of research necessary to fully understand the options that are available to us? Could I be eating better then I am, excising more? This much I know is probably true. When I walk down the street and see others waking in front of me, I know that I am not alone in this.
When it comes to doctors advice or recommendations, I like most people become a lamb and just follow blindly along. Before swallowing that next pill I mean to find out what the side effects are, how the drug performed, how it interacts with the other Rx I’m taking. I want to know the same kind of information and do the same in-depth analysis I would if I were creating a fantasy team or buying audio equipment. My doctor has my best interests in mind but he or she may have other things on his or her mind at the time.
Yesterday a NY Times article on the cost of new cancer drug treatments points out something most of us don’t know and that is, how much does this thing I’m taking every day cost and how effective is it. …Really. If you look to catch up with the world news at 6PM you are bombarded with a slew of drug commercials all which contain important messages that we all ignore. As I watch them, I wonder is the cure worth the possible side effects of the drugs?
I recall an interview with a health expert who claimed that we are all living longer and possibly healthier because of two things, clean water and washing our hands. I noted that it wasn’t because of the drugs we are taking or the operations we are enduring. As I get older, and watch others age this becomes more and more of a concern.
Filed Under: Aging • Business • Education • Health and Fitness • Women's Issues
About the Author: Robert Martin is an fine artist and his paintings can found at http://www.bobmartin-art.com
