Realwomen.co.nz

Rarely does anyone post in Health.

That seems odd to me, our health is one of the most important things to our lives and the lives of those around us.

In the developed world it is widely reported that 80% of health problems are of peoples own making. It amazes me how few people take active steps in regard to their own health, it amazes me even more (actually it appals me) how many people do so little to care for the health of their children and grandchildren.

Of course we need to take responsibility for our lifestyles and this affects our health, but not every illness can be laid at the door of poor diet, smoking, overeating, etc. Sometimes it is just bad luck. Like the cases we hear about of a perfectly fit runner who jogs regularly and does all the right things who drops down dead of an unsuspected aneurism or the poor soul who gets breast cancer. However, I agree that many illnesses and conditions are brought on or exacebated by poor lifestyle choices. Diabetes tupe 2 would be such a condition but what about the sufferer of type 1? Or the child who has leukaemia? Sometimes it's just plain old terrible luck.

I don't think that it is particularly odd that health matters are not discussed more here. I just think that it is more to do with the fact that if there is a medical problem someone is concerned about, that they themselves would rather discuss them with a suitably qualified person.
It is not the right thing to do on these kinds of forums I feel. I don't think I am mean , just sensible. So, I usually either ignore medical types of queries, or else I politely advice that they seek an appointment at their own medical centre.

'....Like the cases we hear about of a perfectly fit runner who jogs regularly and does all the right things who drops down dead ...' Really, do you have any figures and statistics on that? Personally I have never known any fit runner who droped dead.

There is the anti-fitness and anti-running favourite Jim Fixx who died nearly 30 years ago aged, 52 yet is still cited as an example of a 'healthy' person dropping dead. Most people who mention Jim Fixx know little or nothing about him of course '... Fixx started running in 1967 at age 35. He weighed 240 pounds (110 kg) and smoked two packs of cigarettes per day. ...'. was it running that killed him ???

It is likely that by losing weight and giving up the smokes Jim Fixx improved and extended (his father died aged 43) his life. In the years since the death of Jim Fixx a lot more is known about fitness in general and running in particular, we no longer see distance athletes at the Olympics staggering to the line.

There is also more knowledge on heart disease so it is likely that Jim Fixx would have had tests available to him that might have uncovered health problems and he may have had treatment. People today who have heart surgery are no longer told to rest, they are encouraged to exercise. In fact after most surgery these days you are kicked out of bed as soon as possible to get moving, rest can kill you.

As for ‘luck’ I don’t accept we are helpless slaves to luck, we have an influence on many factors in our life. There are, of course, laws of probability and statistics, so not every baby will be born healthy and some will die.

There are other events, earthquakes, plane crashes, terrorism ... are democratic in the sense they kill the rich and poor, fit and unfit, thin or fat without discrimination.

There are dangers around us just from living, 13 cyclists have been killed on Victorian roads over the last 2 years.

Some types of death make news, partly because they are unusual or rare, more common forms of death don’t make headlines and, despite the dangers and numbers tend to be less noticed. Unhealthy people will often make the comment ‘oh well I have to die of something’ what a stupid approach to life and death, we all have to die at sometime of something, I cannot see how that fact is a justification or excuse for crazy lifestyles.

I accept the risk of early death as part of life, but, for the most part, we can improve our chances of a healthy life. Health is not the same topic as medical problems, there is a lot of chat on here about medical problems, there is little or none about health.

While doctors play a part in health I do not delegate my choices to third parties, in my experience few GP’s know much about fitness, if they do its not their job to tell people what to do. Patients are paying customers, doctors don’t want arguments, aggression or complaints against them, so I think many take the line of least resistance and just give people what they want.

I think doctors have become enablers in many ways. Recently someone I know (he is only 40) who is at least 40kgs overweight was being sent off to be fitted for a sleep apnoea machine. He has no plans to work to improve his condition by losing weight and getting fitter, why bother when there is a machine.

Rant rant rant.