Johan Norberg in his book Ten Reasons to look forward to the future writes “Once upon a time, it was of great survival value to be worried about everything that could go wrong,” What does that mean ?
The Swedish author, Johan Norberg in his book Ten Reasons to look forward to the future writes “Once upon a time, it was of great survival value to be worried about everything that could go wrong,” What does that mean ? It means that if the cave man was to assume that there is a predator hiding behind any bush or behind that rock, he would be wrong 99% of the time. But that instinct kept him alive. It was of great survival value that you focus your attention on negative information. May be it is that survival instinct that is hardcoded in our DNA that lets us believe stories from doomsday advocates and fear mongers about the current state of the world.
The 20th century marks an inflection point in human history. Thats when humanity began to transition from its ancient crises of depending on instinct to depending on modern inventions. Our science is now so penetrating, potent and our systems so robust that we don’t have to look over our shoulders every time we step out. Today we face a new challenge, ignorance in the face of evidence and information.
Last week in Tirupur district of Tamil Nadu, a South Indian state a mother died after giving birth when the family attempted to have an unassisted “Natural Birthing” at home watching YouTube videos. Not a week had passed when an advertisement started popping across Whatsapp groups and Social Media in the same region about a 5 day training session for Home Birthing. The person who is supposed to conduct the training was a self proclaimed “Healer” with questionable credentials and no known formal training in medicine of any kind. When the authorities where alerted to the advertisement they immediately sprung into action and took the “Healer” into custody.
The inherent insecurity in people and distrust of science combined with our natural affinity for negativity hardcoded from the time of Homo Eructus, is what quacks like the “Healer” feed on. This is why we need to place trust in science and modern medicine now more than ever. What is even more surprising is that a substantial group of highly educated professionals seem to trust these questionable practises as opposed to assisted birthing with qualified professionals and midwives under sterile conditions. They took to online media in support of the “Healer” .
The above story is not a one off phenomenon. We are continuously bombarded with lies, and false propaganda that the food we eat is poisoned. Big Pharma is evil, Corporates want to create more patients for Big Pharma, worse still, Big Pharma is creating newer diseases , vaccines cause autism and so on. We are lured into buying Detoxing products, Organic supplements, and natural oils that have no value nutritionally or scientifically.
A cursory look at facts will tell you Humanity is at its peak of health since the time of Homo Eructus. Average life expectancy of humans has jumped from 35 years to 75 years The United Nations has called this the “Most significant human transformation of the century “. Increased sanitation has made lifestyle healthier. Last mile availability of primary healthcare has made identifying, containing and curing diseases and illness more easier than ever. In the 1800s 43% of new borns didn’t live as long as today.Child mortality at birth has been drastically reduced due to Neo Natal care facilities. Today more and more children live past their 5th birthday because regular monitoring, better Antinatal and Postnatal care facilities help diagnose and treat complication quicker.
The Germ Theory of Medicine which was postulated in the latter half of the 19th century by Louis Pasteur drastically changed the way medicine looked at diseases and it led to discovery of antibiotics and vaccines. Polio,Small pox and numerous other diseases have been eradicated .Deaths due to Cancer and HIV are falling across the charts. A study in the UK has found that young HIV patients who start antiretroviral therapy early can now expect to live as long as any of us, i.e 75 years. The risk of spreading infectious diseases like the plague is now literally down to zero. From wiping out half of the European population in the early 1600s, we are down to only 600 reported cases a year. Infectious diseases caused more than 37% of deaths in 1900 . That number dropped to less than 5% by 1955 and is around 2% now. As recently as half a century ago, humans were dying because of the common cold and flu. But today antibiotics have played an active part in extending human lifespan . The number of new cases and death each year has been decreasing in cases of Tuberculosis and Pneumonia..
Patients with chronic illness like Diabetes, Cholesterol and BP had no little or no way to treat these illness. But today chronic medicines have made sure people can live longer and healthier . The majority of major trauma deaths were caused due to unrecognised intra abdominal bleeding. But with advanced diagnostics and modern intensive care trauma and accident patients have a fighting chance than ever before.
A lot of naysayers talk about how modern food is toxic, GM food is bad for health etc… But higher agricultural output has made sure more mouths are fed. Access to fresh produce has increased nutrition and over all health. In the 1960s global policy makers were predicting mass famine. But since then the population has doubled and we have found ways to grow more off the same amount of land.The Global Health Index for children dropped by 39% since 1990 which means lesser number of children are dying due to hunger. We have virtually eliminated hunger and famine. There is no reason to doubt why this trend would not continue forever.
Does this mean traditional medicines like Siddha, Ayurveda etc…are some how backward and bad ? No. They have had their time and played a very important role in helping modern health care reach where it is today. In keeping with Darwins Law of Evolution, humanity as a whole is evolving every day. We changed more in the last century than ever before, and our children will change even faster. Our biological clocks reprogram themselves to suit different work schedules and different time zones. Our Digestive system has adapted to different kinds of foods. In such a scenario it is very crucial that any modern healthcare system take into account empirical data and evidence based on diagnostics. Traditional health care has simply not caught up with modern science. But even today traditional healthcare can be used to achieve a good life style and treat non critical ailments and rejunivative therapies . But with adequate funding and focus , study and research on these systems by the right set of people can take them up a notch higher. The R&D has to take into account the changing anatomy of the human body. Ayurveda and Siddha should in no way be confused with the non peer reviewed alternate, non factual, medical practices propagated by the Healer.
With a population the size of India, it is impossible for the government to provide quality healthcare for the whole populace. That is why private healthcare had was brought in to bridge the gap. But as with any system, it was not perfect and there has been instances of financial greed that has played havoc in certain instances. But nobody can deny that as a whole, India has taken great strides in the advancement of medicine, quality of healthcare delivery, the reach of primary healthcare facilities and top notch doctors. With increased oversight and regulation, the government can and should monitor financial dealings of private players and make healthcare more affordable to every one.
Every major study indicates that we are living longer and have conquered most diseases that have plagued our existence. But that also doesn’t mean we are physically stronger than before. But thats mainly because of changes in our active lifestyle. We are simply not active physically as our ancestors where.Making ourselves stronger along with modern scientific healthcare advancements that is keeping us alive for longer is a very potent combination, one that might be a next step in our evolutionary journey. But these are improvements rather than complaints that can help make the lives of the huge mass of Indians better.
The American economist Julian Simon who vocally opposes gloomy predictions wrote ““Here are the facts, on average, people throughout the world have been living longer and eating better than ever before. Fewer people die of famine nowadays than in earlier centuries … every single measure of material and environmental welfare in the United States has improved rather than deteriorated. This is also true of the world taken as a whole. All the long-run trends point in exactly the opposite direction from the projections of the doomsayers.”
In short when all of us are worried about death due to Ebola, Bird Flu , HIV or that predator hiding behind the bush, the miracle of modern medicine represents humanity’s victory over death .Geographically and Demographically, across the board, in matters of mortality, hunger, disease, and more, life is getting better for billions of people. Stop the mass hysteria and trust modern medicine and your physician .