Well, this being a weekend, the news is pretty empty, and that's a good thing because today has been long day of sit around and then rush. So I thought of something I've meant to rant on.
This is a meme that has appeared in dozens of places.
First off, I really don't think that's the way the comic first appeared back in '06 (according to the upper right hand corner). The obvious place to start is that the text on the blackboard is nothing like any other text in the cartoon. It's not that it's not a good cartoon, it's just that it doesn't look like a Bizarro.com. But that's not important.
The point of the meme is obvious: if big pharma and big medicine cure you,
they make a small number of sales. One visit or a dozen? It doesn't matter. If
you're not going back for treatment, whether it's doctor visits, drugs, or
hospitalizations, they all make more money if you're treated regularly and not
cured. To use the analogy that I'm sure lots of people are thinking of: why cure a disease if they can just vaccinate you for it or sell you pills for it for the rest of your life. Better yet, what if they can sell massive quantities to governments and maybe put it in the water supply or something? Guaranted sales for decades to come!
The first time I saw this cartoon, I thought, "and you think that doesn't apply to vitamins, supplements and all the other stuff that's being aimed at you?" If you're good at your research and testing, you may find a certain supplement takes care of some symptom you're having. Without fooling yourself with the placebo effect. Congratulations. Now, do you need to take that pill For The Rest Of Your Life? Did you get the dose right and does it change as you get older? The only thing that can be said in favor of fixing issues with whole foods is that you have to buy food anyway and even expensive food might be cheaper than a lot of those vitamin, mineral and whatnot pills.
OTOH
ReplyDeleteI'm not a physician, but...
A patient cured is a happy patient/customer/client who will refer his/her/its friends by the score.
works just as well in dentistry (even root canal work) ; ask me how I know.
There is more than a bit of truth to that cartoon....the bean counters who ACTUALLY control the practice of medicine don't want people cured. They want forever customers. The other part of the equation is a society that believes they don't need to take care of themselves...starting when they are YOUNG. They expect to be able to abuse their bodies for decades then magically have some people in white lab coats undo all the damage they self inflicted. Doesn't work that way. People who eat a proper diet, control their weight, exercise regularly and don't abuse alcohol, drugs or tobacco rarely need regular healthcare visits till they are quite old.
ReplyDeleteMom always had a 5-gallon crock pot under the stairs for the sauerkraut we ate, it was NOTHING like the crap you buy in the stores. The commercial stuff is so much pablum because it's tasteless thanks to FDA requirements. No more nutrition in what is sold commercially. Which is why nutritionals are sold like hotcakes.
ReplyDeleteEat out of the garden, folks. Not only is it good for ya, it's also a survival tactic When The Balloon Goes Up!!