Newsletter 919

THE WYSONG e-HEALTH LETTER
~Thoughts for Thinking People~

SARS (SUDDEN ACUTE RESPIRATORY SYNDROME), SOME PERSPECTIVE
(Dr. W.) Before we panic, lock ourselves in, don facemasks and rubber gloves to attempt escape from the SARS virus, let's consider some things.
First off, if it were not for the media most would not even know of the disease. Our perceptions of reality are so skewed by what the media chooses to highlight that it is very hard to sort real threats from high improbabilities. After all, we are all at risk of everything at all times – car accidents, lightening bolts, falls, food poisoning, fire, tornadoes, volcanoes, meteorites, parasites and every other manner of disease. It's a matter of odds.

The media features what they believe will capture the most attention. An epidemic that might sweep the world like a plague is attention-getting and keeps folks tuning in. SARS is in; the Nile virus is out.

What the media presents is flavored by marketers looking for ratings and is not an objective view that is "fair and balanced." For example, if one were to line up all the diseases that currently threaten humans and statistically compare their morbidity and mortality rates, SARS would be way, way down toward the nadir.

I have not done this in its entirety, but here are some examples of risks. Each year in the U.S., about 710,760 people die from heart disease, 553,251 from cancer, 429,762 from smoking-related illnesses, 167,661 of stroke, 71,252 due to diabetes, 63,548 from pneumonia, 43,354 in automobile accidents, 29,350 commit suicide, 16,765 are murdered, 14,478 die from HIV/AIDS, 5,357 due to viral hepatitis, 5,000 from food poisoning, 3,582 from rheumatic fever, and 1,765 from influenza.

The number of SARS deaths in the U.S. to date? Zero. According to the World Health Organization, as of May 6th, there have been only 65 cases of the disease in America – none of them fatal. Worldwide, there have been 6,727 cases, 478 resulting in death.

Yet, what do we hear about all the other widespread threats? Practically nothing. They're old news or news people don't want to hear because it means they might have to alter their life-style. How about the fact that the number one killer of Americans is medical intervention? (See "Why Modern Medicine is the Greatest Threat to Health ") When was the last time you heard a news report on that? They should be screaming it from atop their broadcast towers, but lo, nary a word.

It plays better to have an easily identified enemy like a virus than counsel a population about how they should exercise, drop the dough and sugar and eat properly. We do better at war than at self-examination. Let's catch the virus, identify it, prepare a vaccine weapon and rid the earth of it.

Or so the fairy tale goes. We have never removed one pathogen from the planet. They are too small, too ubiquitous and too genetically clever.

"But," you say, "what about the way we licked other terrible epidemics like polio, measles, scarlet fever, whooping cough, diphtheria, tuberculosis and typhoid?"

Here's a reality check on that. Below you will find charts tracking the mortality from a variety of such diseases. Note that they all appear to be subdued. Look more closely. See that they have not been eliminated. Also, and most important and remarkable, the medical agent credited with their demise was introduced AFTER the majority of the disease had declined. Does it look to you like medicine was the cure? Not to me. (Vertical axis represents mortality.)

Why did these infectious diseases decline? Nobody really knows. It could be that we are observing the natural ebb and flow of a microbial population. All creatures experience such cycles. Locust swarms do not occur constantly but according to some internal rhythm within these organisms. The Gypsy moth scourge that devastated all the beautiful oak trees in my home state looked relentless and unstoppable despite spraying, trapping and glue rings. Then, for no apparent reason, it's virtually gone.

We would like to think we control such things by ingenious technology, but we don't. Small creatures in populations of trillions upon trillions have a life of their own that cannot be easily overcome by our puny measures.

Disease also subsides because of the increase in immunological defenses of the host. We too, the hosts, are tenacious and will not easily fall as a population. Even the most virulent disease that passes through a population always seems to leave some survivors. Why? Some evidently had more innate resistance.

The most likely cause of the decline of the terrible scourges of the past was something as unspectacular as increased public hygiene in cities (plumbing) and better food distribution (trucking). The heroes do not reside in the medical profession; they are the plumber and trucker.

How can we individually be more resistant? By taking proper care of ourselves in a preventive way. The Optimal Health Program™ gives you the keys.

If everyone were to follow its principles, microbial villains would have a far less chance of gaining a foothold and the odds of succumbing to all of the other degenerative, equally cruel conditions, would be far more in our favor.
Learn how to preventatively take care of yourself and loved ones. That is your greatest protection and hope.
Use the many Wysong resources to help you and stay tuned. That's what the e-Health Letter is all about.
: Best of health to you and yours from all of us here at Wysong.


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