Wednesday, 04 November 2009
-
Malnutrition: A Consequence of Socialized Healthcare?
I read a striking article this week courtesy of Jerome Burne of The Daily Mail, entitled Malnutrition: The Hidden Epidemic.
Now we all know that obesity is rising year on year and endangers the lives of both young and old alike. This on top of the fact that the cost to the country in healthcare, prevention and education is staggeringly massive. But were you aware that in Britain the NHS spends a whopping £13 BILLION [over 20 billion U.S. dollars!] rectifying the effects of malnutrition each year!!....Just to put that in context for you, that's three times the amount that is thrown at the 'obesity epidemic'!
And no my friends, we are NOT talking about eating disorders here. We are talking about the fact that on admission to hospital 40% of general patients are malnourished. There are millions of folk in this country who despite our wealth as a nation, are not getting adequate calories, protein, vitamins and minerals. And incredibly the government have known about this for years. So why has little if anything been done about it?
These days you cannot turn on your telly without hearing about a new government initiative to tackle obesity. Strange - and worrying - then that there seems to be no new-fangled initiatives to fight the opposite spectrum which is currently costing our country so much more in attempts to patch up the damage already done.
One might imagine that having been diagnosed as being malnourished on admission to hospital that every effort would be made to reverse this. Nope. Not at all, apart from the fact that fewer than half of hospitals even carry out the simplest diagnostic test used to recognise malnutrition, it gets worse when you realise that in fact 8000 patients leaving British hospitals last year were MORE malnourished than when they actually came in! This to me seems crazy. Surely this issue should be addressed and seen as an important element of anyone's admission to hospital. It is widely known that properly nourished patients do far better post-operatively and have a much better outlook and recovery rate. Surely, sort this out and the cost to the NHS would be reduced significantly, leaving more funding availiable for other sorely over-stretched services??!!....NO? Am I missing something here?? Not dealing with this 'hidden epidemic' is pure false economy - don't pay now, but pay far more later, it's NUTS!
Figures cited in this article claim that by lowering the malnutrition rate by a mere 10% a saving of £1.3billion could be made and, critically as many as 10,000 lives could be saved. So my question to you is were you aware of this hidden epidemic? What do you think should be done to improve the situation, if anything? Should the British government spend now to save later? Or have they got it right that obesity is the biggest threat, thus justifying the time, money and effort spent on the war waged against it? What do you guys in the U.S. make of it? Do you think this is a consequence of sociaised healthcare?
Oh yeah, and you don't have to be emaciated or elderly to be malnourished. Obese folk can be malnourished too and it covers the entire age spectrum.
What do you think about this? Is malnutrition a consequence of socialized healthcare?
-
recommend
- recs 0
-
share
-
email
- sent 0
Related Posts
Post a Comment
- Back to healthkicker's Healthkicker Site!
- Note: your comment will appear in healthkicker's local time zone: GMT -05:00 (Eastern Standard - US, Canada)
About the Author
-
- From: RuftyRoo@xanga
- Name: RuftyRoo
- About Me: Rat-loving, eating disordered, psychologically "interesting" 30yr old creature with habitual hibernating and sporadic blogging features. Just to get it out of the way, I have a 16 year old eating disorder. I've been stuck in the 'anorexia (binge-purge subtype)' - how nice - box by the professionals. Although I believe my ED (eating disorder) to be more akin to bulimia. In my mind (and that really, probably, is JUST in my mind!) my battles with the professionals over my diagnosis and subsequent treatment are legendary. My argument is this: How can somebody having had a diagnosis of bulimia for over ten years (based on having bulimic behaviours but being a 'NORMAL' WEIGHT), suddenly, overnight be shifted -due to the dropping of a couple of lbs- into the 'anorexia' box and then be expected to respond to the treatment that is offered to (at times enforced on) folk with a restricting-type anorexia?
-
Premium
Stats: This Week All Time Posts: 0 1 Views: 0 474 Comments: 0 17 View all posts by RuftyRoo@xanga
Comments (17)
I'm malnourished and live in the United States, and no doctor seems to give a damn, so no, I don't believe it's the result of socialized health care.
in the US, doctors are finding more occurances of malnutrition diseases like rickets in morbidly obese children - they are getting too many calories and not enough nutrition,
It is certainly not a result of socialized healthcare,i think that's a ridiculous assumption. People eat horribly badly. it is not the fault of the doctors.
no absolutely not. it is so so much more complicated than that. malnourishment in developed countries is a result of shitty processed foods and poverty. poverty in developed countries is a result of capitalism run wild. i'm learning all about this precise issue in an economics class right now.
to say that socialized medicine has ANYTHING to do with malnutrition is about the dumbest thing i've ever heard. this is some propaganda released by insurance companies because they are starting to realize that people aren't going to settle for this bullshit anymore.
this is poverty problem. a problem with democracy taking a backseat to capitalism. not a problem with making health care available to everyone.
malnourishment is a result of not eating healthily - whether you eat too much or too little. obesity = malnutrition, because being fat is (usually) a result of being poorly nourished and eating bad foods (as well as not exercising). i think addressing the issue of 'malnutrition' instead of 'obesity' would be a more comprehensive way to solve the epidemic.
...Is that a serious question? How could it have anything to do with socialized medicine?
What is really going on is people are eating more food with less nutritional value (think fast food, chips, all that good stuff). It's packed with calories and has no vitamins and minerals we need. So you can eat til you feel like vomiting every time, but still not get the nutrients you need. That's why people are malnourished. They just need to eat foods that are better for them.
How would universal health care have anything to do with malnourishment?
Mel! I'm glad you submitted and posted this. I hope you are well today. Hugs to you.
malnutrition just means you don't have a balanced diet. you don't have to look like that kid in the picture to be malnourished, and you definitely don't have to be obese - your idea of malnutrition is severely flawed. malnutrition could be getting enough caloric intake, but not the necessary vitamins, nutrients you need. a LOT more than 40% of the people are malnourished, because oftentimes we don't check everyday to see we've got all the essentials that we need.
I found this on a bulletin board and decided to try it. A little
while back, I was browsing the internet, and came across an article similar to this that said you could make
thousands of dollars within weeks with only an initial investment of
$6.00! So I thought, "Yeah right, this must be a scam", but
like most of us, I was curious, so I kept reading. Anyway, it said
that you send $1.00 to each of the 6 names and addresses stated in the
article. You then place your own name and address in the bottom of
the list at #6, and post the article in at least 200 newsgroups.
(There are thousands) No catch, that was it. So after thinking it
over, and talking to a few people first, I thought about trying it. I
figured: "what have I got to lose except 6 stamps and $6.00,
right?" Then I invested the measly $6.00. Well GUESS WHAT!?...
within 7 days, I started getting money in the mail! I was shocked! I
figured it would end soon, but the money just kept coming in. In my
first week, I made about $25.00. By the end of the second week I had
made a total of over $1,000.00! In the third week I had over
$10,000.00 and it's still growing. This is now my fourth week and I
have made a total of just over $42,000.00 and it's still coming in
rapidly. It's certainly worth $6.00, and 6 stamps, I have spent more
than that on the lottery!! Let me tell you how this works and most
importantly, WHY it works... Also, make sure you print a copy of this
article NOW, so you can get the information off of it as you need it.
I promise you that if you follow the directions exactly, that you
will start making more money than you thought possible by doing
something so easy!
Suggestion: Read this entire message carefully! (print it out or
download it.) Follow the simple directions and watch the money come
in!
It's easy. It's legal. And your investment is only $6.00 (Plus
postage)
IMPORTANT: This is not a rip-off; it is not indecent; it is not
illegal; and it is 99% no risk - it really works!
If all of the following instructions are adhered to, you will receive
extraordinary dividends.
PLEASE NOTE:
Follow these directions EXACTLY, and $50,000.00 or more can be
yours in 20 to 60 days. This program remains successful because of
the honesty and integrity of the participants. Please continue its
success by carefully adhering to the instructions.
You will now become part of the Mail Order business. In this business
your product is not solid and tangible, it's a service. You are in
the business of developing Mailing Lists. Many large corporations are
happy to pay big bucks for quality lists. However, the money made
from the mailing lists is secondary to the income which is made from
people like you and me asking to be included in that list.
Here are the 4 easy steps to success:
STEP 1:
Get 6 separate pieces of paper and write down your name and address
followed by the words "PLEASE ADD ME TO YOUR MAILING LIST" on each
of them. Now get 6 US $1.00 bills and place ONE inside EACH of the
6 pieces of paper so the bill will not be visible through the envelope
(to prevent thievery). Next, place one paper in each of the 6 envelopes
and seal them. You should now have 6 sealed envelopes, each with a piece of
paper stating the above phrase, your name and address, and a $1.00
bill. What you are doing is creating a service. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY
LEGAL! You are requesting a legitimate service and you are paying for
it! Like most of us I was a little skeptical and a little worried
about the legal aspects of it all. So I checked it out with the U.S.
Post Office (1-800-725-2161) and they confirmed that it is indeed
legal. Mail the 6 envelopes to the following addresses:
1) Jay foresman
1925 Elmeda
Muskogee Ok, 74403
2) John Visser
11140 Streets Ridge
RR#2 Oxford, NS Canada, B0M 1P0
3) C. Warren
721 W. 1500 S.
Provo, UT 84601
4) justin s
12 bense ct
Washington, NJ 07882
5) Rueben Hernandez
709 3rd ave apt B
Bradley Beach, NJ 07720
6) Jason Barry
2 wright road
warren Pa 16365
STEP 2:
Now take the #1 name off the list that you see above, move
the other names up (6 becomes 5, 5 becomes 4, etc...) and add YOUR
Name as number 6 on the list.
STEP 3:
Change anything you need to, but try to keep this article as
close to original as possible. Now, post your amended article to at
least 200 newsgroups. (I think there are close to 24,000 groups) All
you need is 200, but remember, the more you post, the more money you
make! You won't get very much unless you post like crazy.
This is perfectly legal! If you have any doubts, refer to Title 18
Sec. 1302 & 1341 of the Postal lottery laws.
Keep a copy of these steps for yourself and, whenever you need money,
you can use it again, and again.
PLEASE REMEMBER that this program remains successful because of the
honesty and integrity of the participants and by their carefully
adhering to the directions. Look at it this way. If you are of
integrity, the program will continue and the money that so many
others have received will come your way.
NOTE: You may want to retain every name and address sent to you,
either on a computer or hard copy and keep the notes people send you.
This VERIFIES that you are truly providing a service. (Also, it might
be a good idea to wrap the $1 bill in dark paper to reduce the risk
of mail theft.)
So, as each post is downloaded and the directions carefully followed,
six members will be reimbursed for their participation as a List
Developer with one dollar each. Your name will move up the list
geometrically so that when your name reaches the #1 position you will
be receiving thousands of dollars in CASH!!! What an opportunity for
only $6.00 ($1.00 for each of the first six people listed above) Send
it now, add your own name to the list and you're in business!
---DIRECTIONS ----- FOR HOW TO POST TO NEWSGROUPS------------
Step 1) You do not need to re-type this entire letter to do your own
posting. Simply put your cursor at the beginning of this letter and
drag your cursor to the bottom of this document, and select 'copy'
from the edit menu. This will copy the entire letter into the
computer's memory.
Step 2) Open a blank 'notepad' file and place your cursor at the top
of the blank page. From the 'edit' menu select 'paste'. This will
paste a copy of the letter into notepad so that you can add your name
to the list.
Step 3) Save your new notepad file as a .txt file. If
you want to do your postings in different settings, you'll always
have this file to go back to.
Step 4) Use Netscape or Internet explorer and try searching for
various newsgroups (on-line forums, message boards, chat sites,
discussions.)
Step 5) Visit these message boards and post this article as a new
message by highlighting the text of this letter and selecting paste
from the edit menu. Fill in the Subject, this will be the header that
everyone sees as they scroll through the list of postings in a
particular group, click the post message button. You're done with
your first one! Congratulations...THAT'S IT! All you have to do is
jump to different newsgroups and post away, after you get the hang of
it, it will take about 30 seconds for each newsgroup!
**REMEMBER, THE MORE NEWSGROUPS YOU POST IN, THE MORE MONEY YOU WILL MAKE! BUT :
YOU HAVE TO POST A MINIMUM OF 200**
That's it! You will begin receiving money from around the world within days! You may eventually want to
rent a P.O.Box due to the large amount of mail you will receive. If
you wish to stay anonymous, you can invent a name to use, as long as
the postman will deliver it.
**JUST MAKE SURE ALL THE ADDRESSES ARE CORRECT.**
Now,
each of the 5 persons who just sent me $1.00 make the MINIMUM 200
postings, each with my name at #5 and only 5 persons respond to each
of the original 5, that is another $25.00 for me, now those 25 each
make 200 MINIMUM posts with my name at #4 and only 5 replies each, I
will bring in an additional $125.00! Now, those 125 persons turn
around and post the MINIMUM 200 with my name at #3 and only receive 5
replies each, I will make an additional $625.00! OK, now here is the
fun part, each of those 625 persons post a MINIMUM 200 letters with
my name at #2 and they each only receive 5 replies, that just made me
$3,125.00!!! Those 3,125 persons will all deliver this message to 200
newsgroups with my name at #1 and if still 5 persons per 200
newsgroups react I will receive $15,625,00! With an original
investment of only $6.00! AMAZING! When your name is no longer on the
list, you just take the latest posting in the newsgroups, and send
out another $6.00 to names on the list, putting your name at number 6
again. And start posting again. The thing to remember is: do you
realize that thousands of people all over the world are joining the
internet and reading these articles everyday?, JUST LIKE YOU are
now!! So, can you afford $6.00 and see if it really works?? I think
so... People have said, "what if the plan is played out and no
one sends you the money? So what! What are the chances of that
happening when there are tons of new honest users and new honest
people who are joining the internet and newsgroups everyday and are
willing to give it a try? Estimates are at 20,000 to 50,000 new
users, every day, with thousands of those joining the actual
internet. Remember, play FAIRLY and HONESTLY and this will really
work!
ALSO REMEMBER*** : : SEND YOUR $1 OUT
TO EVERYONE ON THE LIST, : : EVEN
IF THEY ARE NOT FROM THE U.S. : : WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR??? : : : :
GOOD LUCK!!
yeah, i agree with most of what people said here. it's an interesting article, but i dont think socialized health care has much to do with it. i think malnourishment has more to do with the types of foods people eat, either because they want to or they are forced to because it's cheaper. when i was little, i was getting in 3-4000 calories a day and hardly any nutrition because of fast food/junk food. i think poverty contributes to this, because i was very poor, so my mom and I could not afford to eat nutritious foods - fruits, vegetables, whole grains and proteins are way more expensive than chips, the dollar menu, little debbies, etc. i've known many people who are poor and eat like this, and are usually either obese, malnourished or both. i luckily never became overweight, but my mother did (thanks to child vs adult metabolisms, i guess, not to mention my activity level versus her lack of one), and she is suffering the consequences of that now :/
Correlation does not equal causation.
@methodElevated@xanga - good point
It's all about capitalism. Blame everything on Capitalism, selling, producing and profit and greed. Poor health and poor living situations are profitable for the ones who hold the wealth. It has always been that way.
@methodElevated@xanga - I concur.
The problem that it ISN'T THE GOVERNMENT'S RESPONSIBILITY.
And people are simply foolish and ignorant about what they consume, sometimes by their own choosing. We unfortunately live in a society where it has become the norm to blame others, if possible the government, for our moronic actions. Take some responsibility....
"Obese folk can be malnourished too and it covers the entire age spectrum" I think you answered your own question right there. If our society is not just eating, but
sustaining itselfon processed foods that have probably been made mostly of corn by-products and leeched of most their nutrients. Is it really that surprising that not just some obese folks, but
mostobese folks are actually malnourished as well? I mean, your just not going to get all the essential and non-essential vitamins that our bodies need from processed foods. We're
omnivoresand that is a boon and a burden. We can eat all these different types of foods, but we also need a wide variety of vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, simple
andcomplex sugars, and on and on and on. We need all those things, and a big Mac is just not equipped to handle the complex maintenance of our bodies. And fortifying our food with
massive amountsof vitamin C is not solving the problem. Just because its easy to get vitamin C does not make it a cure-all. Sure it's essential, but so are many other vitamins. The list of reasons for malnutrition goes on, ask yourself why people are become allergic to gluten? gluten!? I mean, bread was one of the first foods sedentary humans evolved to eat, bread has been a human staple since the first human sowed those small wild grass seeds and harvested the grain. I used to think of someone who was malnourished as some skeleton of a person, some concentration camp inmate. Now I look at the 500 lbs. person waddling into kfc/burger-king/Mcdonalds/wendy's/jackinthebox/sonic/etc! and it takes most of my fiber not to shout "your not eating anything really!" But, I doubt they'd understand anyway...
So far, most of the comments (save the spammer) have already beaten the poster about the head with the silliness of his/her conclusions.....so I won't bother...except to say "Uh....what they said"
Yep....that's all.