UNIT 4: HEALTH AND WELLNESS
My name‿ is‿ Anna. My grandmother had‿ a remedy for‿ everything,│ an(d) the older‿ I get,│ the more‿ I divide her‿ advice‿ into two categories:│ the par(t) that‿ is supported by evidence‿ an(d) the par(t) that‿ is supported by love.
Honey for‿ a sore throat works,│ an(d) there‿ is‿ evidence for‿ it. A wet cloth for‿ a headache is harmless. But when my son had‿ a temperature‿ of 39 for two nights,│ herbal tea was not‿ a treatment,│ and waitingwai-ding‿ any longer would have been careless. The placebo effect‿ is real,│ which‿ is why these remedies survive,│ but‿ it‿ is not‿ a reason to delay an‿ antibiotic│ when‿ an‿ infection‿ is bacterial. Self-medicating with the wrong thing‿ is worse than doing nothing.
The serious problem‿ in my country is the opposite‿ of home remedies:│ people demand‿ antibiotics for‿ a cold,│ an(d) the doctors prescribe them│ because the consultation lasts seven minutes. Prevention‿ is│ where the whole‿ argumen(t) should begin,│ and‿ it does not sell‿ anything,│ which‿ is‿ exactly why it‿ is‿ undervalued. My grandmother never mentioned the immune system,│ yet she was right‿ about the importan(t) thing,│ which‿ is that most‿ illness‿ is betterbe-der prevented than cured.