Medicine

Through out the ages, man has always tried to alleviate the suffering which he fell into by using remedies that he thought would work. This was the humble beginning of medicine.

Man’s journey on earth began from the period he lived as a hunter-gatherer where he fossicked the earth for food such as game, fruits and vegetables which were in abundant.

Due to the amount of work each member in his family needed to do in order to gather the vast amounts of food, there was ample and more than sufficient exercise that they got. So there was no need to be afraid of ill-health among the family members.

Plus they were knew nothing or never were afflicted by what is known as the rich man’s disease. There food was without salt or sugar and the fat they got from the body was much needed for them.

But, they still suffered from ill-health. This ill-health came about from the numerous accidents which occurred in hunting and collecting food. Some died in the process. They looked for means to heal the wounds and the disease which occurred because of it. They used what was locally available – sometimes it worked and sometimes it just exacerbated it. So they learnt what was good for them and what was not.

This began the early science of medicine. The knowledge of which was kept in the hands of a few as the others had to continue with the most important aspect of life; food to continue with life.

Know of growth of vegetation helped man to settle down into villages and later towns where he expanded upon his knowledge of using different elements of nature and started manufacturing goods to make life more fruitful like houses and utensils.

But, with town living brought in a new menace. Disease caused by others species such as rats and flies. The pervious medicine men tried the remedies they had on hand which never worked in most cases. With practise and some additions they did come on formulas.

As history goes, we have come to the presents stage where medicine is a roaring business. But the big question which arises in mind do we actually need medicine that much? I bet not as for any petty matter, the first thing we do is to run to the doctor which itself ahs made it a roaring business.

If we lived in the hunter-gatherer stage of humanity, what now we run to the doctor, would have been taken as something so common and insignificant. It is us that has made medicine a roaring business for which we have become addicts to.

This is another reason that medicine has become a costly affair in every part of the world. When it is supposed to be for the good of humanity, it has become a business. Banks invest in it to make profit. Insurance come make money for their share holders. All because we are now at the mercy of medicine.

Steven William Pitts