Category Archives: Health Care

The health of our citizens

A Cure for Night Cramps

Health Care

For years I had suffered from severe cramps at night either in my calves or in my arches. These occurred at least weekly and sometimes more often. One day when I complained about a particularly severe cramp the night before my mom said she had the cure. She told me to put a bar of soap under the bottom sheet and the of my bed. I laughed and said: “ you’ve got to be kidding”. She said: “It has always worked for me”. While I thought it was crazy I also thought that I needed to do something so why not give it a try. Truthfully I did not expect it would help. I have been using the soap now for over 10 years. The only times that I have had night cramps were when I was traveling and forgot to put the soap in the bed.

I was curious about this cure and decided to check the web to see if others were using it. What I found is that numerous other folks swear by this technique, but that the scientific community is unconvinced. After all, it’s just an old wives’ tale. Snopes just says that it’s unproven. They did not check with me. I suspect that any brand will work, but my mom swore by Dial so that is what I use.

Sweden & their approach to COVID 19

Broken in the USA, Health Care, Uncategorized

Sweden & their approach to COVID 19

“As societies battened down the hatches and imposed quarantines, one European country appeared to take a different approach. In Sweden, there have been no invasive lockdowns to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. Restaurants and even nightclubs are operating, though under guidelines to enforce social distancing. Schools for students under the age of 16 remain open. Large gatherings are restricted to a maximum of 50 people, a far cry from the enforced confinement imposed on entire cities in other parts of Europe.

These seemingly lax measures attracted the attention of lockdown skeptics elsewhere, who hailed the “Swedish model” as an example of how a Western democracy ought to deal with the pandemic. It became a cause celebre among American conservatives, who resent the economic toll exacted by social distancing restrictions. Even for nonconservatives, the Swedish approach is now being invoked as an obvious “alternative” to what prevails. New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman suggested this weekend that President Trump may hope to “follow Sweden” as he seeks to “reopen” the American economy”

And then in November

“The Swedish government announced strict upcoming coronavirus-related restrictions amid rising case numbers, even though the Scandinavian nation didn’t lock down earlier during the pandemic.

Prime Minister Stefan Lofven announced the new restrictions on Monday during a press conference, according to Business Insider. The restrictions include limiting the size of public gatherings and halting fans from attending concerts, performances, and sports matches. Schools, workplaces, and private gatherings are not included in the ban.

In-person gatherings, which were allowed as long as they were less than 50 people, will now be cut to a maximum of eight people.”

“It is a clear and sharp signal to every person in our country as to what applies in the future. Don’t go to the gym. Don’t go to the library. Don’t have dinner out. Don’t have parties — cancel!” Lofven explained. “It’s going to get worse.”

Life Expectancy and Quality of Life

Broken in the USA, Environment, Health Care, Uncategorized

Life Expectancy and Quality of Life

The health of a country is often judged by life expectancy.  How does the USA compare to comparable countries?

Life expectancy at birth in years, 2017

Japan                                84.2                                                                                                                 Switzerland                    83.6                                                                                                               Australia                         82.6                                                                                                                   France                              82.6                                                                                                                  Sweden                           82.5                                                                                                        Comparable Country Average   82.38                                                                                                            Canada                            82.0                                                                                                  Netherlands                  81.8                                                                                                                 Austria                             81.7                                                                                                                               Belgium                           81.6                                                                                                                                  United Kingdom           81.3                                                                                                                                   Germany                          81.1                                                                                                                                United States                 78.6   (Ranks 37th among all countries and has been declining for the        past five years)

What we do know is that for many people life expectancy is not as important as Quality life expectancy. What good is it to live to be 90 if the last 20 years are life without joy? HALE, or healthy life expectancy is a much better measure. What this means is the number of years we expect to lead a life with full mobility and free of pain without prescription life support. Using this criteria life expectancy in our country is only 66! Why is it so low? There are several; factors. Obesity rates, quality of healthcare (the USA only ranks 37th (same as life expectancy), immune system maintenance among others.