As a history major in college, we were taught by our professors to use themes and trends of the past to inform our understanding of the present. The following you tube video and slide show is a snapshot of what Doctors and the general public believed about cigarettes and their benefits. Pay close attention the photograph of the cyclist, they are smoking DURING the Tour de France, one of the most challenging physical human competitions ever. We now know that not only does smoking inhibit the breath capacity of the lungs but can lead to cancer, lung disease, Gastrointestinal disease, and Heart and blood vessel disease. Not ideal for s cyclist in the Tour de France or anybody that wants to live a healthy life.
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What are we doing now that is similar to cigarette smoking in the 20th century?
Perhaps it is SSRIs or selective serotonin re uptake inhibitors, a class of drugs used to combat depression. Unfortunately, side effects of these drugs include mood behavior, suicidal thoughts, increased irritation, impulsiveness, and restlessness. Does it make sense to take something to fight depression that might cause INCREASED restlessness, impulsiveness, and moody behavior? A few example of drugs in this class include Lexapro, Cymbalta, Zoloft, and Prozac.
Perhaps it is statins, a class of drugs aimed at controlling cholesterol. Never mind that there isn’t a causal relationship between heart disease and cholesterol, why take a drug that is used to kill the liver? Most statin users have to get yearly checks on their livers, if the liver shows signs of failure then statins are no longer recommended. Will we look back twenty years from now and wonder why we killed our livers just to lower cholesterol when cholesterol is used by the body to fix blood vessels harmed from heart disease?
There are many more examples of how drugs are not what they seem and for the most part do more damage then good. We can always look for the next quick fix but we will always be left wanting. True health doesn’t come from human understanding and interventions but an unhindered innate intelligence that exist without side effects and long term damage.
Dr. Lin,
Great post, great message, and great pics!