A Little Friday Gratitude – Modern Medicine

I was in the kitchen at work yesterday talking to a colleague.  She was complaining that her hands were bothering her as she washed them in the sink.  She showed me how they were getting red around the edges and it looked like they must hurt.  I asked her what was wrong and she told me she had ezcema.  Now ezcema, as far as I know, is not a life-threatening disease, but it is uncomfortable and can be painful.  She said she had some medicated ointment that she would use and it should make them better.  I commented on how it’s a good thing that we live now instead of a 100 years ago because who knows what, if anything, they would be able to do for her.

After our conversation, I began thinking about the marvels of modern medicine and all of the procedures, tests, vaccines, ointments, and pills it includes.  Where would we be without it?  All we have to do is look back 40, 50, or even 20 years ago to see the remarkable strides the industry has made and the effects it has had.  Birth rates are up, death rates are down, and people have longer life expectancies.  Many illnesses that were once catastrophic have been all but wiped out.  More and more people with cancer and other diseases are able to be treated and given another chance at life.  

I can see the effects of modern medicine in my own life.  While I thankfully do not suffer from anything life-threatening, I do have a problem called Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).  Even though it is not necessarily dangerous, it can be and has been debilitating.  Over the years it has sometimes affected my ability to go to work or to travel.  In fact, earlier this year, I struggled to leave the house for a time because it had gotten so bad.  

That is where modern medicine came in.  Because I was getting sick so regularly, I was told to have a special blood test done to check for food sensitivities.  Amazingly, this test analyzed 400 different foods and chemicals and tested each one to see if it would cause me problems.  And what do you know?  Some of the things that I had been eating (chicken, apples, oatmeal, blueberries) were causing me the worst problems.  So I stopped eating them and voila!  

Had there not been a test of this sort available, chances are I might not have know what was causing the problems and would have continued to suffer.  But through the use of tests and with the support of knowledgeable doctors and nutritionists, I was able to find answers.  And while I haven’t gotten rid of IBS, I have found a way to live with it.  And for that, I am extremely grateful.  

Oh the marvels of modern medicine.

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