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No. One Ailment – Malnutrition
Published in Let’s Live, 1960.
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In recent years, it has become fashionable among statisticians to list various diseases as number one killers: heart disease, arthritis, diabetes and cancer–all having enjoyed first place statistical headlines. This sensationalism, while interesting, often fails to strike home to the average sufferer of malnutrition, whose attitude is usually dulled by complacency until a “dramatic” disease strikes his own long-ailing body.
A New Alert
A recent survey made of 500 patients shows that the “tragic” diseases are in the minority of ailments suffered by these victims. This survey tells of the “patient’s story to the doctor” in a very dramatic fashion.
A long questionnaire covering the 191 disease symptoms was given each patient–the same questions which would ordinarily be asked by any doctor during the course of a complete examination. The unique feature of the appraisal was its completeness, because it covered all the common disease conditions which a person may ordinarily be suffering. These are the “working tools” which any doctor uses in directing his diagnosis, and so, therefore is of equal concern to doctor and patient.
One of the most interesting facts revealed by this survey was the multiplicity of complaints. It was found that each patient reported symptoms leading to the study of 50 disease conditions. This is a startling revelation. It shows for the first time, through this systematic questionnaire approach, that these patients were able to accurately report their symptoms to the doctor. When we take into consideration such “minor complaints” as drowsiness, chronic fatigue, headaches, insomnia and nightmares, “nervousness,” capillary engorgement and others, we begin to understand how such a multiplicity of complaints can exist in any one patient. As a matter of fact, just as the invention of the microscope was necessary before we could examine bacteria, so a systematic method of evaluating symptoms was necessary for the study of the incidence of diseases in the masses.
Of the 500 patients, 97% reported symptoms referable to the gastro-intestinal tract, the well-known triad: gas, bloating, fullness after meals. This is a specific indication of what experienced doctors have long known: that gastrointestinal disorders constitute a major consideration in the background of most diseases. The second highest group of complaints was nervous disorders, with almost three out of four patients complaining of “nervous strain.” Following a close third were disturbances in oxygen metabolism, as evidenced by drowsiness, chronic fatigue (asthenia).
The following figures show the number reporting the conditions shown:
- 401 Flatulence (intestinal gas)
- 358 Autonomic unbalance (nervous disorder)
- 354 Nervous strain
- 354 Poor oxygen metabolism (chronic fatigue)
- 326 Headaches
- 318 Poor protein assimilation
- 303 Insomnia (nervous disorder)
- 286 Achlorhydria (gastric juice insufficiency)
- 285 Adrenal insufficiency
- 276 Alkalosis (common in allergies)
- 271 Constipation
- 264 Nightmares (toxicosis)
- 245 Eye conditions
The complete report is too lengthy to cite here, but examination of the above conditions will show that these are largely functional in nature, i.e., the “machinery” is simply “out of adjustment,” so to speak. The axiom, of course, is that one cannot make something out of nothing and it is impossible for the body to function normally unless it has the tools it needs to work with. This points the finger directly at the culprit–malnutrition!
Perhaps, such reports as the one we have cited will do much to shake Mr. Average Citizen from his lethargy. When confronted with specific questions regarding their health, the most common remark heard was: “I didn’t know I had so many things wrong with me!”
We must cease evaluating our health on the basis that we are able to put in a day’s work, or drive the family car to the supermarket, or sit and watch the latest western on T.V. We must look scrupulously at our health problem, realizing that the healthy individual is not beset with complaints of chronic fatigue, nervousness and digestive disorders. These are simply the first signs of health inefficiency; the first signs of chronic malnutrition.
Screen Test
Here are some sample questions from this survey; questions in which approximately three out of four patients answered in the affirmative:
- Are you aware of excessive lower bowel gas?
- Does your heart pound with unusual force if you are excited; fail to calm down as it should after retiring?
- Does mental activity cause you to become fatigued?
- Do you find difficulty in maintaining concentration?
- Do you bruise easily, get “black and blue” spots on the skin from slight blows?
- Do you feel stuffy in a closed room, wanting to get outside where you can breathe better?
- Do you have headaches often?
- Do you have diarrhea alternating with constipation?
- Does emotional stress bring on symptoms such as indigestion, constipation, headaches or insomnia?
- Do you feel the need to limber up when you first get up in the morning, feeling stiffness of the joints or muscles?
To the doctor experienced in biochemical reactions and familiar with the insidious effects of protracted malnutrition, these are not “innocent symptoms,” but specific indications of profound disturbances in the functioning of the body’s various systems. To him they are the danger signs of more serious conditions to follow, but also they provide for him the means of early diagnosis and the prevention of tragic events which are pending.