Facts About Medicine

The word ‘medicine' comes from the Latin word ‘medicus' meaning ‘physician'. It is the art and science of diagnosing, treating and preventing both disease and injury. It is one of the oldest professions and industries of human history. Since the start of time, humankind has been in an endless battle with disease. And in this battle it has always sought into nature as well as its own ability to think and reason, for the solutions.

The practice of medicine has not always met with favorable reactions, early records showed that people who were medical practitioners were often feared and sometimes even hated. Many times, when a practitioner failed to simplistically explain the treatment method, the old burn the witch at the stake routine was applied. In other parts of the world, those skilled with medicine became holy men/women. Revered, trusted and given divine status.

As far as fighting diseases, it was probably over the threshold of the 20th century that concrete breakthroughs in medicines came along and gave humanity the first fighting chance against fatal, life crippling diseases. The average life expectancy of an individual was barely 40 years and the mortality rates were unusually high. Now we are in a world where the focus is to ultimately remove diseases like polio. Although not completely successful but we're only a bit away from the goal. Other diseases such as chicken pox, scarlet fever and the like now have vaccines that immunize a person at birth.

Modern medicine is now a hub of technological research which has pretty much done what was only a topic for science fiction in the past, such as cloning sheep and test tube babies. But it has also been abused at points. While medicine has always been about preserving health, the imprudent use of it can be fatal. Pharmaceutically prepared drugs have helped people with everything from a back ache to psychological problems like depression. But substance abuse has also been the dark side of medicine.

Till a few years ago, chemical hormone enhancers called steroids were actually legal and not until they caused a good deal of health damage were they banned. The full health hazard of the steroids only became visible when some individuals abused them, although the drugs are irreversibly harmful even if they are taken in small doses. This is just one example of how dangerous unsolicited medicine use can be.

But among the many commonly used drugs, since one of the criteria off an effective drug is how soon it makes you feel better, the ‘fast relief' that has now become the norm is increasing chances and dangers of drug abuse. More and more people are getting addicted to pain killers instead of just taking on the occasions they are really called for. Also, many individuals, with the help of convincingly scripted marketing turn to drugs for the results they should be trying to achieve on the natural processes alone. I'm talking about all those weight loss pills out there and diet supplements. While drug authorities keep a check on them, banning nonsense like diet patches, many drugs under the guise of supplements fly under the radar and get a chance at ruining someone's health.

You're simple rule for life should be to take drugs only when your physician deems them absolutely necessary. And keeping regular contact with your physician is a mandatory practice for you to adopt for maintaining your health.