by Robert M. Traxler
“It is important for individuals to take care of their health” is the mantra of the current American government. Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. has faced significant criticism from the media, as he supports President Donald Trump despite being a Democrat.
The Affordable Care Act (commonly known as “Obamacare”) focuses more on treatment than on prevention, a good bit more. The past assumption was that we cannot do for ourselves; We need the government to be “in loco parentis” for our health, treating us like their children.
President Trump’s goal in the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) slogan is to help us prevent diseases, rather than assume we are too stupid and set in our ways to do that. The automatic default position has been to take a pill or an injection rather than lose weight and stop unhealthy activities.
Smoking tobacco is about the only unhealthy practice condemned by the social influencers but indeed, “intelligent” people will tell us smoking marijuana is healthy and even good for you? Taking street drugs and using alcohol are not condemned to any extent. The chemical composition of food additives and pesticides is largely unquestioned.
This raises important questions about the role of bipartisan cooperation in addressing public health challenges. While political divisions often dominate the narrative, the fundamental issue of creating a sustainable, prevention-focused health system is one that transcends party lines. Initiatives aimed at empowering individuals to adopt healthier lifestyles, combined with policies that prioritize preventive care, could significantly reduce the burden on health care systems and improve our quality of life. It goes without saying that the monetary savings would be substantial.
More than 3000 registered lobbyists are in Washington representing the pharmaceutical industries and spending many tens of millions of dollars. Many are family members of our elected officials or appointed bureaucrats. The pharmaceutical industries wine and dine politicians and bureaucrats as well as physicians. We are bombarded with ads on television and in social media that tell us to ask for certain drugs and if the doctor does not prescribe them, we should “get a second opinion.”
Every action we take, everything we do has an impact on our mental and physical health. We ask why President Joe Biden, who is younger than Senator Bernie Sanders, is not as mentally sharp. Well, President Biden has had two brain surgeries, that took a toll later in his life. If we are fat (I know fat is a politically incorrect term) it taxes our hearts, contributes to cancer, dementia and dozens of other conditions, including diseases of the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver and pancreas.
We should question why Americans take vastly more prescription drugs than residents of other nations. Why do we pay up to 20 times as much for drugs as most other nations? Why are we fatter and unhealthier than most other nations, why is our life expediency going down and not up?
These questions are not asked. Instead, we are programmed to take a pill and shut up. Those caught in the epidemic of fat folks are told to take a pill or injection to fix the problem, not to practice self-control and a proper diet.
OK, I know the retort is that some people have a medical condition that makes it difficult to lose weight. It is correct, but very few, unless we consider the desire to eat fattening foods and junk food a medical condition.
Those who apologize for fat folks tell us 60% of the obese have a psychiatric illness. It is more likely an addiction to ultra-processed foods which are designed to keep us coming back for more.
According to Robert Francis Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, it is our patriotic duty to keep ourselves healthy, with diet and exercise being a cost-effective way to do just that. The progressive movement is against anything the President Trump administration wishes to accomplish, and strangely enough they are against (or at least mute) when it comes to the policies designed to help us become healthy.
Rather than celebrate the banning of petrochemicals (oil-based products) in our food, the socialist/progressive folks are not acknowledging to any large extent the new policies banning them.
Please do not misunderstand: both progressives and conservatives are in the pockets of big pharmaceutical companies, especially those with plants or corporate headquarters in their congressional districts. A problem for the drug industries is that their greed caused them to move manufacturing to China and thus lose some clout in their congressional districts.
Hopefully their greed just may be their downfall. My opinion.
