Survival of the Fittest

I was reading Rinkly Rimes’ piece on Chance and it started a train of thought. As usual, my trains run on tracks of their own, without much forward planning, so if my words offend in any way, please forgive me.

‘Survival of the fittest’ is a phrase that’s been bandied about for generations but what does it mean in an age when most ills at least can be accommodated if they cannot be cured? Childhood illnesses like measles and whooping cough used to take their toll and those who survived might be left with serious conditions. They still affect children in the developing world.  Diptheria is almost unheard of in the western world. Before immunisation was introduced it was one of the leading causes of deaths in children. (Both my parents were hospitalised with diphtheria, around 1910.) Similarly, tuberculosis and polio were dangerous, frightening diseases, as they still are in poorer parts of the world, though there has been a resurgence of tuberculosis in recent years in UK.

As we fight back against infections, developing vaccines to prevent and medicines to cure, different afflictions become visible. They may have been present already, masked by more urgent disorders, never able to come to the fore. We will never be able to cure all ills for as each new infection is defeated so further previously unrecognised disorders emerge.

There is no cure for life – it is a terminal condition, however fit we may be.

Rickets

Rickets is a condition associated with poverty and poor diet. Children's bones soften and do not grow properly and the most obvious consequence is that the legs become bowed and painful. Dental deformities and muscle weakness are also common. It was prevalent among the poor of nineteenth century Great Britain and is one of the diseases most frequently seen in children in developing countries.

It arises from a lack of Vitamin D, most easily obtained from ultraviolet in sunlight but also present in oily fish, eggs, margarine, butter and fish liver oils. Vitamin D is essential for the absorption of calcium.

The shocking news is that doctors in GB are seeing a rise in cases of rickets. Medical experts believe that modern diets often lack Vitamin D and this, coupled with many children's more sedentary lifestyles, is contributing to an increase in this condition. (Another disease linked to poverty and poor nutrition and believed to have been almost eradicated is tuberculosis.)

It is hard to believe that this is happening in this affluent 21^st century western country.