Surviving encroaching major social, environmental and economic change in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand
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Health

Quotes

Research from the Wellington Medical School shows the incidence of many health problems is much higher in Hawke's Bay than in other parts of New Zealand. A report to the Hawke's Bay District Health Board identifies a higher death rate and a greater incidence of asthma, cardiovascular and smoking-related diseases in the region.
- One News, 26 September 2001

A new study has found that that child obesity has more than tripled in the past 15 years. A team of paediatricians compared the body mass of almost 900 11-and-12-year-olds in Hawke's Bay in 1989 with a similar group in 2000. The study says the number of those classed as obese rose from 2.5% to 9%. One of the researchers, David Barry, says the increase of obesity here is greater than in other countries where similar studies have been done. The Director General of Public Health, Don Matheson, says the almost four fold increase in overweight children proves the issue must be taken seriously.
- One News, 23 March 2004

Evidence is emerging to suggest that the prevalence of overweight and obesity is increasing worldwide at an alarming rate. New Zealand is no exception. In 2002/3 one in three adults was overweight (excludes obese) and one in five adults was obese.
- NZ Ministry of Health, www.moh.govt.nz/obesity

In New Zealand, approximately 15% of the adult population and 20% of children under the age of 15 are affected by asthma.
- Southern Cross Health Insurance, http://www.southerncross.co.nz

New Zealand has the second highest prevalence of asthma in the world.
- The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation of New Zealand, www.asthmanz.co.nz

An epidemic of type 2 diabetes is occurring in New Zealand, as in other developed countries, driven mainly by demographic trends and the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity.
- NZ Ministry of Health, www.moh.govt.nz

Diabetes is exploding in the world and will more heavily impact on certain sectors of the New Zealand community. The rise in obesity and diabetes has been more rapid than anyone predicted.
- Professor Russell Scott, Christchurch Clinical School of Medicine, www.diabetes.org.nz

The treatment costs of type 2 diabetes will swamp District Health Boards, putting further pressure on their already limited resources to treat chronic conditions and crowding out the potential to provide the resources to support effective preventative initiatives.
- Suzanne Snively, Economist at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, www.diabetes.org.nz

Heart health has an adverse future forecast in New Zealand.
- The New Zealand Medical Journal, www.nzma.org.nz

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in New Zealand.
- NZ Health Strategy DHB Toolkit, www.moh.govt.nz


Observations

Even in these relatively 'normal' times, the health of our population has clearly been declining.

While many of us are now aware of the oil-related input into modern medicine and pharmaceuticals, factors not so often mentioned are the consequences of the closure of most of our smaller hospitals, formerly serving their local communities. Government policies of centralisation have ensured total dependence on long-distance transport, by both road and air, to convey patients to the remaining major hospitals. This also forces friends and relatives to travel long distances to support their loved ones.


Resources

Where there is no Doctor

This very comprehensive (494 pages) handbook was originally written primarily as a village health care handbook for those in third world countries who live far from medical centres, in places where there is no doctor.

The PDF book is a large download (11MB) and will require that you have installed on your computer a PDF reader such as Adobe Reader, or the much more compact Foxit Reader, which can be freely downloaded from here.

It is suggested that, rather than opening the document in your browser, you right mouse click on the button to the right, and elect to "Save target as ..." (Explorer) or "Save link as ... (Firefox).

Please be sure to also read the disclaimer at the bottom of this page.

Where there is no Doctor - a village health care handbook

Click to download this publication

Download Foxit Reader

Download Adobe Reader


Where there is no Dentist

Where there is no Dentist is a 240 page book about what people can do for themselves and each other to care for their gums and teeth. It was felt that there is a strong need to provide ordinary people and community workers with more skills to prevent and cure problems in the mouth.

Again, this 4.6MB PDF book will require that you have installed on your computer a PDF reader such as Adobe Reader, or the much more compact Foxit Reader, which can be freely downloaded from here.

It is suggested that,you right mouse click on the button to the right, and elect to "Save target as ..." (Explorer) or "Save link as ... (Firefox).

Please be sure to also read the disclaimer at the bottom of this page.

Where there is no Dentist

Click to download this publication

Download Foxit Reader

Download Adobe Reader

 


How to Beat the Bird Flu

With infrastructures already weakened by the fallout from peak oil, probably the last additional problem we would then need would be the arrival of a human-to-human transmissible version of the H5N1 bird flu virus. But, as this is a 'just in case' site, we offer here a (40 page, 0.8 MB) downloadable copy of the publication by Mike Adams, in which you can learn how to boost your flu immunity and where to find natural antiviral treatments (considering the possibility / probability that there will not be adequate stocks of antiviral medications available in the event of a pandemic).

It is suggested that,you right mouse click on the button to the right, and elect to "Save target as ..." (Explorer) or "Save link as ... (Firefox).

Please be sure to also read the disclaimer at the bottom of this page.

How to Beat the Bird Flu

Click to download this publication

Download Foxit Reader

Download Adobe Reader

In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.

– from the Great Law of the Iroquois Nation


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