Myszolow
4 Mar 2010
Life / What is it with the Polish love of antibiotics? And Why do Poles get ill more? [40]
Magdalena,
I agree that Brits often don't dress well for the temperature. But you may have noticed most houses don't have thermometers on the outside either (ours does though). And people don't obsess about the weather forecast either. There's no need, it's always raining. ;)
Seriously though, I do believe part of it is climate related and there is a lot of coal smoke in the air in Poland in winter. When I was heating our house with coal and wood, I found exposure to the smoke and dust gave me a rough throat most of the winter.
It's true that the weather can sometimes kill you in Poland, and that's rarely true in the UK. But why, when Poles often overheat their houses to 25 degrees +, do they wear more clothes inside in winter?
I think the attitude to healthcare is just different. In the UK, parents are encouraged to keep children home if they are ill (and they do), to prevent things passing through the whole class. When my son went to pre-school in Poland, the Polish parents were advised the same thing, but they ignore it (perhaps they don't have an alternative? I'm not judging, just observing).
I read an article in the £ódź newspaper (in Polish, the one owned by the Times. Is it Wyborcza?) a couple of years ago which said that the Polish health system was massively over-prescribing antibiotics. Poles even slagging off English doctors who won't give them antibiotics and tell them to go to bed and rest for a few days. Instead they hop on the next ryanair flight, passing all their germs to everyone else on the plane (nice closed system virus incubation unit) go see their own irresponsible GP who gives them a supply, back to UK (infect more people on plane) and back to work to earn dużo funtów.
The thing is when you don't let your body fight these infections you don't build up natural resistance and you will get ill more often. (A chicken and egg situation).
That, is why Poles get ill more often because they do not take the responsible action of rest and recuperation when they are ill. They look for the quick fix instead so they can be more productive. (I blame the commies for instilling this mentality).
There you go.
Thanks for reviving this thread. I thought it had died without any proper debate. ;)
Magdalena,
I agree that Brits often don't dress well for the temperature. But you may have noticed most houses don't have thermometers on the outside either (ours does though). And people don't obsess about the weather forecast either. There's no need, it's always raining. ;)
Seriously though, I do believe part of it is climate related and there is a lot of coal smoke in the air in Poland in winter. When I was heating our house with coal and wood, I found exposure to the smoke and dust gave me a rough throat most of the winter.
It's true that the weather can sometimes kill you in Poland, and that's rarely true in the UK. But why, when Poles often overheat their houses to 25 degrees +, do they wear more clothes inside in winter?
I think the attitude to healthcare is just different. In the UK, parents are encouraged to keep children home if they are ill (and they do), to prevent things passing through the whole class. When my son went to pre-school in Poland, the Polish parents were advised the same thing, but they ignore it (perhaps they don't have an alternative? I'm not judging, just observing).
I read an article in the £ódź newspaper (in Polish, the one owned by the Times. Is it Wyborcza?) a couple of years ago which said that the Polish health system was massively over-prescribing antibiotics. Poles even slagging off English doctors who won't give them antibiotics and tell them to go to bed and rest for a few days. Instead they hop on the next ryanair flight, passing all their germs to everyone else on the plane (nice closed system virus incubation unit) go see their own irresponsible GP who gives them a supply, back to UK (infect more people on plane) and back to work to earn dużo funtów.
The thing is when you don't let your body fight these infections you don't build up natural resistance and you will get ill more often. (A chicken and egg situation).
That, is why Poles get ill more often because they do not take the responsible action of rest and recuperation when they are ill. They look for the quick fix instead so they can be more productive. (I blame the commies for instilling this mentality).
There you go.
Thanks for reviving this thread. I thought it had died without any proper debate. ;)