“Eat
your vegetables!” “Brush your teeth!” “Wash the dishes!” Countless times we
have been told these in our life. Most likely our parents have told us these.
We may have viewed it as nagging, but in reality we are being taught to take
responsibility for our health. To make this happen in our society, it is a lot
harder and it comes with the price of constantly telling them what to do to
live a healthier life. We all are “forced” to do things that we don’t want to
do. But because it is good for us and society follows them, we follow them as
well.
In our reading
“Historical Origins of Modern International Health” by Birn Etal, it explained
some of the history on how standard hygiene came about. One quote that stood
out to me and immediately related to how my life is with good hygiene was,
“Through increasingly forceful legislation and public awareness, marshaled by
the printing press and town criers, urban centers began to approach the
hygienic standards reached by the Roman Empire more than a millennium earlier.”
The strict laws of cleanliness that was forced upon people made the concept of
good health spread, which became a positive notion in society. Something that
seems like a hassle to do ends up being the golden rule for everyone to do
better for themselves. These hygienic standards that raised awareness brought
about a significant decrease in germ causing illnesses. Therefore, these
hygienic rules still stand and are always encouraged. It keeps people healthy.
I find it interesting that the results of bad hygiene do not scare people more.
One would think that seeing statistics and images of what happens when one does
not clean properly would raise awareness and bring change a lot faster.
However, we all have that habit of just not doing it. Whether it is because we
do not put in the time or we are just lazy, sometimes a seemingly annoying task
can save a life.
This image I picked out was very interesting and it
connected to the quote on the concept of following rules to keep a healthier
self. This poster is telling men that cleanliness is the key to manhood and
strength. In a way it is enforcing a set rule for men to get them thinking that
this is the way to be a man. They will process in their minds “Doing this will
give me strength and be more manly”. It seems like it is work for them since
some find it difficult to keep themselves well-kept. Therefore this poster
sends this message of keeping clean through this stereotypical manlihood image.
Not only will it force men to present a better presentation (which will also
help with attracting women in my opinion), it gives them a better way to think
about good hygiene. In the end, they will receive the reward of this image of
manliness and strength. Although it is a challenge for some, keeping a good
hygiene results in this display of masculinity. This relates to the quote by
Birn Etal in that cleaning is an annoyance, but it brings benefits! Forceful
cleaning means creating a good habit of maintaining a healthier self. The
poster shows that the message is to keep clean in order to have the strength
that men desire.
Another quote that ties into this concept of forceful
hygiene is “An apple a day will keep the doctor away” by Anonymous. This is a
classic quote on health. An apple obviously is good for you and if you don’t
want to risk getting sick and taking a trip to the doctor’s, then this is the
way to go. Not only does this idea and common quote help you, but it helps
doctors as well. Although it is their job to heal people, taking the
responsibility to keep yourself in good health shows them that you can take
care of yourself and not rely solely on them to make you better. Like the
reading, this quote tells people what they should do to be healthy. It’s not
always fun since pies, chocolate and burgers obviously taste better than an
apple. However this notion of living a healthy life will make remarkable
changes for you and for others, which is a win-win situation. This relates to
the image in that doing one thing that may not seem like fun at all will bring you
goodness in another sense. In this case, keeping clean will give you strength.
This also relates to the quote by Birn Etal in that the set of rules of
cleanliness used on you is for your own good and to make a change for the
better for you and for others. An apple a day is a set reminder for those who
need it to know what it means to keep oneself healthy. Raising awareness of
this will bring a significant change to everyone.
I’d like to throw in my own experience as well just to show
the connection I had with these three sources. As a child, I was pretty much
forced into brushing my teeth or taking a shower. After years of naturally
incorporating it into my daily life, I appreciate the strictness my parents
enforced on me. Through these set rules and naturalizing it, I don’t get
cavities and people do not cringe or comment on body odor. As I got older, my
mom kept forcing me to wear make-up because it presents this more “feminine”
image. Even though I didn’t want to because it was a hassle, I did it to have a
better presentation. And soon, it became a part of my daily life (without it
going overboard) and I do it because I’m an adult now and I need to look more
professional. It seems like it was just a rule that I had to follow, but it
became a part of life and everyone else’s as well. It does me good and the good
of others to keep myself clean and in good hygiene.
-Cassie Oh
Sources:
Image- http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2071/2324703305_8711b71692.jpg
In Class- Etal, Birn. "The Historical Origins of Modern Health." (n.d.): 21. Print.
Out of Class - "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" by Anonymous
Sources:
Image- http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2071/2324703305_8711b71692.jpg
In Class- Etal, Birn. "The Historical Origins of Modern Health." (n.d.): 21. Print.
Out of Class - "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" by Anonymous
What color is water? This is a simple enough question, but how a person answers it largely depends on his or her cultural, professional, and even geographical background. If you asked an Icelandic fisherman, he might say that water is blue, like the sea. A physics professor might say that water is basically transparent and any appearance of color is only a result of certain refractory properties. And if you ask a child from a third world slum, the answer might just break your heart—or possibly turn your stomach. Associations based on culture and situation certainly shape the way we see the world. The author of this post made several allusions to the tendency of society to apply positive associations to healthy practices. Cleanliness is compared to manliness and strength. Daily apple consumption is equated with fewer trips to the doctor. Good hygiene is associated with makeup application and, by extension, to the “feminine” realm. The author extolls the inevitable incorporation of health knowledge into conventional folk wisdom, hinting that this phenomenon unerringly leads to better standards of hygiene and health. Even the title, “Spread of Good Hygiene,” seems to imply that rising standards of health will simply continue to rise through the propagation of person-to-person wisdom, unaided by the active involvement of governments and of the public. Is this truly the case?
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, leaving the future of public health to common sayings and associated social norms is a dangerous path to take. (For our purposes, let us use the WHO's definition of health as a state of physical, social, and psychological wellbeing.) For example, think of the author’s chosen quote, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” Now imagine a small boy with health-conscious parents. The boy grows up hearing this saying constantly, all the while being rewarded for every achievement with a crisp, juicy Golden Delicious. To the boy, apples are the very definition of a good thing. Good things are the opposite of bad things. Good thing keep bad things, such as doctors, away. Early on, this negative association is locked in the child’s mind, only to be reinforced later by the scary old man with the cold hands and sharp needles. His dislike of medical professionals stays with him into manhood, when he ignores a lump on his lower back. This slow-growing, easily-removed cancer eventually spreads to his lymphatic system, causing his death at the age of 37. Admittedly, this example is carrying it a bit far. It relies too heavily on semantics and a hypothetical situation. A better example is the author’s free association of hygiene, health, and the idealized image of a “feminine” persona. True, if a young girl believes that being healthy and hygienic will make her more ladylike, it might make her pay more attention to cleanliness and proper diet. However, if a young girl is exposed to this idea of femininity-as-health, it might have warping effects on her mental and physical wellbeing. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, approximately 0.5 to 3.7 percent of women will suffer from anorexia in their lifetime. Applying that range to the current US Census reveals that between approximately .7 and 5.8 million of the women currently living in the United States will, at some point, starve themselves on purpose. As a result, many of these women could lose the ability to bear children. This is hardly the feminine ideal. It is not my intention to paint anorexia as solely a women’s disorder. Neither do I mean to lay the blame for this disorder on any one group or idea. My only intent is to illustrate that health standards do not necessarily continue to improve without active support, not in this country or any other. It is therefore crucial that the public remain involved in the maintenance and increase of health standards the world over.
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