Victorian diseases make comeback as malnutrition and antibiotic resistance continue to rise

Monday, March 21, 2016 by: Ethan A. Huff, staff writer
Tags: Victorian diseases, malnutrition, antibiotic resistance

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(NaturalNews) Diseases that were once confined to eras of old, long before the days of modern medicine, are making a huge comeback, according to experts. And it's not people opting out of vaccination that's the problem -- more people today are succumbing to Victorian diseases like cholera, gout and whooping cough because they aren't getting enough nutrition, suggests a new study, and because they're living like over-indulgent royalty.

An evaluation of statistics compiled by the UK's National Health Service (NHS) has revealed that cases of scarlet fever and the inflammatory arthritic condition gout have nearly doubled just within the last five years. Between 2013 and 2014, there were more than 86,000 hospital admissions for patients diagnosed with gout, a 16 percent increase over the year prior, and a 78 percent increase over the previous five years.

Traditionally associated with overindulgence in unhealthy junk foods and alcohol, gout is on the upswing as an increasing number of people are living like kings, so to speak, consuming excess amounts of food rich in processed sugar and oxidized fats, and devoid of life-giving nutrients. The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) says there's been a 71 percent increase in hospital admissions for patients suffering from malnutrition, despite people eating more food.

This deadly combination of malnutrition and excessive junk food and alcohol consumption is wreaking havoc on public health, say experts, who are seeing a massive influx of cases of thought-to-be mostly extinct medical conditions -- or at least medical conditions that typically only afflict the elderly. Many younger adults are now falling ill with these types of diseases, a sign that there is a major shift occurring in the public health paradigm.

Globalization causing ancient diseases to become modern diseases

Sanitation issues are also contributing to the problem, with infectious diseases like scarlet fever and cholera making a comeback. Cholera, as explained by The Telegraph, was mostly prevalent during the 19th century, spreading primarily through contaminated water. And though not nearly as many people today contract it as did back then, the numbers are rising, and some see this as a cause for concern.

"When you look at something like gout it may be that this comes down to an ageing population, coupled with a steep rise in obesity and a population that is drinking more alcohol. Statistics like this raise an awful lot of questions," said Professor John Ashton, president of the Faculty of Public Health, about the phenomenon.

"Something like cholera is a canary in the coal mine - it's almost certainly imported from elsewhere and it's a reminder of the global dependency when it comes to health, and the movement of disease from one country to another."

The statistics show that poorer people are the most prone to these diseases, presumably because they eat lower-quality food and have less access to proper medical care. But all segments of society are seeing increases in disease prevalence, which stands to add an enormous burden to the healthcare system that will have to treat all these folks down the road.

"It is fascinating to look at current statistics for some of the diseases and conditions that were prevalent in the 1800s and early 1900s," said Kingsley Manning, chairman of the HSCIC. "We are fortunate that these diseases are not as widespread today, however our figures do show that hospital admissions for gout are increasing."

He added, "Healthcare organisations may be interested in undertaking further study into the trends highlighted in our report."

Sources for this article include:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk

http://www.bbc.com

http://www.dailymail.co.uk

http://science.naturalnews.com

http://science.naturalnews.com

http://science.naturalnews.com