Darwinism in Action

I know there are many people out there who refuse to believe in the theory of evolution that Charles Darwin put out there. They believe in a higher power or something else that led to the fulfillment of the adage 'survival of the fittest'. But after reading the latest headline in the paper this morning I am inclined to point to this as evidence that perhaps Darwin was far more correct in his theory than people give him credit for. What do I mean? Well in the wake of all this swine flu (or H1N1 virus) discussion, there are many parents and friends who are throwing what are referred to as 'pox parties'.

I hadn't heard the term before as it's been nearly 20-some years since I came down with chicken pox but from what I read (in the article and elsewhere online), pox parties are where parents and friends gather together to expose healthy children to a disease so that they can build up immunity. The idea being that once a child is exposed and builds up some level of antibodies then there will be greater chance of fighting off the disease if it comes back in a far stronger and more virulent form later on. Evidence of this? Well during the flu epidemic of 1918 it turns out that people who caught the flu earlier in the year fared better than those who didn't when the flu came back in deadlier form during the fall and winter of that same year.

Research at the time has shown that it's possible that due to early exposure, people who were exposed to the flu early on were less likely to fall deathly ill from the deadlier strand. Now with the current outbreak of swine flu all over the place, people are considering that perhaps this is one possible way to counter the virus before it becomes even deadlier later on in the year. Perhaps it won't be as bad as people and some doctors believe though I'm not one to tempt fate. I do however think that the idea of these Pox Parties is probably one of the most inane and ridiculous that I have ever heard of. From what I've read about this strain of flu, the symptoms usually don't start showing up until about four or five days after infection at which time treatment can be sought. What could conceivably happen now is that carriers could be infected and wouldn't know about it until much later thus spreading the disease far wider and greater than would have happened in normal circumstances.

I mean think about it. If your kid is at school with someone who has been to one of these Pox Parties, isn't he or she going to end up sharing their 'goody bag' of illness with the rest of the school? Won't it spread the disease and end up infecting some people who may not be healthy enough to fight off the disease? Then why expose them in the first place? Why put them at risk like that? I mean if you're that keen on backyard medical advice then I recommend leeches as an addendum or dessert at Pox Parties so that they can suck the infected blood out of your system after exposure. That would make the most sense wouldn't it? Get the antibodies and save yourself the illness. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) my medical knowledge is limited to reading the labels on bottles of aspirin but I fear that there are many out there who are ready to listen to such foolish medical advice which even doctors are against simply because 'it makes sense'. I'm sure these same folks would make Charles Darwin very proud.