WhatsApp and other Technological Hazards

This weekend I installed a chat application on my phone called WhatsApp. Many of my friends had urged me to get it, citing its wonderful connectivity of free phone-to-phone messenger services. I was truly amazed at how easy it was to communicate with everyone whose phone number I had across the world and the sharing of multimedia was simple awesome. That was in the first hour. After that I realized that: 1. You cannot turn it off, so basically EVERYONE on your phone who also has Whatsapp can message you ALL the time FOR FREE about, let's face it, nothing. 2. People you don't normally talk to start talking to you...just because it's available and 3. You don't get any sleep or work done just from the excitement of getting firsthand news-worthy events (read gossip).

How smart really is a smartphone?

 It just comes to show that technology has come a long way. The internet and communication have made our generation one that seeks instant gratification. Most questions today can be answered simply by "just google it". When did 'google' become a verb? And this trend has even crossed over to the medical world. People prefer to look up conditions online rather than seeing a doctor. This is called self-diagnosis. How safe is this practice? 

In practice, self diagnosis is prevalent for many of the most common symptoms and ailments. When you feel the symptoms of a common cold coming on, you don't always rush to the doctor to confirm it. How many times have you heard the phrase, “It’s just my allergies”?  The treatment for an allergy is an antihistamine readily available at a pharmacy even without prescription. However, a study conducted by researchers at Medicine.net in 2009 showed that a large percentage of self-diagnosed “allergies” were actually chronic sinusitis, a more serious infection which requires a regime of antibiotics. This is just an example of how common symptoms may in fact be something else.

Cyberchondriac is the terminology used to refer to people who are obsessed with looking up symptoms of any illness they have on the internet. The dangers of this can be disastrous. The human mind is built to ignore more common diseases and focus only on the life-threatening conditions. A simple headache could be due to hypoglycemia but the cyberchondriac is only interested in the brain cancer indicated at the bottom of the list. It’s also important to note that your judgment is clouded when you are sick. For instance a fever can impair judgment remarkably. Even doctors need to see a doctor!

Bottom-line, be careful with what you do with the information you receive out there. It is recommended you always seek prompt professional in-person medical advice from your local qualified medical professional. Granted some conditions are common and easily treated at home but consult with your doctor about any symptoms, particularly if there is any doubt or concern, or if the symptoms concern a child, infant, elderly, very ill, pregnant, or otherwise at-risk patient. In short, you're not an expert. Only your doctor has the knowledge and experience to properly perform the process of diagnosis. Self-diagnosis is no substitute for face-to-face expert medical attention.

Extracts from my article in SkyHost Air Zimbabwe Inflight Magazine