31/05/2008 more drug shops than rice shops

20 or 15 years ago there was a saying 'there are more banks (branches) than rice shops around'. That was very true. Then at the peak of the trade and industrial boom you were never too far from a bank wherever you were. Using rice shops as the bench mark is crucial here, as Chinese people regard eating is the top priority of living.

These days the phenomenon was replaced by the cliché 'there are more drug shops than rice shops around'. This was very true. The other day I looked for a cold tablet, and I found 6 stores in a less than 500 metres' radius. You would get prescription drugs straight off the shelf, not just Aspirin or cough syrup.

People were indeed more concern about their well-being. High speed economy development has cost the price of environment degradation. For one thing, there weren't many days in a year you would see a blue sky since a few years ago

Local paper, which should regard as 'tongue and throat of the party and authority', openly admitted recently that it would take another '20 to 30 years' to see the return of blue sky and clean air. Although actions are taken to mandatory shut down high pollution, high energy consumption yet low throughput manufacturers. The paper also warned that the smog presented a huge risk to lung cancer.

Adding the ageing society and pricey health care, it really came no surprise that well-being books top the selling chart. Last week's champion was 'the Wisdom of Eating', third was 'Help Yourself, Be Your Own Doctor’, it loss to 'the Ugly Chinese' a retrospect of being a Chinese.

Traditional Chinese medicine advances 'western' medicine both at the TV adverts quantity and pharmaceutics shop display. Nothing can be said on comparing effects. Chinese medicine almost solely made from herbal extracts, all has exotic names that makes the ingredient list an imaginative reading. Give this cold tablet: dragon blood, snake tongue grass, calculus bovis (cholelith from ox, cow) to name a few. How they co-operate, compliment each other like musketeers in your artery to fight the virus. I immediately felt better.

From those adverts one would guess that target audience believes sliver bullet, magic drugs that will give your son a 5 cm height boost in 2 months’ time or brain health supplement that will help your daughter advancing her rank in the class by at least 10 positions.

I got to admit, my mother drugged me when I was in high school competing for university offers. Unthinkable had I not taken it. I must have been blocked access to higher education and became forklift operator.

Every few days, there would be a family secret soup recipe came from friends or family. All has healing power of fighting cancer. Indeed, there were books explaining which veritable, fruit or herb has what effect, broken down by cancer type. For those sounded promising and convenient to prepare, we happily obliged.

Not only books, TV commercial also features a large portion of proactive drugs advertisement, which would be censored in many countries. Add to the confusion, the commercial and those drugs deliberately grosses over health supplement and prescription drugs. If you check the authority approval seal, normally goes the size little bigger than would require microscope to check, most of them are health supplements.

On quiet time in the afternoons, local cable TV would broadcast a 'Health and Wellbeing' programme. For the next 45 minutes, it bombarded every audience that has no better thing to do in their lives with a health supplement drug 'Qixuehe', claimed that the secret ingredient was discovered from a 2000 year old royal tomb.

It was an amazing experience to watch this for 45 minutes. If you think about how many information could be communicated in 45 minutes time - try talk to yourself for 45 seconds 'I am not a moron. I am not an idiot' - and see how many times you would repeat yourself.

It was just as amazing to see the programme cut (or should really say 'extended' to 45 minutes length tell you nothing but the drug 'solves all your woman's problems'.

The bulk run like this: a potentially famous woman featured as a presenter to tell you how merciful she was to the drug and glorious radiant skin it rewarded her, although she had lived a stressful time drained actress life. She was a good looking, matured woman. Although I really had not clue which drama or movie she had been about. Maybe this one is it.

Then commercial cut in, explained that how the drug was found from a 2000 year old royal tomb and how the prescription was carefully maintained.

Yet more commercial followed. A female voiceover announced the benefits of this drug aimed: obese, weathered skin, hair, and many other woman illnesses I would rather not get into detail. Then a male voiceover concluded excitedly and proudly it 'solves all your woman’s problems'.

Then some mocked up live news report. A woman journalist surveyed people, who looked rather dumb but nevertheless praising the drug.

Then it backed to the good looking famous woman.

Then it was all over again.

Suffice to say, if by now you were still watching, you were either restrained by civil order to receive a mental punishment with arms and legs tied to a hard wood bench, match to force open your eyes. Or you had been hopelessly hypnotised.

If by now you were still not dressed up, ready to go to your nearest drug store to get it, here was that assertive male voice over again, affirmed the drug 'solves all your woman's problems'.

I tell you this in such detail because I was the one chained to the wooden bench. This is why you should never share TV with anyone else - no joy. If you refused to be hypnotised, you would feel nausea, butt irritation, skin rash and a profoundly annoyance.

It was such powerful brain wash. Even I am not a woman, I still had the urge to get one next time so to get the small voice at the back of my head long after the commercial finally gave way to the next soap.