Predictions formulated at the beginning of the Covid pandemic ( which there was none ).
" From a famine of “biblical” proportions to a deluge of undiagnosed cancers, while we’re all worrying about the coronavirus, most fatalities could be collateral damage."
"Early on, many nations were keen to reassure the public about the ways Covid-19 was being prioritised – beds and ventilators were ringfenced, unproven treatments were stockpiled and doctors were re-assigned to respiratory wards in their thousands. In the UK, the government pledged to provide everything the health service needed to cope with the pandemic, “whatever it costs”.
Similar steps were taken in countries around the world as they fought to tackle the rising infection rates. Anything considered non-urgent was delayed or cut back, from certain surgeries to sexual health services, stop smoking programmes, mental health support, dentistry, vaccinations, cancer screenings, and routine check-ups.
Across the globe, patients have reported being denied cancer care, kidney dialysis and urgent transplant surgeries, with sometimes fatal results. In the Balkans, women have been driven to try dangerous, experimental abortions themselves, while experts in the UK have reported a rise in DIY dentistry, as people turn to toe-curling improvisations involving chewing gum, wire-cutters, and superglue. Panic-hoarding of the drug hydroxychloroquin, which is normally used to treat malaria and autoimmune conditions, and has recently been found to increase deaths from Covid-19, has led to shortages.
Scientists have warned that, in some places, disruption to the control of diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis and malaria could lead to losses on the same scale as those caused directly by the virus. Similarly, experts fear that deaths from illnesses such as cholera could far exceed those from Covid-19 itself.
Vaccinations are a particular concern. The World Health Organization has calculated that at least 80 million children under the age of one are now at risk of diptheria, polio and measles, after the pandemic disrupted programmes in at least 68 countries. Polio is expected to make a comeback, despite a multi-billion dollar effort stretching back decades which meant it was tantalisingly close to joining the exclusive club of viruses that are extinct in the wild, whose sole member is currently smallpox.
Meanwhile, David Beasley, executive director of the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP), warned last month that the world is teetering on the edge of a famine of “biblical” proportions – with 130 million people at risk of starvation, on top of the 135 million who are already on the brink.
Finally, it's thought that the global lockdowns and subsequent economic turmoil could increase so-called deaths of despair, as some people resort to alcoholism or suicide.
What is the true scale of the collateral damage caused by Covid-19 – and what can we do to stop it?
For the epidemiologist Timothy Roberton, together with colleagues from Johns Hopkins University, Maryland, the side-effects of the pandemic became a concern almost as soon as it started.
In all, the scientists predicted that in a worst-case scenario, where the use of health services is reduced by up to 50% and malnourishment is boosted by the same amount, over a million children and 56,700 mothers could die as an indirect result of the pandemic. Most of the child fatalities would be from pneumonia or dehydration due to diarrhoea, while for the women, they would probably be due to complications from pregnancy or childbirth – haemorrhages, eclampsia, and sepsis.
When these deaths are added to the number at risk from famines, the toll really begins to add up. The WFP is currently providing food to nearly 100 million people every single day – and of that number, around 30 million depend on them for their very survival. According to their analysis, 300,000 people could starve to death each day in the coming months, if their ability to provide this normal support is disrupted. That’s not including those who are newly impoverished by the pandemic itself.
Not only is the current pandemic likely to tip an extra 130 million people into near-starvation, but it also threatens the donations the programme relies upon. “If the world economy is hit and countries are not able to provide as much funding as they expect, then, you know, you have a whole new scenario in your hands, which is really quite scary.
Of course, there’s another reason many countries could experience more deaths from collateral damage, rather than the virus itself – and that’s age. It’s well-known that Covid-19 affects the elderly more, but the degree to which this is true is staggering – according to New York City data from 13 May, there had been around 811 times more deaths from the pandemic in people aged 75 years and over, compared to those up to 17 years old.
The degree to which the pandemic is responsible for these fatalities is still under debate – it might be that there are fewer life-years lost to the virus directly than it seems. For example, while older people have the highest risk of dying from Covid-19, they are also at the highest risk from other seasonal or respiratory diseases, like norovirus or pneumonia. At the moment, there are still significantly more deaths each month than is normal for this time of year. In fact, even in wealthy countries, it’s thought that indirect deaths could eventually eclipse the number of direct ones in the long term. "
Read the full text of the analysis here. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200528-why-most-covid-19-deaths-wont-be-from-the-virus?
NOTE :
What BBC stated in May 2020 has turned out to be absolutely correct. It was not alone in making the correct analyses. Many scientists and doctors have warned the world about the dire consequences of lockdowns and delayed care, but .... they have all been reviled, crushed and ignored.
non-profit organisation Hands For Freedom organised white ribbon walks in several cities during spring 2021 to draw attention to the consequences of the measures and lockdowns that were ( and are ) many times worse than the ailment they were trying to fight. Not only have these walks and the message conveyed by the participants been completely ignored. We have also been punished for it.
And now ... we are thus left with the terrible collateral damage of the lockdowns that continues to be swept under the carpet.
They twist themselves into every possible corner to avoid having to take responsibility for their policy of failure anyway.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200528-why-most-covid-19-deaths-wont-be-from-the-virus
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