Section 36
Illness

No one goes through life without getting ill.
We usually think of illness as a bad thing.
Sometimes, thought, it is necessary to be ill, especially when we are young.
That’s because we need to build up immunity against disease and sickness.
Most children will get measles and mumps etc. when they are quite young.
Then the effect of these illnesses is not usually very bad.
If we get them when we are older, it can be much worse for us.
Throughout history, we have fought against diseases and illnesses and many will have been eradicated from most countries by the end of this century.
But new ones seem to come along to challenge us, or perhaps these new ones were always there but we did not identify them.
AIDS, Acquired Immunity Deficiency Syndrome, for example, we know is a modern disease.
It may take decades to find a really effective cure for it.
However, we can be encouraged by modern science, which has found cures for most illnesses.
What about the common cold?
One of oldest illnesses is still the most illusive to cure.