Jane Kelley wrote in a message to Sue Alexander:
SA>     Taking care of your immune system is great if you can.  Sometimes 
SA> however, due to circumstances where this is not possible or simply 
SA> not done, treatment options are needed for problems that arise.  
SA> Maggots are a potentially effective way to limit necrotic tissue (if 
SA> the patient can stand the idea )
JK> Ever see someone who has had their legs amputated a little bit at a
JK> time?  Someone with a lousy immune system from drinking and drugging
JK> too long?  Believe me, the maggots aren't going to do a damn bit of
JK> good.  Neither will the surgery, for that matter.  
JK> We need to get out information on the immune system itself to kids
JK> and to anyone else who will listen.
     The hospital I work at sees much more than its share of alcoholics and 
drug addicts, Jane.  Maggots may do short term help for these people and may 
very well help some of them who are scared enough by the incident to do 
something to help themselves, but for many their own suicidal tendencies will 
get them (somehow) in the end.
     However, you are looking at things much too black and white.  I was 
thinking of circumstances such as accident victims where blood circulation is 
affected by external causes.  In these cases, gangrene (which is an anaerobic 
infection) can start up in the damaged part of the body due to lack of 
suffiecient oxygenation and contamination of a wound site.  If blood cannot 
adequately get to an infection site, the immune system cannot work properly 
and therefore it does not matter how healthy the person was to begin with.
     Also, there are a great number of people for which adequate nutrition, 
rest, and hygiene are simply not available.  Do you want to tell them "sorry, 
I can't help you.  You did not take care of your immune system (though I 
don't know how you could have), so you have to live with the consequences"?  
Personally, I do not feel that I can afford to be that heartless in the 
medical profession.
     Getting the word out about taking care of yourself is great Jane, and I 
strongly agree that measures should be taken along these lines. However, it 
just cannot be the complete panacea that your message implies it to be.
     Sue
... Support bacteria--it's the only culture some people have!
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