2007-10-01
The camel syndrome
Publication
Publication
Zeitschrift fuer Gesundheitswissenschaften , Volume 15 - Issue 5 p. 407- 412
Aim: Description and analysis from an ethical point of view of the habit of young people nowadays to carry around a bottle of water at all times. Quintessence: This paper describes the habit and discusses its possible origin as well as some rituals and rules attached to the drinking of the water. Ethical questions are raised, such as a possible 'aqua gap' related to socio-economic circumstances within affluent Western societies and the problem of global justice in a world where the availability of clean drinking water is so unequally divided. It is strange that the notion of a 'healthy addiction' does not seem to attract the attention of ethicists. Conclusions: The first conclusion is that the habit, because it is a healthy habit, influences views on what is considered to be polite or socially acceptable, such as the right to drink from a water bottle during theatre performances. The second conclusion is that there are lessons to be learned: that bottled water drinking is considered 'cool' can make many adapt to a healthy habit in a relatively short time. This could be useful for health education purposes.
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doi.org/10.1007/s10389-007-0117-1, hdl.handle.net/1765/36385 | |
Zeitschrift fuer Gesundheitswissenschaften | |
Organisation | Erasmus MC: University Medical Center Rotterdam |
de Beaufort, I. (2007). The camel syndrome. Zeitschrift fuer Gesundheitswissenschaften (Vol. 15, pp. 407–412). doi:10.1007/s10389-007-0117-1 |