The root of the issue (apart from corruption, oppression, lack of educational system etc...) is that they get paid next to nothing so they have no choice but to do strenuous work for crazy hours - in intense heat and humidity, with inadequate hydration and nutrition, and insufficient sleep - in order to survive.
That is, of course, impossible. So they get by with a cocktail of painkillers and energy drinks, which then obviously just kills them.
Surely anyone could figure that out in a few days of just observing how the people live - even if the actual cause of illness/death, kidney failure, might not have been as obvious. I suppose that's what eventually happened once a lot of young men started presenting with kidney failure - but it took such an extreme situation for anyone to care at all.
The solution seems obvious as well - pay them more, as well as provide actual education so that, at the very least, they aren't having too many children at too young of an age. Then they wouldn't need to work so many hours. That won't happen though, due to corruption, oppression etc - they prefer an incapable, ignorant, and even less efficient underclass to one that can take care of and think for itself.
Kudos to the guys, though, for actually sticking around and providing for their families - there's also an epidemic of complete deadbeat dads who abandon their families, leaving an uneducated woman who has even fewer job prospects to raise them.
londons_explore · 4h ago
Sounds like some experiments could be done to narrow this down.
For example giving half of workers a water bottle and telling them to fill it with water and keep it on their person all day.
See if those workers have better kidney function at the end of the year. Simple dehydration could be an easy fix.
Shouldn't we see an elevated number of cases in countries with a sauna culture?
Kkoala · 1h ago
No, you can leave the sauna any time you want and go cool down, so there shouldn't ever be any damage done from the heat really. Unless, of course, you purposefully stay there way past being uncomfortable, but that's not really what a sauna is about
giardini · 7h ago
I find it curious that there is no mention of salts, either sodium or potassium, in the entire article!
Llamamoe · 5h ago
Reducing sodium intake in people susceptible to developing high blood pressure from it does wonders, but in everyone else it's pretty much okay, and if you're young it's better to eat too much than too little. I doubt it's a factor here.
genewitch · 3h ago
but they did mention taking ibuprofen, which, if you have CKD, they tell you not to do - i understand this is prior to diagnosis, but they weren't doing themselves any favors.
Here's a vastly better article about the same situation in Guatemala. Just let your browser translate it for you.
https://no-ficcion.com/hasta-que-los-rinones-aguanten/
The root of the issue (apart from corruption, oppression, lack of educational system etc...) is that they get paid next to nothing so they have no choice but to do strenuous work for crazy hours - in intense heat and humidity, with inadequate hydration and nutrition, and insufficient sleep - in order to survive.
That is, of course, impossible. So they get by with a cocktail of painkillers and energy drinks, which then obviously just kills them.
Surely anyone could figure that out in a few days of just observing how the people live - even if the actual cause of illness/death, kidney failure, might not have been as obvious. I suppose that's what eventually happened once a lot of young men started presenting with kidney failure - but it took such an extreme situation for anyone to care at all.
The solution seems obvious as well - pay them more, as well as provide actual education so that, at the very least, they aren't having too many children at too young of an age. Then they wouldn't need to work so many hours. That won't happen though, due to corruption, oppression etc - they prefer an incapable, ignorant, and even less efficient underclass to one that can take care of and think for itself.
Kudos to the guys, though, for actually sticking around and providing for their families - there's also an epidemic of complete deadbeat dads who abandon their families, leaving an uneducated woman who has even fewer job prospects to raise them.
For example giving half of workers a water bottle and telling them to fill it with water and keep it on their person all day.
See if those workers have better kidney function at the end of the year. Simple dehydration could be an easy fix.