What happened to the old saying ’a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down’?

The plain fact is it’s because we are taking too many spoonfuls of sugar that we need to take the medicine in the first place.

It’s alarming when you realise just how many pills that are swallowed each day.

Take, for example, Parkinson’s disease. I have to take eight pills every day.

And to make things even more confusing, I have to take them at specific times during the day.

I often wonder if I had decided to follow a regime of natural remedies and self-medication, would it have worked?

Seriously, I don’t think that it would.

There are many instances where we suffer from health-related problems that are entirely our own fault.

Hands up if you smoke?

We should all know better, that smoking is a killer. But many of us still do.

Alcohol is another curse, but it tastes nice. The government regularly increases the tax on both of these habits but it has little effect.

Recently yet another brilliant idea appeared on the scene.

If we take more exercise and lose some weight then not only will our general health and fitness improve, our immune system will receive a huge boost and make us better equipped to fight off coronavirus.

There would be fewer strokes and heart attacks and type-two diabetes could become a thing of the past.

Just lose some weight and take more exercise. That’s it - simple.

Now, for most of my working days, I would be up and about early in the morning.

I would be showered, shaved and out of the door with the dog before seven.

A fast lap around the block on the disused railway lines followed by one of Brown Eyes’ fry-ups and I was set up for the day.

Lunch would invariably be a lost cause, but a decent breakfast was a good foundation for a busy day.

I have never been a sportsman, but I have always taken regular exercise.

My final lurcher resigned from her job of people-walker when she went to guard the Pearly Gates about 20 years ago.

Without a dog to worry about and the different regimes that came with my retirement, I invested in a treadmill which I use every day, (mostly). And as the plague of Parkinson’s gradually took hold, the treadmill was joined by a cross trainer.

I still get up early, I still take regular exercise and, thankfully, Brown Eyes still provides a daily fry up.

I also know how fortunate I am to be able to enjoy the blessings that I have been given.

So let’s go back to the latest words of wisdom from the ’do-what-Boris-says’ booklet, chapter two: ’Take more exercise and lose some weight.’

To my way of thinking, that is as much use as chapter one: ’Here’s 50 quid, fix your bike’.

We all know that if we cycle more often and exercise regularly is definitely good advice.

But for most folks it is just not practical.

Take cycling, you may be given 50 quid to get your bike fixed which at face value is a good idea.

But then you will need a helmet and a lycra suit.

I bet that will cost more than 50 quid before you start, so I think that we can give that one a miss.

Now we’ve got the regular exercise gang, the first thing they will say is ’where’s my 50 quid?’

The point that I am trying to make is that there is no quick fix. We have developed into a society that is used to being looked after.

You just don’t start cycling or jogging and expect an instant miracle.

It takes a change in attitude and lifestyle and a lot of hard work. Sadly, that does not come on prescription.

Not yet, anyway.

Many years ago, Pullyman - aka Michael Cowin - was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, a condition that affects people in different ways. Michael discovered writing and Island Life is featuring some of his musings. Sometimes topical, sometimes nostalgic, read about life as seen through the eyes of Pullyman