Living with Nature - School on Blog by Dr. Abercio V. Rotor: “We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.”

Dr. Arturo B. Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature, 2025

Philippine College of Physicians (PCP Foundation, Inc)

“We must have something to cling to.

Some things must not change.”

- Dr Arturo B Rotor

Executive Secretary of the Philippines

June 13, 1942 – November 30, 1944

President Manuel L. Quezon

Preceded by Manuel Roxas

Born June 7, 1907 Died April 9, 1988 (aged 80)

Profession Doctor, musician, writer, government official; scientist, Rotor Syndrome, a liver disease named after him; honoree, Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature (PCP Foundation)

Contents

Part 1 - Three Great Doctors: Nature, Peace, Faith

Part 2 - A Little Corner of Eden: "Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained

Part 3 - Allergy and Environment: Insights from the Writings of Arturo B. Rotor MD,

First Filipino Allergist

Part 4 - “We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.”

- Dr Arturo B Rotor

Part 5 - Pandemic Allergy Looms Worldwide

Part 6 - ALLERGY - The Silent Pandemic (Self-administered test about allergy)

Part 7 - Meteorology and Allergy: Weather and allergy forecast the conditions

of the environment and health.

Part 8 - Allergy and Immunology: Facing the Challenge of the New Normal

Part 1 - Nature, Peace, Faith

Three Great Doctors

In honor of the participants to the

Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature

Nature-doctor, guardian of the environment’s pristine beauty

and bounty; Peace-doctor, emissary of unity and harmony;

Faith-doctor, keeper of body-mind-spirit integrity.

Dr Abe V Rotor

Nature, Peace, Faith - Three Great Doctors in acrylic by A V Rotor, 2024

Nature, Peace, Faith

Three Great Doctors

Health of people, the greatest wealth of society, hangs on nature’s beauty and bounty, of man living in peace and harmony, with deep faith in the Almighty and humanity;

Nature, Peace, Faith – they build a formidable triad, staked to the ground, firm and proud, for eons of time through ease and odd, in the benevolent hands of God;

This is the world once called Paradise in bible story, where Nature, Peace, Faith, long reigned in glory, and man anointed in his own rationality, serving as steward as a sacred duty;

A gift divine and singular over all creation, taking over creation itself with his own notion, in search of the Good Life through exploitation, pitting man against man, nation against nation.

And now man is asking God for more, as condition to obedience, defying the dictates of his conscience, at a crossroad in our Postmodern times. Whom can we depend on, where is man in his finest hour?

I asked God for more

I asked God for food, clothing and shelter
and He showered me
these necessities I cannot live without -
they are the Earth's bounty;
I settled down on fertile hills and valleys
and multiplied freely.

I asked God for power to boost my strength,
and He gave me energy;
I leveled the mountains, dammed the rivers
and conquered the sea;
raped the forests, prairies, lakes and estuaries,
a world I wanted to be.

I asked God if I can be God, too, all knowing
with my technology;
broke the sacred code of life and of matter,
changed the Great Story;
annihilated life unfit in my own design,
and set my own destiny.

I asked God if He is but a creation of the mind,
and rose from my knee;
probed space, rounding up the universe,
aiming at immortality,
bolder than ever, searching for another home,
and wanting to be free.

Many a self-proclaimed soul rose to the throne, fame they sought in the “grandeur that was Rome,” and the “glory that was Greece” syndrome, In unending quest but found at the end emptiness like foam.

Breakthroughs in science and technology the genius of man on the untrodden road to be happy and free; beauty he builds, and himself destroys beauty at rainbow’s end on a bended knee.

Nature-doctor, guardian of the environment’s pristine beauty and bounty; Peace-doctor, emissary of unity and harmony; Faith-doctor, sans fantasy, keeper of body-mind-spirit integrity;

And man the disciple of Hippocrates, takes the helm of a great journey, with Matthew’s 25 compassion, carries on a sacred duty, with the dictum, “health of one is health of the world" in joy and piety;

In Frankl's search for meaning, Schweitzer's mission, the "Lady with a Lamp" passion;

dedication of our own hero even in exile - these and other models, elevate the medical profession to a vocation.

Four Attributes of Man
Reflection and Meditation

It is I, Homo sapiens, the thinking man
who changed the concept of creation,
Nature to serve man,
master and guardian.

It is I, Homo faber, the maker,
wilderness to tame, resources to harness,
untouched these are,
they go to waste.

It is I, Homo ludens, the playing man,
forest to hunt, mountain to climb,
work and leisure to me
keep my sanity.

It is I, Homo spiritus, the praying man,
mysteries I submit, mistakes I atone,
I, too, have a heart that bleeds,
the essence of being human. ~

Detail of painting, Nature, Peace, Faith

Painting & poem by the author dedicated to the Dr Arturo B Rotor

Memorial Awards for Literature Foundation, and the Philippine

College of Physicians, during the 3rd awarding ceremonies,

October 17, 2024 at UNILAB Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila.

Part 2 - A Little Corner of Eden*

"Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained – is undoubtedly

one that resembles a tropical rainforest." - avr

“The Glory of the Garden was not in its unsullied beauty, its unfettered joy, or its bountiful provision. The Glory of the Garden was God Himself, His pretense, His care, His love.” ― Michelle Lesley

Painting and Verses by Dr Abe V Rotor

A Little Corner of Eden in acrylic, painted by Dr Abe V. Rotor (30" x 40") for the (Philippine College of Physicians) PCP Foundation Inc, founder and guardian of Dr Arturo B. Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature.

"Nature represents the idea of the entire universe in a state of perfection. Nature is one; it unites heaven and earth, connecting human beings with the stars and bringing them all together into a single family. Nature is beautiful; it is ordered. A divine law determines its arrangement - the subordination of the means to the end, and the parts to the whole.

"I chose the tropical rainforest scenery since it is the richest of all ecosystems in the world. The Philippines, being one of the countries endowed with the natural wealth is a treasure, indeed. For this reason, I believe that, the tropical rainforest closely resembles the description of the biblical paradise. It is not only a living bank of diversity; it is the most important sanctuary of living matters on earth." - AV Rotor, The Living with Nature Handbook

"Birds sing not only for their own kind,
but to the world that shares their joy,
in melodies notes may not capture,
but the heart and spirit they buoy." -avr

"No one tires with the rhythm of nature – the tides, waves, flowing rivulets, gusts of wind, bird songs, the fiddling of crickets, and the shrill of cicada. In the recesses of a happy mind, one could hear the earth waking up in spring, laughing in summer, yawning in autumn and snoring in winter – and waking up again the next year, and so on, ad infinitum." - AV Rotor, Listen to the Music of Nature!

The Forest - Living World in Microcosm

“To see a world in a grain of sand,
And heaven in a wild flower;
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And Eternity in an hour.”
- William Blake, Auguries of Innocence

"This verse captures the essence of the title, The Forest - Living World in Microcosm. It condenses the universe into its elemental symbols from which we take a full view of the world we live in. It reduces the complexities and vastness of both non- living and the living world into a microcosm that is complete in itself- a plantilla of creation all contained in the hand and experienced within a lifetime." - AV Rotor, Living World in Microcosm

Cryptobiology and Augury

"Call it pseudoscience, but it is gaining acceptance and support from scholars and people in general, with the discovery of strange creatures like the Coelacanth. The ancient Roman religion interpreted omens from the observed behavior of birds. A white dove means “peace”. A black dove means “war”. It could also pertain to matters of the heart, relationships, luck, misfortune, death, Remember the emissary bird in the biblical Noah's Ark? With the breakthrough in cybercommunication, it is evident that soon we will be communicating with Nature more directly, over and above fantasy and imagination. Which leads to conscientization, in the pursuit of values, truth and the ideal in protecting Nature." - AV Rotor, Cryptobiology and Conscientization

A pair of lovely parrots perched up high,

higher than the flight of butterfly;
aimlessly below many a passerby
just let the world go with a sigh.

It is estimated that more than half the species of plants, animals and protists live in the tropical rainforests. Imagine a single tree as natural abode of ferns, orchids, insects, fungi, lichens, transient organisms - birds, monkeys, frogs, reptiles, insects and a multitude more that escape detection by our senses.

Orchids, Family Orchidaceae, is one of the two largest families of flowering plants, with about 28,000 species, and with more constantly discovered. Orchids make up 6 to 11 percent of all species of seed plants, and are the most advanced in the Plant Kingdom, occupying the top position in the phylogeny and evolution of plants.

Orchids:
white, delicate, immaculate, pure;
red, flaming, romantic, demure;

Orchids:
flowing, silky, translucent, queenly;
fiery, ascendant, stout, kingly.

Orchids:
endearing, fancy, coy, culpable;
ephemeral, magical, lovable.

* Verse and drawing in pastel by Anna Christina, author's daughter, an enthusiast in the arts, assisted in conducting summer art workshops for children during her student days. Cattleya, Dendrobium and Vanda are native orchids in the Philippines. These are representative images of Vanda and its variants, including Vanda merrillii var. rotorii, named after Dr Arturo B Rotor in his honor as an orchid hobbyist.

"Today, rather than defending himself against nature,

man realized, he needed to defend nature against himself."

- AV Rotor, Light from the Old Arch

Forest: Man's First home, Genesis' Final View

Richest in flora and fauna of all biomes,
Big and small, in a common union,
Arranged in niches, divided by storeys,
In competition and cooperation.

Heritage trees rise through the canopy,
Living towers of the forest;
Divine columns of Nature's Parthenon,
Cradle of harmony and rest.

Stories about the forest, queer but true,
Seat of evolution, of biodiversity,
Ultimate of adventure, science laboratory,
Man's first home, Genesis' final view.

Message of the Painting, A Little Corner of Eden

"Quite often, images of nature enrapture us. These are reminiscences of childhood, a re-creation of a favorite spot we may have visited or seen, or products of the imagination greatly influenced by society we live in.

But the painting reflects a deep-seated biological longing to be part of nature. Putting it in the biblical sense, it is a natural searching for the lost paradise. The scenery represents a refuge from city living, a respite, and an escape from the daily grind.

But the scenery does not only tell us of what we are missing. Rather, it reminds us of what we are going to miss, perhaps forever, if we do not heed nature's signal towards a fast declining ecosystem. If we do not change our way of life from too much dependence on consumerism, to one more closely linked to conservation of nature, we may end up building memories and future archives of a lost world. " - AV Rotor

A Little Corner of Eden

If I were to return after the Fall
To where my forebears once lived;
If I were to trace back their footsteps
To their world of make believe.

What would I tell to my dear Creator
Whose open arms have waited so long
For man to return, to repent for his Sin -
And I, having also failed all along?

I would tell Him there is also a place,
A little green corner of grass and trees,
Of bees and flowers, rainbow and butterflies,
Where birds come and sing with the breeze.

An emerald river gently flowing,
Meandering between hills and on the plain,
Palms and trees bowing at its levees,
Its waters soothing the day's pain.

I would tell Him of this place also forgotten,
Abandoned by a bandwagon,
By those who nurture the Utopian dream,
Now orphaned and virtually alone.

Is forgetfulness also Your tool of creation
Where man shall be gone from here on?
Paradise is redeemed and once more born?
No wonder Nature triumphs when left alone.~

* Painting is a humble expression of thanks, from Dr Abe V Rotor and family, to the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP Foundation Inc., ), for establishing and conducting the yearly literary contest under the Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature. ~

Part 3 - Allergy and Environment:

Insights from the Writings of Arturo B. Rotor MD, First Filipino Allergist

"Allergy, the Silent Epidemic of our times is masked by the Good Life." -Dr. Arturo B. Rotor

Published in ad VERITATEM (Multi-Disciplinary Research Journal of the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School, Volume 8 Number 2, March 2009

of the same title pp 323-346

Abercio V. Rotor. Ph.D.

I would like to thank the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology for giving me this honor and privilege to present this paper, and for honoring Dr. Arturo B. Rotor, to whom I am dedicating this simple work. I will try to focus my paper on the theme of your convention – Understanding Allergies across Specialties – and link it with the subject of ecology, specifically the environment.

Dr Arturo B Rotor was a newspaper columnist Confidentially Doctor. He served as executive secretary of Presidents Quezon and Osmeña. A rare endocrine disease he discovered was named after him - Rotor Syndrome.

Dr. Arturo B. Rotor wrote several short stories, many became popular reading materials in high school and college literature, among them Dahong Palay, Twilight’s Convict, The Wound and Scar and Zita. In the waning years of his devoted life as a doctor, he continued to write, an outpouring from a wellspring of rich personal experience. Ateneo de Manila University Press compiled ten of these stories into a handy book with the title, The Men Who Play God. On the back cover is a curious brief description about the author. To wit:

Quotes from Dr Arturo B Rotor on allergy

“In the Philippine Journal of Science, a new orchid, Vanda Merrillii variety Rotorii is described by Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing. In Cecil Loeb’s Practice of Medicine, a new disease, “Rotor’s Syndrome,” is recognized. Both the disease and the flower refer to Arturo B. Rotor and highlight the disparate, often incongruous activities that marked his career.”

Perhaps it is beyond words to describe Dr. Rotor’s dedication to his profession and country. He served as Executive Secretary of the Philippine government-in-exile and member of the Cabinet, first under President Manuel Quezon, then President Sergio Osmeña. The Second World War was over and heroes deserved their peace. But not to Dr. Rotor. For doctors war goes on in preventing and attending to people who are sick, suffering and dying. War is improving the medical profession. He sought improvement of the medical profession by heading as Director of the UP Postgraduate School of Medicine, and surprisingly, by founding a relatively new field of medicine - allergology as a specialty, for which he is remembered today.

But the other side of Dr. Rotor’s life was one equally rich and fulfilling through the expression of the wonders of the right brain - naturalism, for he was an ardent lover of nature, both the landscape and the garden; and creativity through the auditory art of music, demonstrating mastery of some of the world’s best compositions as a celebrated pianist. (He graduated from the UP Conservatory of Music and UP College of Medicine at the same time.)

Dr. Rotor succeeded in welding together the ingredients of Maslow’s self-actualization that truly make a compleat person and a fulfilled individual. To him this is The Good Life and very rare indeed that medicine, nature and humanities are rolled in one. As I went through his works and honors he received I came to a conclusion that he is not only a general advocate of natural medicine, but a principal proponent of natural medicine - that has been side swept by the rush of modernization and apparent lack of concern over environmental issues. More and more people realize that our attitude towards the environment is an affront to rationality, contrary to our role as custodian of creation, and as the superior species - and in defining our attributes almost to a divine level as Man the Thinker (Homo sapiens), Man the Maker (Homo faber), Man the Player (Homo ludens) and the Man the Reverent (Homo spiritus) images

Breakthroughs in science and technology brought many things into our lives. It gave rise to electronics, that gave rise to the Computer. We are now spending more and more waking hours with the computer as if it were man’s best friend. Since its invention mysteries about life have been unfolding, among them the breaking of the code of life - that by examining and tinkering with the molecular structure of life through what we call as Genetic Engineering, we not only change the ways of nature, but the ways of God. Undeniably we are those Men Who Play God in Dr. Rotor’s book.

But come to think of the computer as the root of allergy and many ailments. Spending more time with the computer deprives millions especially children of participating in health promoting games and resistance-building exposure to nature. Our children are no longer children of nature; they are captives of education and media, of malls and cafes. They like to think that the mind is like the CPU or memory card, that the more information it acquires the better of is the individual. This is not so. Not when it pertains to health, not with the ability to arrive at correct decisions, not when and where survival is the name of the game. And not when it comes to matters of love.

Which reminds me a story of a young man who was in love. So he asked the computer, “What is love?” Whereupon came a prompt answer – not only one or two, but in many definitions technical and literary. “How does it feel to be in love?” He continued. This time the computer did not respond. He entered his query once more, and again, but still there was no response. After several attempts, the computer finally gave up. “I cannot feel.”

And here are our children spending most of their waking hours with an “intelligent” thing in the shape of a box, a thing that has no feeling at all! Even when the computer can tell you all kinds of the sickness in the world, it cannot comfort you. Because a robot has no feeling.

It may only provide a symbol. It can - in our mind - personify a friend, a loved one. Those who saw the movie Castaway, can recount how a lone survivor of a plane crash managed to live alone for four years in an unknown island with only one imagined companion – a foot ball he named Wilson. There are countless lost souls like Nolan in that movie. In marginal communities, in secured quarters, on the fast lane unable to cope up with the pace of post-modern life.

I wonder how little would one give importance to ailments and discomforts, while fighting for survival, and loneliness and despair. People who are placed in such a dilemma may not even care, and they may not even know the difference between being healthy or sick, much less between colds and allergy rhinitis, simple indigestion from candidiasis, rashes developed from different causes. Phobia, anxiety, disease, malnutrition, loneliness, are difficult to decipher and separate when one is suffering of physical, mental and emotional distress.

On the other side of the globe here is another box that is a darling. Young men adore it, so with a growing number of women. The spend so much time with it, in fact it steals away the best years of life and before one knows it, he has already grown too old; there is no way to part with it anymore. It is the car. It is that flashy car that metamorphoses now and then, and so precious it really is one is committed to “till death thou as part” even in the midst of financial crisis – and sometimes jealousy.

Indeed our world has changed a lot in the past century, and continues to accelerate as towns grow into cities, cities into megapolises, and opening settlements to an exponentially growing population of 7.7 billion worldwide.

Dr. Arturo Rotor gave a vivid scenario in his book of our fast changing life and lifestyle, of the rapid irreversible change of the environment, and the accelerated momentum towards ultimate destruction. He was referring to the Philippine General Hospital in Manila – scenes of before and after, when he was then a student and years later as a practitioner and professor.

“… the heavenly peace and quiet… the unmistakable tang of the evening breeze, long before you saw the surf breaking the moored fishing boats off Pasay beach. In such an environment, convalescence was pleasant and speedy. There was unpolluted, invigorating air to fill the lungs, cool tranquil nights to encourage sound sleep, restful, uneventful days for strolling in the hospital grounds or sitting down and dozing under great spreading acacia trees.”

This is a passing scene. Never will it be seen again - this beautiful scene he described. Completely changed in character and purpose is the district once considered ideal hospital environment. The pulse of life and its amenities has quickened, and at its present rate of degradation the pulse is taking a reverse trend that goes with the sick and the dying. People as getting sick, or more sick. The irony is that the very elements that make a person sick, that delays his recovery and even predispose him to relapse is right in the vicinity of the country’s primer hospital. Dr. Rotor’s presents this disturbing one.

“At peak travel hours, which is before nine in the morning, to sunset, the combined cacophony of thousands of motors accelerating, horns blasting, tires screeching, reaches the one-hundred-twenty-decibel level. Above this basic din, boy-peddlers add a few more decibels touting cigarette or sweepstakes tickets, and by bus conductors announcing their routes: “Siga-ril-yo! San Andres Bukid! Crossing! Vito Cruz!” The din and confusion are indescribable.

“This must be what a mortally ill patient in delirium must go through; this must be the amorphous, unremitting jumble of hubbub, boom and barrage, without pattern or purpose or direction that finally pushes the mind over the brink of sanity.”

If there were a better breeding place of allergy, it would be the very same place given more time of neglect and inaction. And from there Pandora’s Box opens.

But this is not a single case. It is a typical one, it is the microcosm of many other cases, perhaps lesser degree or worst, older or more recent, that prevail in many cities around the world where the same recipe of allergy is supplied by the by-products of industrialization, high-rise buildings, affluent living style, that characterize progress, and exacerbated by lack or inefficient Governance.

But this is the pulse beat of trade and commerce that has taken over the healthy and vigorous biological clock; it is the signature of modernity that capitalism has brought into the life of modern man. This is the circulatory flow of money and goods, men and ideas, survival and affluence reaching all levels, nurturing the organism, determining what we gauge as growth and development.

The number one and singular offending generator of pollution is the internal combustion engine, as described in Dr. Rotor’s book. Today the Internal Combustion Engine is the prime mover of practically all vehicles – land, sea and air, as well as many industries all over the world, in both developed and underdeveloped nations. There are millions and millions of these vehicles and plants - each a little volcano that spews toxic gases that blanket the earth and warming it as a cumulative consequence, these gases reacting with the air and cloud to form a concoction that falls as acid rain. No longer is rainwater the purest of all waters, for Nature’s distilling process – evaporation-condensation - is now contaminated. Acid rain kills gradually, slowly, not only humans, but plants and animals as well. It is the cause of many skin allergies, falling hairs, infections, and when the harmful substances enter the food chain, and ultimately the food web, the problem becomes compounded; it puzzles doctors and biologists, disturbs the economy and peace. It reminds us of The Mask of the Red Death written by Nathaniel Hawthorn, three hundred years ago about an epidemic, the Bubonic Plague that killed one-third of the population of Europe. Allergy, the Silent Epidemic of our times, masked by the Good Life, surreptitiously leads to complications and other diseases that may lead to death.

It is a scenario that we see in other hospitals in the city, and in big towns as well, scenario of our own making. And yet, like artists before the canvas we have the power to create one that is beautiful and conducive to our well-being. But we do not or we refuse to do so, although we are aware that a healthy environment is primordial to good health and a happy life.

Before I proceed I would like to relate my most memorable encounter with allergy.

My family was vacationing in our ancestral home in San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, hometown of our family tree, which includes the family of Dr. Arturo Rotor. Our place is typically rural. It offers a perfect place for children to grow up with nature on one hand, and a place to retire on the other, far away from the “maddening crowd.” It is alternative to the busy lanes and hectic life in Manila where my children grew up.

We had a sumptuous supper with talakitok, a popular marine fish. It got plenty of eggs to the delight of Leo Carlo, my youngest son who was then about 8 years old.

Suddenly in the middle of the night Leo Carlo woke me up. “Papa, I can’t breathe.” There was panic. His body was swollen all over, his eyes almost completely shut. Luckily I found anti-histamine in our First Aid Kit, and after giving him a tablet, took him immediately to the nearest hospital in Vigan, three kilometers away. When his allergy subsided, my wife and I decided to take Leo Carlo to Manila for further treatment. It was the first time I realized how dangerous allergy can be.

This was the worst incident that happened to us when vacationing in our ancestral home. There is nothing unusual encountering common ailments and inconveniences because of the sudden change of environment. One time Anna nursed a painful knee. “It aches when it is cold.” Marlo would sneeze three times in succession, like the boy in Dr. Rotor’s story of “The Boy Who Always Sneezed Three Times.” It’s the dust. And we would say, “Bless you,” every time he sneezed. Cecille would take out a small bottle of herbal oil from Vietnam for tired muscles, then inhale its pleasing scent. On my part I always keep distance from flowering talahib, and when dangerously near a whole field, I throw straw or dry soil in the air to find out the direction of the wind. Then I would keep leeward to avoid the pollen-laden wind.

That incident Leo Carlo encountered made us think if it is really recommended to return and live in the province, away from the crowded city where our three children are used to. These questions brought doubt rather than assurance of good health.

Do our children have adequate preparation for a new environment and a different lifestyle? And when one grows old, is it really better to spend the rest of his life in the province?

At this point allow me to cite the case of Germany, considered a classical case about allergy. For 45 years Germany was divided by a wall that ran through the center of Berlin. Economic wise, West Germany was very progressive, while East Germany was poor. The West Germans enjoyed one of the world’s highest standards of living. They live in luxurious homes, drive Mercedes-Benz as they pleased.

The East Germans on the other hand, were living under extreme poor living condition, with housing and consumer goods always in short supply. They had to wait years to be able to buy a second hand automobile. In short West Germany was a capitalist Utopia, while East Germany was a socialist Third World country. It was a case of one people living on separate and unequal planets.

Then in 1990 Germany was reunited. The Cold War was over.

Now, what has this historical event to do with allergy?

Scientists compared the two extreme environments and came up with startling results.

The Robert Koch Institute came up with a revealing finding: allergies were far more common among Germans from the affluent West. West German baby boomers were up to 83 % more likely than their East German counterparts to have allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and asthma.

Since there was no such differences in allergy rates were found in German born before World War II, the researches suspected that West Germany’s postwar lifestyles had somehow sensitized its children to pollen, mold, dust mites, and other types of allergens.

West Germany represents a microcosm of a global Silent Epidemic, and countries that adopted the same lifestyle have more allergy cases than countries, which like East Germany, have remained, for one reason or another, underdeveloped.

What makes an affluent society have more allergy cases as compared to a marginal society?

Let me present some scenarios of our changing environment. Which of these fall under West Germany’s condition? And which ones fit East Germany’s?

1. As the growth of industrialization increases, so with the amount of pollution. Pollution is the by-product of industrialization. Industrialization is the key to modern living; pollution is its scourge. Many of us are aware of the fact that pollution has no boundaries; it rides on water and wind, it moves on land. It contributes to global warming, stirs climatic change and severe weather disturbances, not to mention the thinning of the ozone layer, worsening effect of acid rain and many others.

Pollution allergy cases arise directly from garbage, smoke from factories and vehicles, acid rain contact, sudden changes in temperature and humidity, ultraviolet rays below and near ozone hole.

2. Modernization brought about affluence, first in industrialized countries, and now in countries which followed the path of development of Western economic formula. People want goods and services beyond what they actually need.

Living above and beyond necessity has tremendous impact on the environment in the form of depletion of natural resources and pollution. Affluence is wasteful living.

3. Population increases geometrically, it is now 6.7 billion. At its present trend, another billion people will be added in the next 25 years.

New settlements, crowded cities, increasing population density predispose people to various forms of allergy.

4. As exodus to cities continues, the ratio of city dwellers to rural dwellers will soon reach equal proportion, and will favor the former thereafter. Already there are metropolises and megapolises, each containing as many as 20 million people ensconced under crowded condition. Meantime villages grow into towns and towns into cities.

People crowd subdivisions, condominiums, malls, schools, churches, parks, in great numbers sharing common lifestyles and socio-economic conditions. Thus predisposing them to common health problems and vulnerability to disruptions (brownout, water interruptions, force majeure).

5. Destruction of the environment as a consequence of increasing population and affluence, leads to loss of not only the productivity of farms, but loss of farmlands to industry and settlements, ultimately resulting in the irreversible destruction of ecosystems like lakes, rivers, forest, and coral reefs.

Loss of health of environment is loss of health of living things. Loss of environment is loss of life itself.

6. The ecosystems bear the brunt of development and progress. Wildlife is reduced in size and in biodiversity. Species are threatened to extinction as they are driven out of their natural habitats. The worse is when their habitats are lost forever.

Our existence and quality of our life depends on a complex interrelationship of the living world. Disturbing the balance of this interrelationship also disturbs the balance of biotic and abiotic components of the biosphere, thus affecting not only humans, but all members of the living world.

7. As wildlife shrinks, species are threatened or endangered. They need shelter, a new home.

Wee are adopting wildlife species, sharing with our homes, backyards and farms. Unaware they are transmitting deadly diseases like SARS, HIV-AIDS, Mad-Cow, Foot-and-Mouth Disease, Ebola, and Bird Flu which can now infect humans, allergies notwithstanding.

Avian influenza virus is found chiefly in birds, but infections with these viruses can occur in humans. The risk from avian influenza is generally low to most people. However; confirmed cases of human infection from several subtypes of avian influenza infection have been reported since 1997. Most cases of avian influenza infection in humans have resulted from contact with infected poultry (e.g., domesticated chicken, ducks, and turkeys) or surfaces contaminated with secretion/excretions from infected birds. The spread of avian influenza viruses from one ill person to another has been reported very rarely, and has been limited, inefficient and unsustained.

8. “Good Life” has spawned obesity and other overweight conditions to millions of people around the world with USA the most hit. The spawning ground of obesity is the city.

Victims suffer of complications in their health and difficulty in adjusting to a different life style. Because of their conditions they are merely spectators, rather than being participants, in games and other physical activities. Many are virtually immobilized by their condition.

9. Global warming is changing the face of the earth. As sea level rises shorelines are pushed inland, islands sink, lowlands turn to swamps, icecaps disappear, polar ice melts. In fact, there is need to re-draw local maps, and the map of the world as sea level continues to increase, glaciers disappear. More importantly there will be need to review and modify land use policy, settlement plans and relocation.

Adaptation is key to allergy resistance and immunity. Displacement of settlements and change in living conditions predispose people to ailments and allergies.

10. Globalization is the name of the game in practically all aspects of human activity – trade, commerce and industry, agriculture, the arts, education, politics, religion and the like.

The world travels on two feet- communications and transportation. The world has shrunk, so to speak. Traveling from one place to another across latitudes and longitudes predispose one to unimaginable kinds of ailments, allergies, and discomforts.

11. Homogenization involves pooling of genes through inter-racial and inter-cultural marriages resulting in various “mestizos” like Eurasian, Afro-Asian, Afro-American, Amerasian, and the like. Mélange of races is fast increasing in complexity as East and West continue to weld genetically.

Native genes provide resistance to pest diseases, adverse conditions of the environment. Native genes through intermarriage is beneficial, but the benefit they carry may be thinned out in the gene pool. Mestizos of subsequent generations are likely affected.

12. Science and Technology as the prime mover of progress and development has also brought doubt and fear to human’s future. The first breakthrough created the nuclear bomb, the second brought the globe to the size of a village with the microchip, and the third, Genetic Engineering now enables man to tinker with life itself.

A. Splitting of the atom - nuclear energy and nuclear bomb

B. Microchip - modern communication and transportation

C. Genetic Engineering – Genetically Modified Organisms, cloning, Gene Therapy, biological warfare.

Human conditions too, have vastly changed. Radiation related death still occurs in Nagasaki and Hiroshima, more time is spent by our children with the computer than with nature, Gene Therapy – curing gene-link diseases before they are expressed – will revolutionized medicine. Naturally all these have repercussions on human health and welfare.

13. Pioneer industries are born out of these breakthroughs and related discoveries linking them with the business world and society, giving rise to in vitro fertilization or test tube babies, surrogate motherhood, Human Genome Project (HGP or gene mapping), multiple childbirth, DNA mapping, etc.

The prototype human robot is born, and he is not defect-free. In fact he is more dependent on medicine and could not possibly withstand the conditions of the natural environment as we do to the extent of pampering him. Indeed he will lead a very dependent life.

15. Green Revolution opened up non-conventional frontiers intruding the seas, deserts, watersheds, highlands, swamps. GR pioneered in Genetic Engineering, the splicing of genetic materials between and among organisms that may not be at all related, pooling desired traits. Thus the growth of GMOs and Frankenfood, and cloning experiments.

Aerophonics (farming rooftops), hydroponics, urban greening, reforestation, organic farming, are among the measures to bring nature nearer to settlements, and insuring people the bounty of nature.

16. Agriculture today depends heavily on Post Harvest Technology. To bridge the production source with the consumption end, the farm and the market, is no easy task, especially with perishable goods. Thus the proliferation of processed goods, supermarket, fast food chains, ready-to-eat packs, sophisticated culinary art.

Many food additives and adjuncts are allergenic, from salitre in longganiza to pesticide residue in vegetables, MSG in noodles to Aspartame in fruit juice, formalin in fish to dioxin in plastics.

17. Modern medical science is responsible in reducing mortality and in increasing longevity. But it is also responsible for many ills today, from genetically linked abnormalities to senility related ailments. It made possible the exchange of organs and tissues through transplantation, and soon tissue cloning.

Evolution culls out the unfit in any stage of life. This is true to all organisms. Only man, or his influence on other living things, can modify Darwinism.

18. Exploration has brought man into the fringes of our world – the depth of the sea and expanse of our Solar System, ushering the birth of inner and outer space science, and preparation of man for interplanetary travel.

We are learning to live outside of the confines of our planet earth. We have succeeded in probing the bottom of the ocean. We have put up a city in space - the Skylab. Now we are aiming at conquering another planet – a long distant goal of assuring the continuity of mankind after the demise of the earth. (Meantime we have yet to know the cure of the common colds.)

Insights from Dr. Arturo B Rotor’ s Short Stories

What are the implications of these environmental issues in the occurrence of allergy cases, in diagnosing and treating them as viewed from Dr. Rotor short stories? As I went though his works, I arrived at these scenarios, which provide us a glimpse of his thoughts and philosophy. I have taken liberty to use other references including mine to further my research on this matter.

As we unveil the mystery of allergy, shrouded by a changing environment, there will be need of young, talented and dedicated people in the field of medicine and healthcare. The number of patients that our doctor can attend increases everyday, with funds and facilities to use. In The Men Who Play God, the number of patients was reduced after screening the applicants. The conversation goes like this.

“We are not going through the qualifications of 163 patients this morning are we?

“No, sir, we have done some preliminary screening and we have narrowed the choice to three.”

“Fine. xxx Well, let’s hear some opinions. I understand some of you have investigated these cases carefully and have arrived at positive decisions.”

In the story one patient is a young girl, intelligent, just finished college and her whole life is before her. The second patient is the sole bread earner of a family of five. The third patient is a hospital attendant who has spent 17 years of his life caring for patients.

The chairman was silent for a long time. Idly he flicked the pages of the clinical charts in front of him, as if searching for words. At last he faced his staff squarely.

“Which one of you would like to play God today?”

Miracle and Medicine

There will be new cases doctors will study before these cases can be properly diagnosed and treated, more serious ailments, some life threatening - apparently related to allergic conditions. In Orchid of Five Wounds, this is how the attending doctor to a 16-year old patient felt.

Dr. Morales felt sympathy, compassion and respect for the blind patient. He even described the flower given to her by other patients, orchid of five wounds, that according to legend, it got its name from Christ nailed on the cross. Some drops of blood from his wound fell on this plant, hence the name. What physician could remain absolutely objective towards a 16-year old girl, an orphan, struck down by an incurable disease in the spring of her life?

The doctor was quite up-to-date in the literature of his specialty. xxx so far he had not obtained any information or development that he had not known before. He had gone far afield, from chemotherapeutic agents, to radioactive substances, to the newly discovered interferon, but none mentioned of a cure; the most that the investigators promised was remission which was another way of saying a postponement of the inevitable.In desperation the doctor had turned to non-medical or pseudo-medical literature… but he could not track down the original reports. What was left – faith healer? Prayer meetings? Water from Lourdes?

Inday, the blind patient, followed the singing of visitors and friends who literally brought Santa Cruz de Mayo into the hospital. She joined prayers and had light moments with other patients, while being treated and observed.

He told Inday about the promising result of her treatment. Inday turned her face quickly to him, “I shall see again? … I shall see my flowers, my aunt, my house and friends. I know I shall see again.”

The following week the heads of Ophthalmology, of Medicine and Neurology visited Dr. Morales and his patient and found her condition fast improving. The occurrence of spontaneous remission of malignant tumors is very rare. A case of arrested cancer is labeled a miracle. Inday’s case could be a simple matter of an immunological response, or a hormonal reaction.

Dr. Morales broke the good new to Inday, with caution , and not set her hopes too high. Xxx he stopped when he saw that she had closed her eyes tightly and that a few teardrops had escaped. He got up to leave and she released her hand. “I shall see you tonight.”

Her voice, when she finally found it, was hardly above a whisper. “No – I shall see you – I shall see you.”

Old Folk Medicine

Alternative medicine - or traditional medicine for its age-long history and custom-tested remedies, its quaintness to village communities, will continue to be the people’s way of obtaining medical treatment and attention, as the terms alternative and traditional imply. Mystery surrounding a disease may lead to faith healing, while formality of modern medicine often lacks of personal touch and attention that patients seek.

Thus we saw in the excerpts of Orchid of Five Wounds, the way a doctor treated a patient who at first was a hopeless case. Then, by miracle she made it through.

Inday would leave the hospital within the week – when would he she her again? xxx He saw her among her plants, talking to them, picking her flowers… Roses and maiden-hair fern and orchid like butterflies … and she would be in the middle of colors and fragrance. At first she would probably need thick corrective glasses, but these would gradually be reduced as her vision improved. He would bring her books and catalogues about plants and flowers … yes, the Orchid of Five Wounds – he had promised to tell her the complete legend of the miracle.

The theme of Dr. Rotor’s story about caring, may be seen at the border of loving, which is strongly evident in Zita, the story of a city-bred young man assigned teacher in an island, and there he provoked a young heart from among his students. Parting, as in the same case of our story, is a painful one, and leaves the reader an uncertain epilogue - longing and pleading in this case

Modern Living and The Good Life - Estranged

As people build their lives around the amenities of modern living, their lifestyle in the countryside lured into transformation akin to city life, the more they are exposed to all possibilities of allergy and related ailments. Here is a scenario of this so-called Good Life, which I discussed as a chapter in “Light from the Old Arch.”

“A quartz clock awakens you. You switch on the light, tune in the TV or radio, open the e-mail, cook breakfast, read the morning paper, dress up, take the elevator, drive the car, etc. All this is not surprising to most of us who live in urban centers.

But hear this. The milk you drink is genetically modified (human embryo hormone was injected into the cow to produce more milk), the corn flakes you eat comes from BT corn (corn with a gene of a bacterium – Bacillus thuringiensis), your potato fries is likewise a GMO and like your onion rings they were irradiated to extend their shelf life, your lettuce carries a trace of dioxin, the deadliest toxin ever synthesized, your tuna carries a residue of mercury, the microwave emits rays that are not good to health, the paint in your condominium contains lead, plastic deteriorates and you may not know it’s the cause of your allergy, so with synthetic fabric you are wearing.

There is nitrate (salitre) in corned beef and in tocino, MSG (monosodium glutamate) in noodles, aspartame in softdrinks, sulfite in sugar, potassium bromide in bread, antibiotic residue in poultry and eggs. And the list goes on, ad infinitum. Again we ask, ‘Where will all this lead us to?’” (AV Rotor, Light from the Old Arch)

Genetic Engineering Breeds Allergy

Perhaps the least understood realm of allergy is in the area of genetic engineering, the progenitor of Genetically Modified Organisms – plants, animals, protists – a number of them dubbed as Frankenfood, which we eat everyday. Already we have Genetically Modified soybean, potato, corn,, and GO milk, poultry and eggs. And we have barely scratched the surface.

“Genetic engineering is creating genes and genetic materials that threaten to pollute natural genetic pools worldwide. Once an organism acquires a foreign gene – now a GMO – it becomes a permanent source of genetic contamination and pollution. xxx Transgenic plants and animals will definitely contaminate natural gene pools, in effect creating blindly hybrids and crossbreeds from varying combinations of genes of both GMOs and non-GMOs.

“New bacteria, viruses, prions, other pathogens are more virulent, not only by their infective nature, but by mutation or reactivation of dormant and harmless ones. Antibiotic resistant markers (ARMs) in GM plants and animals can be transferred to other bacteria, including the harmful ones. These resistant bacteria could become gene sources of virulent forms. xxx Genetic manipulation introduces proteins from organisms never used as food, many of which could be the source of new allergens.” (AV Rotor, Living with Nature in Our Times)

Quaintness of Beliefs and Superstition

Advances in our understanding about diseases, specially about asthma and allergy, may be thwarted by superstitious beliefs and ignorance, and by inaction on the part of government, particularly in remote communities. The case of The Boy Who Always Sneezed Three Times, illustrates Dr. Rotor’s view on this aspect.

It happened when the baby was but a few weeks old. Mang Teban and Aling Doray and several relatives were in the room admiring the new baby. .xxx Suddenly the boy sneezed – three times. It evoked excitement. It was sign of good luck and fortune. They predicted Baby Garcia would someday become rich and famous.

A measles epidemic struck the village. And many children came down with the familiar fever and skin eruptions. Tigdas was nothing new to the people; it was part of growing up, unavoidable, and in fact of some advantage to the child. He gets it once and doesn’t get it again. The government sent the provincial health officer to investigate the epidemic was almost over; it was too late to vaccinate the children.

Baby Garcia was one of those who contracted the disease early, but Aling Doray recognized it only when hundreds of eruptions, as if a horde of mosquitoes had bitten him. She closed up one corner of their small bedroom, covering the door and window with thick blankets so that no light could enter.

Here she kept her baby, trying to make him eat, stroking his forehead and crooning him to sleep. The fever and rash soon abated, but a dry cough. When he was finally brought out of the darkened room, he looked like skin and bones His eyes were deeply sunk, his face shrunk like squeezed orange. He ate very little and did not pay attention to his surroundings. He was too weak xxx It seemed to take a long time to recover – and sometimes she doubted whether he would ever get well.

The one night as she dozed near the child she was awakened by his cry, which did not seem like the cry of a sick child. The mother held her son nearer the light. Suddenly he screwed up his face and sneezed – three times. (AB Rotor, The Boy Who Sneezed three Times )

Neurosis – Modern Man’s Disease

Man’s pursuit of knowledge, of affluence, of pleasure, are not necessarily of the ideals of sapiens (thinking), ludens (playing), faber (making) and spiritius (praying) that make him singularly rational. His failure and indifference constitute the antithesis of his decisions and actions, of his gains and achievements, his inability to keep his role as guardian of nature.

Here is an excerpt from Dr. Rotor’s short story, The Clinical Trials. It was the annual convention of the Society of Experimental Animals, the most important scientific event of the year, and every sector of society was represented: the guinea pigs, rabbits, cats, dogs, hamsters – even the pigs had their own delegation. And the subject is about human beings, not the other way around. Call it a fantasy, an allegory, science fiction, modern fable sort of.

“The convention arrived at the conclusion that the best subject is Homo sapiens. Of all of God’s creatures, there is no species more guilt-ridden, confused and self-destructive than man. Fear, remorse and frustration underlie his basic behavior, probably as a result of his forbears having been driven out of the Garden of Eden. He kills not for food, he eats when he is not hungry, he mates in or out of season. His suicidal tendencies are unique. While the lemmings drown themselves as a result of reduced food supplies, man will willingly cultivate cancer of his lungs by smoking poisonous plants, convert his liver into a hobnailed, atrophic mass of dead tissue with alcohol, or remove himself from the control of his mind with narcotics.

“The genes bearing these characteristics have not been identified, but seem to be transmitted paternally and maternally. An important feature of his personality is that the more developed the creature and the more successful, the more likely is he to suffer from neurosis. While among all other species, infection heads mortality and morbidity lists, among Homo sapiens, neurosis is the underlying cause of ninety percent of all illnesses. As a matter of fact, in the big cities and centers of population, the archetype of the successful executive is the hypertensive, the ulcer patient, the tranquilizer-dependent. We believe that for an in-depth study of tension or anxiety, in all its typical and atypical manifestations, man is a better subject than the frog, mouse or rabbit.”

x x x The results are clear-cut and not unexpected, as far as Capsule A is concerned. However, Capsule B presents some problems. Capsule B contains nothing but milk sugar, and yet it produced the same result as Capsule A.

More theories were offered, each more complex than the preceding: telepathic communication, secondary visual and auditory organs located in the arms or shoulders, and extra-sensory perception. But none could fully explain why milk sugar acts like a food when taken as food, and sometimes like a tranquilizer when taken as an anti-depressant. The author of the report requested to clarify the technique used in the determination of the low-density lipo-proteins? xxx

“The scientific forum was over. It had been stimulating, it had approved a new drug, and it had advanced medical knowledge. Except for one minor detail, it could have been one of the countless scientific meetings being held all the time everywhere in the world. By human beings.” (AB Rotor, The Clinical Trials)

Shangrila Myth

We can’t hide away from human miseries even in Shangrila America. Breaking the myth of America as a “land of plenty,” Dr. Ramos, the Balikbayan Doctor, was telling his former students in a homecoming forum. (AB Rotor, The Balikbayan Doctor)

“America is not the place where you want to be when you are old, or sick, or unsuccessful. You think we have poor people here? You should see their poor. Here our needy may not have enough food, clothing, shelter. But even the poorest of our poor can usually find a distant cousin or compadre who will visit him every now and then. This is a part of our culture. And he does not have to die in the cold. Over there, the old, sick and indigent have, in addition, to contend with the cold of winter. Try to visualize yourself – I don’t think you can – jobless, weak, down with flu, living alone, shivering under two sweaters and three heavy blankets because you cannot afford to pay for heat. You may freeze to death before morning and nobody will find you, unless the janitor of the building smells something stinking and breaks into your room to investigate.”

Dr. Ramos continued.

“During the years I have spent in the States, I have met many of our countrymen … some have kidney trouble, high blood pressure; their joints are stiff and creaking, their eyesight fading.

“But most are free of diseases. The symptoms they complain of are not caused by bacteria, or virus or tumor cells or allergy. It all comes out when I tell them that they are healthy and have five or ten more years of life.”

‘Doctor, I want to go home. I want to see the old country before I die.’

The old gene, I suppose – the one that made us human and rational – prevails at the end, after all. Quite often it is disease, it is age that open to us the realities of life.

x x x

_____________________________________

ARTURO B. ROTOR (1907- 1985)

Rotor is a unique combination of writer, musician and physician who was once upon a time before the war one of the country’s most active and distinguished writers of short stories. His stories were so highly regarded that the first publication of the Philippine Book Guild was a collection of his stories called The Wound and the Scar (1937). But since he exchanged his pen for a stethoscope he has not done any writing except making out prescriptions for his patients. And the reason he gave is contained in a letter he wrote to Alejandro R. Roces:

“. . . I am no longer young, and because when I entered the practice of medicine I discovered suddenly that I did not possess the vocabulary to record or describe what I saw. I could write vividly enough about characters which existed in my imagination. But when I saw them in my clinic and noted the caught breath or measured the quickening pulse, I found myself inarticulate. I knew then that what I had written before was written neither with understanding nor with compassion. And so I am learning how to write all over again. . .”

Like Roces, Rotor is from Manila. He was born in Sampaloc in 1907 and had his elementary schooling at the Burgos Elementary School, but finished high school in U.P. High. When he was studying medicine at the University of the Philippines, he was also studying music at the Conservatory. He finished both courses. While still an undergraduate, he worked as magazine editor of the Philippines Herald; and after graduation as literary editor of the National Review. This is why the artist, the doctor and the journalist are evident in his stories where on finds in abundance the artist’s sensitiveness to music and beauty, a meticulous analysis of the physician’s behavior, and a newspaperman’s eyes for details.

Though Rotor has faded out of the literary horizon, The Wound and the Scar still sustains his reputation as a writer. The title is of course indicative of the author’s medical background. Of the eleven stories in it, six are about doctors and the rest on varied subjects ranging from flowers to music and from journalism to bucolic life. One of them, “Dahong Palay,” won first prize in a story contest sponsored by a local daily before the war, but the best of them, in spite of the author’s courageous admission of his limitations as a writer, is the medicated stories based on his experiences as a medical practitioner.

Reminiscent of Emerson’s indictment of the American scholar, Rotor once stirred a literary controversy with a speech, “Our Literary Heritage,” delivered before the first Congress of Filipino Writers’ League in 1940. He accused Filipino writers in English of lacking social consciousness and advocated for a dynamic proletarian literature to offset the timid and anemic literature being produced then by local writers. He lamented their art-for-art’s-sake attitude and their emphasis in form and pattern that have blinded them to the vital issues that affected themselves and their country.

“While the rest of the country is talking about the slums of Tondo and the peasants in Central Luzon,” he said, “our poets still sing ecstatically about the sunset in Manila Bay. . . It is hard to say, but it seems our writers have lost all the contact with the people whom they are supposed to represent. . . While the rest of the English writers search the four corners of the world for new things to write about, all around us, to be had for the taking, is original, vitally significant material. Yet we go on ignoring this and using that others have discarded.” For his pains in arousing social consciousness among the writers, he was accused by a critic of advocating literary dictatorship.

All of Rotor’s stories were written before the war when short-story writing had barely shed off its swaddling clothes. And yet some of them are some of the best written in this country with hardly any trace of craft amateurism. Others, however, display conspicuous evidence of theatricalism and other traces of romanticism. The over-rated “Zita,” for example, is very Byronic, while “Dahong Palay” melodramatic and contrived. But these minor flaws hardly tip the balance, which is more on the merit side. The best stories of Rotor are the realistic, plotless ones where things happen in an apparently casual sequence of events where incidents are seen and suggested rather than planned one after another to follow a regular order of occurrence and climactic ending. His training as a physician evidently schooled him in realizing that all things, however trivial, are in themselves important, that a casual remark or a seemingly trifling incident all contribute to the flow and force of the stream. This accounts for the sometimes mountain of details in the stories that seem unrelated and unnecessary but which in reality all fit in the complete picture.

Rotor the writer developed side by side with Rotor the physician. His stories gradually came to depend more and more on actual observations and experiences for materials than on contrived plots. Imagination gave way to the reality of life. He stopped studying life from books and took lessons from those that came to him in pain. He wrote about what he saw and experienced. He became more autobiographical. Thus we see Rotor the socialite in “Color of Her Nails,” Rotor the musician in “Dance Music,” Rotor the flower lover in “Flower Shop,” and finally Rotor the doctor in “Convict’s Twilight” and in other stories.

Rotor was in the United States when the war broke out in the Pacific. He worked as secretary to the exiled Philippine government in Washington and waded on the beach in Leyte with General MacArthur’s liberation forces in 1944. At present he is practicing his profession and teaching medicine at the University of the Philippines. Evidently he is “still learning to write all over again” because he has not yet done any writing since the war. He hopes, however, to write a history of the exiled Philippine government, of which he is qualified, but not still after all the active participants have departed.

Pathway to Philippine Literature in English
An Anthology with Biographical and Critical Introductions
- Arturo G. Roseburg 1958
References
1. Ansorge R and E Metcalf et al (2001) Allergy Free Naturally Rodale Inc NY, Hampton JK (1991) The Biology of Human Aging, Wm C Brown Publishers
2. Jacobson E (1964) You Must Relax, McGraw-Hill 270 pp
3. Miller GT Jr (2004) Living in the Environment 7th Edition, Wadsworth Publishing, California
4. Radyo ng Bayan Lecture Series (May 2003 to July 2008) Towards Functional Literacy, DZRB 738 KHz. Philippine Broadcasting System, Bureau of Broadcast, QC
5. Raven PH, Berg LR and GB Johnson (2003) Environment 2nd edition Saunders College Publishing NY
6. Rotor AB (1983) The Men Who Play God: A Collection of Short Stories Ateneo de Manila University Press
Rotor AB (1983) The Wound and the Scar Cacho Hermanos, National Book Store
8. Rotor AV (2000) Light from the Old Arch UST Publishing House
9. Rotor AV (2003) The Living with Nature Handbook. UST Publishing House
Rotor A V (2007) Living With Nature in Our Times, UST Publishing House
Roseburg AT (1958) Pathways to Philippine Literature Phoenix
12. Time (2007) Global Warming (The Causes. The Perils. The Solutions. Then Actions: 51 Things You Can Do) Time Inc.
Time Magazine (2000-2008)
wikipedia.org/wiki/allergy
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/allergy
www.medicinenet.com/allergy
www.allergyuk.org/

Part 4 - “We must have something to cling to.

Some things must not change.”– Dr Arturo B Rotor

Awarding Ceremony, Introduction of Dr Arturo B Rotor

The Arturo B Rotor Memorial Awards for Literature, Nov 26, 2022

Dr Abercio V Rotor, PhD

Distinguished officers, and members of the Philippine College of Physicians, and PCP Foundation; organizers and participants to the Rotor Literary Awards; guests, ladies and gentlemen. I greet you all a pleasant and memorable evening.

What I wish to convey is a message of Dr Arturo B Rotor (PHOTO), 5 years before he died at the age of 80 in 1988. “We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.”

Dr. Arturo B. Rotor was a very busy person, all around and dynamic - a medical doctor, the first Filipino allergist, internationally acclaimed short story writer, horticulturist, musician, and former Executive Secretary of the Philippine War Cabinet under Presidents Quezon and Osmeña.

Dr Rotor was a graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and Conservatory of Music, earning two degrees at the same time. His short stories "Dahong Palay" (1928), "Zita" (1930), and "The Wound and the Scar" (1937) were published by the Philippine Book Guild, which won him acclaim. Recognizing his immense contribution to Philippine literature as one of the country's greatest short story writers of the 20th century, Dr. Rotor was awarded the Republic Cultural Heritage Award in 1966.

In 1941, upon the Japanese invasion of the Philippines, Pres. Manuel L. Quezon established the Commonwealth government-in-exile in Washington, D.C. There, Dr. Rotor served as the War Cabinet's Executive Secretary. He continued to serve in this capacity until the reestablishment of the Commonwealth government in Manila in March 1945.

He resumed his medical practice, and in 1948, he published his research at John Hopkins Medicine, about the rare form of jaundice, which was soon named after him—the Rotor Syndrome.

He served as director of the UP Postgraduate School of Medicine, and was a pioneer of Allergology. To promote allergy/immunology as subspecialty, Dr Rotor founded the Philippine Society of Allergology and Immunology (which was reorganized into the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology or PSAAI).

While practicing medicine, Dr Rotor continued his literary pursuits. His "Confidentially, Doctor"(1965) column with the Manila Times, and his older works republished in 1973, and "The Men Who Play God" (1983) were all inspired by his experience among patients, with anecdotes and stories of compassion and courage – and humor.

Dr Arturo Rotor died in 1988 from cancer and was survived by his wife Emma Unson, who taught college mathematics and physics at Assumption. Thy had no children.

(Arturo B Rotor, Today in History, Internet)

Left photo: Dr Arturo B Rotor (extreme right) attends a cabinet meeting presided by the ailing President Quezon; Right. Dr Rotor accompanies remains of the late President Quezon from Washington DC to Manila, soon after the reestablishment of the Philippine Commonwealth government, with Dr Rotor retaining his post as Executive secretary under President Osmeña.

Three breakthroughs in science and technology within Dr Rotor’s life

· First breakthrough is the splitting of the atom, which led to the invention and subsequent detonation of the atomic bomb that ended WWII, and marked the beginning of the Atomic Age and the beginning of the Cold War.

· Second breakthrough is the splitting of the gene, the breaking of the Code of Life, which radically changed the concept of life and creation. It opened a new and controversial field of science, Genetic Engineering, which now threatens the ecosystems and the biosphere.

· Third breakthrough is the invention of the microchip and the Computer, shrinking the world into a global village, so to speak, and radically changing the way we live with electronics at our fingertips, from communication to transportation, to the extent of peeping through a keyhole prospects of space exploration.

These breakthroughs changed the world, and continue to do so on an accelerated scale. But Dr Rotor warned of the consequences of such rapid and chartless change. He knew that runaway change has very dangerous consequences. He stressed in his golden years, this message, “We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.” He was 75 then, 5 years before his death. (National Review feature written by Ms Lily Lim.)

Holistic Life

He stood as vanguard in the way he lived, warning us of the ill consequences of the so-called Good Life in the way we live today, the Age of Postmodernism, We are “living tomorrow today” on borrowed time and resources. His advocacy is, "Let’s live as holistic human beings."

Holism is the word for his message. Dr Rotor is an epitome of the four attributes of a holistic life." He is a Neo-Renaissance man, on the principle of "health in body and spirit, psyche and intellect."

· Man, the Thinker (Homo sapiens)
· Man, the Maker (Homo faber)
· Man, the Player (Homo ludens)
· Man, the Reverent (Homo spiritus)

The Little Brown Book, THE MEN WHO PLAY GOD.

The title leads to a study of Michelangelo’s painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel – The Creation, on the relationship between man and his Creator, whereby the two appear to reach out for each other.

A gap separates their forefingers. It’s like that of a spark plug. it is this gap that the doctor-writers tried to interpret and define. It is this theme that the 25 entries sought for meaning in different interpretations.

The Little Prince novelette by Antoine de Saint-Exupery is a guide to understanding The men Who Play God. Here is the novelette's summary.

A pilot crash-landed his plane in the Sahara Desert. While he tried to repair his plane,

a little boy appeared out of nowhere and asks him to draw a sheep.

The pilot learned that this "little prince" came from a faraway tiny planet with three volcanoes. He left a rose. his most important possession. Before arriving on Earth, the little prince visited other planets and met with strange individuals: a king, a vain man, a drunkard, a lamplighter, and a geographer.

He dropped down into the Sahara Desert. He found no friends there, but a snake told him that if he ever needed to return to his home planet, he could take advantage of the snake’s bite. He met a fox that taught him to realize that to know others we must “tame” and be "responsible" to them. This is what makes things and people unique. "The essential is invisible to the eye," says the fox.

The pilot learned to love and cherish the small boy, He and the boy found a well and drink from it, which saved the pilot’s life. He was about to tell the prince he had fixed his plane, when the prince was talking to the yellow snake about returning to his home planet.

The prince wished to reunite with his rose. And he let the snake bite him. He fell over into the sand. The pilot did not find his body the next day so he hoped that the boy was not dead. The pilot returned to his normal life but always wondered about the prince and hoped he would return someday.

Who is the Little Prince? What is its relevance to Dr. Rotor’s Message?

San Vicente, ancestral hometown of the Rotors

(San Vicente has been declared Heritage Zone of the North (RA 11645 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte)

San Vicente Ferrer 17th century church; members of the Rotor clan welcome balikbayan relatives

San Vicente, is a small municipality, two kilometers west of Vigan – the hometown of the Rotors. Our great grandparents lived here during the Spanish period, through the Commonwealth era. Many of us, typical of Ilocanos, left our hometown in search of greener pasture, so to speak. But true to Ilocanos too, there are a number of balikbayan coming back in search for their roots. Others to die and be buried here.

The San Vicente Botanical Garden beside the old church features a little corner in memory of Dr Rotor and his favorite plant species. A family museum and library includes his writings of short stories: Twilight’s Convict, The Wound and Scar, Dahong Palay,,Zita; Book: Men Who Play God. We hope to include a compilation of lectures (Biennial Convention of PSAAI), Confidentially Doctor (Column, The Manila Times); winning articles of the 2022 Dr Arturo B Rotor Memorial Award on Literature, among others.

Balanced Environment is the Key to Good Health

Among the features of the San Vicente Botanical Garden is to bring medicine to the attention and understanding of the people, to help make people healthy in their own capacity, which is perhaps the biggest challenge of medicine today. Thus, the three contending areas of medicine should work together like a tripod.

1. Conventional medicine from which modern medicine grew and developed into today's medical realm, well into computerization and genetic engineering.

2. Alternative medicine, being part of Filipino culture and closest to local remedies, time-tested and practical remedies - the mainstay of folk medicine which caters to the grassroots, with support from government and private initiatives.

3. Environmental Medicine, the most practical and original to the point of being primeval, if I may say so. Its rules are universal and as natural as Nature’s laws. It is dependent on ecological principles in the conservation of a clean and balance environment

Environmental medicine was born out of the rush of modernization and apparent lack of concern on our deteriorating environment. As we prosper economically, we seem to have forgotten a basic equation of weighing the deleterious by-products of progress, and keeping them out of harm’s way. Basic as it is, we have forgotten the equation of oxygen-carbon dioxide exchange that keeps the biosphere in balance, energy-matter relationship that maintains steady energy supply, organism-habitat balance that protects species and ecosystems, acid-alkaline balance that prevents formation of acid rain, and the like.

Impressions, thanks

Thanks to Madam Ma Isabel Ongpin for her beautiful article on the Internet “Dr Arturo B Rotor and Emma Unson Rotor: Filipino lives worth remembering,”

I found comfort and inspiration from the contest entries reading and analyzing them while I monitored the condition of my sister, a cancer patient the last four year. I imagined her as one of the characters described in the various stories, being patiently cared by the doctors who wrote their stories.

Lastly, thank you for your trust and confidence, officers and members of PCP and the PCP Foundation in making me a bridge of your organizations and the Rotor clan, and for including me as a member of the panel of judges. I thank my co-judges for their insightful judging and cooperation. ~

“We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.”

Message of Dr Arturo B Rotor then at 75,

five years before he died in 1988

Part 5 - Pandemic Allergy Looms Worldwide

Former title: Global Allergy Epidemic Looms

Re-print: Response delivered by Abercio Valdez Rotor, Ph.D., on the 13^th Biennial Convention, and 40^th (Ruby) anniversary of the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, PSAAI.

Dr Abe V Rotoravrotor.blogspot.com
Dr Arturo B Rotor, first Filipino Allergist and director of Philippine General Hospital, author of short stories (The Men Who Play God and Other stories, Ateneo de Manila Printing Press), former executive secretary of two past presidents - Manuel Quezon and Sergio Osmeña.

Dr Agnes Gonzalez-Andaya (Over-all Chair of this Convention),

Dr Linda Lim-Varona (President, PSAAI),

Dr Madeleine Sumpaico (Dr Arturo Rotor’s lecturer for this 13^th Biennial Convention, and 40^th (Ruby) anniversary of PSAAI),

Members of the organizing committee and advisory council, and Board of Directors, ·
Participants, guests, ladies and gentlemen.

Your theme in this convention, “Issues and Controversies in Allergy and Immunology: Solution for the Clinicians.” is a very timely one. It is complementary with the theme of 2008 11^th biennial convention when I was invited to be your lecturer and talked of “Understanding Allergies across the Specialties.”

In my lecture then I stated that no period in history has man influenced the environment as much as what he is doing today. For instead of “tailoring" his lifestyle to the conditions of the environment, as what his ancestors did for centuries, he is modifying the environment in order to meet his growing affluence.

Dr Madeleine Sumpaico’s paper, "The truth about allergy shots and the emerging modalities," addresses the need to combat increasing cases of allergy and asthma . As people lived in closed quarters and communities, as they move to cities, as the levels of pollution get higher on land, in water and in the air – allergy is likely to grow into epidemic proportion. Since there are no true boundaries of the earth, the epidemic will continue to spread to both progressive or marginal communities.

Allergy does not only pry on poor living conditions, in fact it is the other way round. During the Cold War which lasted for 45 years, scientists found a disturbing fact that cases of allergy in the highly progressive Western Germany far outweighed those in rural and less developed Eastern Germany.

Today as progress is patterned after the Western model – that of the US and Europe which West Germany adopted, it is expected that the allergy (and asthma) epidemic will be the most important health concern of everyone. It reveals that affluence is a major cause of allergy and asthma.

In a number of times Dr Arturo B Rotor expressed warning of this growing threat in his book The Men Who Play God. The subject of a mysterious disease in Santiago’s Syndrome, where a patient cannot be readily diagnosed is characteristically that of allergy. In another, The Boy Who Always Sneezed Three Times, gives us a scenario of an unhealthy atmosphere in which superstitious belief breeds. The MD and the Faith Healers tells us of two cases of healing that are different, yet aimed at a common ailment. This is the case when the situation presents itself to not only one possible solution. Here the patients are divided in their belief to be healed – where choice is set aside in favor of whatever cure is effective.

There is something in Dr Arturo Rotor’s revelation on why he stopped writing, the prolific, award-winning short story writer that he was. To quote:

“I am no longer young, and because when I entered the practice of medicine I discovered suddenly that I did not possess the vocabulary to record or describe what I saw. I could write vividly enough about characters which existed in my imagination. But when I saw them in my clinic and noted the caught breath or measured the quickening pulse, I found myself inarticulate. I knew then what I had written before was written neither with understanding nor with compassion. And so I am learning how to write all over gain…”

The message of this confession may be subtle, but in the final analysis it is a wakeup call, not only in medicine but in all professions or vocations. To all of us. Imagination takes us into the realm of many possibilities, of theories incapable of generating their own proofs, of knowledge inapplicable to practical test, of plans and programs drawn on executive desk. It speaks of the energies of youth seeking expression, yet unguided into the priorities of the real world. Of imagined strategies far from the battlefield. How romantic can be reality, excused at the end for the sake of art. But life is more than art. “Caught breath, quickening pulse…” as Dr Rotor revealed is reality.

It is no wonder then when he delivered before the first Congress of Filipino Writers’ League in 1940, after receiving the Republic Heritage Award, he “accused” Filipino writers in English of lacking social consciousness and advocated for a dynamic proletarian literature to offset the timid and anemic literature being produced then by local writers. He lamented their art-for-sake attitude and their emphasis in form and pattern that have blinded them to the vital issues that affected themselves and their country.

He continued to say that, “while the rest of the country is talking about the slums of Tondo and the peasants of Central Luzon,” he said, “our poets still sing ecstatically about the sunset in Manila Bay.

The calm scholar, the classic pianist, the green-thumb horticulturist, the little president of Quezon and Osmena unleashed a Markham call for action. For an Idea that soon unfolded after his time. The birth of media that rides on both literature and journalism.

What could be the implication of his call today?

1. Out there are children whose conditions are aggravated not just by the lack of medical attention, but by predisposing conditions to allergy and other diseases.

2. Survivors of medical breakthroughs and not by Natural Selection imposed by the environment, who are now heavily dependent of medical care, perhaps for life, many of them incapable of contributing something significant in return.

3. Senior citizens increasing by the thousands every year as longevity all over the world further widens the golden years of life, yet golden to not to many people and families.

4. Victims of calamities – The recent Intensified monsoon, and even rare catastrophes like tsunami, Fukushima nuclear meltdown , and diseases – Cambodia flu, virulent Dengue, leptospirosis, chicken flu, H1N1 and now Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19) – these, and many more challenge us with the reminder of Dr. Arturo Rotor’s wake up call.

- "Of caught breath and quickening pulse … and neither written with understanding and compassion... The country talking of slums in Tondo and poor peasants in Central Luzon … and writers writing about beautiful Manila Bay."

- What a disparity! Dance Music on one hand and Twilight’s Convict on the other. Santiago’s Syndrome and Club Euthanasia. Indeed Dr Arturo Rotor’s book, The Men Who Play God speaks not that we have intruded into the realm of highest knowledge, but our failure in applying that knowledge, translating it into practical wisdom for the patient, the slum dweller, the poor peasant, and today's millions suffering or predisposed to the greatest pandemic of our postmodern world – allergy and its complications.

On behalf of Dr Arturo Rotor, the Rotor clan wishes to express their deep gratitude to PSAAI and its members and supporters for keeping his memory alive, and with it, the renewal of a great resolve, the cause for which he lived, for which he dedicated unselfishly his valuable works. ~

6. ALLERGY - The Silent Pandemic

(Self-administered test about allergy)

Dr Abe V Rotor

This paper is part of a lecture Allergy and the Environment presented before the members of Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology on its 11th Biennial Convention, September 9, 2008 at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza in honor of the late Dr. Arturo B. Rotor, first Filipino allergist (photo).

What is Allergy?

Our body reacts to substances it can’t tolerate, such as pollen and dust. These environmental antigens or allergens are normally harmless, but the immune system of certain persons views them as harmful. There are many types of allergies, such as skin and food allergies, and many different types of allergic reactions, which can range from skin rash to vomiting and diarrhea.

Evolutionarily our immune system is adapted to combat pathogens – viruses, bacteria, fungi – but modern living and modern medicine have greatly eliminated much of these threats on one hand, and rendered our immune system idle on the other. The immune system isn’t challenged in the same way. Instead of developing to target real threats, such as bacteria, the immune system may dysfunction and begins to trigger allergies.

In fact it has become maverick that it attacks substances, including those secreted by our body, so that by attacking non-harmful substances, it creates more harm, and even death. Thus the hygiene hypothesis explains why there are much more allergy cases in affluent societies than in marginal societies. A case in point is that West Germany where people lived with high standard of living were suffering allergies much, much more than their counterparts living a simple life style in East Germany.

Allergies are a worldwide problem. They are often overlooked by doctors and patients and can lead to serious health problems. It means also needless suffering. Allergies disturbs sleep, adversely affect active life and good disposition. Kids and adults alike are more likely to develop asthma, sinus and ear infections, especially if their allergies go untreated.

Mechanics of Allergy
Here is an example. People who develop allergic rhinitis have an excess of a certain class of antibodies, called IgE, which makes them unusually sensitive to these otherwise harmless substances. All the symptoms of allergic rhinitis are really part of the immune response.

So what really happens in an allergic person? Medically it is explained this way.

“Following the body's first exposure to the allergen, the white blood cells produce antibodies, specifically IgE antibodies, that prepare the immune system for the next encounter with that same allergen. This first exposure to pollen will not produce any outward allergic symptoms, but inside, the IgE antibodies attach themselves to mast cells. Mast cells are cells that can be found in the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, and skin.

During the second and subsequent exposures to pollen, this allergen will combine with the IgE antibody and release chemicals, such as histamine, in the mast cells, thus producing the allergy symptoms of a runny nose, watery eyes, and sneezing.” (1)

Anaphylaxis – Fatal Allergy
Anaphylaxis is systemic reaction, during which exposure to an allergen triggers an allergic response throughout the body rather than just near the site.

Anaphylaxis can strike within seconds or minutes of exposure to an allergen. Or it may sneak up slowly, with symptoms delayed up to 2 hours from the time of exposure. Initial symptoms may even disappear, then return full-force within 4 to 12 hours.

It’s a terrifying feeling, you may become flushed, and your skin may become quite itchy and red. The frightening thing is, you begin to feel you’re having difficulty taking a full breath, that you are suffocating. As your blood pressure drops, you feel dizzy and sweaty and become pale. You body is not kidding. Anaphylaxis can kill by suffocation.

It doesn’t take much to trigger this body-wide allergic response – a single peanut or tiny paper wasp can set off the reaction. Egyptian Pharaoh Menes, 3000 years BC, is the first reported victim of Anaphylaxis. During an anaphylactic attack, a rush of chemicals – histamines, leukotrienes, and prostaglandins – is released in an attempt by the body to defend itself. These chemicals are produced by basophiles found in the blood, mast cells found throughout the body, including eyes, nose, skin and gastrointestinal tract.

Anaphylaxis may affect many organs, such as the throat, lungs, blood vessels, and intestines. Histamine and other chemicals released by the body may

1. Produce widespread itching, welts, and hives on your skin
2. Cause blood vessels to become leaky, resulting in a drop in blood pressure, swelling of the skin, and fluid in your lungs
3. Bring circulation of your blood and oxygen to a near-standstill as your blood pressure drops
4. Trigger nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea as your gastrointestinal system goes haywire.
5. Anaphylaxis is an allergic reaction that can trigger reactions all over your body, affecting the various systems in the body
6. Cardiovascular: Light-headedness, feeling faint, loss of consciousness (syncope), heart palpitations.
7. Upper respiratory: nasal congestion, sneezing, difficulty swallowing
8. Lower airway obstruction: coughing, wheezing
9. Skin: welts or hives, swelling of the skin (particularly on face and around lips and tongue), flushing
10. Gastrointestinal: bloating, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps
11. Make it difficult or impossible to breathe as your tongue and throat swell up and your lungs go into asthmatic spasms
12. Metallic taste in the mouth, cramping of the uterus during pregnancy, sudden need to urinate.

Causes of Anaphylaxis: food – peanut, shellfish, crustaceans; insects – fire ant, honeybee, bugs; drugs - more than half million serious allergic reaction occur in hospitals (Penicillin); latex – condoms, balloons, gloves; exercise – eating 3-4 hrs before exercising increases risk; narcotics; aspirin; blood transfusions; food additives

Is there a cure for allergy?
Immunotherapy is the only treatment that alters the immune system, restoring the same response to allergens like pollen in normal nonallergic people. Unlike pills and nasal sprays, immunotherapy holds out the possibility of something far better: a cure. The treatment involves identifying the specific culprit that’s causing the problem through a series of skin tests or blood test. Tiny doses of allergen are then injected under the skin in a weekly series of allergy shots to desensitize the immune system.

There are many promising avenues of research. Purified antigens are being tested that can lead to a more rapid desensitization in immunotherapy. There’s interest in putting specific antigens onto viral vectors that will carry them directly to mast cells. Ultimately that could mean that one injection would render people nonallergic, instead of the years of immunotherapy now often required.

And before long, there will be sublingual immunotherapy, which uses antigens that dissolve under the tongue instead of injections. It offers two important advantages. It’s believed to be safe, and one won’t be visiting his doctor. Immunotherapy can be done at home - soon.

Does allergy run in the family?

To a certain extent, yes. If both parents have allergies, a child stands a 75 percent chance of developing them. If neither parent is allergic, the risk drops to 25 percent. The genetic aspects are numerous and overlapping, which means we’re not going to find a single gene that accounts for allergies. And as the percentages suggest, environmental factors also play a role.

Allergy symptoms

Breathing problems
Burning, tearing, or itchy eyes
Conjunctivitis (red, swollen eyes)
Coughing
Diarrhea
Headache
Hives
Itching of the nose, mouth, throat, skin, or any other area
Runny nose
Skin rashes
Stomach cramps
Vomiting
Wheezing

Fact or Myth

1.Children who grow up on the farm are at much lower risk to allergy than children in the city.

2. Infants on the farm have fewer allergies than those who grow up in sterile environments.

3. Children who grow up with a cat in the house are less likely to develop allergies or asthma.

4. Very few pet owners are allergic to the animals they love.

5. Children who have been breastfed are less likely to have allergies.

6.Milk, soy, wheat, egg, peanut, fish and meat comprise the most common food allergies.

7. Most reactions to food are not allergic in nature, but rather intolerance, that is, there is no allergic antibody involved.

8.Babies exposed late to cereal grains have higher risk to cereal allergy, especially wheat.

9.Regular use of “foreign” materials (e.g. nail polish remover, contact lens, metals) can eventually cause sensitivity and reaction to these materials.

10.Allergy can induce strong and unwelcome mental and emotional reactions, such as altered perception or inappropriate changes of mood.

NOTE: The ten items are based on facts.

What is the connection of Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma.

Both are mediated by an excess of IgE, a class of antibodies. Twenty years ago we thought asthma was caused by bronchial constriction. Now we know the main cause is allergic inflammation. Inflammation needs to be controlled in order to prevent more serious problems from asthma. Allergists now use the term “unified airway” to describe a new understanding that the nose, sinuses and lungs aren’t separate systems but parts of the same system.

What goes on in the upper respiratory tract can exacerbate problems in the lower respiratory tract. And it’s now clear that treating inflammation in the upper respiratory tract can help prevent development of asthma. If you have a cough along with congestion and itchy eyes, it’s wise to see a doctor. A cough can be a sign of asthma. If you try over-the-counter drugs and they aren’t helping, see your doctor. That’s especially important for children with symptoms of allergic rhinitis, since we know that treating the condition can greatly lessen the risk of going on to develop asthma. Asthma is caused by inflammation in the airways. When an asthma attack occurs, the muscles surrounding the airways become tight and the lining of the air passages swell. This reduces the amount of air that can pass by, and can lead to wheezing sounds.

Approximately 20.5 million Americans currently have asthma. Many people with asthma have an individual or family history of allergies.

Contact dermatitis
It may involve a reaction to a substance that you are exposed to, or use repeatedly. Although there may be no initial reaction, regular use (for example, nail polish remover, preservatives in contact lens solutions, or repeated contact with metals in earring posts and the metal backs of watches) can eventually cause sensitivity and reaction to the product.

Some products cause a reaction only when they contact the skin and are exposed to sunlight (photosensitivity). These include shaving lotions, sunscreens, sulfa ointments, some perfumes, coal tar products, and oil from the skin of a lime. A few airborne allergens, such as insecticide spray, can cause contact dermatitis. Here are allergens that cause contact dermatitis: Poison ivy, lipang kalabaw plant, Nickel, other metals, antibiotics (topical), topical anesthetics, rubber, cosmetics, fabrics and clothing, detergents, solvents, adhesives, fragrances, perfumes, many chemicals and substances

Are You Allergic?

A Quiz (Yes or No) Simply add up the number of points that apply to each question to which you answer YES.
1. Do you have hay fever symptoms such as sneezing, watery nasal drainage, and nasal itchiness? (4 pts)
2. Do you have chronic nasal congestion, postnasal drip, or both? (3 pts)
3. Do you have sinus problems – frequent “colds” or headaches? (2 pts)
4. Do your eyes itch, water, get red, or swell? (4 pts)
5. Do you have asthma (wheezing), a tight chest, or a chronic cough? (1 pt)
6. Do you have skin problems such as eczema, hives, or itching? (2 pts)
7. Do you have indigestion, bloating, diarrhea, or constipation? (1 pt)
8. Do you have chronic fatigue or tiredness? (4 pts)
9. Are your symptoms seasonal only – or worse seasonally? (4 pts)
10. Do your symptoms change when you go indoors or outdoors? (3 pts)
11. Are your symptoms worse in parks or grassy areas? (4 pts)
12. Are your symptoms worse in the bedroom, after going to bed, or in the morning when you get up? (2pts)
13.Are your symptoms worse when you come into contact with dust when vacuuming or cleaning around thick carpeting, heavy drapes, and so on? (4 pts)
14. Are your symptoms worse around animals? (2 pts)
15. Do you have any blood relatives with allergies: one or both parents, brothers or sisters, or children? (6 pts)

SCORES (Are you allergic?)
If you scored less than 7, it’s unlikely you have allergies.
If you scored between 8 and 12, it’s possible you have allergies.
If you scored between 13 to 30, it’s probable you have allergies.
If you scored more than 31, it’s very likely you have allergies.

Key to Allergy Management.

The key to prevention is avoidance, which is easier said than done. You can eradicate the disease by getting rid of the allergen that’s causing problems. For dust mites, which live in the bedroom, wash sheets regularly and keep humidity down to below 50 percent, which drives down dust mite populations. Remove carpeting and any stuffed animals from the bedroom, which are also home to dust mites. If you’re allergic to cats or dogs, don’t let them share the bedroom. Since we spend one-third of our lives sleeping, reduce your exposure somewhat by targeting the bedroom.

Be prepared for Food Allergies

Be prepared and treat the reaction immediately: Be familiar with the signs and symptom of food allergies: Earliest detection and treatment is crucial.
Avoid the culprit foods: Have a checklist at fingertips. Know the most common foods that cause allergy: These are milk, fish, egg, soy, wheat and peanut, and their various products.
Read food labels: Ask questions about the ingredients of the food you order in restaurants.
Patients with food allergies should always be prepared to recognize and treat their reaction, should one occur. Emergency medical care should always be sought if an allergic reaction to food occurs.
Communicate with others: Communicate with members of the family, office mates, school staff, and friends, about your medical condition and knowledge of how to handle allergy cases.

Managing Pollen Allergy

If you have allergic asthma, take reliever medications (asthma inhaler) with you in case of a breathing emergency.
Stay indoors and keep your windows closed, especially during heavy pollen times.
Avoid outdoor activities during peak pollen time (5 a.m. to 10 a.m.)
After going outdoors in pollen, shower, wash your hair, and change your clothes immediately.
Close car windows when traveling to avoid pollen.
Wear sunglasses when outdoors to protect your eyes from pollen irritation.
Brush your dog down when returning indoors, and bathe your dog weekly. Pollen hitches a ride on animal fur and can easily come inside your house.
Use Facemasks. There are situations where a multiple sensitive person may want to wear a protective mask.
Once you’ve shed your clothes, hop into the shower and thoroughly wash off any allergens cling on the skin and hair.
Consult the Pollen Calendar. The late Filipino palynologist (specialist in pollen), Dr. Lolita Bulalacao developed a pollen calendar indicating what (species), when (season), where (location) pollen is likely to be encountered.
Allergen-Proof Your Home
Design your home in unity and harmony with natural environment, not the other way around.
These are fairly quick, simple, and inexpensive methods of making your home friendlier to your asthma and allergies.
Build house on spacious lot and surroundings
Free house of carpet and wall paper
Knock on wood
Prefer shiny floors, materials of low-gas ingredients
Provide good natural ventilation
Let sunshine in, façade towards the east
Integrate house plan with garden
Screen out plants that are allergen potential

“Sick Building” Syndrome

1. Install proper air-con and exhaust fans corresponding to the number people, and nature of work.
2. Avoid blocking the air supply and return vents.
3. Clean up water spills and damp places to get rid of molds.
4. Store food properly, and empty the garbage daily.
5. Observe if symptoms are experienced by co-workers, other occupants, visitors.
6. Check equipment and supplies – they may be the source of irritating odor and fumes.
7. Strictly no smoking allowed.
8. Divide area into independent units – office, manufacturing, kitchen or storeroom.
9. Report problem to concerned persons/authorities.
10. Have a regular building maintenance program

Allergy-Free Yard

1. Fix your yard to bring down allergies.
2. Go for plants native to the place (save allergy misery and labor)
3. Maintain a pest-free lawn, naturally (biological control)
4. Plant ground plants (and minimize mowing of grass lawn – source of allergen)
5. Be a creature of the evening (or early morning when there are fewer allergens)
6. Keep problems outdoors (like pollen)
7. Be vigilant (weed out allergen-causing plants like lipang kalabaw, sabawil
8. Minimize the mold (remove anything that traps moisture)

Allergy-proofing the bedroom

1.Keep pets out.
2. Encase sleeping place
3. Clean sheets
4. Run your air through filter
5. Banish the blinds
6. Steer clear of soft seats
7. Filter the vents
8. Pluck pillows and comforters wisely
9. Stow gewgaws away
10.Wash away the pollen
11.Debunk the mites
12.Give Teddy a bath

Allergy-proofing the Kitchen and Dining Room

1. Roach-proof your food.
2. Put a lid on your trash.
3. Get crumbs where they hide.
4. Don’t let dishes get crusty.
5. Scrub those floors and cupboards.
6. Battle roaches with smarts.
7. Call the pros.
8. Be a fan of your fan.
9. Avoid the cold mold.
10. Choose your cleaners wisely.
11. Cook your food, don’t gas it.

Allergy-Proofing the Bathroom, Laundry Room, and Closets

1. Turn on the fan.
2. Harvest piles of damp stuff.
3. Pick a natural freshener.
4. Bring down the curtain on mold
5. Bleach the mold away.
6. Be the squeegee man.
7. Take your washer’s temperature.
8. Wash permanent-press clothes before you wear them.
9. Opt for smell-free products.
10. Be sure the clothes dryer blows outside.
11. Leave the light on.
12. Air out dry-cleaned clothes.
13. Use wire shelves.

Allergy-Free Garage and Workshop

1. Start the engines outside.
2. Ditch your damp possessions.
3. Store chemicals safely.
4. Moldy rags on the floor
5. Old chemicals stored on table
6. Paint can not closed tightly
7. Car engine should not be left running in garage
8. Room should have a window or exhaust fan
9. Tools should be cleaned outside
10. Insure good ventilation

Allergy-Free Workplace

1. Carpenters – acrylate (adhesives), amines (lacquers), isocyanates (paint, foam), anhydrides (plastic), wood dust
2. Farmers, gardeners – pesticides, insects, molds
3. Veterinarians, petshop owners – animal allergens, feeds, disinfectants
4. Hospital and healthcare workers – antibiotics, formaldehyde, latex,
5. Bakers, millers – cereal grain, flour dust, hay, silicates, insects
6. Beauticians – persulfates, ethyl enediamine
7.Janitors, cleaners – Chloramine-T, detergents, dyes
8. Office workers, market vendors, musicians – wide range of allergens

Allergy-Friendly Exercise Program

1.Avoid exercise if you have an upper-respiratory viral infection.
2.Premeditate.
3.Drink plenty of fluids.
4.Perform warm-up exercises.
5.Breathe through your nose.
6.Cool down.
7.Know your limits.
8.Avoid exercising near busy roads.
9.Judge exercise intensity with a “talk test”.
10.Slow down if you feel weak, dizzy.
11.Don a dust mask when necessary.
12.Stay inside during high-pollen days.

A Meal-to-Meal Plan for Fighting Allergies

No single diet is right for everyone. Your nutritional needs are unique to you, because no one else has the same combination of genetic and acquired traits of metabolism, nutrition, and immune status.

1. Breakfast – build your breakfast around fresh fruits and whole grains. Instant breakfast may be loaded with syrup and preservatives. If you wish to drink milk, restrict to fat-free.
2. Lunch – Build around fruits, vegetables and grains, unless you are growing up or pregnant. If you eat meat, choose the leanest. Most fat-food burgers contain fat as high as 35%.
3. Dinner – Build around grains, cooked or raw vegetables, and protein from meat, fish or legumes. Trim off fats. Avoid oils and fats in sauces and dressing. If you drink, have a glass of red wine rather than beer or liquor.
4. Snacks – Don’t indulge in snacking at all, but if you must, take a fruit like mango or pineapple.

Clean Your Home Naturally

1. Instead of disinfectant, use borax (1 cup to 1 gal of warm water) or grapefruit seed extract (10%)

2. Instead of fabric softener, use ¼ cup of vinegar added to the rinse water.

3. Instead of furniture polish, use olive oil with 1 tbsp vinegar poured in 1 liter of warm water. Keep in spray bottle.

4. Instead of glass cleaner, use ½ cup vinegar mixed with 1 gal warm water, place in spray bottle.

5. Borax instead of laundry whitener; Baking powder on sponge instead of scouring powder.

6. Hydrogen peroxide as stain remover; borax + vinegar as toilet bowl cleaner.

Allergy-Free Stress Busters

1. Biofeedback (internal memo)
2. Cognitive Reframing (handling an experience)
3. Guided Visualization (imagination)
4. Humor Therapy (healthy laugh)
5. Hypnosis (hypnotherapy)
6. Journaling (diary, autobiography, literary)
7. Massage, sauna
8. Social Involvement (clubs, parties)
9. Yoga, Tai-chi
10.The Humanities (drawing, singing, drama)
11.Meditation (prayer, communion with nature)
12.Proper grooming.

Sounds that make us sick

o Irritable Sounds activate not only the senses but affect bodily functions.
o Pavlov’s Principle on conditioned learning.
o Adrenaline shoots up, increases blood pressure, challenges us – fight or flight.
o Nausea, headache, other forms of irritation.
o Interrupts present activity, interferes with trends of events.
o Destroys relationship, creates personal impressions.

Worst Sounds (9)
1. Scratching the blackboard with fingernail, similar to a hard chalk creating a grating sound.
2. Air escaping like releasing air from a balloon.
3. Productive coughing
4. Throwing out is the worst.

Why are people healthier and happier in the countryside?(1)

People feel better and more zestful when they are near mountain streams or beside the sea. It is the presence of excess negatively charged ions in these places, which tend to be diminished in buildings, homes and offices. The average negative ion concretion near a waterfall is 50,000 per cubic centimeters, in mountain air 5,000 and in the countryside 1500 or so; yet in a modern office, this figure can fall to as low as 50. What happens to the ions in buildings?
They are electrically precipitated by particles in the air, notably dust, cigarette smoke and fabrics such as synthetic carpet fibers. Modern closed ventilation systems and of course the ubiquitous office computer make the problems many times worse because of the static build-ups.
Accordingly, a good idea is to supplement the environment with negatively changed ions with ionizers. One study showed a remarkable drop in the incidence of headaches and other minor symptoms. There’s really nothing better than living in a pristine environment.

...............................

No period in history has man influenced the environment as much as what he is doing today in his pursuit for a higher standard of living, and affluence. Instead of “tailoring man’s lifestyle to the environment” which his ancestor did for centuries, man today is “changing the environment to cope up with affluence.”(8)

...........................

Dr Arturo B. Rotor (1907-1988) served as Executive Secretary of the Philippine government-in-exile and member of the Cabinet, first under President Quezon, then President Osmeña. After the second World War he became Director the UP Postgraduate School of Medicine, and founded allergology as a field of medicine in the Philippines. He was instrumental in the founding of PSAAI.

Dr. Rotor wrote several short stories, which earned him the Republic Heritage Award. His stories are still used today in high school and college literature, among them Dahong Palay, Twilight’s Convict, The Wound and Scar and Zita. Ateneo de Manila University Press compiled ten other stories into a handy book with the title, The Men Who Play God. On the back cover is a curious brief description about the author. (5)

To wit: In the Philippine Journal of Science, a new orchid, Vanda Merrillii variety Rotorii is described by Dr. Eduardo Quisumbing. In Cecil Loeb’s Practice of Medicine, a new disease, “Rotor’s Syndrome,” is recognized. Both the disease and the flower refer to Arturo B. Rotor and highlight the disparate, often incongruous activities that marked his career. The other side of Dr. Rotor’s life was one equally rich and fulfilling through the expression of the wonders of the right brain – as a naturalist, an ardent lover of nature; and creativity through the art of music, demonstrating mastery of some of the world’s best compositions as a celebrated pianist. (He graduated at the UP Conservatory of Music and UP College of Medicine at the same time.)

References

1. Ansorge R and E Metcalf et al (2001) Allergy Free Naturally Rodale Inc NY,
2. Miller GT Jr (2004) Living in the Environment 7th Edition, Wadsworth Publishing, California
3. Radyo ng Bayan Lecture Series (May 2003 to July 2008) Towards Functional Literacy, DZRB 738 KHz. Philippine Broadcasting System, Bureau of Broadcast, QC
4. Raven PH, Berg LR and GB Johnson (2003) Environment 2nd edition Saunders College Publishing NY
5. Rotor AB (1983) The Men Who Play God: A Collection of Short Stories Ateneo de Manila University Press
Rotor AB (1983) The Wound and the Scar Cacho Hermanos, National Book Store
7. Rotor AV (2000) Light from the Old Arch UST Publishing House
8. Rotor AV (2003) The Living with Nature Handbook. UST Publishing House
Rotor A V (2007) Living With Nature in Our Times, UST Publishing House
10. Time (2007) Global Warming (The Causes. The Perils. The Solutions. Then Actions: 51 Things You Can Do) Time Inc.
11. wikipedia.org/wiki/Allergy
12. www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/allergy
13.www.medicinenet.com/allergy
14. www.allergyuk.org/

Photos acknowledgement INTERNET ~

Part 7 - Meteorology and Allergy

Weather and allergy forecast the conditions of the environment,

and health.

World Meteorological Day was established in 1951 to commemorate the World Meteorological Organization creation on 23 March 1950. This organization announces a slogan for World Meteorological Day every year, and this day is celebrated in all member countries.

“We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.” – Dr Arturo B Rotor ( Dr Rotor, The Quiet Observer by Lily Lim )

Abercio V Rotor, Ph.D.

1. Greetings: Dr Maria Carmela Agustin-Kasala (PSAAI President), Dr Rommel Crisenio Lobo, (Convention Chairman); Mr Nathaniel “Mang Tani” Cruz; members of the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, guests, ladies and gentlemen. Good Morning.

2. First of all, I would like to convey our sincerest thanks and gratitude to Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology on behalf of the Rotor clan, for honoring the late Dr Arturo B Rotor in this biennial convention. The theme of this convention Allergy UPdates and INnovations is most appropriate to the thrust of Dr Rotor’s research and teachings which he advocated in his lifetime.

Dr Arturo B Rotor (1907-1988)

3. It’s an opportunity to meet Mang Tani in person who is the leading meteorologist on media today. On the Internet I read Mang Tani’s definition of meteorology when he was applying for a job. Meteorology is the study of stars and meteors. It is original, brief. holistic - and I say, a philosophy.

4. Meteorology connects human life with the stars for hopes and dreams. It reminds us of human vulnerability when stars fall, when a meteor appears in the sky, which old folks associate with unfortunate events like natural calamities and war. Listening to Mang Tani makes us aware of our relationship with Nature – and our relationship with Nature brings us closer to our Creator.

5. It reminds me of a story about an unbeliever, a professed atheist. One stormy afternoon while he was walking with a friend, a thunderbolt struck close to them. The atheist automatically made a sign of the cross. His companion was surprised and asked. “I thought you don’t believe in God?” “Pare (friend) reflex action lang ‘yan.”

I asked the fellow who told me this story kung may pinagbago siya. Did this atheist change after this experience. He never made the sign of the cross again? No, he returned to his faith and found God again.

6. The focus of this story is the other person. Yun hindi natakot. Wala lang sa kanya ang kidlat, Wala lang ang bagyo at baha. Acid rain, El Niño, and other vagaries of Nature. Like in the parable of the Prodigal son, the bigger problem perceived in our present is the other son, who was obedient but cold and indifferent. Wala lang ang pagbalik ng kanyang kapatid.

7. We cannot be the wala lang brother on issues of the environment today. A weather report is not just news. It is a warning. It calls for reform. It is a challenge. Can we go back to the CO2 level in the air 50 years ago? (An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore) Can we arrest global warming. Can we reduce the chances of wild fire? Prevent flood?

8. What makes weather is the result of interacting conditions of the environment. When considered over a length of time and within a particular region which we call climate - we ask the same question. Today’s modern – or postmodern - living is an unending pursuit of the Good Life. It can’t be that weather is the making of Nature alone. Weather today is greatly influenced by man. Climate change is traced to industrialization, urbanization, population explosion, etc.

9. Ang buhay ay weather, weather lang.” may just be an expression. It is deceiving. It cannot erase man’s responsibility and accountability to Nature and ultimately to our Creator. We are largely to be blamed for global warming, the ozone hole, increasing frequency and strength of typhoons, hurricanes, tornados, rising sea level, etc.

10. And the problem of pollution is in the hands of everyone of us. It is easier said than done to Reduce, Replace, Regulate, Recycle, Replenish. More so to reserve for the next generation. And what is the missing R, which is primordial, which brings us together in respect and harmony? Revere. Reverence for life.

11. Mang Tani's lecture urges us to give more importance to environmental medicine. Environmental Medicine, the most practical and original to the point of being primeval approach, if I may say so. Its rules are universal and as natural as Nature’s laws. It is dependent on ecological principles in the conservation of a clean and balance environment. It is complementary to conventional medicine, modern medicine. And Alternative medicine, being part of Filipino culture and closest to local remedies, time-tested and practical remedies - the mainstay of folk medicine which caters to the grassroots.

12. If we revere somebody or a thing we care for him, we care for that thing. Caring is more than loving. Caring is a sacred act because we are concerned with the well-being of a person or thing. To take care of a tree, is more than loving it. Reverence for life is a philosophy. Advocates of this philosophy are Rachel Carson, Albert Schweitzer, Charles Darwin and our very own Jose Rizal. The ecological concept of sin and formative conscience are changing the way we profess our faith, our reverence towards the Almighty, paradigm of salvation.

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Meteorology takes us closer not only to the stars but to heaven where that Great Almighty watches our world, our lives, at the way we make use of His gifts, particularly rationality which He gave only to man. His greatest expression that brings us altogether as one globally integrated ecosystem is Nature. Nature is God’s greatest expression of love and harmony.

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13. Quite often the enemy is ignorance, and the real enemy is no other than us, ourselves. Which leads as to ask ourselves, “Are we doing our part as guardians and custodians of our Planet Earth.” I see head moving, - more sideways that nodding. Meteorology is an important catalyst to know more about nature. Whatever may be our beliefs, race, affluence, all of us young and old. Aware and keen at the ways of nature is a bridge to knowing nature’s laws and principles – tulay – and it must be strong to carry across millions of people towards gaining functional knowledge on how to live in our natural environment properly and peacefully.

14. There is a saying that the two things we cannot escape in life are death and taxes. It is just one of the witty expressions. There is a third one, and it is the most important in our postmodern times - formative conscience. It takes us out of a syndrome of neutral morality. When we spew gas into the air, we contribute to global warming. We contribute to the occurrence and spread of various ailments, including allergy. We supply the ingredients of acid rain that destroys crops. Our airlines stir the atmosphere into typhoon and flood. Imagine how many millions of small volcanoes erupt daily from the tailpipe of our cars and chimneys of industry. Put together worldwide is it surpasses Mt Pinatubo erupting continuously.

15. As I watch Mang Tani on TV I could sense that he is addressing not only THE person, but the inner person. We cannot escape from that inner person in us – The Little Prince in Antoine de Saint-Exupery’ book. We are not only responsible, we are also accountable for our actions and inactions, and time is running out that we ourselves are victims of self-destruct, which in biology is called autotoxicity,

16. I would like to address these thoughts to the theme of this convention: Allergy Updates and Innovations. On the point of view of medicine – conventional, modern, and environmental, it is the third – environmental medicine - that Mang Tani has brought its awareness into this hall. On the other hand, his paper urges us to look beyond this hall, to learn to live simple and honest, and to be friendly with Nature.

17. Meteorology makes people aware that they are part of nature and nature a part of them. Living friendly with Nature means less frequency and strength of typhoons, cleaner air to breath, less smog that blankets cities, cleaner rivers and lakes for more fish, less fear and anxiety about weather disturbances. Lower CO2 level, less acid rain, shrinking of the ozone hole and less cosmic radiation. A great relief from human health problems– on all aspects –physical, mental and emotional. How we wish better peace and order, more time with the family, return to the humanities, the classics in music and literature, How we wish there were new Amorsolos , Abelardos, Dimalantas, and humility aside, more Arturo Rotor doctors.

Not only as a reliable forecaster of the conditions of the atmosphere Mang Tani is a teacher. Teachers aim for the stars. Stars guide people to dream, stars make people happy. Stars make beautiful song and poetry that give meaning to life as well as quaintness of living. Teachers know how to separate the grain from the chaff, so to speak, opinion from facts, true and fake news, superstition from reality. That meteors are not apocalyptic they make us look at heaven, too.

18. CONCLUSION; Weather and allergy are both barometers, they forecast the conditions of the environment, and that of health, respectively. Scientists behind meteorology like Mang Tani, and doctors attending to allergy cases see to it that they warn their audience and patients to take heed of the warning. And most important they mobilize people into action, individually and collectively. It is the latter that creates cooperation, love and compassion.

Lastly, and it is the most important. If we protect nature, live up with her laws and ways, revere creation, our environment will be kept balanced, people will be healthier, there will be less man-induced calamities, and the world will be a better place to live in for our generation, and especially the next generations if only we do our part, Change must start somewhere. And it starts here in this hall and we carry it outside after this convention.

Thank you to Mang Tani, to PSAAI, and all those who made this gathering successful. Again on behalf of the Rotor clan, associates and friends of the late Dr Arturo B Rotor Maraming, maraming salamat po.

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Dr Arturo B Rotor, to whose memory this convention is held biennially by your Association, reminds us of his teachings that will always serve as beacon in this fast changing world. Your theme is most fitting to remember him as

the first Filipino allergist;
· the discoverer of a rare disease named after him. “Rotor Syndrome” that is internationally recognized and discussed in medical textbooks and in diagnostic procedures,
· one of the best short story writers in the world (ZITA, Dahong Palay, Twilight’s Convict among others);
· Accomplished pianist of classical compositions (graduate in Conservatory of Music, simultaneously with a MD degree, at the University of the Philippines)
· Horticulturist (A new species of orchid has been named in his honor, Vanda merillii rotorii
· Public servant having served President Quezon and President Osmena as Executive Secretary
· Columnist, Confidentially Doctor, Manila

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Dr. Arturo B. Rotor, the first Filipino Allergist, tells us that the human being should be regarded holistically, therefore too, when it comes to attending to his health – body and spirit, psyche and intellect. And we realize that man is truly divine with these attributes: Man the Thinker (Homo sapiens), Man the Maker (Homo faber), Man the Player (Homo ludens) and the Man the Reverent (Homo spiritus). Dr Rotor was revolutionary in his own right and time.
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Response to the lecture of Mr Nathaniel “Mang Tani” Cruz, GMA resident meteorologist

17^th Biennial Convention, Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, September 4, 2018

Part 8 - Allergy and Immunology

Facing the Challenge of the New Normal

"The coronavirus pandemic has stepped on the brake against our fast and chartless living and way of life." avr

Abercio V. Rotor Ph.D.

The theme of the 18th biennial convention “Allergy and Immunology: Facing the Challenge of the New Normal” is very timely and relevant at this time that the world is gripped by the Coronavirus Pandemic. It brings to our greater awareness the philosophy and advocacy of Dr Arturo B Rotor to whose honor this convention is held biennially.

Dr Arturo B Rotor, first Filipino Allergist. Compilation of his award-winning

short stories published by Ateneo de Manila University.

The new normal by definition is a state to which an economy, society, etc. settles following a crisis, when this differs from the situation that prevailed prior to the start of the crisis. What is New Normal?

The term has been used following the financial crisis of 2007-2008, the aftermath of the 2008–2012 global recession, and the COVID-19 pandemic. The new normal explores ways in which the Covid-19 pandemic might adjust, shape, or reorder the world across multiple dimensions.

The new normal basically refers to change in human behavior initiated by the coronavirus pandemic. Such change will definitely deepen in many sectors of society, and bring about a discipline in improving our daily life, our community, and the whole world. Resistance to change, I believe, will ultimately give in as the crisis deepens, and such change, we pray shall invariably become ingrained in our behavior individually and collectively.

Let me cite the areas of human behavior that the pandemic will have the greatest impact. Here are 20 scenarios.

1. We will spend more time in our home and in our community, and develop stronger family bonding and community kinship;

2. We will learn to abide with the demands and limits of human relationships, starting with the social protocols in combating the disease;

3. We will realize the importance of being frugal and thrifty, and the value of the adage, "Save for a rainy day.”

4. We will learn to distinguish and respond to what is Important and what is urgent, essential and dispensable given a critical situation;

5. We will put priority on function over aesthetics when it comes to plans and programs, like building a house, buying appliances, etc.;

6. We will keep ourselves knowledgeable with the growing application of cyber technology such as e-learning, e-mail, e-commerce, particularly in distance education and work from home;

7. We will be more conscious of hygiene and sanitation, proper waste management for better health and cleaner environment;

8. We will prefer simple and practical living, shun from ostentatious affluence, and celebrate only to the significance of the occasion;

9. We will rather choose natural over artificial or synthetic goods, from food to clothing, and decipher genuine from deceiving products and services;

10. We will give more attention to career reorientation for our children and the youth in general guided by lessons and insights taught us by the pandemic;

11. Aware of the consequence of the pandemic to conventional employment, we will assess alternatives such as self-employment and entrepreneurship, and give less consideration to overseas employment;

12. We will give serious assessment to land use policy, reforestation, help arrest expansion of wasteland and decline of our ecological systems;

13. We will review back-to basic approaches in dealing with major problems through people’s initiative, in such programs as skills development on the grassroots;

14. We will help in the development of our economy with strong Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) over big and transnational businesses;

15. We will be learning more on the applications of humility and compassion, love and care, cooperation and unity, selflessness notwithstanding, out of the lessons brought by the pandemic.

16. We will serve as agents of change for a clean and healthy environment, protecting our natural resources, and preserving the integrity of our ecosystems;

17. We will support in decongesting cities by encouraging people to go back to the province and live wholesome life; on the other hand, discourage exodus to cities;

18. We will support population and family planning in both ethical and moral aspects, and in accordance with national policy and social and personal values;

19. We support strongly in the development of a strong natural resistance and immunity in every person as primordial approach to combating COVID-19 and other ailments and diseases;

20. We will act as catalyst in our individual and collective capacity in keeping with nature’s laws and processes of maintaining homeostasis of the environment, as “good housekeepers on our home planet.”

These are but a moderate enumeration of changes that are actually happening today. More reforms in human behavior, in the short and long run, are expected, which we hope to be maintained in post-pandemic time.

Human Behavior is governed by four attributes

Dr. Arturo B. Rotor tells us that the human being should be regarded holistically, when it comes to attending to his health – body and spirit, psyche and intellect, with these four attributes: Man the Thinker (Homo sapiens), Man the Maker (Homo faber), Man the Player (Homo ludens) and the Man the Reverent (Homo spiritus). At the center of the square is a formative conscience, which guides our decisions and actions, and takes us out of a syndrome of indifference and neutral morality.

With an enlightened conscience constantly enlivened by values we derive from meaningful experiences, knowledge and wisdom as we grow, from the institutions we built our society – and the lessons the COVID-19 pandemic gave us - we can say that our conscience can better decipher not only what is good from bad but the ultimate of our capacity of being rational and God loving.

COVID-19 and Nature

An old man living alone on top a high mountain was asked how he managed to keep the place beautiful. He simply answered, “Just leave Nature alone.” Some years later when I returned for a visit he was no longer there. His cottage had been replaced with a hotel and tourists freely came up and down the mountain. Trees have been cut, the mountain slope eroded, thrash destroyed the once pristine surroundings, the air was no longer fresh and pure. Until authorities closed down the place.

The current COVID pandemic may be compared in the same way. The corona virus stopped the carnage in man’s destructive hands. While Nature took her own course. It brings to mind if the biblical “Paradise was regained after the Fall” by Nature’s self-healing power.

Since the coronavirus was recognized as pandemic some six months ago, scientists monitoring the effects of the disease on the environment, came up with this initial report.

Pastel drawing by Anna Rotor, 10

The air is getting cleaner, there is less acid rain, CO2, carbon particulates, and smog, less smog-related illnesses, better growth of plants;
Less energy used means less gas emission, less greenhouse effect, cushions climate change, improves climate and weather
Rivers, waterways, lakes, and seas take a respite, less pollution means more fish and marine life are coming back;
Less air transport cushions occurrence and strength of atmospheric disturbances;
Less deforestation allows conservation of watershed and wildlife, and recovery of threatened and endangered species;
Less pollution means less pollution-related deaths, diseases and allergies, less buildup of wasteland;
Less tourism means less intrusion in natural reserves, cleaner environment, favors wildlife conservation;
Cleaner land, water and air means balance environment, better health, happier and more fulfilled life;
Less travel means less traffic congestion, more savings of time and resources, less disease transmission;
Less commerce and industry means reshaping the economy, unloading idle resources into favorable welfare of the people.

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Even at this stage of the pandemic, there is a trend in the improvement of air and water, less smog and acid rain, kinder weather, cleaner waterways, less toxic waste, less destruction of our ecosystems and wildlife, and the like, which are favorable to good health and well-being. We recognize Nature as the greatest healer - but only by helping restore and maintain her balance and integrity.
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We have entered into a tunnel, dark, long and uncertain, reminiscent of the Dark Age of human history when the world plunged into pandemic and breakdown of civilization. Is history repeating itself?

The pandemic shocked the world unprepared in an untold magnitude respecting no political barriers, race, creed, geography, social nd economic status, a bomb that spared no one, young and old alike and those who are yet to be born. The pandemic challenges human intelligence, humbles the genius, puts back to the drawing table man's ambitious design of postmodernism which simply means "living tomorrow today." The world will not be the same anymore, and its aftershocks are going to be felt for a long period even in post-pandemic times.

This is the nature of the Dark Ages that swept the world of old which lasted for centuries after the fall of the Greco-Roman Empire then the known civilized world anent to our capitalistic world today. Then in the 15th century, out from a corner of the globe like a shining gem, a new era was born – the Renaissance. The Renaissance was like the legendary phoenix bird arising from the ashes of the Greco-Roman civilization. Thereon the world rose to its feet again and marched onto the modern world - and onto our postmodern world of today. We moved so swift to our own measure and concept of progress and in our chartless haste got a "stabbing wound" – the corona virus pandemic.

The irony is that we have never anticipated it even with the breakthroughs in science and technology, economics, cybernetics, and other human achievements. Just before the COVID pandemic the world was in its summit like “the glory that was Greece, the grandeur that was Rome,” totally unaware that this was the prelude to another Dark Age.

We know the crisis will come to an end. It is going to be a neo-Renaissance. But first we ask ourselves, "Are we prepared to meet the monster and take it by the horn, so to speak, with the New Normal as a Hercules' weapon?" We know the world will never be the same again, and there is no turning back. There on a new horizon we will create a better one, and bring about a new Renaissance, as history tells us, this time with greater resolve to reach out for the light at the end of the tunnel, by changing the Human Behavior in us, individually and collectively as a people of the world. ~

*Response by Dr Abercio V Rotor to the Lecture of Dr Luz S Fonacier President-elect, American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (AAAA). She is guest of honor and speaker of the 18th biennial convention of the Philippine Society of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (PSAAI) with the theme, "Allergy and Immunology: Facing the Challenge of the New Normal" October 14-17 2020

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"We must have something to cling to.
Some things must not change.”

– Dr Arturo B Rotor
Arturo Belleza Rotor (June 7, 1907 – April 9, 1988) was a Filipino medical doctor, civil servant, musician, and writer. Rotor was born in the Philippines and attended the University of the Philippines. He graduated simultaneously from the Conservatory of Music and the College of Medicine. He trained further at John Hopkins University's medical school, publishing a paper on a rare form of hyperbilirubinaemia (jaundice) now known as "Rotor syndrome".

During World War II, Rotor served as executive secretary of the Philippine Commonwealth government-in-exile under Manuel L. Quezon, the Philippine president in exile. In the immediate post-World War II period, he was appointed secretary of the Department of Health and Welfare. Later, Rotor was director of the University of the Philippines' Postgraduate School of Medicine and was a practicing physician until the early 1980s.

Rotor was an internationally respected writer of fiction and non-fiction in English. He is widely considered among the best Filipino short story writers of the twentieth century. He was a charter member of the Philippine Book Guild; the guild's initial publication (1937) was Rotor's The Wound and the Scar, despite Rotor's protests that someone else's work should have been selected. In 1966, the Philippine government recognized his literary accomplishments by awarding him the Republic Cultural Heritage Award. Rotor's best-known literary works are The Wound and the Scar (1937), Confidentially, Doctor (1965), Selected Stories from the Wound and the Scar (1973), The Men Who Play God (1983), and the short stories "Dahong Palay" (1928) and "Zita" (1930).

He was an orchid fancier and breeder, a long-time member of the Philippine Orchid Society, and is the namesake of a Vanda orchid species (Vanda merillii var. rotorii). Rotor shared an interest in orchids with his younger brother, Gavino B. Rotor, Jr. Gavino took this interest even further, receiving his Ph.D. from Cornell University on orchid biology and becoming an authority on orchid propagation. The orchid genus Rotorara is named after Gavino. Rotor was a highly accomplished musician and published music critic.

Rotor died in 1988 due to cancer, and was survived by his wife Emma Unson, who taught college mathematics and physics. They had no children.

Reference: Arturo Belleza Rotor (Internet)

Saturday, September 27, 2025

“We must have something to cling to. Some things must not change.” - Dr Arturo B Rotor

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