~by Bryan Helmus
In the January 9, 2025 edition of the Jefferson Herald, editor William Carroll announced a new weekly feature focusing on “health related content from a variety of sources” and stated “we are open to suggestions from you the reader on content that can make this section even better.”
In my opinion, having a page focused on health is a wonderful idea that will be of great value to readers. In this column, I offer suggestions to improve this healthcare page. I start by asking a question. In Greene County is it possible to explore healthcare without also discussing the agricultural (and other industry) practices that may well be detrimental to the best possible health for the readers of this paper?
To ask questions that many others have raised, what is the health impact on Iowans that some of our agricultural (and other industries) employ that contribute to our state having some of the most polluted creeks, streams and rivers anywhere in our country? What impact do the fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides we apply have on the safety of our ground waters, including the wells from which many rural residents draw their drinking water? What link is there between some of our agricultural and industry practices and the fact that Iowans experience the second highest rate of cancer in our country?
In a general way, I am suggesting that in Greene County (and all of Iowa) healthcare and agricultural practices are linked together (as the song says) just like “love and marriage” and that you can’t discuss one without the other. Could the health page sometimes include stories that include ways to improve our environment (clean water, optimal soil health practices) that over time will improve the health of our citizens?
For health and other reasons, I could never be a farmer. However, I did grow up in rural areas in South Dakota and Iowa around farmers. I greatly respect farmers and, frankly, am envious of the incredible opportunity farmers have to greatly improve our world by implementing land management practices that, over time, could clean up our rivers and create healthier soil filled with living organisms that work 24/7 to increase the nutrient content needed to grow productive crops. As the movie Common Ground, about regenerative agricultural asserts, we can “save our planet one acre at a time” by improving the health of our soils. Could the new health page, sometimes, include columns on these topics?
Our farmers also face two significant occupational hazards that could well be covered on the new health page. According to the National Rural Health Association, farmers are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide than members of the general population. In addition, the rates of accidents and injuries while working on the job as a farmer are among the highest of all industries. The Ag Herald and other such publications explore these topics, as well they should, but I believe the Jefferson Herald would serve readers well to research and include topics like these on the new health page as a way to let our farmers know that we all care, whether farmers or not, about the unique hazards of farming.
Finally, the political climate in Iowa is such that our politicians have not taken the needed steps to lay an adequate legal structure to clean up our environment or improve health for rural residents. As example, in 2010, 60 percent of Iowans voted to increase taxes for clean air and water, yet our legislature does not act on this mandate. Certainly, this failure is an important story that relates to the best possible health for Iowans. Could the health page sometimes include stories of the importance of our politicians passing legislation like HF 2354, the Clean Water Act for Iowans, that should well be a top priority in the 2025 legislative session?
If it is true that health and agriculture are linked together like love and marriage and improving our agricultural and other industry practices is essential to providing a healthful environment in which Iowans can thrive, then stories that explore how we can improve our environment may well be even more important than health stories presented in isolation.
I ask that the health page has a broad enough focus to include agriculture, environmental, and even stories of needed political action as all being essential to improving the health of all residents of Greene County and all Iowans.
