Applying SPHELHTERI: H for Hygiene

When the speaker has to talk about health, he/she has to think how the subject of the speech is helping or affecting the area of public health. A speaker needs to take caution that he doesn’t include personal experiences from his life and family. Personal preferences and subjective tastes are not welcome in speech. In our case, we can think of how TV has been instrumental in the benefit or detriment of public health. Divide this section into three parts again.

Cause − What is the impact of the subject on health? Are these backed by scientific studies or not? Did this impact, constructive or destructive, happen in the past as well? In our case, why does TV cause problems for the health of viewers? Do we have any scientific data to support our claim?

Effect − What are the consequences of these causes? What are the ailments observed in people who are directly or indirectly associated to the subject? For example, what are the disorders that manifest as a result of TV viewing? Is it a long-term problem or a shortterm problem?

Solution Do we have any remedies for this problem? Can we somehow bring these health problems to an end? If yes, what are those solutions? If no, why don’t they exist? In our case, a speaker has to think of the solutions to the ailments caused by TV. The speaker can suggest his own solutions as well.

Here is a sample script for this section.

The way television impacts the health sector is unimaginable. Just switch on your television and you will be flooded with advertisements of various health products. There are dedicated channels for promotion and sale of medicinal products through electronic media. However, there are harmful effects of TV on health as well. The harmful rays that are emitted by television sets severely affect our retinas on long exposure.

Moreover, in 1967, a report by General Electric claimed that their TV sets were emitting abnormal levels of X-rays. Although that issue has long been settled, yet the detrimental effects of TV on our eyes remain a cause of concern. Moreover, the sedentary lifestyle inspired by TV is leading to an unhealthy population and growth of couch potatoes. The commercials of fast foods and soft drinks and even liquor brands are making the public highly unhealthy. This problem has to be countered at the earliest.

One of the ways to do so is to air commercials which highlight the ill-effects of smoking and drinking. Furthermore, advertisements like those featuring celebrities like Aamir Khan and Vidya Balan for disseminating information in public interest are the benefits of TV in the area of hygiene. The ads that stress on the importance of free education and the right to hygiene along with the ones that focus on the need of breastfeeding are an incentive to the health sector of the country.