A cure for all ills?

Are we looking for simple answers to complex questions in the shape of a pill?

Life starts with an injection of vitamin K and a bunch of immunisations. Sooner or later, it's antibiotics and painkillers. On average, each person in Britain is prescribed over 14 000 pills during his or her lifetime. From acne and asthma to diabetes and depression, there seems to be a solution for every problem in the form of a pill.

Everyone wants to feel good and live to a ripe old age. Yet illness, sorrow and need are an inevitable part of human existence. Should we quickly jump in to rectify every trouble with a pill? Are we being lured by the illusion of a quick fix?

There is growing concern that individuals seek a medicinal cure when prevention would work better. To tackle obesity, surgery and pills should be a last resort, not a short-cut. Are we looking to (literally) have our cake and eat it?

There may be alternatives. For some depressed patients, exercise may work better than drugs. Give badly behaved children occupational therapy rather than drugs, some experts urge. Medicine may not always provide the best solution.

Pharmaceuticals have transformed our existence for the better, no doubt about it. But when pills are peddled as an answer to complex social issues, when people start to turn to little bottles rather than embrace a healthy lifestyle - perhaps it is time for a rethink.