The world’s a mess because our leaders were mentally ill

As John Lennon once said, the world is in a mess because it’s run by psychopaths.  He may have been closer to the truth than he realised, at least according to the findings of a new study that has investigated the physical and mental health of world leaders down the years.

Many of the leaders of the world’s nine nuclear powers had serious health problems while in office, including dementia and depression to addiction and chronic diseases.

This may well have impaired their ability to make rational decisions, even while they had their finger on the nuclear trigger, say researchers from the University of Otago in New Zealand.

They investigated the health of 51 deceased leaders of nuclear-armed countries—China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States—and discovered that 15 had confirmed or possible health issues while they were in office.  In every case, their health problems were hushed up.

Two former Israeli prime ministers were badly affected by health issues:  Ariel Sharon became comatose after suffering a stroke while still in office, and Menachem Begin’s depression was so severe he spent his last year as leader isolated in his home.

US presidents have had more than their fair share of health problems.  After Watergate, Richard Nixon had bouts of heavy drinking, which went on even while he was trying to navigate a possible nuclear crisis in the Middle East.  In 1955, Dwight D Eisenhower suffered a heart attack that his doctors misdiagnosed as indigestion, and John F Kennedy suffered from Addison’s disease.  Ronald Reagan, whose administration hid the extent of his injuries after he was shot in 1981, was showing signs of dementia near the end of his term.

Kennedy was in poor health during his first two years in office in 1961 and 1962, with his performance likely impaired from Addison’s disease, back pain, and his use of anabolic steroids and amphetamines. Meanwhile, Nikita Khruschev, the Russian leader at the time of the Cuban nuclear arms crisis in 1961, was suffering from poor mental health, said Nick Wilson, one of the researchers.

In France, President François Mitterrand clung onto power until the end of his term in 1995, despite keeping secret his advanced prostate cancer and after his doctor had concluded that he was no longer capable of carrying out his duties.

What do you think? Start a conversation over on the... WDDTY Community