Britain’s most famous secret agent James Bond may have died several times in real life due to job-related risks, a new study suggests.
Researchers analyzed all 25 James Bond films produced by Ion Productions, starting from 1962’s Dr. Numbers to 2021’s No Time to Die.
Specifically, they looked at whether the fictional agent ‘followed international travel advice’ during 86 international trips made during the films.
Experts found that any real-life agent in Bond’s shoes would suffer from sexually transmitted infections (STIs), alcohol poisoning, and tropical diseases, among other hazards.
In films made by Eon Productions, Bond’s health was at risk of consuming alcohol (as seen here in ‘Casino Royale’), using another person’s facemask (“You Only Live Twice”), casual sex , which puts you at risk for STIs (‘goldfinger’). Eating unwashed fruit (‘Thunderball’), disease in tropical locations and smoking (both ‘Dr. No’)
25 films depicting the travel-related health hazards experienced by James Bond during 86 international trips covering 47 ‘geographically identifiable countries’. Health risks are presented in the following categories: food safety (dark green), air and droplet viruses (yellow), vector-borne and neglected tropical diseases (brown), health and safety (purple), sexual health (blue), Risk Animals (red), and Disease (light green)
The analysis was carried out by Wouter Grummansa and Tun Bousemab at Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, together with William Stone at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
“Overall, we found that Bond is unprepared for the health risks associated with travel, and in particular the risk of infectious disease,” the team said in their paper.
‘Despite the increased availability of online travel advice, recent missions unfortunately did not reduce Bond’s risk of acquiring infectious diseases.
‘Given the central role of double-0 status agents in international counter-terrorism activities, we sincerely expect MI6 to take their responsibility seriously.’
They observed that watching all 25 Bond movies was about 3,113 minutes in the evening hours for each of the three study authors, which ‘could easily have been spent on more pressing social issues’.
To see the most recent film — “No Time to Die,” which was released in late September — the team was probably the only member of the audience who brought notebooks to the cinema, he explains.
As they watched, the scientists noticed some of the more idiosyncratic behaviors that took Bond’s life.
Researchers studied all 25 James Bond films made by Ion Productions. Sean Connery as 007 in ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ (1971)
In particular, Bonds have higher-than-average sexual activity, often ‘without sufficient time to exchange sexual histories’, which puts them at risk for STIs.
The researchers found that there were a total of 59 on-screen sexual interactions — an average of 2.4 per movie.
Bond had a ‘remarkably high mortality rate’ among sexual partners, in some cases immediately following an act of lovemaking.
More than a quarter of their partners do not survive, although there is no clear indication that sexually transmitted infections play a role in any of their deaths.
In 1964’s “Goldfinger,” for example, Jill Masterson becomes involved with Bond minutes after meeting him, but is soon suffocated after being painted head-to-toe gold by evil henchman Oddjob. Is.
In “Goldfinger” (1964), Bond (played by Sean Connery) finds the dead body of Jill Masterson (played by Shirley Eaton).
Bond also seems generally ignorant of ways to avoid transmission of the respiratory virus, or simply doesn’t care during his mission.
For example, in ‘You Only Live Twice’ in Japan, he covers his face and mouth in an attempt to disguise his face with a facemask recently used by another person.
In the age of COVID-19, this is something health officials advise against, as it puts their recently exhaled, and possibly infected, respiratory droplets at risk.
Given that the SARS-CoV2 virus – the cause of Covid-19 – can be detected on surgical masks for up to a week after exposure, there is every possibility that other respiratory viruses can survive on clothing as well, the authors said. telling.
Here, in an effort to disguise himself in ‘You Only Live Twice’, Bond covers his face and mouth with a facemask recently used by another person. Given that the SARS-CoV2 virus can be detected on surgical masks for up to a week after detection, there is every reason to believe that the respiratory viruses of the 1960s could survive on such clothing.
Bond has a taste famous for vodka martinis, but that may come at the cost of a poor level of hydration, the team also found.
Researchers studied all 25 James Bond films produced by Ion Productions, starting with 1962’s “Dr No” and 2021’s “No Time to Die”.
They say that alcoholic beverages, shaken or shaken, do not prevent dehydration, which is a major concern that leads to extremes of physical activity, often in hot weather, he says.
On only three occasions Bond was seen drinking non-alcoholic beverages – orange juice in ‘From Russia with Love’, ‘Dr. No’ and salt water in ‘Casino Royale’.
The latter is ‘particularly unhelpful at maintaining fluid balance’, he explains, although to be fair, drinking it was Bond’s attempt to vomit and thus avoid a fatal poisoning.
Alcohol consumption has also been shown to increase attraction to mosquitoes that transmit malaria, more famously causing liver damage.
Bond is also a heavy smoker in the early films of the franchise, although he has given up the habit since the Daniel Craig era.
‘We only live once’: English actor Daniel Craig is featured in his first portrayal of a fictional secret agent in 2006’s ‘Casino Royale’.
Bond notoriously enjoys some of the most luxurious food available to man, but even this aspect of his lavish lifestyle is not without risks.
The authors say they can be seen eating unwashed fruit even though bacteria thrive on fruit skins, and that eating raw oysters puts them at risk of recurrent vibrosis, norovirus and hepatitis infections.
His appreciation for oysters is clearly tied to the belief that they are an aphrodisiac, but Bond ignores one of their ‘less-so-stimulating side effects’ – acute diarrhea.
Bond steals a grapefruit in ‘Thunderball’. Bacteria thrive on fruit skins, but ‘food security repels Bond’s appetite’, authors say
In fact, the researchers appear to be surprised that at no time during the 25 films did Bond ever have an ‘unfair bout of diarrhea in the midst of world-saving action’.
Bond’s ‘stupid courage’, which sometimes leads to life-threatening situations for him, may be the result of the infectious disease toxoplasmosis.
In rats, toxoplasmosis has been associated with loss of fear of cats – a clever manipulation by the Toxoplasma gondii parasite to increase the likelihood of transmission through ingestion by the cat.
The authors say, ‘Although speculative, toxoplasmosis may explain Bond’s often foolish courage in the face of a life-threatening threat.
The team has concluded that their employer – MI6 – has a ‘clear responsibility’ to provide Bond with appropriate pre-travel advice to mitigate these risks.
The study is published in the journal Travel Medicine and Infectious Diseases.
,
