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That's it. Of course no one wants to hear that because that puts the responsibility on each individual. Can't have that now.
What you're really saying is that people don't have a right to blame anyone else. While I somewhat agree with the over-hyped conservative mantra of personal responsibility, it doesn't absolve the criminal acts of those running the show. Food manufacturers pump thousands of chemicals into our foods, many of which are not particularly nutritious. Pharmaceutical companies own the FDA and push through all kinds of medications before they've been tested. Lipitor, a high blood pressure medication, was invented but didn't have a specific market. Only after the manufacturer put pressure on the government to alter (lower) the acceptable levels of blood pressure did it find a market--to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. With these kinds of unethical business practices, you can't just blame people for their fat belly. There are other things which could be guilty. Sometimes, without their direct knowledge, people are made into victims.
Many people just don't have the energy after working two jobs and raising children in an economy that cuts them no slack. We are overworked, overtaxed (literally and figuratively) and we are overstressed. Is it any wonder that taking care of our bodies is going to fall to the wayside? I mean, what's the point if working harder doesn't get you any further ahead? Hopelessness is a large contributor to the health of a population and Americans are increasingly hopeless. "Why bother to take care of my body when they'll just come up with a drug to fix my problems?"
Blaming a lack of personal responsibility is an easy way to dismiss this problem, but it doesn't address the items hidden from view. Making a population fat and lazy is one way to conquer them, just like dividing them up along religious, racial, and economic lines, etc. The solution will come when the mostly unconscious pressures of our dog-eat-dog society are removed and real value is exposed: we mean something, we aren't worthless and powerless, there is hope. THEN everyone will head to the gym! But those running this country (of all political persuasions) will say: "We can't have that now!"
But do people in other countries really live that much healthier lifestyles? Don't they smoke a lot more? If America had a more left-wing healthcare system than these other countries would you be blaming the shorter lifespans on the government rather than the people?
No, I would still be saying people need to be more self reliant about thier health.
I realize that healthcare is important overall, but the doctor can only deal with what has already happened to you and give you suggestions on prevention. It is up to the individual to follow suggestions and even further, educate themselves on how to live healthier.
Sorry, but for at least the last 20 years, it has been common knowledge and common sense that drinking a lot of soda and eating a lot of fast food is not good for your health, but people still line up everyday at McD's and Taco Bell as fast food joints pop up every 100 yards in major cities. Why? Because people ignore what they know is right in favor of instant gratification.
There are plenty of instances where healthcare is a huge part of helping someone through a problem, but that doesn't mean they don't have their own responsibility to themselves to eat and be active if they want optimum health.
Sorry, but for at least the last 20 years, it has been common knowledge and common sense that drinking a lot of soda and eating a lot of fast food is not good for your health, but people still line up everyday at McD's and Taco Bell as fast food joints pop up every 100 yards in major cities. Why? Because people ignore what they know is right in favor of instant gratification.
There seem to be many communities where fast food's all that's available at an affordable price. In a lot of low-income urban areas you have to drive for miles (assuming you have a car) just to get to a decent grocery store.
There seem to be many communities where fast food's all that's available at an affordable price. In a lot of low-income urban areas you have to drive for miles (assuming you have a car) just to get to a decent grocery store.
A lot of people that shop in supermarkets also make VERY poor food choices, sometimes when I wait in line I look at what people buy and it is hard to find one or two healthy items in their carts. Sometimes the best thing I can see is orange juice, the rest consists of fatty meat, white flour bread and pastries, sweets, frozen dinners. No sign of fresh vegetables or fruits. Ah, and not to forget, lots of soda's and sugary drinks and beer...... yikes.
But that is only one part, the other is the lack of exercise AND also environmental factors. Over half of the US population now lives in areas with bad air quality (according to the Lung Assoc.), etc.
A lot of people that shop in supermarkets also make VERY poor food choices, sometimes when I wait in line I look at what people buy and it is hard to find one or two healthy items in their carts. Sometimes the best thing I can see is orange juice, the rest consists of fatty meat, white flour bread and pastries, sweets, frozen dinners. No sign of fresh vegetables or fruits. Ah, and not to forget, lots of soda's and sugary drinks and beer...... yikes.
But that is only one part, the other is the lack of exercise AND also environmental factors. Over half of the US population now lives in areas with bad air quality (according to the Lung Assoc.), etc.
It sure is interesting to see the items people buy. Things like potato chips, snacks, and then diet soft drinks, as if that is going to compensate for the intake of fat in the other foods. All to be consumed while sinking ever deeper into the sofa in front of the TV where many spend their lives.
Location: Currently, Falls Church, VA but to Phoenix, AZ soon
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Statistics Cited are Flawed
I realize most people are taking these rankings and this data at face value. I have learned, and accept as absolute fact, that the same statistics can say anything you want them to. As for this category, I will address it from the point of view I know-infant mortality. I work in Pediatric Critical Care, so I know of what I speak. Lets take an example of a baby born extremely prematurely. In the US, we take the baby and apply all of our advanced technology in an attempt to save the baby. The chances of success in much of these cases are very low. However, we may be able to work to keep the baby alive for a few days to a few weeks. When we fail, which happens more often than not, the death is put in to statistics as an infant death-affecting both the infant death rate AND the life expectancy rate. What happens in this case in other countries? Most do not put the effort in to saving the baby as we do and the death statistically becomes a still birth or even a miscarriage-NOT affecting either the infant mortality rate or life expectancy. This has the net result of significantly skewing the measures used in the rankings. It is a comparison of apples to oranges, not apples to apples.
I know about these anomalies because I have researched it. I have not researched the other statistics used, but would assume some of the same mischaracterizations exist in other areas as well.
its interesting that countries with super high percentages of smokers.. outlive the united states... that in itself shows just how serious the obesity problem is.. being overweight is not anymore healthier than puffin down a pack of cigs a day...pick your poison
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Statistics Cited are Flawed
