re: Correlation between US food ingredients, cancer, and healthcare expenditures

That is absolutely not an end thread post


For one, we are not 2 years of life expectancy behind the Swiss, we’re 5

For two, while we do eat too much and move too little, that is not our only problem. As the OP identified, WHAT we are eating is also vastly different. We can’t force people to eat less or to move more, but we can sure as shite force Heinz to levelize the ingredients for ketchup sold in the US with ketchup sold in Switzerland… hint, ours has about twice as many ingredients (and I’d venture a guess that not a single one of them are in there to make it healthier for you)

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The fact we're only two years off of their life expectancy is a testament to the healthcare system in this country, if anything, given our shitty diet, lack of exercise, and preference for sugary, processed foods.

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I saw a rather terrifying video clip of a doctor responding the motto “live fast, die young.” He explained how that saying doesn’t really apply any more because modern medicine can keep almost anyone alive. If you go to the doctor at least once a year for a checkup or report any abnormalities in a timely manner, they’ll catch problems before they kill you. Even heart disease, cancers, diabetes: doctors can keep people alive for a long time.

But just because you’re drugged up or surgically repaired, it doesn’t mean that you have your mobility or cognitive abilities or overall health. You’re alive, but you’re a burden to your family and a drain to society.

After that video, and after listening to Peter Attia, lifespan doesn’t mean much to me. We might be two years off of some higher quality European country, but I’m curious about quantifying healthspan. Who has people active and mobile into their 70s and 80s? Who has their elderly functioning with a positive disposition? Who is more likely to feel like life is painful and over by 60?

Give me longevity with healthspan. It’s what really matters. And Americans are mostly struggling in that regard.