Who would have guessed this?

lsayre wrote:The United States has now fallen to 51st among the worlds nations in average life expectancy.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... tancy.html

Richard S. wrote:The US life expectancy is lower because of unnatural deaths, we're crazy like that. I'm not joking either, look it up.

The infant mortality rate is BS too, there are a few things that contribute to poor rankings of the US:

• Many countries like France who I believe is top of the list have a cutoff for weight where the baby even if born alive and then dies is not recorded as death after birth. Every live birth in the US is considered live.
• Superior health care in the US that allows severely premature infants to be born alive that would never be born alive in another countries. These births are more likely to result in death.
• The black population which is considerably higher in the US has an abnormal amount of deaths in infants and this stat transcends all levels of income.

While on the topic the WHO's overall ranking for health is BS as well. As one example they based 25% of the score on how much was spent regardless of outcome, in other words a poor country like Cuba that spent nothing and outscores the US simply because they spent less... makes a lot of sense right?


-----edit----

I'll add one more reason to infant mortality list, the parade of low lifes unwilling to take the help available to them who's first visit to the doctor is when they are about to give birth. No neonatal care, poor lifestyle to begin with resulting in sick kids who end up dieing because of poor care in the home even if they are born alive and fairly healthy.

SMITTY wrote:Was it just me ... or did anyone else notice the chick with the square ass at the bottom of that page???

SMITTY wrote:Not particularly ... But I HAD to look just once!

mikeandgerry wrote:Culture more likely accounts for the difference. Americans are obstinate when it comes to their diet. People in the US don't know how, or what to eat and, if by chance they do know, they ignore a proper diet in favor of gratification through fast and/or rich foods. Americans shun red wine and adore the wrong fats and carbs. They don't exercise. Most compulsively overeat.

Americans worry more because they care more about their country than most Europeans. They are goaded into keeping up with the Jones. They are taught that money is everything. They are fed a line of worrisome drivel from a media intent upon sensationalism. Those cultural factors, no exercise and a poor diet, add up to a cultural formula for disaster in vital statistics. There is no cure in sight for our cultural behavior.

Even if health care were available "free" to all, it would take a generation or more to change the "doctoring" behavior of most Americans. As it stands, Americans rely too heavily on health care to correct the ills of a lifetime of poor living habits.