The United States ranks 41st in life expectancy, are you surprised?

Did you see the news that the United States ranks 41st in life expectancy? The article said that one of the main reasons we are ranked 41st is that many Americans lack health insurance. Can anyone really believe that? This is a knee jerk reaction and it honestly sounds much more like a political statement from someone who thinks nationalized health care is the answer.

I think the reason we are ranked 41st is that a large part of our population eats junk and doesn’t exercise. We also get stressed out with hectic schedules and are way behind the rest of the world when it comes to relaxation and mind-body connection.

The problem with our health system is not the lack of access to it; is that we approach health care in the wrong way. We focus too much on helping people live with or fight disease once they have it and forget to prevent it in the first place. This type of health care can be given to everyone on a silver platter and still won’t help our ranking. As long as people do not take responsibility for their own health, we will continue to get sicker, obese, depressed, etc.

I don’t know about you, but I have people in my life who eat the worst diet possible and then complain that their cholesterol meds are expensive or don’t work or that their diabetes gets worse. I know people who need knee replacements, but the doctors won’t do it until they lose weight. Is it the fault of the doctor, of the health system? I’m sure you know people like that too. Do you get frustrated or do you let them convince you that it’s not their fault? They want doctors to fix them, they want drugs to fix them, and they want the government to fix them. The only person they never mention when they complain is themselves.

The sad fact of the matter is that a large percentage of illnesses and diseases are preventable. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in this country, heart disease! Don’t we all now know that lack of exercise combined with a diet high in fat and cholesterol causes heart disease just like smoking? But we’d rather blame the government or McDonald’s or the cigarette manufacturers than blame where it belongs, ourselves.

Some employers have started requiring their employees to take responsibility for their health or pay more for health insurance, and I think that’s great. Some insurance companies are doing the same thing and it’s fair. Anyone can get sick, but if someone eats healthy, doesn’t smoke, and exercises, that person shouldn’t have to bear the financial burden of people who refuse to take preventive measures.

The article also states that it is shocking that the world’s richest country is ranked so low. You got to be kidding. It doesn’t take money to eat real food instead of pre-packaged, over-processed foods. You don’t need money to go for a walk. Some very poor countries are beating us. But they eat fresh, real food that they often grow themselves and/or animals raised without the drugs that we fill ours with in this country; They are also very active people. Money is not the answer! For many, being in the richest country seems to make them fat and lazy.