Chronic Boom

One of the few line items remaining on the American exceptionalism scorecard is the unique ability of our life expectancy to underperform in relation to our national wealth. “Many preventable chronic diseases are related to four major risk factors: cigarette smoking, excessive alcohol use, physical inactivity and poor nutrition. In the U.S., people get less exercise, moving less than some European counterparts, studies have shown. The nation’s Western-style diet is heavy in sugars, processed meat and unhealthy fats. Americans also consume more ultra-processed foods, surveys suggest, and such diets have been linked to increased risks of obesity, Type 2 diabetes and some cancers. The fractured U.S. health system also contributes to our lagging health, researchers say. Unlike other peer nations, the U.S. doesn’t guarantee healthcare coverage. We spend more per person because prices are higher, and Americans are more likely to report skipping care because of cost. We also have fewer doctors per capita than many peer countries, data show.” Chronic illness is getting worse and it cuts across other American divides. Of course, the wealth gap plays a role. But even wealthy Americans are being outlived by their poorer European counterparts. WSJ (Gift Article): How Chronic Disease Became the Biggest Scourge in American Health. (Yes, RFK Jr has rightly diagnosed this as one of America’s biggest health issues. But no, the cure for America’s chronic illness problem is not to stir doubt in vaccines and allow preventable outbreaks to kill us before our chronic illnesses can really kick in.)

+ Cutting health coverage and science funding isn’t gonna smoke the chronic problem. WaPo (Gift Article): How do Republicans plan to cut health coverage? Two basic ways. “The overall story is simple: The plan saves money mainly by removing millions of people from coverage, while offering no alternative means to insure them.” (Take two of these and don’t call me in the morning…)

+ NYT (Gift Article): Trump Budget Cuts Hobble Antismoking Programs. “The decimation of antismoking work follows a year of lavish campaign donations by tobacco and e-cigarette companies to President Trump and congressional Republicans.”