America’s Top Killer: Us

People need to make their own personal decisions how they take care of themselves. If they are happy staying out of shape, unhealthy...and likely to incur worse health problems later on down the road; then, hey that is their personal decision and they have to live with it.
Good lifestyle choices cannot be mandated for others...they feel like they HAVE TO instead of WANTING TO make positive changes; mandating has never worked and never will.
I used to smoke, drink, eat junk food day in and day out, drank pop like water...my weight kept fluctuating...and of course it was always a blast waking up in the morning and coughing up lung cookies from my cigarette addiction. I made a personal decision to make a positive change for my life and give up these toxic health habits. I have been improving my health habits...and I look and feel 1000 times better (not just physically, but emotionally as well) for choosing the road to health.
The driving force behind my wanting to take the road to health was inspired from the Bible...I also make it a habit to surround myself with people who will encourage me to keep on this road (people at Church are a huge help). My personal need to read the Bible on a daily basis is also a positive factor for this. I am not Superman, and yes I am tempted like anyone else...but thankfully I have a good God and trustworthy people to lean on when temptation hits.
No, it was not an easy decision to make...but it came down to either make these necessary changes or die a horrible death from liver failure, cancer, or emphyzema...or many other health issues from my poor choices.

Many people don't even want healthy food for free. I've seen it a number of times at food pantries--they could take the fresh greens, vegetables, legumes and fruits but instead opt for the hot dogs and SPAM. Even when it's given away, many people don't want healthy food (whatever...stay fat then, they made their choice).

I agree our modern lifestyle and 'sit down' jobs are partly to blame. We did not evolve sitting at a desk eating donuts, we evolved walking from resource to resource (I personally will not work a sit down job and have opted for outdoor work that includes hiking and lots of fieldwork in addation to running 50 miles a week). There's no excuse not to be active at some point during the day.

As far as I'm concerned, taking the 'easy' way out should have consequences. I really don't care if someone is fat from eating too much and moving too little. If they're happy that way, it's their business. I just don't want to hear the whingeing from those people because they have the power to change it.

And if it is found that religious people live longer, will be be forced to adopt a religion? And if it is found that married people live longer, will we be forced to marry--even those who are gay and might wind up married to someone of the opposite gender? And if it is found that people who eat very low calorie diets live longer--will we be forced to starve ourselves?

The government allows corporations to poison our water, put hormones in the animals we eat which affect us negatively, put poisons on our produce that will kill us--I could go on. But, the government wants to force us into a "healthy" lifestyle?

I say focus on the things you should be focusing on--clean air, safe neighborhoods, better city planning ,etc. Stay the heck out of the personal lives of citizens where you do not belong. This is just another in the long list of conservative practices intended to curtail individuals while allowing corporations free rein.

People make unhealthy choices for one simple reason -- in the short run, they're easier choices than the healthy ones. Unhealthy choices usually cost less in time, money and effort. Unhealthy foods are quicker and cheaper than the healthy ones so they're the default choice for stressed, time- and cash-starved families. Some low SES communities don't even have access to supermarkets where they can buy fresh fruits and vegetables so it's much easier to buy the unhealthy foods that they do have access to. It's easier to feed a nicotine addiction than invest time and effort into kicking the habit. It's easier to put off regular screenings just as it's easier not to have to deal with condoms to practice safe sex.

The answers are complex and will require a combination of personal choice, employer action (like giving employees time off to get needed screenings) and yes, some government intervention. Smoking policies (smoke-free communities, increased tobacco taxes, etc.) have been integral to reducing smoking rates which has now led to decreased death from lung cancer.

I hope there's a researcher out there studying the effect of stress and time spent at work on people's choices. Seems to me that we started to really get unhealthy right around the same time we started to spend much more time at work.

Attempting to take personal choices away from individuals is a direct threat to our individual freedoms of which our society has consistently been picking away at in recent years. It takes on a new kind of anti-american stance and is fundamentally wrong.

Attempting to take personal choices away from individuals is a direct threat to our individual freedoms of which our society has consistently been picking away at in recent years. It takes on a new kind of anti-american stance and is fundamentally wrong.

kkkk

The key for health is having the knowledge and ability to mitigate harmful diets, habits, and environment. Black or white lifestyle choices won't work....it is not either or....the answer is in helping the body maintain health through nutrients and herbs regardless of lifestyle choices. Instead of utizing pharmaceuticals we should be emplementing the use of crafted natural substances that restore health and provide prevention. For instance just balancing the Ph of the body can do wonders iin preventing and cureing disease. We need to educate the public to the importance of utilizing nutritionists who can assist each individual with choices that will enhance their health and lives without the overpowering burden of trying to live a perfect life.

Oh please. Hitler tried it, Stalin tried it. The last thing we NEED is big brother looking over our shoulders at such a minute level - not to mention the cost. Bureaucrats would have a heyday with any such preposition. As for people making fatal stupid choices, think of it as social Darwinism. What happened to "The land of the free"?

Why should the government interfer with people's rights to make decisions about their own bodies? It allows for abortion and, in some cases, assisted suicide, so why not allow people the right to make such decisions? Of course, if the governement doen't allow them to decide in such a way, then it continues to maintain sources of revenue by the amount of taxes it can get out of them. So, I feel certain the government will probably interfer instead of losing any kind of tax base.

It's called 'Darwinism'. Survival of the fittest. Let it be what it is.

It's called 'Darwinism' - survival of the fittest.

They can do what they want with their bodies. We allow for abortion, assisted suicide and the like, why not keep the government out and let them live as they want. If we cut down our lifespan, then we contribute less carbon and not waste so much of the resources needed for others. Of course, the government disallowing people to make such bad decisions will mean a loss in tax revenue, so I guess the government will, out of necessity, have to step in to keep itself going!

And if you're overweight because you eat too much and don't exercise, you'd better not complain if the airlines want to charge you for two tickets! Your "choices" are driving up the cost of travel for everyone else!

If people are stupid and make stupid desicions that kill them, then we are better off, because they can't reproduce stupid kids.

Take responsibility for your own life, and stop trying to blame others for your problems. The Government is not the answer or fix peoples problems, we should fix it ourselves and be better for it. Keep government away.

Regarding tepordage's comment: The problem comes in when other people have to bear the cost of others' stupid errors. I have often wondered why health insurance should pay for any medical treatment for cancer brought on by smoking, diabetes brought on by eating too much cr*p, or accidents to motorcycle riders not wearing helmets. And those same motorcycle riders could then end up getting disability payments from social security for the rest of their lives. Or, on a larger scale, why should I personally bear any of the costs of the current financial meltdown, when I didn't buy a house (or two) without adequate income or take out debt on credit cards. Shouldn't the costs be born by the brokers who bought and sold packaged mortgages without knowing how much they were worth or the people who signed mortgages they couldn't afford? How do you disconnect the results of one's personal actions when we are all tied together in various ways?