Dear Dr. Bortz,
The millennium has come and gone without any substantial disruption, but I am disturbed to read that the Surgeon General finds that our nation's health is not improving, and in many respects seems to be getting worse. Any comment? -- Bill Ball, Fort Worth TX
Dear Bill,
Certainly, we are not as bad off as Russia, whose mortality rates are rising precipitously, but it is disheartening to hear that despite all the money spent on our health, and the amount of new science information that is available, America's health profile is still too fat and too lazy. The Healthy People 2000 objectives were not met, and in some categories, kids' obesity, exercise, and smoking habits, we look pretty bad. New guidelines (Healthy People 2010) are available. 467 objectives and 26 specific focus areas are in these guidelines. They are pretty modest, but I fear that unless our self-satisfied nation heeds a wake-up call, we will be in for another disappointment 10 years from now.
HHS Secretary, Donna Shalala, calls pursuing these objectives "a moral imperative" and states, "We want 100 years for every child born in this century". We'd better get going.
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