John F. Groom 64M

With a new year I thought it might be interesting to take a look at changes in American health over the last 50 years, so I asked chatgpt.com to tell me about those changes: Share 1. Obesity Rates 1975: Approximately 15% of U.S. adults were classified as obese. Today: Over 42% of U.S. adults are classified as obese (2020 CDC data). Implication: There has been a dramatic increase in obesity, linked to dietary changes, sedentary lifestyles, and larger portion sizes. 2. Life Expectancy 1975: Life expectancy in the U.S. was approximately 72.6 years. Today: Life expectancy is around 76.4 years (2023 CDC estimate), though it has fluctuated due to factors like the COVID-19 pandemic. Implication: While life expectancy improved for several decades, recent trends show a plateau or decline due to issues such as chronic diseases, drug overdoses, and other public health challenges. 3. Physical Activity 1975: A higher proportion of Americans were engaged in physically active occupations, and fewer had sedentary jobs. Today: Over 80% of jobs are considered sedentary or require low physical activity, contributing to lower daily energy expenditure. Implication: The shift to more sedentary lifestyles has significant health consequences, including increased risks for heart disease and diabetes. 4. Diet and Nutrition 1975: The average diet included fewer ultra-processed foods and sugary beverages, but higher rates of smoking were observed. Today: The typical American diet includes a higher percentage of calories from processed foods and added sugars, contributing to metabolic disorders. Implication: Diet quality has worsened in many respects, despite increased awareness of nutrition. 5. Smoking and Substance Use 1975: About 40% of U.S. adults smoked cigarettes. Today: Smoking rates have decreased to around 12.5% (2023 estimate), but issues like vaping, opioid use, and alcohol consumption have increased. Implication: Public health campaigns against smoking have been successful, but new challenges in substance abuse have emerged. 6. Chronic Diseases 1975: Rates of chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease were lower. Today: Prevalence of type 2 diabetes has more than tripled, affecting over 11% of adults. Implication: Chronic disease rates are higher today, correlating with lifestyle and dietary changes. 7. Mental Health 1975: Mental health awareness was limited, with fewer diagnoses and less treatment. Today: Mental health conditions like anxiety and depression are more widely recognized, but rates of these conditions are higher, partially due to increased awareness and modern stressors. Implication: Mental health care access has improved, but challenges persist with rising rates of mental health issues. Now back to a human being: Overall, it seems like a mix: people are much fatter but still live a few years longer, probably thanks to more sophisticated medical interventions.  So lifespan is longer but that doesn't mean that health-span is longer.  We're much less active generally, and that's a huge problem.  We smoke much less, which is great, but deaths due to drug abuse, particularly opioids, have risen dramatically.  We write and talk much more about nutrition and what's in food, but still eat far more that is bad for us.  Type 2 diabetes has dramatically increased doe to the lack of physical activity and poor diets.   More people are diagnosed with mental health issues, but its very difficult to know if that's because those issues have actually increased or just because people are more willing to recognize them.   

Sometimes the smart thing to do is……nothing. That certainly doesn’t hold true for general day-to-day activities; most people do way too much of “nothing” – watching TV, scrolling social, etc. – and far too little meaningful movement. But the medical field is quite a different thing.  Sometimes, as well illustrated by the attached article, the smart thing is to “wait and see”, or “watchful waiting” as its known in the medical community. In many cases, especially with slow growing cancers, its virtually impossible to tell when, if ever, they will actually become harmful.   By a certain age, most men will have signs of prostate cancer, but, even if left untreated, something else will kill them before the prostate cancer becomes dangerous. Here at Global Fast Fit we emphasize active prevention; a host of activities such as exercise, careful nutrition, regular dental care, use of sun screen, that have virtually no downside, and lots of upside.  But all dramatic action, such as surgery, often has substantial risks. Probably hundreds of thousands of men have been rendered completely or partially impotent by prostate surgery designed to remove cancer that would never have become dangerous if left alone.  And once damage is done by surgery, it can’t be reversed.  People seem to forget that medical care is a business; when a doctor recommends surgery he or she is putting money in their own pocket if they’re the ones going to perform that surgery.  And often quite a bit of money.  Even a well meaning surgeon has a bias to action; they are trained to take action, and that’s what they do.  They are not trained to just wait and see what happens – and they don’t get paid to do so.  But that’s often the wisest course. The back is another good example.  If you get an MRI of your back, it will probably show lots of “abnormalities” that aren't necessarily causing pain or functional issues. Minor disc bulges, mild degeneration, or small spinal cysts are common findings, especially as people age, but they don’t always require intervention. Often, these findings are incidental, meaning they don't contribute to symptoms and may not need any treatment.  So just because an MRI shows something doesn’t mean surgery is called for. If you’re in pain or you have trouble functioning you should probably take some sort of action, although the body will often heal itself.  But if you don’t have pain, cosmetic issues, or functional problems, make very sure that action is really required before you take the irreversible step of surgery.  Or, as the old saying goes, “Measure twice, cut once”.