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“We’re seeing the ramifications of the increase in obesity,” said Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “And we’re seeing that in an increase in heart disease.”
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jordan 7 years, 4 months ago
A.) I've been reading up on the opiod epidemic lately. Pretty crazy stuff and I hope it starts getting more publicity.
B.) The eventually mortality rate is 100%. Is there a significant difference in living 2.4 months longer? For some people, yes, for others, no.
C.) I have a theory that the human genome is flawed on purpose (evolution or design, whatever floats your boat) to balance out overpopulation. The human life span is long enough to procreate, contribute to society and train the next generation. As much as science tries to increase the average age of death, in my theory, human genes won't "let" the body get past a certain age since it eventually works against the human species itself from a total survival-of-the-species perspective. If it's not heart disease and cancer, it will be something else.
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glen 7 years, 4 months ago
Interesting take on the flawed genome theory. I am a simple man, and this makes sense to me.
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Chet_Manly 7 years, 4 months ago
I like your approach. I have considered this idea abstractly but you put it into words here better than I could have. I also believe there are more issues at play in our lives/bodies/universe than we can properly account for. It's what makes life continue to be interesting. I also agree with your point B with regard to quality of life at the end of life.
The less intellectually inspired comment I intended to make before being wonderfully sidetracked is that I don't see a drop in life expectancy as all bad. Sometimes when I see what my fellow humans are up to, I'm not as inclined to hang around so long.
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jordan 7 years, 4 months ago
I agree with your comments on life expectancy. Modern medicine be danged, I'm going to go when it's my time to go.
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Razorback 7 years, 4 months ago
I think your theory is spot on. Here is an interesting article that speaks to that point.
"The ceiling is probably hardwired into our biology. As we grow older, we slowly accumulate damage to our DNA and other molecules, which turns the intricate machinery of our cells into a creaky, dysfunctional mess. In most cases, that decline leads to diseases of old age, like cancer, heart disease, or Alzheimer’s. But if people live past their 80s or 90s, their odds of getting such illnesses actually start to fall—perhaps because they have protective genes."
http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/10/humans-wont-ever-live-far-beyond-115-years/502967/
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jordan 7 years, 4 months ago
That's a great article (beside the point that it reinforces my theory). Thanks for sharing.
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