Live Younger Longer

Leading causes of death in the last century
United States, 1900, 1950 and 2000
Based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Living the modern life

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So, what happened over the years to create this shift? The chart on the right
illustrates an important concept. What keeps us healthy or makes us sick
evolves as the environment around us and social conditions of a society
change.
In the last century, medical advances such as vaccinations, antibiotics,
improved public health systems and better health education lessened the
impact of contagious diseases. At the same time, new behaviors — such as
more people smoking cigarettes and driving automobiles — meant a greater
number of deaths from causes such as lung cancer and car accidents.
Advances in technology and testing helped to uncover previously unknown
diseases and better treat existing ones. On the other hand, advances in
manufacturing and industry greatly influenced our daily activities, our diets
and, ultimately, our health.
Instead of walking to the store, most of us drive there. Instead of a job that
entails manual labor or physical exertion, a great number of us spend most
of our workdays seated in front of computers. Some people have jobs that
require working at night, altering their sleeping and eating patterns.
Our ancestors used to rely on plants they foraged and wild animals they
hunted. The introduction of farming and manufacturing practices has made
it much easier to access food. And as a result, our diets have shifted to
include more dairy, cereal, refined sugars, refined vegetable oils, salt and
fatty meat.
Modern processed foods, while convenient and inexpensive, have lost many
of the healthy qualities of whole, unprocessed foods. In 1970, only 0.2% of
the sugar we consumed was from high-fructose corn syrup. By 2000, this
processed sweetener made up almost a third of our diet’s sugar content. And

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the same goes for fats. In the 20th century, our use of vegetable oils,
shortening and margarine increased 130%, 136%, and 410%, respectively,
thanks to manufacturing. While changes in the way we work and eat reflect
a society marked by prosperity and a long life expectancy, there are also
less-than-fortunate ramifications.