Tapate50
Well-known member
It’s not that complicated
TLHLIM
- Thread starter sturg33
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nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Another interesting paper that looks at international comparisons:
It is widely recognized that the United States has fallen behind other wealthy countries in measures of mortality. This phenomenon was highlighted in two volumes by the National Research Council, the first concentrating on ages 50+ and the second on all ages (2). Related research has explicitly examined the pattern of US adult mortality deficits by age (3, 4). Other studies have focused on comparatively high US mortality in specific age intervals: infancy (5), ages below 50 y (6), and ages 45 to 54 y (7, 8). One exception to the poor performance of the United States is that for several decades it has had lower deathrates at ages 80+ y than most other wealthy countries (3, 4, 9).
In this paper, we use data from the Human Mortality Database (HMD) to create three indexes designed for making 21stcentury age-specific comparisons of US and European mortality. To represent European mortality conditions, we create a composite of the five largest European countries, whose combined population size is very similar to that of the United States: Germany, England and Wales, France, Italy, and Spain. We use size as a selection criterion for two reasons: The comparisons of deathrates should have relatively low variability, and the exceptional combinations of factors affecting mortality in small population s(e.g., climate, diet, social history, and healthcare delivery) may provide unrealistic expectations for larger and more diverse populations. Our comparisons extend from 2000 to 2017, the latest year for which data are available for all six countries.
It is widely recognized that the United States has fallen behind other wealthy countries in measures of mortality. This phenomenon was highlighted in two volumes by the National Research Council, the first concentrating on ages 50+ and the second on all ages (2). Related research has explicitly examined the pattern of US adult mortality deficits by age (3, 4). Other studies have focused on comparatively high US mortality in specific age intervals: infancy (5), ages below 50 y (6), and ages 45 to 54 y (7, 8). One exception to the poor performance of the United States is that for several decades it has had lower deathrates at ages 80+ y than most other wealthy countries (3, 4, 9).
In this paper, we use data from the Human Mortality Database (HMD) to create three indexes designed for making 21stcentury age-specific comparisons of US and European mortality. To represent European mortality conditions, we create a composite of the five largest European countries, whose combined population size is very similar to that of the United States: Germany, England and Wales, France, Italy, and Spain. We use size as a selection criterion for two reasons: The comparisons of deathrates should have relatively low variability, and the exceptional combinations of factors affecting mortality in small population s(e.g., climate, diet, social history, and healthcare delivery) may provide unrealistic expectations for larger and more diverse populations. Our comparisons extend from 2000 to 2017, the latest year for which data are available for all six countries.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
from post 8773
House Republicans in April blocked DeWine’s proposal to allow police officers to pull over cars when they see drivers or their passengers not wearing seat belts. In contrast, New York in 1984 became the first state to enact such a law, followed by 34 others.
sturg33
I
Ahh... so letting people take on their own risk
At least its not letting them ask to be killed?
Im sensing some inconsistency here
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
This is a study of how outcomes change over time. Racial and ethnic composition does not change much from decade to decade. Race/ethnicity accounts for a lot of the geographic dispersion we observe, but does not account for the changes in the geographic dispersion over time.
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nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
absolutely...ohio thinks it is inappropriate to nag people about smoking and wearing a seatbelt
having been ticketed for not wearing a seatbelt while in California, I know California and other states take a different approach...it is annoying but saves lives
sturg33
I
Which you appear to oppse. But support people to have the choice to let the government kill them?
sturg33
I
And poorer people are fatter
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Yes. Not only do I agree with the blue state approaches on smoking and seatbelts. I generally agree with all of the different health-related policies that have produced such superior outcomes in blue states.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
yeah
i'm ok with the police enforcing seat belt laws by ticketing those of us who neglect to do so
and i'm in favor of the laws enacted by some countries and states that allow for doctor-assisted suicide
and I'm for policies that remind people of the harms caused by cigarette smoking
the common denominator is that all three enhance life (either the quantity or the quality of life)
there can obviously be a conflict between quality and quantity of life...i resolve them in the manner listed above...you would obviously resolve them in a different way
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Another paper touching on some of these topics:
METHODS
We investigate the contribution of socio-behavioral factors to changes in US adult mortality over the period 1997–2019 using National Health Interview Surveys for theyears 1997–2018 linked to death records through 2019. The variables studied include alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking, health insurance coverage, educational attainment, mental distress, obesity, and race/ethnicity. We evaluate the contribution of each socio-behavioral variable to mortality change by estimating the mortality risks associated with each variable in a hazards model and applying the risks to changes in the variable’s distribution.
RESULTS
When all variables are included in the model, we find that reductions in cigarette smoking and increases in educational attainment are the largest contributors to recent mortality improvements, accounting between them for 66% of mortality improvements. The contribution of educational attainment nearly doubles when variables that may be considered downstream to it are omitted from the analysis. In a secondary analysis, we compare two subperiods to investigate whether the variables can account for a widely observed slowdown in the rate of mortality reduction that occurred within the period of study. Rising levels of psychological distress, combined with very high risks associated with distress, contributed substantially to the slowdown. However, most of the slowdown remains unaccounted for.
CONTRIBUTION
We develop and apply a rigorous method to identify the role of many socio-behavioral factors in recent mortality change in the United States. Results highlight the role of behavioral change (declines in smoking) and a broad social advance (educational expansion).
METHODS
We investigate the contribution of socio-behavioral factors to changes in US adult mortality over the period 1997–2019 using National Health Interview Surveys for theyears 1997–2018 linked to death records through 2019. The variables studied include alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking, health insurance coverage, educational attainment, mental distress, obesity, and race/ethnicity. We evaluate the contribution of each socio-behavioral variable to mortality change by estimating the mortality risks associated with each variable in a hazards model and applying the risks to changes in the variable’s distribution.
RESULTS
When all variables are included in the model, we find that reductions in cigarette smoking and increases in educational attainment are the largest contributors to recent mortality improvements, accounting between them for 66% of mortality improvements. The contribution of educational attainment nearly doubles when variables that may be considered downstream to it are omitted from the analysis. In a secondary analysis, we compare two subperiods to investigate whether the variables can account for a widely observed slowdown in the rate of mortality reduction that occurred within the period of study. Rising levels of psychological distress, combined with very high risks associated with distress, contributed substantially to the slowdown. However, most of the slowdown remains unaccounted for.
CONTRIBUTION
We develop and apply a rigorous method to identify the role of many socio-behavioral factors in recent mortality change in the United States. Results highlight the role of behavioral change (declines in smoking) and a broad social advance (educational expansion).
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sturg33
I
Not wearing my seatbelt enhances my quality of life, especially after i figured out how to disable the damn chime
But noted, it appears to me you simply favor big government. Your willingness to weigh quality of life was nonexistent when you were begging the state to lock everyone in their homes, lose their jobs, and have zero social interaction with family or friends.
I guess that one was for length of life, not quality. But MAID is for quality, not length.
The common denominator is big governemnt intervention and your dutiful obedience
But MAID is a wonderful way to cut costs
But noted, it appears to me you simply favor big government. Your willingness to weigh quality of life was nonexistent when you were begging the state to lock everyone in their homes, lose their jobs, and have zero social interaction with family or friends.
I guess that one was for length of life, not quality. But MAID is for quality, not length.
The common denominator is big governemnt intervention and your dutiful obedience
But MAID is a wonderful way to cut costs
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Declines in smoking are the largest drivers of mortality reduction in both subperiods, while educational upgrading is the next largest.
In view of the close association between educational attainment and health/mortality, a number of studies have investigated the extent to which educational attainment causally affects health. The leading alternative explanation of the association is that both education and health are heavily influenced by third variables, such as childhood family circumstances or personality features such as conscientiousness. The principal research design used to investigate causal pathways is to study the effect of compulsory schooling laws, treated as an exogenous variable, on the adult health of affected cohorts. Results in the United States and elsewhere are inconclusive, with some positive results scattered among many negative results. (For summaries, see Zajacovaand Lawrence [2018] and Moorthy, Figinski, and Lloro [2022].)
This research design is not ideal because compulsory schooling laws affect only a non-representative minority who would not have attended school in the absence of compulsion. What is not in doubt is that people with more schooling are more likely to exhibit healthy behaviors with respect to such factors as smoking, obesity, vegetable consumption, and seat belt use. They also have a lower prevalence of heart disease, stroke, and cancer (Cutler and Lleras-Muney 2006). And even if educational attainment were simply a proxy for an alternative set of socioeconomic circumstances, its powerful role shows that such circumstances deserve a prominent place among the variables accounting for declining mortality.
In view of the close association between educational attainment and health/mortality, a number of studies have investigated the extent to which educational attainment causally affects health. The leading alternative explanation of the association is that both education and health are heavily influenced by third variables, such as childhood family circumstances or personality features such as conscientiousness. The principal research design used to investigate causal pathways is to study the effect of compulsory schooling laws, treated as an exogenous variable, on the adult health of affected cohorts. Results in the United States and elsewhere are inconclusive, with some positive results scattered among many negative results. (For summaries, see Zajacovaand Lawrence [2018] and Moorthy, Figinski, and Lloro [2022].)
This research design is not ideal because compulsory schooling laws affect only a non-representative minority who would not have attended school in the absence of compulsion. What is not in doubt is that people with more schooling are more likely to exhibit healthy behaviors with respect to such factors as smoking, obesity, vegetable consumption, and seat belt use. They also have a lower prevalence of heart disease, stroke, and cancer (Cutler and Lleras-Muney 2006). And even if educational attainment were simply a proxy for an alternative set of socioeconomic circumstances, its powerful role shows that such circumstances deserve a prominent place among the variables accounting for declining mortality.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
I'm in favor of letting people decide whether to smoke or not. And I'm in favor of using governmental resources to provide them with information about the health effects of smoking. Blue states devote more resources to this. As a result, more people are persuaded not to smoke. Seems to me one of the more effective use of our tax dollars.