Assignment

The average life expectancy (LE) in 1900 was 47 years of age. In 2008 the average LE in the United States was 80 years, and by 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau projects that the average LE will be 79.5 years. Life expectancy in the U.S. differs by gender and race. Women live about 5 years longer than men, and whites live about 4 years longer than African-Americans. Public health measures such as vaccinations and water treatment have added 25-30 years to our life expectancy while medical advances have added about 5 years. These measures have significantly reduced the incidence of infant mortality and allowed people to be healthier well into their 70s, 80s, and beyond.

At the level of the individual, genetic and environmental factors help to predict how long a person will live. Read the following article:

Live Long and Proper: Genetic Factors Associated with Increased Longevity Identified By Nicholette Zeliadt.

Interested in knowing ho long you might live? Take the following online survey:

Take note of the questions being asked in the survey and consider the factors that might impact your longevity. (Note: the survey does ask you to provide an email address and create a password as the calculator is regularly updated to account for new research findings. If you do not want to use your personal email address, you can create a dummy account through a free email provider).

Now, for this week's discussion, please respond to the following questions:

1. Identify 2-3 implications of an aging population on different aspects of modern social life like education, health, work, leisure, consumerism, the economy, and public policy.

2. According to the Scientific American article above, how much of our life expectancy is accounted for by genetic factors?

3. What lifestyle choices can you make that may improve your chances of living longer?

4. What role does technology play in health across the lifespan? How does it keep us from being healthy? How does it promote health?

In order to receive full credit for this discussion, remember to respond to the discussion questions by Friday night, and to at least 2 other students' posts by Sunday night.