2. 考研
  3. Faith in medicine runs deep in America. We spend more per person on health care than any other nation. Whether we eat too much o

Faith in medicine runs deep in America. We spend more per person on health care than any other nation. Whether we eat too much o

admin2012-02-27  71
问题     Faith in medicine runs deep in America. We spend more per person on health care than any other nation. Whether we eat too much or exercise too little, whether we’re turning gray or feeling blue, we look to some pill or procedure to make us better.
    We assume that devoting ever more dollars to medicine will bring us longer, healthier lives. But there is mounting evidence that each new dollar we devote to the current health care system brings small and diminishing returns to public health. Today the United States spends more than $4 500 per person per year on health care.  Costa Rica spends less than $ 300.  Yet life expectancy at birth is nearly identical in both countries.
    Despite the highly publicized" longevity revolution," life expectancy among the elderly in the United States is hardly improving.  Yes, we are an aging society, but primarily because of falling birthrates. Younger Americans, meanwhile, are far more likely to be disabled than they were 20 years ago. Most affected are people in their thirties, whose disability rates increased by nearly 130 percent, due primarily to overweight.
    Why has our huge investment in health care left us so unhealthy? Partly it is because so many promised" miracle cures," from Interferon to gene therapies, have proven to be ineffective or even dangerous. Partly it’s because health care dollars are so concentrated on the terminally ill and the very old that even when medical interventions "work,’" the gains to average life expectancy are small. And partly it is because of medical errors and adverse reaction to prescription drugs, which cause more deaths than motor vehicle accidents, breast cancer or AIDS. Each year roughly 200 000 seniors suffer fatal or life-threatening "adverse drug events" due to improper drug use or drug interaction.
    Why don’t Americans live any longer than Costa Ricans? Overwhelmingly, it’s because of differences in behavior. Americans exercise less, eat more, drive more, smoke more, and lead more socially isolated lives.  Even at its best, modern medicine can do little to promote productive aging, because by the time most people come in contact with it their bodies are already compromised by stress, indulgent habits, environmental dangers and injuries.
The passage is mainly focused on ______.
选项 A、the limits of medicine
B、the life hazards in the U. S.
C、the harriers to a longer life
D、the problems in health investment
答案C
解析 最后一段Hougham说：“即使他们不学这些内容，也必须面对这个问题。并不是说不学老年医学课程就能让老年人走开。不管我们是否准备好，他们都将到来。”也就是说老年人带来的问题不可避免。
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