Thank you for pointing out the inadequacy of the longevity statistic. Most of us want a full and active life until we suddenly drop dead without years of restriction or misery between an active life and death.

I also think your arguments based on financial considerations ring true.

The individual person, however, is more likely motivated by self interest than by the costs to the overall economy. Promotion of a healthy life style, and motivation to adopt a healthy life style, has to be based on perceptions of self interest. This is tough because immediate self gratification is a strong competitor. We need the very best educators and social scientists working on this one

The most obvious course of action is to NOT to continue encouraging lifestyle choices that are conducive to ill-health. The obvious case is car dependency. The government spends an enormous amount on infrastructure designed to make car driving more attractive. Aside from the significant physical health risks (obesity, respiratory illnesses, carcinogenic exhaust fumes, accidents leading to paraplegia, brain damage etc., all of which put an enormous strain on our health system), there's also the absurdity of our increasing dependence on unstable parts of world for oil. So the less money that is spent on making automobile travel attractive the better...naturally, this means spending more on public transport, bicycle lanes and paths, and more importantly ensure that new housing developments are designed to be suitable for walking and cycling.

Citizenship is the key to life-style everywhere. Social Drift is the worlds most urgent issue and it is sad to see this area of under-development growing in this stage (give the surplus) in the development of modern Australia.

Congratulations to the Federation of Disablities. The concept to empower marginal people through an election drive is smart work. I am inspired and I do hope that Australian's everywhere helps make the demand for this kind of paridgim shift.

Building on our civic capacity is a powerful pro-action and I am hoping to see more of it.

For example - I hope we can make even wider connections for Australia and play a greater role throughout the world.

ie: Information and Communication Technologies and Persons with Disablities in Bangladesh

http://apcdproject.org/trainings/web-based/pant_homepages/abu_baker/index.HTML

We ALL Need to Connect.

I would like to see more work with the SEOUL Declaration and others through a greater world movement towards Objectives: Facilitating the construction and expansion of an interconnected and interoperable informaiton infrastructure in the region. It stresses the need for equity and the inclusion of the disconnected - everywhere.

In Australia this needs to be more fully connected with our own affirmation binding the Brisbane Community Engagement 2005 declaration. This is specifically designed to help marginal groups and emphasises "disablities" as a focus.

Alma Ata Australia "Health for All".

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:KFJSS0vcSSsJ:unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/UN/UNPAN020949.pdf%2BUN%2BSeoul%2BDeclaration&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&ie=UTF-8

http://www.miacat.com
.

That is a good article, but it ignored an important point. I haven't seen the statistics for Australia, but in Britain and the US half the money that is ever spent on an individual's health care, on average, is spent in the last 6 months of life (according to Richard Nicholson, editor of the Bulletin of Medical Ethics, in an article in the (London) Times Higher Education Supplement 6/10/06). In many, if not most cases, it is obvious to all concerned that the situation is hopeless.

If money is diverted to prolonging dying then it isn't available where it could help. Bacterial toxins and inflammation due to rotting teeth and gums are associated with a number of health problems. Recent studies in Britain and France found that giving dental care to pregnant women could dramatically reduce prematurity and low birth weight babies. Just one of these babies can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, not to mention the suffering involved, and millions of dollars if the baby is left with significant disability.

According to a recent New Scientist article on obesity, Mexico and China are experimenting with big taxes on junk food. Our politicians won't even stop the advertising of junk food to children. Individuals do need to take more responsibility, but they also need support from the wider community.

How shall we reward the people who live a healthy lifestyle?When they get old and wrinkled,give them a free facelift.Maybe all the pollution in the air is a bigger factor in bad health than some are willing to admit.I am aware that obesity is not caused by the air and i don't advocate obesity.Genetics also play a part in a persons overall health and so does a healthy mind.Mr Pritikin,the diet guru lived a healthy life and still died relatively young from a heart attack.If people are living longer than ever before maybe its because of all the medical treatment available.Once people died from simple infections that are now cured with antibiotics.Some,like myself,eat what they want,smoke cigarettes,drink alcohol and rarely exercise but never get sick.I have never even had the flu and i'm nearly 60.I am also not overweight.I believe it's mostly genetic as it's not my lifestyle keeping me healthy.