Let's forget about healthcare reform for a minute as the primary way to reduce healthcare costs in the US.

In reality, the best way to reduce healthcare costs in the US is via personal responsibility and common sense. Here are a few things that would probably reduce healthcare costs in the US by 25% or more.

1. Lose weight. We are the most obese nation in the world. How much do you think the obesity problem adds to our healthcare costs in the form of diabetes, heart attacks, etc. Stop gorging ourselves on fast food, snacks, etc, etc and begin eating reasonable portions that include fruits, veggies, nuts, etc. Then, get out and exercise.

2. Stop smoking, using illicit drugs and drinking to excess. These activities result in huge healthcare related costs due to lung cancer, emphysema, liver damage, rehab, etc, etc.

3. Stop going to the doctor demanding treatment for minor ailments such as colds. We've become a nation of wimps and hypochondriacs. People run to the doc for viral illnesses such as the common cold, viral ear infections, viral sinus infections, etc and demand antibiotics. Unfortunately, too many docs bow to the demands of the patient. This type of behaviour adds huge levels of expense to the healthcare system.

I'm sure others can add to the list. Before we "reform" our system, let's see if we can get to the real root of the problems and not only save money, but also save and improve the quality of many, many lives.

I don't want to be saddled with the cost of paying the premiums for people that do not take care of themselves. If nothing else, high risk folks that refuse to modify behaviour should be charged significantly higher premiums than those that reduce our healthcare risk, and therefore cost, by taking care of our bodies.

I agree that these would be good ways to help reduce health care costs, but HOW do we do that?

People keep getting fatter and lazier and any attempts by the government, schools, doctors, etc. to promote healthy habits and exercise are soundly dismissed.

P.S. I eat well, exercise every day, don't smoke or use drugs, have no ongoing or chronic health issues, and I only go to a doctor when I am really sick or for a scheduled preventative visit. And my premiums went up 25% last year - so it's not just a preventative health issue.

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

then, you should be rewarded, not punished. Those that do not act responsibly should be "punished" with higher premiums that will in turn promote better behaviour.

A great idea until you realize that obesity, heavy drinking and smoking are all rampant among those with the least money. I am sure they don't care much.

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The main point of healthcare reform for me is the idea of offering affordable care for those who currently cannot afford it. By bringing these people into a plan and providing preventative care, doctors will be able to advise them on a healthy lifestyle. Many of these citizens have never seen a doctor. In the long run this would save money and save and improve the quality of more American lives. Even if does cost a bit more, so what? Think of the increased productivity of a healthy worker and the health and happiness of their children which will translate into a healthier and happier nation.

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"We must recognize the fact that adequate food is only the first requisite for life. For a decent and humane life we must also provide an opportunity for good education, remunerative employment, comfortable housing, good clothing and effective and compassionate medical care." Norman Borlaug

I think that the vast majority of people already know what constitutes a healthy lifestyle. Most don't care, some simply can't see the economic gain (ie those who feel it is wiser to invest in the Mcfastfood dollar menu for dinner than spend more time and money on a decent home prepped meal). If you depend on doctors to counsel on lifestyle the proverbial horse is out of the barn-better to teach such matter in schools in legitimate health, nutrition and physical education classes. By the time kids get to be young teens their eating and activity habits are largely cast.

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One more thing, and sorry for double posting

One thing we could do NOW to make children healthier and happier and save a buttload of money is to make it much more difficult for new moms to get baby formula via the WIC program. Seriously. Nothing beats breast milk for promoting optimal health for a newborn, yet many if not most of the poorest American women don't even make an attempt at breastfeeding. Lord only knows how much money goes down the WIC 'formula for all' hole annually.

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IMHO, if the gov't were serious about promoting healthier lifestyles, they would stop subsidizing, for instance, commodity corn, the program which had as one horrific unintended consequence the mushrooming of engineered processed "food products" loaded with corn syrup and other chemicals and junk that cause obesity, sugar problems etc.

If gov't were serious about promoting healthy lifestyles, they wouldn't teach school kids to eat healthy and then feed them fatty, starchy, vile nasty commodity surplus garbage in the lunchroom, and have garbage vending machines all over the schools. And they would still require all kids K-12 to have PE every day.

If the gov't were serious about promoting healthier lifestyles, they would stop subsidizing sprawl and a car-centered lifestyle, and instead they would start promoting the building/retrofitting of pedestrian-friendly towns, cities and neighborhoods. They would make big incentives for community gardens, clean local food supplies, etc. -- or at least not get in the way of people tryig to make that happen by creating a snarl of red tape and regulations that favor the kinds of agriculture that bring us tainted meat and veggies, and Frankenfoods.

I could go on....

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

I'm not suggesting doctors be the only source of knowledge for healthy living. We do need more education in schools and at home. Many people have no idea the state of their health because they have never seen a doctor. Once they have been informed of their high blood pressure etc. who is in a better position of authority to advise a lifestyle change than a doctor? There is no guarantee your advice will be followed, but doctors consistantly top the list of the most respected professions. A physician's opinion carries more weight than cousin bubba's ever will.

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"We must recognize the fact that adequate food is only the first requisite for life. For a decent and humane life we must also provide an opportunity for good education, remunerative employment, comfortable housing, good clothing and effective and compassionate medical care." Norman Borlaug

I saw this today and thought it relevant to this discussion.

Ezra Klein - The Persistence of Obesity

This reminds me of Charles Karelis's "The Persistence of Poverty." The basic argument is that the wealthy misunderstand the mental state of the poor, which leads them to make conceptual errors when creating policies to address poverty, or, in this case, obesity. Think of a bee sting, he advises. If you have a single bee sting, you'll go buy some salve to take away the pain. Now imagine three bee stings, a sprained ankle, a burn, a cut, a crick in your neck, a sore throat, and arthritis. Does the bee sting matter anymore?

It is one thing for a successful, financially comfortable, socially accepted and respected person who has multiple things happening every day that are pleasurable (golf, driving a nice car, nice home, stylish clothing, success at work, interesting social events, kids doing well, planning vacations, etc) to take just one pleasurable aspect of life (overeating) and sacrifice some of that pleasure for the good result of losing weight.

"Now, for people struggling financially and socially, trying to just get through the day and keep their lives together to varying degrees ... their meals are often the only consistently happy and pleasurable events they can count on each day.

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Get outdoors in Walton County!

Don't confuse having less with being less, having more with being more, or what you have with who you are. Noah benShea

No, but the sting doesn't hurt any less, either. Also, I am not buying into that mentality that a meal is the happy salve for those in poverty who are obese. It can still be a happy time with less of it, more nutritious, and with good company...like spending time with your kids instead of hoarding over a king sized super burger and fries. It's all about proper education into the psychosis of overeating and proper nutrition. What we need is free counseling and it needs to start in the schools and followed up at home. Hail, my 3 yr. old nephew already asks first if a certain food will make him big and strong.

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I am calling BS on that one too - rising obesity isn't from "food joy," it's from poor nutrition, insane portion sizes, fast food, and lack of exercise.

And it isn't just a "poor" issue - people from all classes and ethnic backgrounds are having the same issues.

P.S. I know alot of "poor" people who are a hell of a lot happier than many "rich" people. Money doesn't buy happiness, love, or insulate you from tragedy.

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

[quote=scooterbug44;616414]I am calling BS on that one too - rising obesity isn't from "food joy," it's from poor nutrition, insane portion sizes, fast food, and lack of exercise.

And it isn't just a "poor" issue - people from all classes and ethnic backgrounds are having the same issues.

P.S. I know alot of "poor" people who are a hell of a lot happier than many "rich" people. Money doesn't buy happiness, love, or insulate you from tragedy.[/quote]

No, but it's the only way to get health insurance

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"We have to be cool to everybody. Because the future is like a Japanese game show: You have no idea what’s going on."-Tracy Jordan - 30 Rock

[quote=aleonard;616417]^5!!

what about exercise and conditioning for a diabled 62 YO woman. I have had MS for many years and am unable to walk, drive. Several of my doctors have told me that my only option for exercise is resistance bands. I broke a foot badly when I dropped a weight on it. I am also undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Had a radical masectomy last April. Just finished chemo and am today starting radiation. I have chronic fatigue from the chemo which will only worsen with the radiation treatments. I had been covered by Ala BC/BS policy I had owned since I don't know how long. I began working when I was in high school and that was BC/BS coverage. Also have medicare as I am considered disabled and unable to work. Several months back rec'd a call from BC/BS and Medicare telling me that they were changing my insurance coverage retroactively. That Medicare will be primary and nothing should be sent to BC/BS unless and until Medicare denies the claim. From conversations with my physicians, I learn that while Medicare is not denying the claimns, neither are they paying claims. Wonder how long physicaians will be willing to provide service without payment? At some point the bills will be sent to me at some point. This diddling with ins. coverage is occuring to young and old. Just heard on NPR of a young family whose had twins and their BC/BS was cancelled retroactively. My young neice had the same experience a few years back. She had good coverage, husband a lawyer and she worked at a bank. Pregnancey ended with birth that injured baby who now has muscular distrophy and will likely never be able to function independently. Oh, and BC/BS cancelled them like a speeding freight train. People get sick, people get hurt, and we have relied on insurance to help us with those circumstances...But that coverage is no longer there ya'll. Protection from insurance is just an illusion. I don't seee anyone offering to come out and help me by shopping for healthy groceries and helping me with exercise routines. Most days I can't even sit up. I do stretches and "try" to do yoga, but have found myself on the floor so often My committment varies. Please do not judge others and assume that their life would be simple "if only". And wonder when the insurance door will slam shut on your head.

Oh, just curious...how many here speaking out agaist healthcare reform have experienced, first hand, the termination of their insurance coverage? My philosophy is do not speak unless you have experience. Another. oh, my employment history is that I worked jobs with with blue cross and paid my premiums, they were actually cut out of my wages before I got the check, without interruption since the age of 16-17. It was always very important to me to have good medical coverage, and I paid for it. Now BC, says I am not good enough for them. I feel nauseated by the whole experience and feel for all you have walked this road

Thanks for your post; and best wishes as you continue to heal. I agree that until one has walked in another's shoes, one can not know how they feel.

Your story is repeated many times over across this country and I think it is a disgrace that the insurance companies continue to behave as they do, and that some Democrats and all Republicans in Congress continue to enable that behavior.

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"Whether we and our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice than we do." — Wendell Berry

And along with making formula harder to get, we would be wise to implement strong cultural and practical supports for nursing moms/families. You would not believe the nasty looks and even verbal scoldings I used to get for nursing my sweet babies in public--and I don't mean in a flashy look-at-me way. Very discreet. I have noticed in recent years some stores suggest that moms nurse their babies in the restrooms. GROSS! Who eats in public bathrooms? I should think Health Department regulations would prohbit such insanity.

If I could turn back the hands of time, maybe I would get really in-their-face about nursing, at least with anyone who gave me nasty looks or comments. I'm envisioning a nursing mom's version of one-finger salute; would like to see the look on their faces THEN!

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

I like the solution where many public places, restaurants, and stores provide a separate room w/ comfortable chairs or a sofa near the restroom facilities for nursing mothers.

I totally agree that nursing IN the public restroom is just nasty/unsanitary, but I have run across too many overly aggressive and immodest nursing mothers to fully support doing it in public......................especially when your kid is so old they are talking and tying their own shoes and I am trying to enjoy my dinner.

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

Maybe somebody breastfeeding in public is something you become accustomed to.

On an intellectual level, it seems perfectly natural and certainly correct. But, I once worked in an office where a co-worker merely used a breast pump at lunch. That sound...egh. I'm ashamed to say I had to start taking my lunch to a nearby park. I can't really stomach anyone speaking with their mouth full either - particularly over the telephone, so I'm sure it's just my problem. Perhaps if it had always been socially more common when I was growing up, I wouldn't have this aversion.

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They’re all for diversity in everything but thought.
George Will

IMO it's one of those things that has varying degrees of okayness based on location and circumstances. American society has made women's breasts overly sexual/private things that are supposed to be covered in public - so that affects how breastfeeding is viewed.

My level of comfort w/ it varies based on the circumstances - doing it around friends or family member is obviously okay, it's the very public and not technically necessary breastfeeding (esp. when you know it makes others uncomfortable) that I rail against.

My cousin breastfeeding in the living room - no problems with that whatsoever.

Lady a couple feet away in the plane on a long flight - no issues.

Stranger whipping out her boob to feed a 4-6 year old in an adult restaurant when I am trying to have dinner at the next table - no pucking way!

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

So it's okay for you and most other folks to eat in public, but not okay for an innocent, breast-fed baby who eats mostly or all breast milk? Did you know that human mother's milk is so perfectly formulated and easily digested that breast babies need to eat at least every couple of hours, sometimes more often, and all the experts recommend feeding breast babies on demand? Sometimes nursing mothers and their babies are dining out or traveling with groups and cannot dictate when and where meals will be ordered, served and eaten. I say babies' needs come first.

I do believe our culture has perverted our understanding of what breasts are supposed to do. Their main purpose is feeding babies, not titillating men and boys, being augmented with silicon, pushed up with rib-bruising wires, or displayed with revealing fashions. Those are all fine and dandy, but to demonize a nursing mother for doing what is natural? Not fine. I wonder if there are any likenesses of great master paintings of women nursing babies in any fancy resturants where public nursing is discouraged, LOL!

Addition after initial posting: Scooterbug, I just realized I mistakenly thought you had written 4-6 month, not 4-6-year-old. There may be some age when it would be more appropriate to keep the nursings private. I confess to having confused feelings about extended nursing past age 2 or so (I was never able to last longer than 15 months with my babies before weaning, but it was just because I was worn out with it). Perhaps I need an attitude adjustment as much as the rest of America, to be more accepting of those who choose to continue nursing much longer than most. I gather that nursing till 4-5-6 years old is quite common in many European countries that are regarded as quite civilized....wonder how they handle it in those places, the public/private thing. I nkiow they don't make as big a fuss about adult nudity in the European countries I've visited, maybe they don't make as big a fuss about public nursing either.....

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

I can't really speak to the nursing customs of any of the European countries I have visited - as the only women I have ever seen nursing publicly were beggers trying to garner more sympathy or distract male tourists so their conspirators could pick their pockets.

Also believe it is traditionally rare for a nursing baby to be shown in art - but mainly because the people who would be painted were either religious babies (Jesus or John the Baptist w/ Mary) or wealthy women who didn't nurse their own children in life, let alone in art.

I believe public nursing isn't done more because they want the baby to be protected from the dirtiness and germs of public places than because it is a cultural no-no. Many places have a tradition where the mother/baby don't go out or entertain for a set time after the birth to allow time to recover and bond and to protect the baby from germs/contaminants.

Not saying that breastfeeding isn't a good thing for a baby or something that shouldn't be encouraged, just that there should be some limitations and manners involved - same as with everything else.

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

First, let me just say - women showing breasts in public legally, that gets my vote. However, since I love to take the other side of such things, I'm curious. First, woman have been breast feeding for centuries, why is there this big push as of late to protect women who feel the need to do this in public vs. whatever it was they used to do when they couldn't? (My guess is they stayed home and fed the baby. Child rearing is not without its sacrifices I guess.) Second, all body parts have a natural purpose, that doesn't necessarily mean you get to pull them out and show them off to the world if such an act goes against community standards, wouldn't you agree?

Uh, women should be able to breastfeed in public. They should probably be subtle to avoid the leers of all the puritans, but on the other hand you don't have to stare at the breasts. Breast feeding is healthy, and the lack of it in our country speaks to the general trend toward selfishness and convenience to the detriment of our health.

Also- formula was pushed on people during World War 2 so that women would quit feeding their babies the natural way and get into the factories. The government essentially claimed breastfeeding to be unsanitary and unhealthy in order to boost production. I'm not saying you're not a good person if you don't breast feed, but it's sad that people can't act like grown-ups and understand that boobs were actually designed to nurse children, not motorboat, etc. I think we need a world where these things can co-exist.

Can't agree on that one, sorry, because I think in this case the existing community standards are perverse, unnatural, and hypocritical in a nation that makes so much noise about family values.

Staying home is great if you choose to and if you can, but every mother and family's situation is different. Community infrastructure in most parts of USA is not conducive to moms and kids getting their needs met by mom staying home. Some moms work outside home for pay, and for all kinds of other reasons (driving older kids here and there for instance), so they often have to be out in various public settings with their babies at all kinds of times that might not be ideal fo some or all concerned.

I suspect public breastfeeding went on for many centuries and wasn't any big deal, till after Nestle & friends pushed formula addiction on the world and gave breastfeeding a rep of being somehow unclean, nasty, etc. I don't think there's a sudden push about public breastfeeding, just a natural tendency of at least some moms to do what comes natural, and respond with righteous horror and indignation when it is treated as criminal or pornographic.

But if there is (a sudden push), then perhaps it has as much to do with Nestle's very successful anti-mothers'-milk campaign as with the fact that women in general today live more public lives than in the past, because of our/their increased presence in the paid labor force and all other realms that not so long ago were exclusively male domains. Maybe this is all another aspect of adjusting to the changing times vis a vis women's rights.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

...perhaps this is about some double standard we haven't yet discussed? There are some things men do very publicly that I find questionable, and I"m sure I can't possibly be all alone on this -- like adjusting the fronts of their britches all the time, spitting nasty things on the sidewalk, to name the first couple that jump to mind.

How are those behaviors okay if breastfeeding is not? Was a baseball champ ever escorted off the field in disgrace for scratching his you- know -whats ? Did anyone ever arrest a man for hawking a big nasty one on the sidewalk in a park? How is it that nursing women have been arrested for feeding a baby with their God-given equipment?

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

I'm sure we have laws on the books against spitting on the sidewalk. It seems to come back to community standards again. When I was in school at FSU I was dj at the college radio station - even though the FCC had national rules about what could be heard and what couldn't, we had more strict rules revolving around community standards we had to uphold or risk getting shut down. I think in the case of breast feeding you're dealing more with trying to change public perception than anything else. That's a tough battle to fight and it doesn't change over night.

You are right about that. Especially when huge multinational corporations have a stake in keeping breastfeeding nasty so that formula feeding is seen as preferable, more prestigious, etc. I don't think I can take that one on by my lonesome, but maybe some of my comments here on this thread changed a few hearts and minds in a nursing-friendly direction? I hope.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

Susan I agree with you and I support you on this, but really, are people sheep? This blaming of corporate america for all things bad in world, I just don't agree with it. People have a responsibility to make up their own minds, if they don't that's not the fault of those trying to convince them of something.

I wrestle with the same questions myself. Not sure I can give clear answers. I don't blame corporations for all the ills of the world, but I don't think it's a fair game when you have millions to flood every inch and every minute of modern daily life with advertising of products that are designed to make you a profit even if they are bad for your customers. And then there are more subtle "ads" like product placement and other stuff I don't know names for.

I think also the changes in broadcast and other media are significant. They have gotten away from the concept of public service and public good, or even of balancing profit motive with public service. It's a huge topic and I really have to go to the office now, but am hoping someone who knows the lingo better than me will jump in to flesh out what I'm mentioning here.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

My views on public breast feeding have nothing to do with corporate America pushing formula and everything to do with what I feel is appropriate public behavior. Every female relative and friend I have (that is physically able) breastfeeds their babies, but they do it modestly and stop before their baby is in kindergarten.

Susan, all the stuff you mentioned (spitting, adjusting yourself in public, etc.) I also find to be unacceptable behavior. Frankly, cell phone rudeness is a much bigger problem IMO than nursing mothers, but that isn't a 'health issue'.

Was public breast feeding ever completely acceptable in the US? I am having a hard time picturing it during the various eras that were much more limiting as far as behavior and dress - thought it only became okay during the 70s & 80s.

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"Chemicals should not be innocent until proven guilty."

I don't know about public breastfeeding in USA before my lifetime, but I'm betting it's not a topic that would have been covered in any depth in our history books. Even so, I'm not sure it matters to me at this point, since Puritanical repression is one of the forces driving our nation's unbalanced attitudes around sexuality and our bodies. Another driving force is whatever you call it that is behind the ever-more-prevalent sales tool of showing lots of big cleavage and boobs to sell cars, trucks and beers. Odd, isn't it, that revealing displays of breasts in the interests of capitalism are fine, but showing some skin while feeding a baby is inappropriate?

I think 30AShopper is on the money in that it is a perception thing. That's where the roles of advertising and marketing come into play, as well as the social customs and mores/perceptions, as described above.

That so many Americans regard public nursing as inappropriate is also considered in many circles to be an issue of women's rights. There are nonprofits, blogs and movements all across the country dedicated to amending or passing laws so that women can feed their children in public without fear of arrest, harm or other hassles.

I guess I would say to everyone who gets nervous or embarrassed or otherwise uncomfortable around nursing mothers and babies in public, please try to accept it; if you can't, please just look the other way--live and let live. One of the earliest lessons I learned in counseling was that one cannot change others' feelings, thoughts or behavior of others, one can only change one's own feelings, thoughts and behaviors....

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com

In my opinion, you cannot blame the corporations for everything because in the end, people need to be held accountable for the decisions that they make. BUT, there is definitely a push from the formula companies to get babies on formula and not breast milk.

All of the welcome packets from ob-gyn that you get at your first pre-natal visit include formula samples, and when you leave the hospital you leave with tons of formula samples, just in case...

When I had my daughter, I came home feeling frustrated because we were having issues getting her to latch on. This feeling is what corporations capitilize on. The mother is frustrated and wants her baby to eat so she remembers that formula sample she got and it's easy to slip into that routine instead of giving breastfeeding a real chance. Thankfully, in my case, the lactation consultant at the Sacred Heart in Pensacola was awesome:) I think if the hospitals didn't give out samples (unless requested, I suppose), then maybe more people would stick with breastfeeding because they HAD to.

Also, on all formula packaging and magazine ads, you will notice they say that breastfeeding is best for your baby. This is because they have to by law, I wonder if they would still include that if they weren't forced to? There was supposed to be a big public campaign (similar to no smoking campaigns) back in 2003 about breastfeeding from the Department of Health and Human Services, which didn't happen because of lobbying from the formula companies.

It's a shame that doctors/hospitals don't really inform their patients about breastfeeding...I wonder if it's because some of them get $$ from the formula companies to handout their specific brand's samples?

As far as WIC goes, why wouldn't they offer coupons(not sure what the right word is there) for breast pumps/supplies as well as formula? Then children would be healthier and think of all the money that would be saved, considering that formula feeding costs between $1500-$4500 a year.

I think that corporations and the media don't help. Any story you hear in the media regarding breastfeeding is always about some lady nursing her older child. I saw a story awhile back on Fox Business Channel about a breastfeeding doll and they were talking about how outrageous it was. I wonder if they think a little girl feeding a babydoll a bottle of manufactured food is gross? In almost all of the books/videos we found while trying to prepare my daughter for the arrival of her little brother showed babies been bottle fed...so there is marketing from the start to push you towards formula.

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*Pam*

Breasts - sexual or for breastfeeding babies?

This is a great website that covers a lot of the things we've been discussing about breastfeeding and cultural attitudes, laws, etc.

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Susan Horn
www.artisan-builds.com