[quote=scaredyclassic]I bet if we eliminated 75 perc. Of med. Services human lifespans and outcomes would be similar[/quote]I somewhat agree with this, scaredy, and know several people (yes, boomers) who shun conventional medicine whenever possible in favor of (unreimbursed and uncovered) homeopathic medicine. In some cases, I think shunning traditional medicine (whenever possible) could lead to a longer lifespan.

However, the average Joe and Jane 6p likely has not adopted a strict enough lifestyle to “maintain” themselves without medical intervention, especially when they reach the age of 55-ish. For example, most people would be bored with eating cooked steel-cut oats with flaxseed 6-7 mornings per week and living mostly on raw food (salads and vegetables). And most people don’t have the discipline to hit the gym for weight training, lap swimming and go to yoga class, etc, 3 or more times per week. Fortunately, in So-Cal (and probably other locales such as urban CO) there are also a lot of non-gym activities in place for boomers, including hiking and skiing clubs and running/walking clubs. Hence, there are a LOT of fit (even very fit) boomers around me.

The same can’t be said for the population of mostly flatlanders in this country who end up getting “shut in” under air-conditioning for most of the year and have a food culture which is more oriented towards the meat and dairy industries located in their states.

We in Cali are very fortunate to have an abundance of cheap produce available year-round which is grown here or in MX. This isn’t the case in most of the rest of the country.