Blaise

I wonder if in terms of resources it would cost less to have a larger elderly population than to take care of the people who are currently giving themselves higher rates of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, etc. Especially including their medical care (medication, surgeries), time off work, payouts to their family if they're left without a provider, etc. Just speculating here- I have no idea which is more of a problem.

You know, I agree with that even though my stepfather is killing himself through his lifestyle.

People who cause their own diseases do frustrate me. Not so much people who are a few pounds overweight but healthy, or people who perhaps eat too much fat or drink a bit much, but people who KNOW their health has been severely damaged and carry on. Right now, my stepfather is literally killing himself. His arteries have closed right up because of cholestrol. His blood glucose levels were so high the doctor couldn't test him for diabetes! He's obese. His heart is enlarged. His blood pressure is so high he should be dead.

And yet he won't make lifestyle changes when he has three children and a wife relying on him and could enjoy another 20+ years with them. I love him and think of him as my father, but I can't believe he's still in denial and putting the pleasure of drinking three pints of milk in the night and eating giant chocolate bars and entire cakes in front of his family. I don't yell at him or hate him for it, I just think it's a really stupid thing to throw your life away like that. My diet is one of the lowest at-risks for heart disease, cancer, diabetes etc just by coincidence (I don't eat any animal produce, eat 7+ portions of fruit/veg a day and like cooking from scratch rather than using processed stuff), but even if I ate some of the risky things I would never put self-indulgence as such a priority it would ruin the rest of my life. I don't hate people who do- I just think there are other, more rewarding things they're really missing out on.