Living shorter and the battle against health information
With all the benefits we have in a modern society, maintaining our health in the long term seems to be a diminishing one. We are living longer in years, but according to some research, we have already started living shorter in health. Compared to previous generations our 'healthy' lifespan is already contracting if only healthy years of life are counted (not including years with debilitating illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s). At least half the problem to finding good health advice is getting decent unbiased information. As with all important decisions, the key is to make up our own mind after reviewing the facts and the options from diverse perspectives and not to rely solely on any one science, industry or health body.
Leading causes of death in a modern society
It might seem relatively straight forward to get the 7 leading causes of death in USA. They were in 2010 (according to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC):
- Heart disease
- Cancer
- Chronic lower respiratory diseases
- Stroke
- Accidents (unintentional injuries)
- Alzheimer's disease
- Diabetes
But another leading cause of death was omitted by the CDC in its 2010 list. Properly prescribed and correctly taken pharmaceutical drugs were the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S (killing almost 250,000 Americans annually), and rates are similar in Australia. More recently, an article authored in two parts by Gary Null, PhD, Carolyn Dean, MD, ND, Martin Feldman, MD, Debora Rasio, MD, and Dorothy Smith, PhD, describes in detail how the modern conventional American medical system has become leading cause of death and injury in the US. This might be a useful fact to know when making health decisions.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have declared aspartame and other artificial sweeteners to be safe and logically it seems that a good way to reduce the risk of diabetes and weight gain is to replace sugar with artificial sweeteners. Yet over the last couple of decades other sources of information have raised concerns about the possible harmful effects of artificial sweeteners.
Some studies have shown a link between the use of artificial sweeteners and a tendency towards weight gain and diabetes, exactly what they are meant to avoid. This has been hotly debated but now a recent study has highlighted a possible mechanism for this (see: Sweeteners linked to glucose intolerance, New Scientist 20 Sep 2014; pp 8-9 and Nature, DOI:10.1038/nature13793). These results are not conclusive but indicate sugar is healthier than artificial sweeteners. Representatives from one of the world's largest manufacturers of aspartame have disputed the findings and believe artificial sweeteners are healthier than sugar.
Deciding well could be important as our decisions now can affect our health later and fortunately by knowing this we can come up with better options. For instance, using a natural sweetener like Stevia (available from supermarkets) which is up to 300 times sweeter than sugar but with negligible calories. (See Wikipedia for a quick but comprehensive summary on Stevia.)
In fact our mind is a recognised component to the main "leading causes of death". Mental "stress" has long been known to be a risk factor in diseases such as heart disease and cancer, and optimism studies have shown for decades that "changing our attitude" can change our health. The book, THE SEVEN MOTIVATIONS OF LIFE, explains how all the top 6 "killer" diseases, including diabetes, can be linked to the mind and level of motivation, and what you can do to minimise the risk.
Click here for more information on the seven fundamental human motivations.
MarkTwo Personality Training - Public Workshop
Find out how to discover far greater possibilities in your life
Understand why you do what you do and why others do what they do. Gain a deeper understanding of yourself and others in ways you never imagined.
Brain studies and neuroscientific results are clear - individual personality differences matter. Learn how to understand yourself more and get practical insights for understanding and relating effectively to others (irrespective of race, creed, culture, gender, age or nationality).
This course trains people in the same Jungian model as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) but adds a third dimension which takes it much further.
When: Thu 23-Fri 24 October 2014
Where: Tudor Box Hill Hotel, Box Hill, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Note: This extraordinary course is only run once per year for 25 participants and books out
More information and how to register here
In one word I would call the workshop: powerful...also say enlightening, energising, thought provoking, fun and challenging. Really enjoyed it - Chris Balazs, Senior Manager Quality Control, CSL Behring
Thrive and Survive 2014 Tour
English (and still British...) medical health researcher, Phillip Day, presents in Australia an alternative perspective on ways to gain better health in a practical, challenging and humorous 3 hour talk.
Click here to see when he is presenting near you
(Long) Quote of the Month
It is obvious that teaching is a very special art, sharing with only two other arts, agriculture and medicine, an exceptionally important characteristic A doctor may do many things for his patient, but in the final analysis, it is the patient himself who must get well, grow in health. The farmer does many things for his plants or animals, but in the final analysis, it is they that must grow in size and excellence. Similarly, although the teacher may help his student in many ways, it is the student himself who must do the learning. Knowledge must grow in his mind if learning is to take place - Mortimer Adler, American philosopher & educator
MarkTwo's Month
We have been running transformational leadership courses at a new Melbourne venue - at the Hawthorn Arts Centre (formerly the Hawthorn Town Hall) which is looking great after its $18m refurbishment. Click on Hawthorn Arts Centre to see more.
Mastering Competency and Assessment
It is happening again, Mark Oliver has been asked to run a 2 day advanced assessment course in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for delegates from around Asia, providing them with the best assessment techniques.
Despite going through hundreds of resumes or performance appraisals and then interviewing a score of people, the task of selecting the right person for the role can be a challenge because a piece of paper and a couple of hours of discussion does not always tell the whole story. MarkTwo’s CEO, Mark Oliver, has been advising companies for over 20 years on advanced selection and assessment processes using a premier assessment system called Pario, which objectively measures the complete person’s capability and motivation, especially around those competencies which are hard to assess in interview or in short work placements, such as "results orientation".
Upcoming Events
We are running a range of public programs due to the intense demand arising from the impact of our corporate programs.
Our public programs provide participants with a practical understanding of human nature which they can use in their own life. Examples of typical feedback include:
"Mark, your class was eye opening and educational. I felt that because of your energy, patience and method of teaching, I came away having opened a new window of insight into myself and my colleagues. Thank you for a great class" - Roni Dattani P.Eng, M.A.Sc., Manager, US Clinical Manufacturing & Op-Ex at the BMFl, CSL Behring
See the full list of available public workshops
