Preventive measures save lives
Medical science has shown that certain preventive measures save lives -- but, for various reasons, not everyone takes these measures.If 90% of Americans received just five preventive measures, more than 100,000 lives each year in the United States lf could be saved, according to a new study.
Below are the five measures, the percentages of Americans who practice/receive them today, and the lives that would be saved if that percentage were raised to 90%.
|A daily preventive aspirin for adults (40%): 45,000 lives.
|Professional advice and support on quitting for smokers (28%): 42,000 lives.
|Recommended screenings for colorectal cancer in adults aged 50 and older (48%): 14,000.
|Annual flu shots for adults age 50 and older (37%): 12,000.
|Breast cancer screening every two years for women aged 40 and older (67%): 4,000.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Partnership for Prevention. Aug. 7, 2007.
-- Shari Roan
