Looking back over the past century, our quality of life has dramatically changed; the majority of the population can be expected to reach old age in industrialized countries. We are currently living in the golden era of innovation and technology, where what we have thought of as impossible a decade ago are in existence to this day; humanity is encountering great changes. While the most prominent explanations for increased life expectancy are the medical innovations and more nutritionally balanced food, people should recognize they need to implement the habit of eating fruits and vegetables.
One of the principal reasons behind the phenomenon of increased life expectancy is indeed straightforward – medical innovations are advancing. The developed and developing nations are both rapidly catching up as there are improvements in healthcare and hygiene, advents of antibiotics, and development of scientific knowledge. Indeed, it was hard to find a medical structure that was able to take care of a particular illness in the past century. Nowadays, there are hospitals and clinics in each village/city. An example of this would be the Spanish flu which took the lives of 40~50 million people in the early 1900s, but is easily healable in our time as a cure was made to it. With the help of numerous effective methodologies that would cure many diseases, the patients are capable of recovering quickly.
Another reason is the access to more nutritionally balanced foods. As society develops, the quality of the lives of humans are reaching a much higher standard than before. Ranging back to the middle ages, the majority of the population in many countries were not provided enough food to survive; the lower class, consisting of 90% of the population, was supplied with one meal per day. But when we look at humanity today, we have not only escaped from severe famine, but also gained access to wide variety of meals; if we were consuming a single designated seasonal vegetable/fruit in the past, we can now eat our favorite produce anytime. On the whole, this leads to us having a more balanced diet as we are supplied with sufficient vitamins and minerals from various foods.
However, the more accounts of medical innovations and nutritional food we have today does not mean that one is eligible of living longer. It solely depends on how healthy you live; by mainly eradicating the bad behaviors of smoking, drinking alcohol, and etc. that can hustle you into an early grave. To avoid this from happening, an essential skill/habit of eating a healthy diet rich in vegetables and fruits can be implemented into our lives. Choosing food from a full color food palette is a good start. Brussel sprouts for lowering cancer risks, citrus fruits for lowering heart problems, and peppers for reducing cholesterol levels. The more healthy foods you consume, the lower risk that you have of dying.
We can predict that the average life expectancy will rise in the near future, with the development of science and the consumption of better nutritional food. However, this does not merely happen without the effort we put into our daily lives. Life should indeed be cherished, as all of us want to live to the very extent. All in all, due to advancing medical innovations and more nutritionally balanced foods, people are eligible to live longer than before.
Jessica Jimin Kim, Grade 10
Chadwick International School
