New US Plan for Disease Prion
Urging Americans to take responsibility for their health, Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson on Tuesday launched a $15 million program to try to encourage communities to do more to pr chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer and diabetes (糖尿病).
The initiative highlights the costs of chronic diseases—the leading causes of death in the United States—and outlines ways that people can pr them, including better diet and increased exercise.
"In the United States today, 7 of 10 deaths and the vast majority of serious illness, disability and health care costs are caused by chronic diseases," the Health and Human Services Department said in a statement.
The causes are often behavioral—smoking, poor eating habits and a lack of exercise.
"I am convinced that pring disease by promoting better health is a smart policy choice for our future," Thompson told a conference held to launch the initiative.
"Our current health care system is not structured to deal with the rising costs of treating diseases that are largely prable through changes in our lifestyle choices."
Thompson said heart disease and strokes will cost the country more than $351 billion in 2003.
"These leading causes of death for men and women are largely prable, yet we as a nation are not taking the steps necessary for us to lead healthier, longer lives," he said.
The $15 million is designed to go to communities to promote prion, pushing for changes as as building sidewalks to encourage people to walk more.
Daily exercise such as walking can pr and even reverse heart disease and diabetes, and pr cancer and strokes.
The money will also go to community organizations, clinics and nutritionists who are being encouraged to work together to educate people at risk of diabetes about what they can do to pr it and encourage more cancer screening.
The American Cancer Society estimates that half of all cancers can be caught by screening, including Pap tests (巴氏试验) for cervical cancer (宫颈癌), mammograms for breast cancer, colonoscopies (结肠镜检查), and prostate (前列腺的) checks.
If such cancers were all caught by early screening, the group estimates that the survival rate for cancer would rise to 95 percent. New US Plan for Disease PrionThe author mentions all the following ways of disease prion EXCEPT ______.