The New York Times has an interesting article that discusses how modern humans are "So Big and Healthy Nowadays That Grandpa Wouldn't Even Know You." The article describes the impact of antibiotics and modern medicine on humans in their youth. The "baby boomers" of today have an overall level of health far higher than their parents did in middle age, and reason stands that their children will have even better health to look forward to.
Quoting from the article: "The biggest surprise emerging from the new studies is that many chronic ailments like heart disease, lung disease, and arthritis are occurring an average of 10 to 25 years later than they used to. There is also less disability among older people today, according to a federal study that directly measures it. And that is not just because medical treatments like cataract surgery keep people functioning. Human bodies are simply not breaking down the way they did before. Even the human mind seems improved. The average I.Q. has been increasing for decades, and at least one study found that a person's chances of having dementia in old age appeared to have fallen in recent years."
You can read the entire article at http://tinyurl.com/qxyf3.
NOTE: The New York Times likes to move the stories on its web site frequently. While the story is available at that address as I write these words, it may be moved to a password-protected page in a day or two.
