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Alright, maybe that question is a bit more philosophical than I can handle in this blog.

But in a very practical sense, the answer to the question is simple: we don’t live forever because there is a long list of things that kill us.

Below you’ll find the leading causes of death in the U.S. in 2004 according to the Center for Disease Control’s website. The data lags behind a few years, but the rankings haven’t changed much lately, so you can bet it won’t be much different when the data for ‘08 eventually comes out.

Deaths-Leading Causes

Number of deaths for leading causes of death

1. Heart disease: 652,486
2. Cancer: 553,888
3. Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 150,074
4. Chronic Lung diseases: 121,987
5. Accidents (unintentional injuries): 112,012
6. Diabetes: 73,138
7. Alzheimer’s disease: 65,965
8. Influenza/Pneumonia: 59,664
9. Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 42,480
10. Septicemia: 33,373

This is a very important list, because it identifies your primary enemies in your quest to live a long, healthy life. The good news is, there are many things you can do to reduce your chances of avoiding the things on that list. Most of the articles on this website will be about trying to dodge these things. Lowering your risk of suffering from any of the things on that list will improve your average longevity tremendously.

By the way, the Center for Disease Control’s website at www.cdc.gov is a great resource. The section on traveler’s health, which has the most up to date guidelines for immunizations and preventative meds to consider before traveling to other parts of the world is invaluable. Check out the link in the blog roll in the right hand column on this page.