the Diabetes crisis : causes, consequences, answers

As we discussed in class, diabetes is a growing problem in the United States. What are the causes? What are the consequences? What can be done to reduce the rate of diabetes?

Diabetes in U.S. rising sharply

The rate of diabetes in the USA has almost doubled in the past decade. This is according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP). A spokesperson for the centre said there was now an epidemic in America. There were 9.1 new cases per 1,000 people between 2005 and 2007. This is an increase from 4.8 per 1,000 between 1995 and 1997. Experts say that one of the biggest reasons for the rise in diabetes is the increasing levels of obesity. Americans are eating more fast food and getting less exercise. This is a recipe for disaster and the exact conditions that lead to diabetes. The American Diabetes Association said 23.6 million American children and adults have diabetes. This is about eight per cent of the population.


Experts say the disease is becoming a silent killer. It is also causing a great strain on America’s health service. The only way for America to control the escalating levels of diabetes is through educating people about the dangers of the disease. A CDCP spokeswoman, Karen Kirtland, told the Reuters news agency: “The hope and the message is that if people are kind of changing their lifestyles, doing the things that are good for them, then hopefully we can reverse the trend.” Many other studies suggest Americans are not leading healthier lifestyles. A diabetes specialist warned the numbers of new cases would continue to rise sharply because Americans showed no signs changing their eating and exercise habits.

Read about the Japanese Economy- How does that situation compare to the U.S. now?

Japanese economy hitting record lows

Japan’s economy is showing signs of slipping into a serious recession. Japanese exports dropped by their largest ever amount in the last quarter. The Japanese Finance Ministry announced on December 22nd that its exports dropped sharply by 27% compared with the previous year. This represents a whopping $60 billion fall in export revenues. Japan is being hit badly by the rising Yen. This is making its cars and electrical goods extremely expensive overseas. Sales in its biggest market, the USA, are really suffering. Toshihiro Nagahama, a chief economist with the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute said: "Japanese exports are in a state of annihilation." The Japanese government predicts worsening times ahead for the world’s second largest economy.
A key sign that Japan's economy is in trouble is the recent loss reported by Toyota. Executives from the biggest carmaker in Japan said the company will experience its first loss in 71 years. It expects to lose over $1.6 billion. This is a considerable downturn from 2007, when it made profits of $2.27 billion and overtook General Motors as the world’s largest car maker. Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe said worldwide sales were down for 2008, and could not provide a forecast for 2009. The company said the downturn was because of a “faster than expected contraction of the auto market”. Koichi Ogawa of Daiwa Investments said: "This is very, very, very bad. There's a chance Toyota could also fall into the red in the next business year."

silvia lopez from colombia

Hi everybody!! mi name is Silvia. i am 32 years. I from Colombia. i have 3 children. Two girls and 1 boy. they have 3 year. theirs names are Maria Antonia, mariana and Jose Manuel. they are triplets.
i live in east elmhurst.
I'm going to the gym daily.
in my free time i like play with my children and stay in home with my family.
my parents live in new york too. i have 1 sister, her name is Natalia. i have a brother too. his name is Gustavo. their are my family.
i want study english because i need speak and write correctly in this country.
my profile in facebook is silvia lopez. i hope see you in fbk!!.
sincerely,
silvia

Greetings from Kevin

Now introduce yourself to the whole class on this blog.

For example:

Dear students,

I am glad to make your acquaintance this morning, at the start of our new class.

My name is Kevin. I am your teacher. I have been living and teaching in New York for a pretty long time, and the more I live here the more I like New York. I was born in Connecticut, but my family moved to New York when I was a baby. I went to highschool and college in New York. In college, I majored in film-making and in graduate school I majored in teaching English as a second language.

My hobbies are many, including writing and photography. Recently, I have begun running for exercise. It is not much fun but I feel good when I finish!

I would like to know about each of you!

Sincerely,

Kevin Lathrop


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password: studentteacher

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