Jobs for the future

Recently I watched Doc Zone - Generation Jobless about the plight of young Canadians not finding jobs after college. 

The same disgraceful scenario of forfeited education and wasted years of life is repeated here, in the U.S. However, what caught my attention was the account about Switzerland, and its 2.8% youth unemployment, the lowest in the developed world. 

The narrative about the Swiss educational/vocational system starts at minute 31:35. In Switzerland, the decision about the professional future is taken at age of 15. The choices are University or apprenticeship; however, the students are not “locked” in their first choice.

Interestingly, only 20% of the Swiss high school students proceed to attend Universities, thus leading many creative and smart people to the highly-skilled workforce sector (think about the Swiss army knife, Swiss chocolates, Swiss watches, etc.). One of the interviewees proudly stated that the young people are Switzerland’s national priority.

After watching the Canadian documentary, I looked for more information, and found the article Apprenticeships ensure that young people in Switzerland are employable, in which the author states, 

“Seventy percent of teenagers in Switzerland spend their week moving between a workplace, a sector organization, and school. They’re paid a monthly starting wage of around $800, rising to around $1,000 by the time they are in their third year.”

Well, can we learn from the wiser? Is our young U.S. generation our national priority?

How research funding focuses on your real needs

British_sailors_boarding_an_Algerine_pirate_ship.jpg

When you read or hear what people in the U.S. are dying from, what is it? Is it diabetes, cardiovascular disease or cancer?  

Every publication on the topic, including this on Wikipedia, will confirm that these are the most frequent "culprits". 

In fact, all of these are consequences of the real causes of death.

Here are the REAL major causes of death in the U.S. (in parentheses are the numbers of deaths):

tobacco (400,000)
diet/activity patterns (300,000)
alcohol (100,000)
microbial agents (90,000)
toxic agents (60,000)
firearms (35,000)
sexual behavior (30,000)
motor vehicles (25,000)
illicit use of drugs (20,000)
etc.

These causes were summarized long time ago, in 1993, by McGinnis and Foege in their JAMA publication, Actual causes of death in the United States.

It is logical that when you want to alleviate a problem, you address the causes, not the consequences. And yet, do our research funding agencies address the real causes of death or their consequences? Does our health care system do that? Do we continue to treat the symptoms or address the real "roots of evil"?

Here is how one major agency (DOD) that funds research in 2016:

I admit that some of the health problems/conditions listed in this website need more research and deserve funding. However, 1/4 of the listed problems are consequences of lifestyle choices. 

It is also interesting that today the army cannot recruit enough young men with a normal weight, yet none of the research focus of DOD is on lifestyle interventions and solutions to the rising BMI of the nation (and the army recruits). 

Make no mistake, the other major funding agencies do not differ in their focus: they all myopically stare at the consequences, rather than tackling the real causes. 

Can we influence the decisions on how donations and taxpayers' money are being used? Probably.  But first we all need to realize what in fact really KILLS US: our lifestyle.