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The surprise is that they should find this surprising. The stereotype is that the people in the longer-lived regions say "These are the things that lead to a l

The surprise is that they should find this surprising. The stereotype is that the people in the longer-lived regions say "These are the things that lead to a longer life" and the people in the shorter-lived regions say "Don't tell us what to do!" That's not to affirm the stereotypes, but rather to say that this is what the stereotypes would lead me to expect. I suppose it's a surprise that the one would be correct at all, since there's so much misinformation about how to be healthy. But the basics (eat less junk food, exercise, and get appropriate medical care) do seem to work, at least a little.

bitshiftfaced 3y ago
By now, every smoker and tobacco chewer on earth knows that to continue doing it will lower their expected lifespan. I'm all for getting quality information to people so that they can make the best decisions, but I think we've reached a point where this is no longer the main issue. Or, perhaps it's not really an issue in the first place. Imagine a society that optimized for their average life expectancy. It could ban all vices and unhealthy foods and put people in "health prisons" when they don't pass BMI benchmarks. Obviously, not many people would want to live in this country, despite it having the highest life expectancy. My point is that people's internal value function, on average, probably isn't life expectancy or even health outcomes. Those may be important, but people make tradeoffs every day. That doesn't mean they're not doing things that maximize their real value function, even if they have access to the best information.
- jfengel 3y ago
  In the stereotypes I'm discussing, the people with bad health outcomes reject every suggestion with the slightest inconvenience for them -- or even if it doesn't inconvenience them. Every novelty is portrayed as "health prison", or the equivalent on other topics. In other words, according to the stereotypes, the internal value function is about rejection. This is a kind of checkmate, a game designed for them to win. Which would lead many to want to leave to it, but it does have effects on people who don't fit the stereotypes and have other priorities (including longer lifespans and more healthy-feeling lifestyles).

bitshiftfaced 3y ago

By now, every smoker and tobacco chewer on earth knows that to continue doing it will lower their expected lifespan. I'm all for getting quality information to people so that they can make the best decisions, but I think we've reached a point where this is no longer the main issue. Or, perhaps it's not really an issue in the first place. Imagine a society that optimized for their average life expectancy. It could ban all vices and unhealthy foods and put people in "health prisons" when they don't pass BMI benchmarks. Obviously, not many people would want to live in this country, despite it having the highest life expectancy. My point is that people's internal value function, on average, probably isn't life expectancy or even health outcomes. Those may be important, but people make tradeoffs every day. That doesn't mean they're not doing things that maximize their real value function, even if they have access to the best information.

jfengel 3y ago
In the stereotypes I'm discussing, the people with bad health outcomes reject every suggestion with the slightest inconvenience for them -- or even if it doesn't inconvenience them. Every novelty is portrayed as "health prison", or the equivalent on other topics. In other words, according to the stereotypes, the internal value function is about rejection. This is a kind of checkmate, a game designed for them to win. Which would lead many to want to leave to it, but it does have effects on people who don't fit the stereotypes and have other priorities (including longer lifespans and more healthy-feeling lifestyles).