According to the Office of the Surgeon General, seven of ten Americans die each year from a preventable chronic disease such as heart disease, diabetes and many forms of cancer. In addition to the high morbidity of chronic disease, there is an associated high economic cost. For instance, health care spending in the United States reached $ trillion last year, which is 16% of the country’s gross domestic product. As much of this cost is due to treating chronic disease, the Office of the Surgeon General has declared that disease prevention is its number one priority. In addition to.
