Using data for selected developed countries, the factors affecting an individual's susceptibility to morbidity and mortality are analyzed. "On the basis of empirical data the author concludes that frailty is not unchangeable throughout a person's lifetime but subject to period effects,...which tend to overwhelm the genetic element.... Current external conditions...exert a pervasive influence on the frailty of an individual and the mortality of the population making them responsive to health-related policies and personal choice." (SUMMARY IN FRE AND ITA)
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