Every day people decide what to eat, how to educate their children, where to find health care, and how to connect to others. For many, freely choosing a lifestyle defines the American dream. But in the 21st century, these choices are increasingly constructed by corporations and designed not to promote well-being, happiness, and planetary health, but to increase corporate profits and power. As a result, the decisions that corporations encourage individuals to make can lead to premature death, illness, or psychological distress as well as environmental pollution and social conflict. At What Cost: Modern Capitalism and the Future of Health maps the landscape of the changing role of capitalism in shaping health in America, documenting the human costs of the dominant political and economic system. It describes how globalization, financial speculation, monopoly concentration, and business control of science and technology have enhanced the ability of corporations and their allies to overwhelm influences of government, family, and community. It analyses how 21st-century capitalism structures the choices that affect the well-being of individuals, families, communities, and the planet. The book also explores how people, governments, civil society, and social movements are challenging corporate domination and forging alternative paths to a healthier, more sustainable world. While other books have explored pieces of this story, At What Cost offers a comprehensive analysis of the health consequences of modern capitalism. It provides citizens, parents, activists, scholars, and policy makers with the evidence they need to construct a better world for current and future generations.
The changing role of the paediatrician in the 21st century
