Health and longevity / Chapter 1
This section covers three main topics: preventing deaths from accidents and injuries such as car crashes, fires, and poisonings; reviewing several vaccines and screening tests backed by strong evidence; and explaining which bodily warning signs should prompt a medical checkup. The figures listed under “Benefit” come from randomized controlled trials, long-term observational studies, or official statistics. The “Cost” column offers a rough estimate based on current market prices; it is meant only for relative comparison, not for formal citations.
All items here are grouped by theme, with their respective item numbers shown in parentheses.
On the road: Always wear a seatbelt (Item 1), wear a helmet (Item 2), avoid speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol (Item 9), and use proper child safety seats (Item 10).
Fire, gas, and electricity at home: Install smoke detectors (Item 3), replace gas hoses once they reach their expiration date (Item 4), never bring electric bicycles into stairwells or hallways (Item 6), keep fire extinguishers and first-aid kits handy (Item 26), and always use protective guards when operating angle grinders (Item 42).
Accidents involving children, seniors, and outdoor activities: Fit window guards to prevent falls (Item 11), keep young children under constant supervision near water (Item 12), encourage seniors over 60 to practice balance exercises (Item 13), never eat wild mushrooms (Item 5), avoid picking up unknown metal objects (Item 36), and always measure ice thickness before stepping onto frozen surfaces (Item 41).
Vaccines: Get tested for hepatitis B markers (Item 14), stay up to date with tetanus shots (Item 15), receive the HPV vaccine (Item 16), get an annual flu shot (Item 20), consider the shingles vaccine (Item 21), and get vaccinated against pneumococcal infections (Item 22).
Screening and disease detection: Regularly monitor blood pressure (Item 7) and fasting blood glucose levels (Item 8); undergo routine breast cancer screening (Item 17), cervical cancer screening (Item 18), and colorectal cancer screening (Item 19). Also consider testing for Helicobacter pylori infection (Item 23), low-dose chest CT scans (Item 24), bone density measurements (Item 39), and anti-osteoporosis medications (Item 40).
Physical warning signs and sexual health: Seek medical advice if blood appears in urine (Item 27); men experiencing erectile difficulties should first have their cardiovascular health checked (Item 28). Losing weight and quitting smoking can improve erectile function (Item 29). Always use condoms and never share needles (Item 30); get tested for HIV if needed (Item 31) and consider pre-exposure prophylaxis if at high risk (Item 38).
Mental health crises: If you ever have suicidal thoughts, call 12356 immediately (Item 25). It also helps to confide in someone you trust (Item 32). Avoid gambling when you’re already in debt (Item 37). Finally, remember that surviving poisoning from pesticides or carbon monoxide often leaves lasting health problems (Items 33 and 34), and losing a kidney also carries significant long-term consequences (Item 35). You can also ask someone close to you directly whether they have thought about suicide (Item 43).
Wearing a seat belt in the front seat cuts the risk of dying in a crash by roughly half. For drivers and passengers in light trucks, the reduction is about 60%. Among U.S. …
Wearing a helmet and fastening the strap properly reduces a motorcyclist’s risk of dying in an accident by roughly 40%. The chance of suffering a head injury drops by about 70%. …
A properly functioning smoke alarm can cut the risk of dying in a home fire by roughly 60%. Forty percent of fire victims are asleep at the time, so they won’t wake up just from the smell of smoke. …
A compliant gas hose costs just a few dozen yuan. Replacing it when it expires is a user obligation clearly stated in the “Regulations on Urban Gas Management.” …
In 2025 alone, there were 828 cases of mushroom poisoning across China, affecting 2,165 people, with 13 fatalities. That same year, 34 previously unknown poisonous mushroom species were identified. …
Pushing an electric bike into a stairwell, elevator, or charging it at home is strictly prohibited under the Ministry of Emergency Management’s regulations on fire safety in high-rise residential buildings. …
For every 10 mmHg drop in blood pressure, the risk of major cardiovascular problems falls by 20%, stroke risk drops 27%, heart failure risk drops 28%, and overall mortality risk declines by 13%. …
For just a few dozen yuan, a single blood test can detect prediabetes even when there are absolutely no symptoms at all. Official US screening guidelines recommend this test for anyone aged 35 to 70 who is overweight or obese. …
On average, for every 1% increase in speed, the chance of a fatal crash rises by roughly 4%. …
For infants under one year old, using a car seat when riding cuts the risk of a fatal injury in a crash by roughly 70%. For children aged 1 to 4, the risk drops by about half. …
These window guards cost only a few dozen yuan each. …
Wearing a life jacket while in the water cuts the risk of drowning to roughly half compared to not wearing one. Drowning remains the leading cause of death among children aged 1–14 in China. …
Doing balance exercises such as Tai Chi two or three times weekly can cut the overall number of falls among older adults by roughly 23%. It also reduces the proportion of people who have fallen at least once by about 15%. …
The test itself is very inexpensive. …
Once tetanus sets in, about 1 out of every 10 people dies. The risk is highest for deep wounds or wounds contaminated with dirt. …
Data from 1.67 million Swedish women show that those who received the HPV vaccine before age 17 have only about one‑eighth the risk of developing invasive cervical cancer compared to unvaccinated women. …
For women aged 40 to 74, having a mammogram every two years is a clear recommendation in official US screening guidelines. …
In that rural Indian trial, women who underwent just one HPV test in their lifetime had roughly half the risk of dying from cervical cancer and about 50% lower odds of being diagnosed with advanced-stage disease. …
Getting a low-cost fecal occult blood test every year or two lowers the chance of dying from colorectal cancer by roughly 16%. For people who’ve had at least one round of screening, this risk drops by about 25%. …
In a trial involving people after a heart attack, the yearly death rate dropped from 4.9% to 2.9% after they received the flu vaccine. …
In Phase 3 trials, this vaccine proved 97% effective at preventing shingles across all age groups. The downside is that both doses cost several thousand yuan, all paid by the patient. …
In a trial involving 84,500 seniors, the 13-valent pneumococcal vaccine cut cases of pneumonia caused by strains it targets by roughly 46%, and reduced instances of the most severe invasive infections by 75%. …
A 22-year follow-up study conducted in Linqu, Shandong, showed that individuals who had Helicobacter pylori eradicated had roughly half the risk of developing gastric cancer and about 40% lower risk of dying from it. …
Eligible heavy smokers who get a low-dose CT once a year have a 20% lower risk of dying from lung cancer and a 6.7% lower overall risk of death compared to those who only get regular chest X-rays. …
Removing lethal items from easy reach is a proven way to cut suicide risk: after restricting access to painkillers, suicide rates linked to them dropped by 43%; installing barriers at locations where people often jump off cliffs cut rates by 86%. …
Fire extinguishers, fire blankets, escape respirators, and first-aid kits are all included in the Emergency Management Department’s list of 11 essential items for household emergency preparedness. …
Among people aged 60 and older, the chance of ultimately being diagnosed with bladder cancer after experiencing one episode of visible blood in urine is about 2.8%. For those aged 40–59, that figure is roughly 1.2%. …
Men with erectile dysfunction later develop cardiovascular disease at roughly 40% higher rates than other men, and heart attacks at about 60% higher rates. The younger a man is, the greater this difference becomes. …
Managing cardiovascular risk factors naturally leads to better erectile function. When multiple randomized trials are combined, questionnaire scores improve by an average of 2 to 3 points. …
Using a condom every time throughout sex cuts the chance of HIV transmission between heterosexual partners by roughly 70% or more. …
Testing for HIV at the Chinese CDC costs nothing. According to the “National Measures for HIV Testing Management,” staff are prohibited from disclosing your name, address, or test results. …
Among 82 people who attempted suicide, 47.6% reported that only 10 minutes or less passed from the first appearance of suicidal thoughts to the actual attempt. …
There is no antidote for paraquat. Gastric lavage is not recommended, and neither hemofiltration nor dialysis alters its disease progression. …
A trauma ICU in southern Xinjiang treated 289 patients who fell from heights. Only 5.5% died either in the hospital or within 30 days. The vast majority survived, but at a price: 47. …
First, consider the best-case scenario: legitimate donors who pass rigorous screening and receive post‑surgery follow‑up. In U.S. …
Radiation has no smell, color, or temperature. Most radioactive sources look like ordinary pieces of metal, so “it looks harmless” is not a reliable indicator. …
Individuals who have sought treatment for gambling problems are 15 times more likely to die by suicide and 1.8 times more likely to die overall compared to their peers. …
People who aren’t yet infected can take an antiviral drug called pre-exposure prophylaxis to protect themselves. Those who take it consistently cut their risk of infection by more than 70%. …
Women aged 65 and older, and postmenopausal women with osteoporosis risk factors, should have bone density measured once. …
If osteoporosis is confirmed, or you have already fractured from a light fall, following a doctor's drug plan cuts hip fractures by about half and symptomatic spine fractures by a bit more than half. …
Official Chinese guidelines state that ice must be at least 15 cm thick before adults can safely skate on it. In the U.S. and Canada, the minimum threshold is 10 cm, but only for newly formed, transparent ice. …
Angle grinders spin at extremely high speeds; a broken blade can fly off and injure someone, and attaching a wood‑cutting blade can cause sudden recoil. …
The worry that mentioning suicide plants the thought has not shown up in research. …
This part comes from the parveen0029/The-Evidence-Based-Life edition.
Atrial fibrillation (AFib) causes the heart's upper chambers to beat chaotically, allowing blood to pool and form clots; if a clot travels to the brain, it triggers a devastating ischemic stroke. …
This part comes from the parveen0029/The-Evidence-Based-Life edition.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) can silently damage the liver for decades without causing any symptoms; a simple antibody blood test, followed by an RNA test if positive, establishes the diagnosis. …
This part comes from the parveen0029/The-Evidence-Based-Life edition.
Septic tanks, manholes, cesspools, and sealed vegetable cellars accumulate lethal concentrations of toxic gases (like hydrogen sulfide) and suffer severe oxygen deficiency, knocking an entrant unconscious within seconds. …
This part comes from the parveen0029/The-Evidence-Based-Life edition.
For individuals aged 45 and older in high-risk categories for gastric or esophageal cancers, undergoing gastroscopy is associated with a roughly 50% lower mortality from these cancers in observational studies. …
This part comes from the parveen0029/The-Evidence-Based-Life edition.
Black fungus and tremella (silver ear) soaked for extended periods, improperly stored fresh wet rice noodles, and home-fermented corn flour products can be contaminated by Burkholderia gladioli pathovar cocovenenans, producing bongkrekic acid—a lethal bacterial toxin. …
This item has not been translated yet. Showing the original Chinese text.
咳嗽咳痰两周以上或痰里带血，去结核病定点医院查一次。痰里查得到菌的肺结核不治，十年约七成会死。国内开始治疗的新病人和复发病人，约 95% 治愈或者按期吃完了药。药要吃满，自己停药容易让菌耐药，几种主要的药都耐的要治一年半以上，成功的只有约七成。
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