Take a chance

摘要

It is a strange paradox that in industrialised countries we live longer and healthier lives than ever before, yet we feel less safe. We shudder at the slightest risk to our well-being. Newspapers regularly run scare stories about new technologies or unsafe food, confident that they will whip up public concern. It seems that nothing short of a life completely free of risk will satisfy us. Our attitudes to risk vary widely. We happily continue in activities we know to be risky, such as smoking, driving and sunbathing. At the same time, we worry about others that carry a low health risk, such as taking oral contraceptives.