Last week I wrote about the baby boomers' war on aging, and the quest throughout history for extended lifespans, if not immortality. While immortality is still out of reach, we have made great leaps in extending life over the last century with a 50 percent increase in average life expectancy from birth — and the promise of even greater longevity in the future. But old age and death still remain an existential reality linked to the gift of human birth.

For many, blessed with relatively good health, a positive attitude and the spiritual achievement of ego transcendence, the later years can be fulfilling and productive. But not everyone is fortunate. That scenario is captured in the Greek myth of Eos and Tithonus.

Eos, the goddess of the dawn, was smitten with the handsome Trojan mortal Tithonus, the son of the king of Troy. They became lovers and had a child, Memnon, who later became the king of Ethiopia. In time, though, Eos observed signs of aging in Tithonus — not surprising, since he was mortal. Eos swung into action. To ensure their youthful love forever, Eos persuaded the great God Zeus to grant Tithonus immortality, as she possessed. Zeus was not in favor of the union but caved in and granted Tithonus immortality. You would think this would be the back story of a fairy tale that ends with: "And they lived happily ever after." But like many Greek myths, it took a nasty turn. Unfortunately for the lovers, it suddenly dawned on the goddess of the dawn that in her urgent request for immortality for Tithonus she had failed to include an important detail — healthy eternal life. No small matter, as they both soon discovered. Tithonus aged with increasing chronic diseases, deterioration and suffering without the possibility of release through death. His suffering would be endless. Eventually Eos abandoned him, although he remained in the palace, confined to a chamber where his painful, feeble cries could be heard. To release Tithonus from his awful fate, Eos ultimately turned him into a grasshopper.

The fate of Tithonus reminds us that extended life without health may be no blessing at all for the older person, the family or society. We have created a fabulous acute-care medical system — the best in the world - for treating diseases. Modern medical technology and heroics can even keep people alive almost endlessly, but often with little attention to quality of life. That approach will not work with the greatly extended lifespans of our longevity revolution — a child born today can expect to live to the 90s and even beyond as we keep adding years to the average lifespan. But will those added years be healthy years? If not, the cost in human suffering and dollars will be astronomical. That's why we must change our focus and promote wellness, prevention and healthy lifestyles. These are no longer choices but responsibilities of young and old alike. We cannot afford disease lest we make the myth of Tithonus a reality for all of us.

Nice conclusion and advice, you might say. But how can we accomplish the goal of healthy aging in a society with virtually no system of prevention, and unrelenting cutbacks in medical services and prescription benefits for older Americans — with prospects of greater reductions as the percentage of elderly grows and the percentage of the working population shrinks? At the inception of Social Security there were 40 workers for each retiree. We are currently down to 3.3 workers per retiree and heading toward less than two. With that trajectory, some economists warn that we don't have the resources to provide the necessary healthcare for present and future generations of elderly. Is that true?

A few years ago at a national gerontology meeting sociologist Theodore Roszak presented an intriguing response to that question. He pointed out that when the automobile first appeared at the turn of the last century, it was largely a plaything for the rich and leisure class. There were few roads to drive on, and the automobile was used largely for recreation. But Roszak reminded us that there were visionaries who immediately saw that the auto would become the centerpiece of commerce and the economy. They added that to accommodate the importance of motor vehicles, we would have to build a vast system of highways crisscrossing America. Doubters ridiculed that vision, saying it was impossible: "Why, that would cost millions upon millions" (at a time when a million dollars counted). Of course, it came to pass. Similarly, Roszak said that if we truly valued health and longevity and made them priorities, the money, like for the roads, would be there.

So the question is not can we provide proper healthcare and prevention programs for people of all ages but rather, do we have the moral conviction and will to make health our priority? Good question for the New Year and the upcoming presidential election!

(My book, "Escape Your Own Prison: Why We Need Spirituality and Psychology to be Truly Free," is now available at Amazon.com,Barnes & Noble.com and other major book outlets.)

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Bernard Starr, Ph.D., formerly professor of developmental and educational psychology at the City University of New York, now teaches "Spirituality in Film" and leads "The Spiritual Forum" at Marymount Manhattan College. In addition to his work in radio, he is a longtime contributor of commentary and opinion articles to numerous major publications. He is also the main United Nations representative for the Institute of Global Education that founded the Mucherla Global School in Mucherla, India. His book "Escape Your Own Prison: Why We Need Spirituality and Psychology to be Truly Free" has been published by Rowman & Littlefield. He can be reached at {email OmniCns@aol.com}OmniCns@aol.com{/email}. © Copyright 2007 by Bernard Starr.