Gregg Easterbrook

According to Gregg Easterbrook in the following viewpoint, people who identify themselves as religious and regularly attend worship services experience lower levels of heart disease, cancer, depression, have fewer strokes, and live longer than nonreligious people. Researchers have examined the correlation between faith and health for decades, he reports, and have yet to determine why religion has such a positive effect on a person’s health. Among the many theories explaining the faith-health link, according to Easterbrook, is that spirituality confers mental well-being on the believer, and mental well-being is associated with good physical health. Easterbrook is a contributor to the New Republic, a magazine of politics and culture.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. Why are many people in the medical communitydisturbed by studies that profess a faith-health link, according to Easterbrook"
2. What...