After his last sight of the pathetically stricken Brahms, stooped and fumbling with sausages over the stove, Mahler curiously burst out to a friend that he himself wanted to die at the height of his powers, before his works became weaker.

ECONOMIST: Composers�� lives: Setting it straight | The

At the height of the controversy over obesity, in 2002, 400, 000 people were estimated to die prematurely in America because they were overweight.

ECONOMIST: Food in rich countries