A single, fundamental dis¬ease of the human body can now be held accountable for much of the illness and more than half of all deaths occurring each year in the United States It is a disorder known by the general term of arteriosclerosis, which means a hardening and thickening of the arteries. It is now so widespread that Dr. Paul Dudley White, the noted heart specialist, recently described it as a modern epidemic. As the disease progresses—sometimes over a long period of time—the vessels that carry the blood from the heart to the body s tissues become stiff, and their inner surfaces roughened and thick. These conditions lay the groundwork for the three most common causes of death and disablement in America: heart attack, heart failure, and stroke.