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The percentage of U.S. adults taking prescription drugs to treat health conditions such as high cholesterol, diabetes, depression and hypertension increased significantly between 2000 and 2006, according to a study released on Tuesday by Express Scripts. And as that percentage continues to go up, so do health insurance premiums for American consumers.

The study itself used data from over three million insured adults in 40 states, as reported by the Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report. According to the study, the percentage of people taking cholesterol drugs increased from 6.1% in 2000 to 13.2% in 2006; the percentage taking diabetes drugs increased from 3.1% to 5.5% during that time period; and the percentage taking blood pressure medications increased from 8% to 14.1%.

The study findings are no big surprise to most: many critics of our health care system argue that our dependence on prescription drugs may be extending our lives, but it does so at the high cost of health insurance premiums.

Doctors have lately been urged to focus less on treating sickness, and more on prevention, since conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and high cholesterol have all been linked in part to lifestyle decisions. By focusing on the prevention of disease many believe that not only would health insurance costs go down, but the patient's quality of life would go up.