Our life expectancy shrinking
Americans like to think of themselves as No. 1, or close to it. We see ourselves as more successful, more affluent, better situated than other nations. Statistics — more than we’d care to admit — don’t often confirm it.
The latest from the National Center for Health Statistics not only places us lower on the totem pole than we should be, but also reveals a disturbing development. We’re living shorter, not longer, lives than we used to. Much of that can be connected to lifestyle; specifically, obesity.
The U.S. ranks 53rd among nations for life expectancy. While one major news source states Japan is No. 1, that spot is actually held by Monaco, where the average person lives just shy of 90 years. According to the World Health Organization’s 2016 rankings (based on 2015 data), Japan ranks second, at 85 years. CIA Factbook’s 2016 estimates currently rank Japan third, close behind Singapore.
Others with life expectancies in the 80s include Macau, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, and much of Western Europe. Ahead of us in the upper 70s are nations in Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. If you live in Russia, your life expectancy is only 67. Africa’s high poverty rates dominate the bottom with most dying in their 50s.
The American average is 78.8 years, which is a month less than the previous year. The decades-long climb in American longevity stalled four years ago. Men fare slightly worse; male life expectancy fell to 76.3 years, from 76.5 in 2014. Women’s decreased by half that, to 81.2 years. Infant mortality remained the same.
Causes are the usual suspects. Cancer deaths actually fell by about 1 percent, but heart-related disease and diabetes increased. Both are connected to effects of unhealthy lifestyles.
We’re still doing better than we were a half century ago; Americans lived about 10 years less in the 1950s. However, we’re not seeing that steady increase we once enjoyed.
The good news is it’s in our power to reverse that. We know what to do; we just need to commit to it. New Year’s Resolution, anyone?
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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network who needs to bake fewer pies. Contact her at [email protected].