According to the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, life expectancy in the U.S. has increased for the first time since 2014. The report explains that children born in 2018 are expected to live 78.7 years on average, compared to those born in 2017, who are expected to live 78.6 years on average.
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While the .1 raise may seem insignificant, researchers say it’s due to a decrease in death rates from cancer and drug overdoses. Death rates due to chronic respiratory disease and unintentional injuries both decreased by nearly 3%, while rates of deaths from Alzheimer’s disease and stroke decreased by nearly 1.5%. However, the U.S. also experienced an increase in flu deaths and suicide rates in 2018.
According to the report, death rates from suicide increased by 1.4% from 2017 to 2018, and deaths from influenza or pneumonia increased by more than 4%, with 61,000 recorded deaths from the 2017-2018 flu season. While overall drug overdose deaths decreased, deaths due to fentanyl and other synthetic opioids increased by a whopping 10%.
In a separate report from the Commonwealth Fund, researchers found that compared to other wealthy countries, the United States came in last place for life expectancy, lagging behind Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
The report from the Commonwealth Fund also found that Americans are twice as likely to be hospitalized for diabetes or hypertension, compared to those living in other wealthy countries. Both diseases are commonly associated with obesity — which makes sense, when you consider that almost 40% of Americans are obese.
Despite a shorter life expectancy, the report also found that Americans spend almost twice as much money on health care than citizens of any other high-income country. Compared to the U.K., suicide rates among Americans are also double.
Want to learn how to extend your lifespan? Read, “The Revolutionary Science of Aging and Longevity.”