10 Fascinating Facts About US Life Expectancy

The United States leads the world in many categories, but life expectancy is simply not one of them. Although life expectancy in the U.S. has increased 30 years since the beginning of the 20th century, the country still lags behind 41 other nations and continues to slip in international rankings every year. Americans may have the most prestigious and most expensive health care in the world, but other countries still dominate the U.S. in terms of health care accessibility, nutrition and healthy lifestyles. Here are 10 fascinating facts about U.S. life expectancy:

1. 
   

   The current U.S. life expectancy is 77.9 years

   According to the 2007 calculations, life expectancy in the U.S. has reached 77.9 years for men and women. American men have a life expectancy of 75.4 years and females have a life expectancy of 80.4 years.
2. 
   

   Eighty percent of U.S. counties lag behind the 10 nations with the highest life expectancies

   The nations with the 10 highest life expectancies have made gains that 80% of U.S. counties cannot keep up with. Even though the United States has the most expensive health care system in the world, it continues to lag behind the world's healthiest countries by 50 years or more in some cases.
3. 
   

   Life expectancy for American women is slipping

   American women's life expectancy has slipped behind 16 countries since 1987, going from 20th to 36th place. There are five counties in Mississippi that have the lowest life expectancies for women in the country. These Mississippi women have a life expectancy of 73.5 years at birth, which ranks behind other countries like Honduras, Peru and El Salvador.
4. 
   

   Smoking and obesity slow U.S. life expectancy gains

   High rates of smoking, obesity and other preventable risk factors, such as high blood pressure, have slowed U.S. life expectancy gains. Smoking causes one out of every five deaths in the U.S., and, according to the National Research Council, it takes up to 30 years to see the effects of smoking on mortality rates. America is also the most obese country in the world, which may be exacerbated by the recession and poverty level.
5. 
   

   Black men and women have lower life expectancies than white men and women

   Black men and women have lower life expectancies than white men and women, which is separated by a difference of 4.1 years for females and 6.2 years for males. According to a 2006 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the life expectancy for white females was 80.6 years compared to 76.5 years for black females; for white males, 75.7 years and 69.5 years for black males.
6. 
   

   The mentally ill die 25 years earlier than the general population

   Adults with serious mental illnesses have lower life expectancies than the rest of the population. Individuals who seek treatment in public systems die about 25 years earlier than most Americans. This life expectancy gap has increased since the 1990s because of the growing use of anti-psychotic drugs that cause weight gain and may lead to heart disease or diabetes. Mental health patients are also more likely to have drug or alcohol problems and have higher accident and suicide rates.
7. 
   

   American women live the longest in Collier, Fla., and men live the longest in Fairfax County, Va.

   According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, Collier, Fla., women live the longest in the nation and men live the longest in Fairfax County, Va. The average life expectancy for women living here is 86 years and 81.1 years for men living in Fairfax County.
8. 
   

   The U.S. death rate continues to decline

   In 2009, the U.S. death rate fell for the 10th year in a row, hitting a record low of 741 deaths per 100,000 people and 2,436,682 deaths overall. This is a 2.3% drop from 2008, which had 2,473,018 total deaths. In addition, the preliminary infant mortality rate declined to 6.42 infant deaths per 1,000 births, which is a 2.6% drop from 2008.
9. 
   

   Life expectancy can be increased five to 10 years with a healthy lifestyle

   Men and women can increase their life expectancy by five to 10 years if they make healthy lifestyle choices and reduce their preventable health risks, such as obesity, high blood pressure and smoking. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), healthy life expectancy can be increased if individuals and the government take an initiative to reduce the major health risks that are prematurely killing millions every day.
10. 
    

    Walking speed can help measure life expectancy

    Researchers have discovered that walking speed can help predict life expectancy, and those who walk faster consistently lived longer than those who walked more slowly. Doctors can measure an individual's life expectancy by calculating their distance per second. Those who fit into the average life expectancy should walk about 0.8 meters per second, which is about 1.8 mph.

Taken From Online Degree