Americans Have Shorter Lives




Life expectancy in most U.S. counties lags behind that of the world's healthiest nations, in some cases by 50 years or more, according to a new analysis of government data.
 


For instance, in Holmes County, Miss., which has the lowest life expectancy in the country, a woman can expect to live 73.5 years, the average life span that women in the healthiest nations had in 1957 and have since far surpassed.
 


To determine how American life spans stack up internationally, researchers from the U.S. and the U.K. compared life expectancies in the U.S. to a moving average of those in the 10 nations with the lowest death rates, a group that includes other affluent countries such as Switzerland, Australia, Japan, and Canada.
 


Between 2000 and 2007, the researchers found, more than 80 percent of U.S. counties fell below the life-expectancy bar set by that group of leading nations, even though the U.S. spends more on health care per capita than any other country in the world.
 

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Given the increasing life expectancy in countries like Canada and Australia, the widespread pattern of decline in the U.S. is "a huge surprise," says Christopher Murray, M.D., one of the study's coauthors and the director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, in Seattle.
 


"We all know from previous work that there are great [life expectancy] disparities in the U.S. across counties, but I sort of expected that when we compared progress in counties to what's possible that we would be keeping up," Murray says. "And we're not."
 


The study, which was published in the journal Population Health Metrics, does show huge differences from one U.S. county to the next. In 2007, life expectancies for men ranged from a high of about 81 years (in Fairfax County, Va.) to a low of about 66 years in Holmes County. 
 


The trends are especially concerning for women. Since 1997, women's life expectancy has slipped or failed to rise in more than 850 counties (compared to just 84 counties for men), including 82 percent of the counties in Oklahoma, 66 percent in Tennessee and 59 percent in Kentucky. In Mississippi, there are five counties where the life expectancy for women is on par with nations such as Honduras, El Salvador and Peru.
 


The study's findings are in sync with a report released in January by the National Research Council that compared life spans in the U.S. with those in other high-income nations, says Samuel Preston, Ph.D., a professor of demography at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, and a co-chair of the panel that produced that report.
 


"The conclusion that American women are falling further behind their peers in [leading industrialized countries] certainly is correct, and if it's happening at the national level, it has to be happening in some counties as well," Preston says.
 


Murray and his coauthors say the county-to-county disparities can't be explained by demographic factors such as income or ethnicity -- even though, for instance, black men and women have lower life expectancies than their white counterparts in all counties.
 


"Ninety percent of the variation in the pace of progress is not related to either of those factors, so you need to look elsewhere to understand why some counties are keeping up and why other counties are falling behind," Murray says.
 


The authors suggest that smoking, obesity, high blood pressure and other behaviors and conditions that contribute to poor health and early deaths might be responsible. Locally tailored programs that aim to help people quit smoking, lose weight and otherwise improve their health may help reverse the troubling life-expectancy trends, they say. 
 


"There needs to be more investments in policies and programs at local as well as state and national levels to move those metrics," agrees David Kindig, Ph.D., an emeritus professor of population health sciences at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison, who was not involved in the study.
 


Kindig adds, however, that it's just as important to invest in programs that, for example, boost education and employment, because social and economic factors also drive health outcomes.

Comments

[JHKH]

06:52 PM on 06/20/2011

The US's health costs contain a parasitic middleman -- insurance companies -- that drive up prices without a positive impact on care or outcomes. It's no surprise we're not getting value for money spent.

[Iatros78]

04:36 PM on 06/16/2011

I do not know how well these other nations educate their children in regard to health, but I can tell you that health education for children in the US is not a high priority. All states have educational standards for math and social studies, but few have them for health. Why? One reason is that comprehensive health education necessarily covers the entire human body. Social conservatives don't want any discussion of health with children that involves "S-E-X." California is a notable exception for its excellent comprehensive health education standards. In contrast, many of these counties with low life expectancies are in states where social conservatives have blocked any attempts to institute statewide comprehensive health education standards. Of course, a number of American corporations that produce unhealthy products (cigarettes, junk food, etc.) also have a vested interest in keeping American children ignorant about health matters. If Americans are truly interested in improving the nation's health, they would demand that all 50 states have comprehensive K-12 health education standards that must be taught by all schools.

[Stilyagi]

01:37 PM on 06/16/2011

"Between 2000 and 2007, the researchers found, more than 80 percent of U.S. counties fell below the life-expectancy bar set by that group of leading nations, even though the U.S. spends more on health care per capita than any other country in the world.
 "

Americans: Now you see how your government and your capitalist system is failing you. Despite paying more for health care and having some of the most advanced health care in the world, all you're doing by your for profit health care system is getting screwed. Not getting healthy and living longer.

Demand more from your taxes. Demand at least what Canada and Japan have, from your government. Or the plan THEY have as politicians.

[DKAnise365]

01:14 PM on 06/16/2011

Over the last 40 years, I watched a society of people who cooked meals, spent a lot of time outdoors and had more communal gathers, turn into a hostile, eat alone and money hungry place! Its very sad to see people killing themselves and being accomplices to corporations that are poisoning them right in the kitchen!

[Kmuzu]

01:01 PM on 06/16/2011

I claimed that people in the South have shorter lifespans to which a whole bunch of Republicans demanded links .. like there was any doubt.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_by_life_expectancy

[waldopepper]

01:00 PM on 06/16/2011

Everybody knows.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG5e1oaen-M

Nothing will be done.

[Oceras]

02:05 PM on 06/16/2011

Not if people go around saying, "Everybody knows nothing will be done."

[kcwookie]

12:59 PM on 06/16/2011

That's part of the plan for Social Security and Medicare. Grayson hit it on the head, the Tea Party wants people to quickly die if they aren't productive.

[Holly Smoke]

12:58 PM on 06/16/2011

America is a colony of the corporation. People are brainwashed to work against their quality of life.

[Marc NL]

12:58 PM on 06/16/2011

Hardly any vacation in the U.S
Broken health care system.
High levels of stress.
High levels of obesity.
Low life expectancy.

Yet everything in Europe sucks. Go figure.

[caneca]

12:56 PM on 06/16/2011

Lifestyle choices have, of course, a major impact in health and lifespan. But there are also cultural factors that can have a big impact and are rarely mentioned: In most countries with longer lifespan, families take care of their elderlies instead of dumping them in nursing homes like we do, because we are too busy. Also, the culture of consumerism that we have negatively affect our health as it results in anxiety, depression, etc.

[Cornhusker40]

12:55 PM on 06/16/2011

I guess Bill Maher has a point when he says "Americans eat schitt!!"

[Wong23]

12:51 PM on 06/16/2011

If we were to embrace Ryancare for our future senior citizens, longevity would approach levels not seen in America since the 19th century.

[ruburnt]

12:49 PM on 06/16/2011

That's fine with me...I never wanted to live to be 80. It is hard enough aging gracefully as it is.....

[Stilyagi]

01:42 PM on 06/16/2011

Move to the south, you'll be happy you did.

[clancyben]

12:45 PM on 06/16/2011

When are we going to wake up and take back the country from the corrupt politicians who have their hands in the pockets of the Corporations?
Healthcare- falling far behind
strength of the dollar- falling
education system- plummeting
employment- miserable
Average CEO compensation- all time high

Our Country is being left behind because of greed. Maybe too far...

[persimmon8]

01:13 PM on 06/16/2011

We have given over every aspect of our lives to corporate entrenched moneyed interests who have gotten so obscene that they for the most part have no interest in serving the majority. They only see quarterly profits. This not only includes health care but our energy, food, banking etc.

Wall St in essentially siphoning off the profits and life blood of Main St. When will we collectively stand up and put an end to this? The answer lies in more cooperative community both local and global and making these interests accountable to the whole. Now they only see dollars and if allowed to continue will collapse our whole way of life...which may in the long run be a good thing as the system we have now is not sustainable nor is it producing much of anything positive for the vast majority of ordinary folks.

[HD2000]

12:45 PM on 06/16/2011

USA, USA, USA!!