Official data shows that life expectancy in the US has fallen to the lowest level since 1996.
The average American born in 2021 is expected to live to be 76.4 years old, according to a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report released this week.
By comparison, the average child born in 2014 would be 78.9 years old in 2019 78.8.
This is the second year in a row that life expectancy in the US has fallen, after falling to 77.0 years in 2020. Life expectancy is now at its lowest level since 1996, when it was 76.1 years. Before 2019, life expectancy increased.
According to the CDC, Covid-19 was the primary cause of the decline.
In 2021, the virus was the third leading cause of death in the country, after heart disease and cancer – which is still at the top of the list of leading causes of death.
Rising suicides and homicides, as well as a fivefold increase in overdose deaths over the past decade — fueled by an increase in fentanyl contamination — also contributed to the decline.
To calculate life expectancy, the CDC used the mortality tables from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Life tables indicate how many years someone is expected to live, depending on the year he or she was born.
These are hypothetical calculations based on mid-year population estimates and the number of people who die each year.
For example, the table estimates that the average 100-year-old will live another one to two years, based on the fact that he or she has already lived to 100.
The decline in life expectancy is not as sharp today as during the pandemic, but the numbers are still falling.
According to the CDC report, men experienced the greatest decline in life expectancy, losing eight months of their life between 2020 and 2021.
A boy born today can be expected to live 73 years and six months. Women are expected to live to 79 years and four months – seven months less than those born in 2020.
Women They are believed to live longer than men due to higher levels of estrogen, which helps fight life-threatening conditions such as heart disease by lowering unhealthy cholesterol.
Non-Hispanic Asians remain According to the CDC report, they are the longest-living Americans, but their life expectancy has dropped by a month to 83 years and a month.
Life expectancy for Hispanics also fell by a month to 77.8 years, a record low since life expectancy estimates for Hispanics were introduced in 2006.
American Indians and Alaska Natives experienced the largest decline in life expectancy from 67.1 to 65.6 years between 2020 and 2021.
Life expectancy for black Americans fell to the lowest level since 1997: 71.2 years.
Non-Hispanic Alaska Natives had the lowest life expectancy at 65.6 years.
Life expectancy fell less among blacks than whites in 2021, partly because of higher numbers of Covid-19 patients among minorities early in the pandemic.
Life expectancy for black people in the US was 70.8 years last year, compared to 76.4 years for white people.
This table shows the average number of years of life left for people who have reached a certain age
Life expectancy in the US fell to the lowest level since 1996 at 76.1 years
In 2020, the Covid crisis caused the largest annual decline in life expectancy since the Second World War.
After heart disease, cancer and Covid-19, unintentional injuries were the fourth leading cause of death. These include accidental overdose, car accidents and accidental falls.
Nearly 107,000 people died of overdoses last year, a 50 percent increase in overdoses Death in the last two years.
The number of drug overdose deaths among American teenagers doubled between 2019 and 2021 – even as the use of illegal substances declined.
The number of deaths caused by fentanyl – an extremely powerful synthetic opioid used as an antidote in many street drugs – increased by 182 percent.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
