Tag: Life Expectancy

For First Time in History Chinese People Are Living Longer than Americans

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As life expectancy declines in the United States, life expectancy in China has continued its steady climb, potentially surpassing the U.S., according to certain recent data sets.

The U.S.’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently estimated that life expectancy at birth had fallen nearly a year to 76.1 years in 2021, while the Chinese National Health Commission estimated that life expectancy in China had risen to 78.3 in 2021, according to The State Council Of The People’s Republic of China. However, this data is disputed, with Chinese state estimates of life expectancy in 2020 nearly a year higher than estimates by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), or by the World Bank.

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U.S. Life Expectancy Sees Largest Two-Year Decrease in 100 Years

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Life expectancy across all groups in the U.S. has fallen 2.7 years from 2019 to 2021, the largest two-year decrease in 100 years, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released Wednesday.

Overall, life expectancy at birth fell to 76.1 years, with life expectancy declines driven primarily by the coronavirus pandemic and unintentional injuries including overdoses, with heart disease, liver disease and suicide representing smaller contributions, the CDC reported. While life expectancy is expected to increase slightly in 2022, it is unlikely to rise to pre-pandemic levels and CDC researchers are still waiting to see how the U.S. fares in an expected winter rise in death rates, according to Reuters.

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Commentary: Income Inequality in America Related to Deaths

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Holding Hands

The top quarter of American income earners can expect to live a decade longer than the bottom quarter, medical research shows. This health disparity seems downright cruel. Not only do those in poverty have to pay more for things like credit and insurance, they also pay more years to the Grim Reaper.

Unlike income inequality, transferring years of life from the rich to the poor is not a feasible option. To find a real solution, we must know what drives the inequity.

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U.S. Life Expectancy Suffers Greatest Drop Since World War II, CDC Says

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Life expectancy in the United States dropped a full year during the beginning half of 2020 due to the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, health officials announced.

The drops were greatest among people of color, according to preliminary estimates from the CDC. The life expectancy for black Americans and Hispanic Americans dropped almost three and two years, respectively while the expectancy for white Americans fell 0.8 years.

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Record-High 70,000 Americans Died of Drug Overdoses in 2017

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by Evie Fordham   A record 70,000 Americans died of drug overdoses according to 2017 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data released Thursday, prompting experts to point to the proliferation of the potent substance fentanyl. The CDC’s 2017 data shows that 70,237 Americans died of drug overdoses. That represents a nearly 10 percent increase from 2016, when 63,632 Americans died of drug overdoses. West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania were the states hardest hit in 2017. Analysts warned that a growing amount of drugs are laced with dangerous substances like the synthetic opioid fentanyl when the CDC released preliminary 2017 overdose statistics in August. Provisional numbers suggest that 2018 will see a similar number of drug overdose deaths as in 2017, according to the CDC. Deaths involving fentanyl, its analogs and the opioid tramadol jumped 45 percent from 2016 to 2017 alone, according to CDC data. 2017 saw more than 28,000 deaths involving fentanyl or similar synthetic opioids. Fentanyl is most common in the eastern and midwestern U.S., where the opioid epidemic is most concentrated. Illicit fentanyl is often made in Mexico or China and cut into supplies of heroin or cocaine as it is stronger and cheaper than both…

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