U.S. Life Expectancy is Circling the Drain
We lack political will to deal with it The post U.S. Life Expectancy is Circling the Drain appeared first on Nautilus .
A recent study from Virginia Commonwealth University reveals that the United States' life expectancy is rapidly declining, falling to 38th place among countries with populations over a million. Over the past two decades, the gap between American and global life expectancies has widened. Young adults, aged 25-44, saw a 70% increase in mortality between 2010 and 2021 due to drug overdoses, early onset diseases, and hypertension.
Those aged 1-24 also face significant risks from sudden infant deaths, car accidents, homicide, and suicide. Middle-aged adults are also at risk, with COVID-19 becoming their third leading cause of death in 2020 and tripling in 2021. Older Americans have the highest COVID-19 death rates. While the opioid epidemic, firearm accessibility, and high-calorie diets contribute to the issue, Woolf emphasizes systemic factors like the broken healthcare system, soaring poverty rate, and lax regulations that permit dangerous products.
The federalist system exacerbates these problems in certain states, particularly in the South, Appalachia, and rural communities. Woolf stresses that solving this problem requires political will, citing the success of other countries that have outperformed the U.S. in health outcomes.
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