Why is America's life expectancy lagging?

Americans are dying younger than citizens of other First World countries. What's to blame?

Americans live an average of 78 years, while the Japanese can expect to live up to the age of 83.
(Image credit: Corbis)

Despite spending more on health care than any other country in the world, the U.S. is lagging in life expectancy. American men and women do not live as long as people in France, Japan, and other wealthy nations, and the gap is widening. Now, the National Research Council has attempted to find out why that is. Here, a quick guide to their findings:

How much does our life expectancy lag?

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

What did the National Research Council say was behind the gap?

Smoking, primarily. Even though only about 21 percent of U.S. adults smoke these days, reports Katherine Hobson in The Wall Street Journal, that number was closer to 37 percent back in 1980. "Smoking-related illnesses such as lung cancer can take decades to have an impact on mortality rates." Men will likely see their average longevity increase in the next few years, as their "smoking habits are well past the peak," says NPR. Women, however, "took longer to cut back, and the toll of smoking will be around longer."

Are there other factors?

Obesity also plays some part, but just how much is a "controversial" question, says The Boston Globe. The NRC estimates that obesity could "account for up to a third of the shortfall compared with other rich nations." Lack of exercise is also a factor. Americans are "among the most sedentary people" in the developed world, says Nathan Seppa at Science News, "vying with Poland for the dubious status of topping that category."

Sources: National Research Council, WSJ, NPR, Boston Globe, Science News, Reuters