Americans living longer than ever before

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Americans living longer than ever before

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jaTjmPSnYfZbl_EvMM-88FU7e_vA

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Americans are living longer than ever, with the

average life expectancy reaching 78 years in 2005, the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Wednesday.

But despite the steady upward climb of longevity, the United States was

still far behind Japan, Andorra and Italy, where statistics compiled by

the World Health Organization (WHO) show that life expectancy exceeds 80

years.

The CDC report, based on preliminary data for 2005, showed that life

expectancy in the United States has risen steadily in the past 50 years.

Americans lived for around 69 years in 1955, and 76 years in 1995, the

study showed.

The age-adjusted death rate also fell to an all-time low in 2005,

bottoming out at fewer than 800 deaths per 100,000 people, the

statistics show.

" This report highlights the continued reduction in deaths from the three

leading killers in the United States - heart disease, cancer and stroke

- which is most likely due to better prevention efforts and medical

advances in the treatments of these diseases, " said Hsiang-Ching Kung, a

survey statistician at the CDC and one of the reports authors.

The death rate from heart disease fell to 210.3 per 100,000 in 2005 from

217 per 100,000 the previous year.

Deaths from cancer fell from 185.8 per 100,000 to 183.8 per 100,000

during the same period, and stroke deaths fell from 50 to around 47 per

100,000.

" If death rates from certain leading causes of death continue to

decline, we should continue to see improvements in life expectancy, "

Kung said.

On a sour note, however, the death rate from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

diseases both increased by around five percent year-on-year.

Alzheimer's disease is the seventh leading cause of death in the United

States and Parkinson's the 14th.

White Americans' average life expectancy was just over 78 years, or five

years longer than African-Americans, according to the study.

The longer life expectancy in the United States puts the country on par

with the likes of Brunei, Cuba and Kuwait, according to WHO statistics.

The country with the lowest life expectancy in the world is Zimbabwe,

where people can expect to live around 36 years, data from WHO show.

--

ne Holden, MS, RD < fivestar@... >

" Ask the Parkinson Dietitian " http://www.parkinson.org/

" Eat well, stay well with Parkinson's disease "

" Parkinson's disease: Guidelines for Medical Nutrition Therapy "

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