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Life Expectancy at All-Time High, While Death Rate Drops

Average life expectancy in the United States has reached nearly 78 years, and the age-adjusted death rate dropped to 760.3 deaths per 100,000 population -- both records, according to the latest mortality statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Data for the government report, "Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2007," are based on nearly 90% of the total death certificates in the United States.

 

The 2007 increase in life expectancy of 77.9 years – up from 77.7 in 2006 -- represents continuation of a trend. Over a decade, life expectancy has increased 1.4 years, from 76.5 years in 1997 to 77.9 in 2007.

 

Other findings:

• Record high life expectancy was recorded for both males and females (75.3 years and 80.4 years, respectively). While the gap between male and female life expectancy has narrowed since the peak gap of 7.8 years in 1979, the 5.1-year difference in 2007 is the same as in 2006.
• For the first time, life expectancy for black males reached 70 years.
• The US mortality rate fell for the eighth straight year to an all-time low of 760.3 deaths per 100,000 population in 2007. That’s 2.1% lower than the 2006 rate of 776.5. The 2007 mortality rate is half of what it was 60 years ago (1,532 per 100,000 in 1947.)
• The preliminary number of deaths in the United States in 2007 was 2,423,995 -- a decline of 2,269 from the 2006 total.
• Heart disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death, accounted for nearly half (48.5%) of all US deaths in 2007.
• Between 2006 and 2007, mortality rates declined significantly for eight of the 15 leading causes of death. Declines were observed for influenza and pneumonia (8.4% drop), homicide (6.5%), accidents (5%), heart disease (4.7%), stroke (4.6%), diabetes (3.9%), hypertension (2.7%), and cancer (1.8%).
• The death rate for the fourth leading cause of death, chronic lower respiratory diseases, increased by 1.7 percent. Preliminary death rates also increases for Parkinson's disease, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, and Alzheimer's, but these gains are not statistically significant.
• There were an estimated 11,061 deaths from HIV/AIDS in 2007, and mortality rates from the disease declined 10% from 2006, the biggest one-year decline since 1998. HIV remains the sixth leading cause of death among 25-44 year-olds.
• The preliminary infant mortality rate for 2007 was 6.77 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, a 1.2% increase from the 2006 rate of 6.69, though not considered statistically significant. Birth defects were the leading cause of infant death in 2007, followed by disorders related to preterm birth and low birth weight. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) was the third leading cause of infant death in the United States.

(Article courtesy of ConsumerAffairs.com)

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