Bad news!
Caution is advised when comparing health data across countries. E.g. that the US supposedly has the largest heatlh span-life span gap might be a statistical artifact, because there is better data available in the US than for other countries.
"Lifespans are increasing worldwide, but those extra years are not necessarily healthier, finds a large new study published in JAMA Network Open.
The health span-lifespan gap—the difference between how long people live and how long they live in good health—has widened over the past two decades among 183 WHO member states, reports Yahoo Life.
On average, people live 9.6 fewer healthy years than their total lifespan, with a larger gap for women. In the U.S., the gap is 12+ years.
The health span deficit is linked to the cumulative effects of aging itself, researchers say—but also the uptick in chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, and mental health issues.
A tale of two countries: Meanwhile, a new report from the Bloomberg American Health Initiative finds that the U.S. trails England and Wales in life expectancy by 2.7 years—and that four preventable causes of death drive the disparity: cardiovascular disease, overdoses, motor vehicle crashes, and gun violence, per a commentary in The Hill."
From the abstract:
"Abstract
Importance Health-adjusted life expectancy, a measure of healthy longevity, lags longevity gains, resulting in a healthspan-lifespan gap.
Objective
To quantify the healthspan-lifespan gap across the globe, investigate for sex disparities, and analyze morbidity and mortality associations.
Design, Setting, and Participants
This retrospective cross-sectional study used the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Observatory as the global data source and acquired national-level data covering all continents. The 183 WHO member states were investigated. Statistical analysis was conducted from January to May 2024.
Exposures
Data represent 2 decades of longitudinal follow-up.
Main Outcomes and Measures
Changes in life expectancy and health-adjusted life expectancy, as well as the healthspan-lifespan gap were quantified for all participating member states. Gap assessment was stratified by sex. Correlations of the gap with morbidity and mortality were examined.
Results
The healthspan-lifespan gap has widened globally over the last 2 decades among 183 WHO member states, extending to 9.6 years. A sex difference was observed with women presenting a mean (SD) healthspan-lifespan gap of 2.4 (0.5) years wider than men (P < .001). Healthspan-lifespan gaps were positively associated with the burden of noncommunicable diseases and total morbidity, and negatively with mortality. The US presented the largest healthspan-lifespan gap, amounting to 12.4 years, underpinned by a rise in noncommunicable diseases.
Conclusions and Relevance
This study identifies growing healthspan-lifespan gaps around the globe, threatening healthy longevity across worldwide populations. Women globally exhibited a larger healthspan-lifespan gap than men."
Figure 1. Global Life Expectancy, Health-Adjusted Life Expectancy, and Healthspan-Lifespan Gap
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