Even as Americans live longer, they spend more of their years in poor health than any other country, a new study shows.
People in the U.S. live with illness for 12.4 years on average ¡ª up from 10.9 years in 2000, according to a study published by the American Medical Association Wednesday.
The U.S. offers the starkest illustration of a so-called healthspan-lifespan gap that is widening around the world, as chronic illnesses take up larger portions of people¡¯s lives. While life expectancy has long been a standard measure of public health, researchers are increasingly focused on health-adjusted life expectancy, which tracks the number of years people live in good health.
A direct comparison of the two metrics shows increases in people¡¯s healthspans are lagging longevity gains, the research shows.
¡°These results underscore that around the world, while people live longer, they live a greater number of years burdened by disease,¡± wrote study authors Armin Garmany and Andre Terzic of the Mayo Clinic.
Globally, the healthspan-lifespan gap climbed from 8.5 years in 2000 to 9.6 years in 2019, marking a 13% increase, according to their data analysis on all 183 member states of the World Health Organization.
It implies a paradox whereby a lower likelihood of death exposes survivors to a higher burden from chronic disease, the authors wrote. The five countries with the largest healthspan-lifespan gaps are all affluent nations, while the smallest gaps are found in the Global South.
In the U.S., mental and substance-use disorders are the biggest factors to blame, along with musculoskeletal diseases that affect joints, bones and muscles. The discrepancy is even higher for American women, whose healthspan-lifespan gap is, on average, 2.6 years wider than their male counterparts¡¯ ¡ª because they tend to live longer and are also more likely to have musculoskeletal conditions.
Tailored interventions specific to each country¡¯s needs will be key to maximizing equitable and sustainable healthy aging, the authors wrote.
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