For Younger Americans, Gloomy Outcomes on Health

Those under 50 die earlier and live in poorer health than peers in other developed countries

If improving health was one of your New Years resolutions, you might use these new stark findings as your motivation for success. Younger Americans die earlier and live in poorer health than their peers in other developed countries, according to a new analysis of health and longevity in the U.S. Although researchers have known for a while that Americans fare poorly in comparison to other rich countries, the new findings were stark. Death before age 50 accounted for about two-thirds of the difference in U.S. life expectancy between American males and their peers in 16 other developed countries. The countries included in the analysis are Canada, Japan, Australia, France, Germany and Spain. The 378-page student by a panel of expects was convened by the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council. It’s the first study to comprehensively compare deaths and health measures for people of all ages, including American youths. (New York Times)

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