The average U.S. life expectancy rose from 78.7 years in 2018 to 78.8 years in 2019, marking a five year consecutive increase, according to the CDC's annual mortality report.
The CDC's National Institute for Health Statistics collected information from U.S. death certificates between 2018 and 2019. More key findings:
- The average life expectancy for women in 2019 was 81.4 years — 5.1 years higher than men. The difference marks a 0.1 year increase from 2018.
- The age-adjusted death rate decreased 1.2 percent from 723.6 deaths per 100,000 people in 2018 to 715.2 deaths in 2019.
- The top 10 causes of death in 2019 were heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries, chronic lower respiratory diseases, stroke, Alzheimer disease, diabetes, kidney disease, influenza and pneumonia, and suicide. Causes were the same in 2018, though influenza and pneumonia swapped ranks with kidney disease.
- A total of 20,921 total deaths occured in children under the age of one in 2019, 546 fewer than in 2018.
Click here to view the full report.
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