Trending Now
We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
A chart comparing life expectancy in the US with the rest of the G-7 countries.
The Graphic Truth: No country for old men
US life expectancy has declined two years in a row, meaning that babies born today are expected to live about 2.5 years less than those born in 2019, according to the CDC. Americans on average will now kick the bucket at 76, the lowest age in the 21st century — and more than six years earlier than the rest of the G-7.
The biggest contributor to Americans’ shortening life spans is drug overdoses, especially from fentanyl. The pandemic — and the mental health crisis that ran alongside it — is also to blame. The US saw more COVID deaths than other G-7 nations, while fatalities from suicide and alcohol-induced liver failure skyrocketed. Many of these deaths were of young people, which has a compounded effect on the national average.
While COVID took a toll on life expectancy across the G-7, all but the US rebounded after the first year. The US knocked off a whopping 1.3 years in life expectancy between 2019 and 2020 and has continued to slide. The speed of America’s decline marks the biggest two-year drop in life expectancy since 1921.
The common wisdom is that wealthier countries should enjoy higher life expectancies than poorer ones, as they have the resources to invest in healthcare and better standards of living. This rings true for the rest of the G-7, which have a combined average life expectancy of 83 years old. But the US — the only G-7 country without free national healthcare — has lagged behind throughout the 21st century, plateauing at 78 in 2008 while fellow G-7 nations continued to climb.
We compare US life expectancy to the G-7 average (minus America) since 2000.
We cannot allow Dhaka to become a drug trafficking route: Daily Star
The paper says that while drug trafficking syndicates are not easy to dismantle, agencies involved must take concerted efforts to make Bangladesh's borders less porous.
Malaysia to decriminalise drug addiction in landmark move
KUALA LUMPUR • Malaysia's Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad has pledged to decriminalise drug addiction and drug possession for personal use, in a move he calls a "game-changer policy".
Malaysia pledges to decriminalise drug addiction in landmark move
SINGAPORE (DPA) - Malaysia's health minister pledged to decriminalise drug addiction and drug possession for personal use, in a move it calls "a game-changer policy," according to a press statement released late Thursday (June 27).
Drones, big money and cheap drugs: The Laos route spewing meth into Thailand
NAKHON PHANOM, THAILAND (AFP) - As dusk falls along the Mekong River, a nightly dance begins between Thai border security and Laos drug gangs now using drones, scouts and a pool of poor fishermen to shift record amounts of meth into Thailand.
Thailand cautiously reopens door to weed
NAKHON RATCHASIMA (Thailand)• • "Would you like to try it?" the young man says when he notices me peering at the cannabis joint held between his fingers. "It's good for your health." Behind him, a dark green banner declares: "Meet People with Experience in Kancha".
South Korea's third-generation chaebol scions booked on drug use charges as probe widens
SEOUL (THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The police have booked a number of third-generation scions of South Korean family-owned conglomerates on suspicions they bought and used illegal substances even as the investigation into more drug dealers and buyers widens.
Vietnam arrests Chinese man with 300kg of heroin
HANOI (AFP) - Vietnam police have arrested a Chinese national found with a massive haul of heroin in Ho Chi Minh City, the second such bust in a week as the country cracks down on the illicit trade.