NEW YORK — U.S. life expectancy has dropped slightly — by about a month — after mostly inching up for many years, the government reported Thursday.
The preliminary report indicates that a baby born in 2008 can expect to live to 77.8 years if current trends continue. That’s down a bit from an all-time high of 77.9 years for 2007. A similar dip occurred in 2005, and life expectancy also dropped in 1993.
The report’s lead authort, Arialdi Minino, called the 2008 change minuscule and said it would take years of data to determine whether it’s a trend.
Life expectancy was down for both men and women. The gap between blacks and whites closed a little, to a 4.6-year difference in life expectancy; black men for the first time topped 70 years. Overall, women continue to live longer, until about 80, compared with 75 for men.
What’s behind the slip in overall life expectancy isn’t known.
“It’s something to keep our eyes on,” said Ken Thorpe, a health-policy professor at Emory University in Atlanta. He suggested it could be related to rising obesity rates.
The report was released Thursday by the National Center for Health Statistics. The Associated Press
