You May Live Longer: New Study Shows Life Expectancy has Increased Globally

You may be able to expect a few extra years of life. Researchers have found that people are living much longer worldwide than they were two decades ago, as death rates from infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases have fallen.

In this case, the researchers fathered country-specific cause-of-death data for 188 countries. They found that causes of death vary widely by country. On a global level, though, drug use disorders and chronic kidney disease accounted for some of the largest percent increases in premature deaths since 1990. In addition, death rates from some cancers, including pancreatic cancer and kidney cancer, also increased.

Despite these increases, though, countries have made huge strides when it comes to reducing mortality from diseases such as measles and diarrhea. In fact, there has been a reduction of 83 percent and 51 percent, respectively, from 1990 to 2013. These reductions have, in turn, helped increase life expectancy.

More specifically, the researchers found that the average age of death increased from 46.7 in 1990 to 59.3 in 2013. In addition, death rates from most cancers, including breast cancer, cervical cancer and colon cancer have decreased.

"People today are less likely than their parents to die from certain conditions, but therer are more people of older ages throughout the world," said Chirstopher Murray, IHME Director, in a news release. "This is an encouraging trend as people are living longer. We just need to make sure we are making the right health policy decisions today to prepare for the health challnges and associated costs that are coming."

That said, disparities still remain across age groups and countries. In all age groups, except 80 and older, mortality has decreased more for women than men. In addition, the gender gap in death rates for adults between the ages of 20 and 44 is widening, and some countries are afflicted by certain factors that still impact life expectancy.

"Almost a decade after HIV/AIDS peaked globally, this remains the leading cause of premature death in more than a dozen countries in sub-Saharan Africa," said Andre Kengne, co-author of the new study. "As fewer young people die from childhood diseases we must do more to ensure that HIV/AIDS does not become a threat for people of all ages."

The findings are published in the journal The Lancet.