Americans are living longer since the last decade as life expectancy is up to about 76 years for men and 81 years for women, according to a comprehensive report.
Between 2003 to 2013, life expectancy for men increased by nearly two years and females a year and a half. The gap in life expectancy between men and women also narrowed from about five years longer for women to 4.8 years, according to a report on the health of the U.S. from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Friday.
The overall life expectancy for Americans was nearly 79 years.
The CDC also found that life expectancy for blacks also increased more than that for whites from 2003 to 2013, helping to narrow a gap in life expectancy between the two racial groups.
The life expectancy for blacks is nearly 72 years old for men and 78 years for women.
The infant mortality rate also lowered from nearly seven deaths per 1,000 births to nearly six deaths.
The leading cause of death in 2013 for Americans was heart disease, followed by cancer, lung diseases, unintentional injuries, stroke and Alzheimers.
The report did not go into why life expectancy had increased. Interestingly enough, health insurance coverage was actually down from 2003 to 2013.
The percentage of people under 65 with health insurance from their employer declined from 64 percent in 2013 to about 56 percent. In addition, the number of uninsured increased to about 20 percent from 19 percent.
The report included a special section on the health of the baby boomer generation, ages 55-64, which will become eligible for Social Security and Medicare in the coming years.
CDC discovered that the 2013 death rates for such baby boomers are 6 percent lower for men and 11 percent for women compared to the same age group a decade ago.
