The United States faces greater challenges than 182 other nations regarding the healthspan of its citizens.
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Americans spend on average more than a dozen years per person suffering from disease — and have a greater “disease burden” than all other countries in the World Health Organization, a new study finds.
The research surveyed the health outcomes of 183 WHO member nations, and found that “the U.S. stood out with the largest healthspan-lifespan gap and greatest noncommunicable disease burden,” according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Healthspan, in relation to lifespan, refers to the duration of time an individual spends free from illness or disease. Although life expectancy has increased, research indicates that these additional years are not necessarily filled with good health.
Globally, most people struggle for 9.6 years with disease; However “the U.S. presented the largest healthspan-lifespan gap, amounting to 12.4 years, underpinned by a rise in noncommunicable diseases.”
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Australia and New Zealand followed closely in terms of the gap between healthspan and lifespan, with figures of 12.1 years and 11.8 years, respectively.
The research revealed that women worldwide demonstrated a greater disparity between healthspan and lifespan compared to men, with a difference of up to 2.4 years on a global scale and 2.6 years in the United States. This gap was linked to a significantly higher per capita burden of musculoskeletal issues among women, reflecting a broader trend of increased musculoskeletal disease prevalence in women globally.
Examples of musculoskeletal disease, as defined by WHO, include arthritis, tendonitis and osteoporosis.
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“Worldwide, the healthspan-lifespan gap is a growing threat to healthy longevity,” the study’s senior author, Andre Terzic, a professor of cardiovascular research at the Mayo Clinic, told The Washington Post.
In the United States, life expectancy has risen to 80.7 years for women, up from 79.2 years, and for men, it has increased from 74.1 years to 76.3 years. Additionally, the research revealed that the worldwide life expectancy stands at 72.5 years, yet only 63.3 of those years are spent in good health.
The research identified "mental health and substance abuse issues, in addition to musculoskeletal conditions," as contributing factors to the inequality observed in the U.S. "These findings highlight that globally, although life expectancy is increasing," the researchers stated, "individuals are spending more years suffering from illness."
These findings dovetail with earlier research on rising cancer rates, which estimated that a record-breaking two million people would receive a cancer diagnosis in 2024 — driven largely by a rise in colorectal cancer rates.
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