Study Predicts US Life Expectancy Ranking Will Fall to 66th by 2050
By the year 2050, over 260 million individuals in the nation may face overweight or obesity issues, resulting in various diseases, as stated by researchers.
A recent study indicates that the United States is likely to drop in global life expectancy rankings by the middle of the century, primarily due to the detrimental effects of widespread obesity on public health.
The authors of the study reported that life expectancy is expected to rise from 78.3 years in 2022 to 79.9 years in 2035 and reach 80.4 years by 2050. However, the study noted that this increase “is anticipated to be modest compared to other countries globally.”
As a consequence, the U.S. is projected to fall from 49th place in 2022 to 66th place by 2050 out of 204 nations and territories. Furthermore, in terms of health-adjusted life expectancy, which measures the average years lived in good health, the ranking is expected to decline from 80 to 108.
Professor Murray emphasized that rising obesity rates pose “a significant risk factor for numerous chronic diseases and are projected to reach unprecedented levels.” He warned that “the forecast suggesting over 260 million people affected by obesity in the U.S. by 2050 indicates an extraordinary public health crisis.”
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Researchers estimate that if policymakers manage to eliminate risk factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar by 2050, it could prevent the premature deaths of approximately 12.4 million people in the United States.
In terms of gender, the life expectancy ranking for American women is expected to drop from 51 in 2022 to 74 by 2050, while men’s ranking is anticipated to decline from 51 to 65.
“These lower rankings position the U.S. beneath almost all high-income and certain middle-income nations,” the institute stated.
The researchers emphasized that these results “underscore the alarming trajectory of health challenges in the USA, which, if not addressed, could result in a reversal of the health advancements achieved over the past three decades for certain states, alongside a decline in global health rankings for all states.”
From 1990 to 2021, mortality rates for leading causes of death, such as stroke, cancer, and ischemic heart disease, saw a nationwide decline, contributing to an increase in life expectancy during this 30-year period.
This study received funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Chronic Obesity
The characterization of excess weight as a critical risk factor for health arises amidst a growing obesity crisis in the United States.
Obesity rates have soared in recent decades, rising from 30.5 percent in 1999–2000 to nearly 42 percent between 2017–2020, with instances of severe obesity almost doubling.
“Many adults coping with obesity also suffer from other significant chronic diseases. For instance, 58 percent of U.S. adults with obesity have high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease, and about 23 percent have diabetes,” the agency reports.
The senator advocated for a ban on junk food advertising directed at children, asserting that such a policy could help reduce obesity rates in the younger population.
“For years, we have permitted large companies in the food and beverage sector to lure children into consuming foods high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat. This has resulted in an addiction crisis, with ultra-processed foods proving to be as addictive as alcohol and cigarettes,” he remarked.
Kennedy noted that the U.S. food supply is “packed with high fructose corn syrup, seed oils, and hundreds of artificial additives, flavors, and processed carbohydrates that do not exist in nature and are banned in other nations.”
