AfriPulse
US has the LOWEST life expectancy of all G7 nations: Alarming analysis shows America now isn’t even in the world’s top 50
By Kate Pickles Health Editor For The Daily Mail
Updated: 04:40 EDT, 16 March 2023
The US has the lowest life expectancy of all G7 nations, according to an alarming league table.
Seventy years ago people in America could expect to live until they were 68, with the country ranking 13th globally behind the likes of Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
Although the average person now lives a decade longer than in 1950, progress has stalled compared to other developed nations.
The US has since fallen to 53 on the global standings.
Britain has also fared badly, dropping from tenth to 36th in a UN list of 200 nations.
Experts suggested the sluggish progress was likely down to the health inequalities widening, resulting in poorer social groups dying earlier than the wealthy.
The graph shows how each G7 country fared in international life expectancy rankings each year from 1950 to 2020. While Japan climbed from 45th place to third, the UK slumped from 10th to 36th and the US plummeted from 13th to 53rd. It is based on data from academics from the University of Oxford and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who examined global life expectancy ratings
The likes of Japan has seen remarkable improvements, moving up from 45th to third in the world rankings. Pictured: Aerial view of Tokyo cityscape with Fuji mountain
The average life expectancy in the UK has risen from 68.63 years in 1950 to 80.43 years in 2020, compared to 68.06 and 77.41 respectively in the US. Pictured: Aerial view of the Central Park in New York
Academics from the University of Oxford and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine examined global life expectancy ratings between 1952 and 2021.
They paid particular attention to G7 nations — UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US — a collection of countries with advanced economies that represent about half of global economic output.
They found that over seven decades, the US fared the worst of all G7 countries.
While life expectancy has increased since the start of the study, similar countries have seen larger increases, according to the findings published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.
The average life expectancy in the UK has risen from 68.63 years in 1950 to 80.43 years in 2020, compared to 68.06 and 77.41 respectively in the US.
However, these improvements have failed to keep pace with countries such as Norway and Sweden, where people can now expect to live until 83.20 and 82.43 respectively.
A map, showing the change in life expectancy between 1800, 1950 and 2015, illustrates the drastic global divide
The 10 countries with the LONGEST life expectancy
Hong Kong – 85.2 years
Macao – 85.18 years
Japan – 84.69 years
Australia – 84.32 years
Republic of Korea – 83.61 years
Malta- 83.36 years
Norway – 83.2 years
Switzerland – 83.07 years
Martinique – 83.05 years
Singapore – 82.86 years
The 10 countries with the SHORTEST life expectancy
Chad – 52.78 years
Nigeria – 52.89 years
Central African Republic -54.6 years
Lesotho – 54.69
South Sudan – 55.48 years
Somalia – 55.97 years
Mali – 58.63 years
Cote d-Ivoire – 53.09 years
Guinea – 59.33 years
Eswatini – 59.69 years
Meanwhile, the likes of Japan have seen remarkable improvements, moving up from 45th to third in the world rankings.
The authors said Britain’s fall down the ranks has been decades in the making, which includes a rise in income inequalities in the UK during and after the 1980s.
Professor Martin McKee, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: ‘That rise also saw an increase in the variation in life expectancy between different social groups.
‘One reason why the overall increase in life expectancy has been so sluggish in the UK is that in recent years it has fallen for poorer groups.’
Dr Lucinda Hiam, of the University of Oxford, said: ‘The rankings show that the only G7 country to do worse than the UK is the US.’
Dr Hiam added: ‘In the short term, the government has an acute crisis to address. However, a relative worsening of population health is evidence that all is not well.
‘It has historically been an early sign of severe political and economic problems.
‘This new analysis suggests that the problems the UK faces are deep-seated and raises serious questions about the path that this country is following.’
Life Expectancy Ranking 2020
Ranking
Region, sub-region, country or area
Life Expectancy at Birth (years)
1
Hong Kong
85.2
2
Macao
85.18
3
Japan
84.69
4
Australia
84.32
5
Republic of Korea
83.61
6
Malta
83.36
7
Norway
83.2
8
Switzerland
83.07
9
Martinique
83.05
10
Singapore
82.86
11
New Zealand
82.74
12
Iceland
82.58
13
Ireland
82.47
14
Guadeloupe
82.44
15
Sweden
82.43
16
Italy
82.4
17
Israel
82.36
18
Spain
82.29
19
French Polynesia
82.22
20
France
82.21
21
Reunion
82.1
22
Canada
82.05
23
Finland
81.87
24
Netherlands
81.64
25
Denmark
81.55
26
Austria
81.5
27
Luxembourg
81.43
28
Cyprus
81.39
29
Germany
81.15
30
Portugal
81.06
31
Greece
80.91
32
Taiwan
80.89
33
New Caledonia
80.83
34
Belgium
80.79
35
Slovenia
80.44
36
United Kingdom
80.43
37
Maldives
79.88
38
Chile
79.38
39
Costa Rica
79.28
40
Thailand
79.27
41
Bahrain
79.17
42
Qatar
79.1
43
United Arab Emirates
78.95
44
Antigua and Barbuda
78.84
45
Czechia
78.58
46
Uruguay
78.43
47
Estonia
78.34
48
China
78.08
49
Puerto Rico
78.04
50
Croatia
77.98
51
Lebanon
77.8
52
Cuba
77.57
53
United States of America
77.41
54
Barbados
77.39
55
Slovakia
77.01
56
Albania
76.99
57
French Guiana
76.98
58
Poland
76.94
59
Kuwait
76.92
60
Panama
76.66
61
Guam
76.61
62
Sri Lanka
76.39
63
Montenegro
76.26
64
Saudi Arabia
76.24
65
Bosnia and Herzegovina
76.23
66
Curaçao
76.1
67
Malaysia
75.94
68
Argentina
75.89
69
Turkey
75.85
70
Hungary
75.73
71
Aruba
75.72
72
Latvia
75.45
73
Mayotte
75.41
74
Serbia
75.41
75
Viet Nam
75.38
76
Romania
75.35
77
Tunisia
75.29
78
Jordan
75.18
79
North Macedonia
75.17
80
Lithuania
75.07
81
United States Virgin Islands
74.94
82
Iran (Islamic Republic of)
74.83
83
Cabo Verde
74.81
84
Brunei Darussalam
74.8
85
Colombia
74.77
86
Oman
74.76
87
Algeria
74.45
88
Trinidad and Tobago
74.41
89
State of Palestine
74.4
90
Mauritius
74.33
91
Brazil
74.01
92
Morocco
73.92
93
Peru
73.67
94
Bulgaria
73.65
95
Seychelles
73.53
96
Saint Lucia
73.42
97
Dem. People’s Republic of Korea
73.27
98
Paraguay
73.18
99
Dominican Republic
72.89
100
Belize
72.85
101
Samoa
72.77
102
Georgia
72.77
103
Bahamas
72.68
104
Ukraine
72.57
105
Suriname
72.56
106
Belarus
72.51
107
Libya
72.47
108
Grenada
72.28
109
Armenia
72.17
110
Ecuador
72.15
111
Mongolia
72.14
112
Syrian Arab Republic
72.14
113
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
72.13
114
Philippines
72.12
115
Bangladesh
71.97
116
Jamaica
71.87
117
Guatemala
71.8
118
Nicaragua
71.8
119
Bhutan
71.61
120
Honduras
71.46
121
Russian Federation
71.34
122
Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)
71.1
123
El Salvador
71.06
124
Egypt
70.99
125
Tonga
70.93
126
Micronesia (Fed. States of)
70.67
127
Western Sahara
70.52
128
Cambodia
70.42
129
Uzbekistan
70.33
130
Vanuatu
70.3
131
Solomon Islands
70.2
132
Republic of Moldova
70.17
133
India
70.15
134
Mexico
70.13
135
Kazakhstan
70.03
136
Kyrgyzstan
69.63
137
Nepal
69.25
138
Iraq
69.12
139
Indonesia
68.81
140
Turkmenistan
68.69
141
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
68.5
142
Guyana
68.49
143
Timor-Leste
68.48
144
Senegal
68.01
145
Tajikistan
67.99
146
Fiji
67.92
147
Sao Tome and Principe
67.79
148
Kiribati
67.27
149
Eritrea
67.13
150
Azerbaijan
66.87
151
Myanmar
66.8
152
Rwanda
66.77
153
Gabon
66.53
154
United Republic of Tanzania
66.41
155
Pakistan
66.27
156
Papua New Guinea
65.79
157
Botswana
65.65
158
Sudan
65.61
159
Ethiopia
65.37
160
South Africa
65.25
161
Madagascar
65.18
162
Yemen
64.65
163
Mauritania
64.53
164
Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
64.47
165
Comoros
64.17
166
Ghana
64.11
167
Haiti
64.05
168
Congo
63.79
169
Malawi
63.72
170
Uganda
62.85
171
Namibia
62.83
172
Djibouti
62.69
173
Kenya
62.68
174
Gambia
62.61
175
Afghanistan
62.58
176
Zambia
62.38
177
Angola
62.26
178
Burundi
61.57
179
Niger
61.45
180
Mozambique
61.17
181
Zimbabwe
61.12
182
Togo
61.04
183
Liberia
60.95
184
Cameroon
60.83
185
Equatorial Guinea
60.71
186
Benin
60.09
187
Guinea-Bissau
60
188
Sierra Leone
59.76
189
Democratic Republic of the Congo
59.74
190
Burkina Faso
59.73
191
Eswatini
59.69
192
Guinea
59.33
193
Cote d’Ivoire
59.03
194
Mali
58.63
195
Somalia
55.97
196
South Sudan
55.48
197
Lesotho
54.69
198
Central African Republic
54.6
199
Nigeria
52.89
200
Chad
52.78
Source: NewsFinale | Read More
