In a recent review of US death rates between 1959 and 2017, medical researchers found that US life expectancy has declined for 3 consecutive years after 2014. The report, published in the journal of the American Medical Association, reveals that this decline is mainly due to midlife deaths (age 25-64 years), which started to rise in 2010 and has outpaced the continued progress of overall life expectancy in the country in the past three years. The leading courses of mortality among young and middle-aged adults, who should be in the prime of their lives, are drug overdoses, alcohol abuse, suicides, and a diverse list of organ system diseases. Some of it may be due to obesity and distracted driving from mobile devices.
While increase in working age death is most significant in economically distressed areas, it is observed in all racial groups and, therefore, has broad implications for all of society.
The midlife death crisis calls for concerted, unifying social effort. It also underscores how important individuals should maintain healthy lifestyle and mental stability.
Winston's Blog 