Programme Index

Discover 11,128,835 listings and 279,834 playable programmes from the BBC

More or Less

Why is life expectancy falling in the USA?

Duration: 9 minutes

First broadcast: on BBC World Service AustralasiaLatest broadcast: on BBC World Service East Asia

Available for over a year

The average life expectancy of Americans is shrinking at an alarming rate.

Between 2019 and 2021, a staggering 2.7 years has been shaved off, leaving the revised figure at 76.1 years - the lowest it’s been in more than two decades.

It also sees the U.S. rank 46th in the global life expectancy charts, behind Estonia and just a nose ahead of Panama.

Paul Connolly is joined by John Burn Murdoch, Mary Pat Campbell and Dr Nick Mark to discuss why, on average, citizens of the world’s richest country are dying so young.

Presenter / Producer: Paul Connolly
Researcher: Octavia Woodward
Editor: Richard Vadon
Sound Engineer: Graham Puddifoot
Production Co-ordinator: Brenda Brown

(Stethoscope with heartbeat graphic. Credit: Jonathan Kitchen/ Getty images) Show less

About this data

This data is drawn from the data stream that informs BBC's iPlayer and Sounds. The information shows what was scheduled to be broadcast, meaning it was/is subject to change and may not be accurate. More