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A new study now shows that Americans who are overweight, who smoke, have high blood sugar, or have high blood pressure shorten their life expectancy by almost four years. The cut might actually vary with different types of environment and factors. Sometimes, disadvantaged groups might even have 6-7 seven years of shortening.
The study divided the participants into eight groups by race, location, and socioeconomics of each county. The "Eight Americas" were defined as Asians; Northland low-income rural whites; middle America; low-income whites in Appalachia and Mississippi Valley; Western Native Americans; Black middle America; high-risk urban blacks; and Southern low-income rural blacks.
The patterns of smoking, high blood pressure, high blood glucose and overweight/obesity account for almost 20 percent of differences in life expectancy across the country, The resulting main points of the study: do not smoke, keep a healthy body weight, and maintain low blood sugars and blood pressure levels. Doing these will help save lives and allow people to live longer.
SOURCES: Majid Ezzati, Ph.D., associate professor, international health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston; David L. Katz, M.D., M.P.H., director, Prevention Research Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn.; March 23, 2010, PLoS Medicine, online
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