New Study Shows Drop in Life Expectancy for Some Whites

Stumbled on this article this morning, and I found it unnerving to see the reversal of years of gains in life expectancy among white women in particular. The article cites a few studies that show that the difference in life span among white women is 10 years between those with a college degree and those without.

The article is a good read for anyone interested in larger social heath issues.

From the article:

"Overdoses from prescription drugs have spiked since 1990, disproportionately affecting whites, particularly women. Professor Miech, of the University of Colorado, noted the rise in a 2011 paper in the American Sociological Review, arguing that it was among the biggest changes for whites in recent decades and that it appeared to have offset gains for less educated people in the rate of heart attacks.

Ms. Montez, who studies women’s health, said that smoking was a big part of declines in life expectancy for less educated women. Smoking rates have increased among women without a high school diploma, both white and black, she said. But for men of the same education level, they have declined.

This group also has less access to health care than before. The share of working-age adults with less than a high school diploma who did not have health insurance rose to 43 percent in 2006, up from 35 percent in 1993, according to Mr. Jemal at the American Cancer Society. Just 10 percent of those with a college degree were uninsured last year, the Census Bureau reported."

Full article can be found here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49114733/ns/us_news-the_new_york_times/#__utma=14933801.2070943575.1348232437.1348232437.1348232437.1&__utmb=14933801.1.10.1348232437&__utmc=14933801&__utmx=-&__utmz=14933801.1348232437.1.1.utmcsr=(direct)|utmccn=(direct)|utmcmd=(none)&__utmv=14933801.|8=Earned%20By=msnbc%7Ccover=1^12=Landing%20Content=Mixed=1^13=Landing%20Hostname=www.nbcnews.com=1^30=Visit%20Type%20to%20Content=Earned%20to%20Mixed=1&__utmk=149651126

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