In 1950 men and women in the United States had a combined life expectancy of 68.9 years, the 12th highest life expectancy at birth in the world. Today, life expectancy is up to 79.2 years, yet the country is now 28th on the list, behind the United Kingdom, Korea, Canada, and France, among others. The United States does have higher rates of infant mortality and violent deaths than in other developed countries, but these factors do not fully account for the country's relatively poor ranking in life expectancy. International Differences in Mortality at Older Ages: Dimensions and Sources examines patterns in international differences in life expectancy above age 50 and assesses the evidence and arguments that have been advanced to explain the poor position of the United States relative to other countries. The papers in this deeply researched volume identify gaps in measurement, data, theory, and research design and pinpoint areas for future high-priority research in this area. In addition to examining the differences in mortality around the world, the papers in International Differences in Mortality at Older Ages look at health factors and life-style choices commonly believed to contribute to the observed international differences in life expectancy. They also identify strategic opportunities for health-related interventions. This book offers a wide variety of disciplinary and scholarly perspectives to the study of mortality, and it offers in-depth analyses that can serve health professionals, policy makers, statisticians, and researchers. Table of Contents Front Matter 1 Introduction and Overview--Eileen M. Crimmins, Samuel H. Preston, and Barney Cohen Part I: Levels and Trends 2 Diverging Trends in Life Expectancy at Age 50: A Look at Causes of Death--Dana A. Glei, France Mesle, and Jacques Vallin 3 Are International Differences in Health Similar to International Differences in Life Expectancy?--Eileen M. Crimmins, Krista Garcia, and Jung Ki Kim Part II: Identifying Causal Explanations 4 Contribution of Smoking to International Differences in Life Expectancy--Samuel H. Preston, Dana A. Glei, and John R. Wilmoth 5 Divergent Patterns of Smoking Across High-Income Nations--Fred Pampel 6 Can Obesity Account for Cross-National Differences in Life-Expectancy Trends?--Dawn E. Alley, Jennifer Lloyd, and Michelle Shardell 7 The Contribution of Physical Activity to Divergent Trends in Longevity--Andrew Steptoe and Anna Wikman 8 Do Cross-Country Variations in Social Integration and Social Interactions Explain Differences in Life Expectancy in Industrialized Countries?--James Banks, Lisa Berkman, and James P. Smith with Mauricio Avendano and Maria Glymour Part III: The U.S. Health System 9 Low Life Expectancy in the United States: Is the Health Care System at Fault?--Samuel H. Preston and Jessica Ho 10 Can Hormone Therapy Account for American Women's Survival Disadvantage?--Noreen Goldman Part IV: Inequality 11 Do Americans Have Higher Mortality Than Europeans at All Levels of the Education Distribution?: A Comparison of the United States and 14 European Countries--Mauricio Avendano, Renske Kok, Maria Glymour, Lisa Berkman, Ichiro Kawachi, Anton Kunst, and Johan Mackenbach with support from members of the Eurothine Consortium 12 Geographic Differences in Life Expectancy at Age 50 in the United States Compared with Other High-Income Countries--John R. Wilmoth, Carl Boe, and Magali Barbieri Part V: International Case Studies 13 Renewed Progress in Life Expectancy: The Case of the Netherlands--Johan Mackenbach and Joop Garssen 14 The Divergent Life-Expectancy Trends in Denmark and Sweden - and Some Potential Explanations--Kaare Christensen, Michael Davidsen, Knud Juel, Laust Mortensen, Roland Rau, and James W. Vaupel Biographical Sketches of Contributors

Fatal Years is the first systematic study of child mortality in the United States in the late nineteenth century. Exploiting newly discovered data from the 1900 Census of Population, Samuel Preston and Michael Haines present their findings in a volume that is not only a pioneering work of demography but also an accessible and moving historical narrative. Despite having a rich, well-fed, and highly literate population, the United States had exceptionally high child-mortality levels during this period: nearly one out of every five children died before the age of five. Preston and Haines challenge accepted opinion to show that losses in privileged social groups were as appalling as those among lower classes. Improvements came only with better knowledge about infectious diseases and greater public efforts to limit their spread. The authors look at a wide range of topics, including differences in mortality in urban versus rural areas and the differences in child mortality among various immigration groups. "Fatal Years is an extremely important contribution to our understanding of child mortality in the United States at the turn of the century. The new data and its analysis force everyone to reconsider previous work and statements about U.S. mortality in that period. The book will quickly become a standard in the field."--Maris A. Vinovskis, University of Michigan Originally published in 1991. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

"Fatal Years" is the first systematic study of child mortality in the United States in the late nineteenth century. Exploiting newly discovered data from the 1900 Census of Population, Samuel Preston and Michael Haines present their findings in a volume that is not only a pioneering work of demography but also an accessible and moving historical narrative. Despite having a rich, well-fed, and highly literate population, the United States had exceptionally high child-mortality levels during this period: nearly one out of every five children died before the age of five. Preston and Haines challenge accepted opinion to show that losses in privileged social groups were as appalling as those among lower classes. Improvements came only with better knowledge about infectious diseases and greater public efforts to limit their spread. The authors look at a wide range of topics, including differences in mortality in urban versus rural areas and the differences in child mortality among various immigration groups. "Fatal Years is an extremely important contribution to our understanding of child mortality in the United States at the turn of the century. The new data and its analysis force everyone to reconsider previous work and statements about U.S. mortality in that period. The book will quickly become a standard in the field."--Maris A. Vinovskis, University of Michigan

Originally published in 1991.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

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