美国国家公共电台 NPR Life Expectancy In U.S. Drops For First Time In Decades, Report Finds

Life Expectancy¹ In U.S. Drops For First Time In Decades, Report Finds

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST: 

We have sobering news this morning about the nation's health. For the first time in years, life expectancy has decreased. Here's NPR health correspondent Rob Stein.

ROB STEIN, BYLINE²: One of the most fundamental ways to measure the well-being³ of a nation is to track the rate at which its citizens are dying and how long they tend to live. And Robert Anderson of the National Center for Health Statistics says the trend in the United States has been pretty consistent.

ROBERT ANDERSON: Over the last hundred years that we've been tracking these things, the death rate's declined pretty steadily⁴ with, you know, minor⁵ upticks here and there. But the trend long-term has been a decline.

STEIN: Leading to a fairly steady rise in how long people can expect to live. So Anderson was taken aback when he analyzed⁶ the government's latest data.

ANDERSON: What we're seeing is a slight increase in the overall rate for mortality.

STEIN: It ticked up just slightly between 2014 and 2015. That's the first time that's happened in a decade. And it was enough to cause the overall life expectancy to dip slightly for the first time since 1993.

ANDERSON: What we're seeing is a slight decline in overall life expectancy at birth, about a tenth of a year.

STEIN: It fell from 78.9 to 78.8 years in 2015. And even more disturbing in some ways, the drop occurred in the younger part of the population, not the oldest. Now, it's not clear why this is happening and it could just be a fluke. But the drop was driven by increases in deaths from 8 of the top 10 causes of death. Most notably⁷, deaths from heart disease and strokes were up after declining for years. And more Americans are dying from unintentional injuries and committing suicide.

ANDERSON: When you see increases in so many of the leading causes of death, it's difficult to pinpoint⁸ one particular cause as the culprit.

STEIN: But it's probably a combination of factors. The obesity⁹ epidemic¹⁰ may be one, the epidemic of prescription¹¹ painkiller¹² and heroin¹³ overdoses may be another. But whatever the cause, experts say it's worrisome.

PHILIP MORGAN: This is a big deal.

STEIN: Philip Morgan is a demographer¹⁴ at the University of North Carolina.

MORGAN: There's not a better indicator¹⁵ of well-being than life expectancy. And most people expected it to go up several more years and in the next half-century. And for the effect that it's leveling off in the U.S., it's a striking finding.

STEIN: Especially when the death rate is continuing to drop and life expectancy is still on the rise in most other industrialized countries. Rob Stein, NPR News.

1 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

4 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

5 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

6 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

8 pinpoint   

vt.准确地确定；用针标出…的精确位置

参考例句：

• It is difficult to pinpoint when water problems of the modern age began.很难准确地指出，现代用水的问题是什么时候出现的。
• I could pinpoint his precise location on a map.我能在地图上指明他的准确位置。

9 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

10 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

11 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。

12 painkiller   

n.止痛药

参考例句：

• I shall persuade him to take the painkiller.我将说服他把药吃下去。
• The painkiller only provides him a short respite from his pain.止痛药仅仅让他在疼痛中有短暂的疏解。

13 heroin   

n.海洛因

参考例句：

• Customs have made their biggest ever seizure of heroin.海关查获了有史以来最大的一批海洛因。
• Heroin has been smuggled out by sea.海洛因已从海上偷运出境。

14 demographer   

n.人口统计学家

参考例句：

• Professor Antonio Golini is a demographer at the University of Rome. 罗马大学安东尼奥教授是位人口统计学家。 来自互联网
• Demographer William Frey says immigrants with young families will help keep the United States competitive. 人口统计学家佛瑞表示这些年轻的家庭会帮助美国保持竞争力。 来自互联网

15 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。