Life expectancy to go beyond 90 by 2030 – but Britain will see one of the lowest increases, study shows
South Koreans are likely to have the highest life expectancy in the world by 2030
LIFE expectancy is forecast to break the 90 barrier by 2030 but Britain will see one of the lowest lifespan increases, a study has shown.
South Koreans are likely to have the highest life expectancy in the world by 2030 with newborn girls expected to live to 90.
Led by scientists at Imperial College London in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the study found among high-income countries, the United States is likely to have the lowest life expectancy in 2030, with men and women expecting to live 79.5 and 83.3 years respectively.
This is similar to middle-income countries like Croatia and Mexico.
Majid Ezzati, the lead researcher and a professor at Imperial College London's school of public health, said: "The fact that we will continue to live longer means we need to think about strengthening the health and social care systems to support an ageing population with multiple health needs."
The US's poor life expectancy was party due to a lack of universal healthcare and also due to factors such as relatively high child and maternal mortality rates and high rates of homicides and obesity, the study said.
In Europe, French women and Swiss men were predicted to have the highest life expectancy, averaging 88.6 years for French women and nearly 84 years for Swiss men.
South Korea came out on top of the predictions, with the researchers predicting a girl born in South Korea in 2030 should expect to live 90.8 years, while a boy could reach 84.1 years.
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Professor Ezzati added: "Many people used to believe that 90 years is the upper limit for life expectancy, but this research suggests we will break the 90-year-barrier.
"We repeatedly hear that improvements in human longevity are about to come to an end... (but) I don't believe we're anywhere near the upper limit of life expectancy, even if there is one."
The study, published in The Lancet medical journal today, covered 35 developed and emerging countries, including the United States, Canada, Britain, Germany, Australia, Poland, Mexico and the Czech Republic.
South Korea's much greater average life expectancy would be due to several factors including good childhood nutrition, low blood pressure, low levels of smoking and good access to healthcare, new medical knowledge and technologies, the researchers said.
Half of British men are expected to live into their 80s for the first time - the same as women.
And experts predict life expectancy for both sexes will continue to rise until at least 2030.
Half of blokes lived to at least 81.8 years by 2011. Meanwhile, half of women made it to 85.3 years. That is an increase of 8.2 years and 3.8 years respectively since 1986.
The Office for National Statistics figures show the gap between men and women is narrowing as both play increasingly similar roles at home and work.
Experts say the overall improvements are largely due to better standards of living and healthcare.
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