Lifespans Shorten and Baselines Shift

I always say that the shifting baselines syndrome, the tendency for each new generation to accept a degraded environment as normal/natural, is partially a result of the short human lifespan. If we would only live 1000 years, we would do a much better job at taking care of the planet. With the average lifespan in the U.S. at 78** years, I thought it seemed we were heading in that direction. New research shows otherwise.

An article published today in PLoS Medicine shows that life expectancy is not improving for most Americans. Researchers led by Harvard University professor Majid Ezzati found that found that, between 1983 and 1999, the death rate in women increased in many of the worst-off U.S. counties, primarily because of chronic diseases related to (surprise, surprise) smoking, high blood pressure, and obesity. As a result of this stagnation or decline in the health of the worst-off segment of the population, inequality in life expectancy across different counties of the U.S. worsened.

Which means the shifting baselines syndrome probably also worsened.

**The U.S. is no Japan, where life expectancy is 82 years but also no Swaziland, where life expectancy is 32.