Japan, a nation known for it’s very long life expectancy rates. Most countries with

high life expectancy have a number of common traits. So, which countries live the longest?

And why?

Well, a low life expectancy for a country doesn’t necessarily mean that adults there

die at a younger age. In most places, those who make it to adulthood end up living much

longer than the reported life expectancy. The “ life expectancy” figure is skewed

to a lower number because child mortality rates are added to the average. For example,

in 2001, Nigeria had more than 3 million people over 60 years of age. But because of high

child mortality rates, Nigeria’s average life expectancy was just 47 years old. Although

the statistic is often misinterpreted, life expectancy data is a valuable tool for tracking

the development of countries.

So what are the countries with the highest life expectancies? Well, several international

reports differ. The World Health Organization reports that Japan ranks first, followed by

a tie between countries like Switzerland and Singapore. The Organization for Economic Cooperation

and Development lists Japan, Spain, Iceland and Switzerland as the longest-living countries.

And the Central Intelligence Agency, which includes smaller territories in the running,

lists Monaco, Macau and Japan on top.

So what contributes to a high life expectancy? Well, experts suggest that many high-life-expectancy

countries have national diets that contribute to cardiovascular health. The Japanese in

particular, who commonly eat raw fish and vegetables, are known to have low rates of

heart disease and obesity. There is also a well known cultural emphasis on respect and

care for elders, which improves lifespan. Other countries invest heavily in preventative

health care. The Swiss government allocates over $9,000 dollars per person for medical

expenses.

On the other end of the spectrum, the W.H.O. notes that 9 countries in Sub Saharan Africa

still have life expectancies below 55 - including Angola, Lesotho, and Mozambique. These places

suffer from more infectious diseases than high-life-expectancy-countries. AIDS and Malaria

still pose major threats to the population.

But overall, life expectancies worldwide are increasing. Global averages suggest that a

girl born in 2012, will live 73 years. And boys are expected to live 68 years. These

averages are six years higher than global figures from 1990. As scientists and medical

experts keep working on new ways to prolong lifespan, in the next century, people may

be regularly living past 100 years.

If you want a look at the science of why people live so long, check out this video from DNews.

There’s a link in the description if you want to see that full video! Thanks for joining us on TestTube News, please remember

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