A recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine shows that people living in Delaware County have a slightly lower life expectancy than the national average, writes Joel Achenbach for The Washington Post.

The average for Delaware County at 78.82 years is only slightly below the national average of 79.08. Delco averaged 801.35 deaths per 100,000 residents, though, for a higher life expectancy than the state average of 805.3 deaths.

Life expectancy has generally been on the rise for many years, largely due to advances in medicine and people paying more attention to their diet.

However, the report compiled by the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation also points out that certain regions across the country are not keeping up with this trend.

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“Life expectancy in many places in this country is declining. It’s going backward instead of forward,” said Ali Mokdad, co-author of the report and a professor at the institute.

Many of the causes of lower life expectancy are well known, such as lack of exercise, income, and access to quality healthcare. This has resulted in the U.S. falling behind other affluent nations like Australia.

“We are falling behind our competitors in health. That is going to impact our productivity,” said Mokdad.

Read more about life expectancy across America in The Washington Post by clicking here.

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