The Incidental Economist has a post with five graphs on life expectancy in the United States. (Zombie life expectancy arguments) Two stood out to me.
First, there is this chart that shows life expectancy for men in the United States at age 65. The population is split into income quartiles and then compared with other nations around the world. An even more interesting chart would have been split the population of other countries in to quartiles to see how they fare top to bottom.
The second map compares the change in average life expectancy for women, 1987-2007. The red counties are the places where life expectancy has declined.
I'm sure there are several factors at work. I saw this article today, Diabetes rates rocket in Oklahoma, South. Also, I saw a presentation by Allen Johnson of Christians for the Mountains that showed the link between mountain top mining and reduced health in counties in Kentucky and in West Virginia. I'm sure there are issues ranging from lifestyles to health care access involved. A picture really does say a thousand words.
