Mortality

Why We Die [Interactive]

With global life expectancy rising, many causes of death are dropping off. What still fells us?

By Katherine Harmon  | September 4, 2012 | 5

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A baby born in the U.S. this year is likely to live to blow out 78 birthday candles—a far longer average life span than someone born even in the 1960s. Heart disease is still the biggest killer but it, along with fatal infectious diseases and infant mortality have all fallen to much lower levels in the past half century. Researchers are now hard at work tackling the growing afflictions, such as nervous system diseases and Alzheimer's, which are far more likely to attack the ever more senescent population.

For more on Life Expectancy, read the Researchers Disagree About How to Extend Human Lifespan in theSeptember 2012 issue of Scientific American.