I'm not sure. I don't think anyone knows for sure, but obesity probably heavily factors into it.
53% of Europeans are overweight or obese. The same figure in the US is 72%. That's a 36% difference.
More than that, 17% of Europeans are obese (BMI >30) compared to the US's 42%.
The fact that the US has a life expectancy of 79.1 compared to the EU's 81.5 years with that kind of difference in obesity levels is actually surprising. You would expect it to be lower than that in the US.
> compared to the EU's 81.5 years with that kind of difference in obesity levels is actually surprising
It's probably considerable higher in EU15 i.e. if we exclude all the poor (currently or previously) ex-socialist Central and Eastern European countries that have a lot of baggage
53% of Europeans are overweight or obese. The same figure in the US is 72%. That's a 36% difference.
More than that, 17% of Europeans are obese (BMI >30) compared to the US's 42%.
The fact that the US has a life expectancy of 79.1 compared to the EU's 81.5 years with that kind of difference in obesity levels is actually surprising. You would expect it to be lower than that in the US.