Older Australians living longer, while younger generations suffer, study finds

Australians under 50 are seeing a decline in life expectancy, while older age groups are living longer, according to a new study.

Research conducted by the Australian National University, which analysed longevity trends in six English-speaking countries, found that older men in particular were experiencing increased longevity.

Lead author Dr Sergey Timonin said it was "surprising" that life expectancy for younger cohorts in Australia was lagging behind non-Anglophone high-income countries.

However Australia remained ahead of the US, the UK and Canada.

"We already knew that the US and UK suffer from this problem, but we didn't expect to see Australia (as well as Canada and New Zealand) in this group," Timonin said.

"However, compared to English-speaking countries, Australians still enjoy a higher life expectancy, including at younger ages. It also has one of the world's highest life expectancies at older ages.

"For the under fifties in Australia, we found that life expectancy is behind the majority of high-income countries, which was quite surprising."

The study found that life expectancy in younger cohorts in Australia was impacted by suicide, drug and alcohol-related behaviours, and traffic accidents.

"External causes of death and substance use disorders were found to be the largest contributors to the observed disadvantage at these ages," Timonin said.

"Recreational drug use and risky behaviours are mostly related to mentally driven disorders."

The research was published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.