Courtesy of UIC School of Public Health

S. Jay Olshansky

Today, the New York Times reported on some surprising news about life expectancy.

A new study finds that the least-educated whites in the U.S. are dying sooner. They've lost four years since 1990. The average life span for a man without a high school diploma is now 67 and a half. And for a woman, it's 73 and a half.

"The magnitude of this decline we really weren't aware of [prior to the study]," lead researcher S. Jay Olshanksy told Madeleine Brand. He added that he found the results surprising and the exact causes aren't known.

Guest:

S. Jay Olshanksy, the lead researcher from the University of Illiinois at Chicago.