According to a large-scale study (GBD 2023) published in the scientific journal The Lancet Public Health, global life expectancy is increasing; however, people are increasingly spending these additional years living with chronic diseases and disability. Scientists from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington found that over the past 30 years, the gap between overall life expectancy and healthy years lived has widened significantly.
According to the data, between 1990 and 2023, the so-called “morbidity gap” broadened from 8.8 to 10.7 years. This means that people spend an average of 14.5% of their lives in poor health. The researchers emphasize that this process does not manifest only at the end of old age, but is distributed across the entire adult lifespan.
From 1990 to 2023, global life expectancy increased from 64.6 to 73.8 years, while Healthy Life Expectancy (HALE) rose from 55.9 to 63.1 years. Because the rate of life extension clearly outpaced the gain in healthy years, medical advancements have proved more effective at prolonging life than at preserving the quality of those extra years.
The analysis revealed that the number of years spent in ill health is highest in high-income countries (for instance, in the US, the morbidity gap reached 14 years). In addition, a clear gender disparity emerged: globally, women live longer than men, but they also spend more years in poor health (an average of 12.1 years compared to 9.3 years for men).
Scientists explain that non-fatal chronic conditions account for 57.4% of unhealthy years—led primarily by musculoskeletal disorders (especially low back pain), followed by mental health disorders (depression, anxiety) and age-related hearing loss.
According to IHME researchers, the central challenge for healthcare systems today is not simply extending lifespan, but increasing healthspan and prioritizing the early prevention of chronic diseases.
