How Long Do People Live in Durham and Middlefield?

Connecticut’s Second and Third Congressional Districts have an expected life expectancy that exceeds the national average, according to a new study.

The expected life expectancy at birth is 80.6 years in the Second Congressional District. The district ranks 109th in the country on the human development index.

There are 436 districts across the country. The study, called Geographies of Opportunity, was published last week by the Social Science Research Council, as part of their ongoing effort to track disparities in quality of life across America.

The Second Congressional District covers a wide swath of towns including part of Durham, Clinton, East Haddam, East Hampton, East Lyme, Groton, Haddam, Killingworth, Ledyard, Lyme, Montville, New London, North Stonington, Old Lyme, part of Stonington and Waterford.

Third Congressional District

The expected life expectancy at birth is 80.4 years in the Third Congressional District. The congressional district covers a wide swath of towns including: Milford, Guilford, Branford, and Hamden.

The district ranks 115th in the country on the human development index, which takes into account life expectancy, education and median earnings.

Education

About 91.7 percent of the Second Congressional District’s residents can be expected to obtain at least a high school degree and about 33 percent will obtain at least a bachelor’s degree.

About 90.3 percent of the Third Congressional District’s residents can be expected to obtain at least a high school degree and about 35 percent will obtain at least a bachelor’s degree.

The Average Life Expectancy in the U.S.

According to the study, the average life expectancy in the United States is now 79.1 years, an increase of almost four years over life expectancy in 1990. But according to the researchers, some Americans, especially African Americans and some Southerners, have seen far less of an increase. A few parts of the South have seen no increase at all.

The longest life expectancy in the U.S. is in California’s 19th Congressional district, which includes San Jose and part of Santa Clara County, where people live 83.9 years on average, or roughly as long as people in Japan.

The lowest life expectancy is in rural southeastern Kentucky, where people live just under 73 years, or about as long as residents of the Gaza Strip.

The study’s authors say a variety of factors affect life expectancy, from access to health insurance to race and employment opportunities. But the study also lists four factors it dubs the “fatal four,” which can shorten lifespan dramatically: smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise and alcohol abuse.

Connecticut Comparisons

By way of comparison in Connecticut, residents living in the Fourth Congressional District live the longest at 82.5 years. Those towns include: Greenwich, Oxford, Trumbull, and Fairfield.

Next is Connecticut’s Fifth Congressional District at 80.8 years and that includes Avon, Southbury and Newtown. The Second Congressional District’s life-expectancy is 80.6 years and those towns include Madison, New London and Glastonbury, the Third District is at 80.4 and includes towns such as Milford, Guilford, Branford and Hamden and the First District is last.

Income

The median average income for First District residents is $38,622. The highest in Connecticut is District 4 at $40,438, followed by District 1 then District 5, $36,462, District 3, $35,909, and District 2 at $33,910.

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Photo Credit: Geographies of Opportunity, The Social Science Research Council, Sarah Burd-Sharps and Kristen Lewis