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Another Big Drop in U.S. Life Expectancy in 2021 | Health & Fitness
THURSDAY, Dec. 22, 2022 (HealthDay News) — The average American’s expected life span at birth took another big hit in 2021, according to final data on death rates for that pandemic year. Whereas in 2019 the average American could have expected to live an average of 78.8 years, life expectancy declined to 77 years in 2020, and then to 76.4 years in 2021, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s the shortest estimated U.S. life expectancy since 1996, the agency noted. Of course, the toll taken by COVID-19 — which has so far killed over 1.1 million Americans — is largely to…
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Babies’ Babble Brings Big Learning Bonus | Health & Fitness
MONDAY, July 11, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Babies’ babble may be smarter than you think. A new study shows that infants as young as 3- to 5-months of age can tell that the unintelligible sounds they make before they learn to talk can impact the people around them. Traditionally, this babbling has been regarded simply as a byproduct of babies trying to work their mouths and exercise their voices. Instead, the new research shows that adults’ reactions to their vocalizations influences babies’ understanding of how they need to respond to properly communicate. “A baby’s babbling functions as a tool, to probe the social world and figure out who to pay…
