Demographic research suggests that at the beginning of the 19th century, no country in the world had a life expectancy longer than 40 years. Almost everyone in the world lived in extreme poverty, there was very little medical knowledge, and in all countries our ancestors had to prepare for an early death. Over the next 150 years, some parts of the world achieved substantial health improvements and a global divide opened. In 1950, the life expectancy for newborns was already over 60 years in Europe, North America, Oceania, Japan and parts of South America. Elsewhere, newborns could only expect to live around 30 years. As of 2024, life expectancy was estimated to be around 79.5 years overall, with a slight increase from the year before. In every world region, people today can expect to live more than twice as long as their ancestors.
