Well, most of them. According to a reported issued by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene yesterday, the city's overall death rate fell to an all-time low in 2006 mostly owing to decreases in smoking and HIV-related deaths. But although deaths from these causes were on the decline, those caused by substance abuse were up by 8 percent and lives lost from cancer and heart disease held steady for the year. 55,391 New Yorkers died in 2006, compared with 57,068 the year before (and 60,218 in 2001!).
However, these trends didn't hold up in Staten Island, where the number of deaths actually increased and eclipsed the overall citywide average. The number of deaths on the Island was about 1.7% higher than the rest of the City. This is in keeping with a 2007 city report which noted that Staten Islanders had the City's highest cancer mortality rates and highest smoking rates - with Staten Island teens twice as likely to smoke as other City teens.
The drop in HIV-related deaths city-wide is being attributed to lower infection rates thanks to syringe exchange programs, increased and more widely available HIV testing, and slowing disease progression. But the news is not all good as the commissioner also reported that HIV mortality still seems to be most concentrated around minority populations with an actual increase in diagnosed infections among young homosexual men.
On another note, the report also shared that while male life expectancy is stable at 75.7 years, women are expected to live 2.5 months longer than previously thought with a life expectancy of 81.3 years. Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said that citizens could continue these positive trends by quitting smoking, controlling blood pressure and cholesterol levels, using condoms and reducing alcohol and drug use.
You can read the full press release here.
