Life expectancy nationwide has dropped for the second year in a row, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Life expectancy nationwide has dropped for the second year in a row, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The life expectancy of Americans is shorter for the second consecutive year, dropping from 78.7 to 78.6 years, according to the latest report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Part of the decline in lifespan comes from drug overdose and suicide deaths. In 2016, 66.4 percent of the drug overdose deaths involved an opioid. The CDC also reports that these drug overdose deaths have been attributed to heroin and fentanyl, which is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.

Blood infections such as HIV and hepatitis C, and cirrhosis have also increased nationwide.

Although Georgia’s life expectancy is 77.4 years, people living in the metro Atlanta area, in Gwinnett, Cobb and Dekalb counties, typically live two or three years longer than the national average, according to the CDC.

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