Don’t Die Young-Stay In School-Dropouts Die Sooner — Dave’s Diary

We all know that staying in school improves your chances for a better job, a better income and a better life but what about a longer life?  Could staying in school actually prevent deaths.New York University researchers say yes.  They followed more than one million people for 20 years from 1986 to 2006 and they compare education levels and death rates.

The conclusion is significant.  By their estimate, in 2010, 145,243 deaths could have been averted if the people who dropped out had instead earned their GED or a high school degree.

An additional 110,068 deaths could have been avoided if  the college drop outs had instead gone on to earn their degrees.

How do they compute all that?

Study authors say people with more education are less likely to smoke, more likely to engage in vigorous exercise, and more likely to have access to health insurance. They also say that unless trends change, the mortality attributable to low education will continue to increase. (Fox)