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U.S. life expectancy at all-time high. According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), life expectancy in the United States rose to nearly 78 (77.9) years in 2007-a 0.2-year increase from 2006. This record level was reached by both women and men, who climbed from 80.2 to 80.4 and from 75.1 to 75.3, respectively. White women continue to live the longest, followed by black women, white men, and black men. Death rates, meanwhile, dropped from 776 per 100,000 people in 2006 to 760 per 100,000 in 2007. Mortality rates were lower in Asians or Pacific Islanders, American Indians or Alaska Natives, or Hispanics than in non-Hispanic whites, whereas they were 25% higher in non-Hispanic blacks than in non-Hispanic whites. The leading causes of death in 2007 were the same as in 2006, with the exception of Alzheimer's disease, which jumped from seventh place to sixth, and diabetes, which fell from sixth place to seventh. Heart disease remains the number one cause of death in the United States. The CDC report, "Deaths: Preliminary Data for 2007" was based on death records received from state vital statistics offices during the calendar year 2007 and is available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs.