Men in America live 7 years less than women. For all 15 leading causes of death, men have higher death rates. Here are some facts, along with the 12 leading causes of death.

Because women outlive men, the female population as a whole is older than the male population. Health statistics usually use data which have been age-adjusted to account for this difference when comparing females and males. All comparisons here are based on age-adjusted death rates.

1. HEART DISEASE: Twice as many men as woman die from heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Under age 65, three times more men than women die from heart attacks.

2. CANCER: One and one-half times more men than woman die from cancer. Men have a higher probability of developing cancer and don't survive as long once they've been diagnosed. Lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death for males, kills two and one-half times more men than woman. Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death. Melanoma, the cancer with the greatest increase in incidence since 1973, kills nearly twice as many men as woman.

3. ACCIDENTS: Men are two and one-half times more likely than women to die from accidental deaths. For males aged 1 to 44 years, accidents are the number one cause of death. Two and one-half times more men as women die in motor-vehicle accidents, the leading cause of accidental death. Five times more males die by drowning.

4. STROKE: Stroke, the fourth leading cause of death for men, kills 1.2 times more men than women.

5. OBSTRUCTIVE LUNG DISEASE: Nearly twice as many men as women die from obstructive lung disease.

6. PNEUMONIA AND FLU: Over one and one-half as many men as women die from pneumonia and flu.

7. HIV INFECTION: Males account for 9 out of 10 deaths due to HIV infection. For men ages 25 to 44, HIV infection is now the second leading cause of death and the number one killer in major cities.

8. SUICIDE: Rates of suicide are, on average, four and one-half times higher for men than women. For most age groups suicide rates have remained unchanged since 1946, but for those aged 15 to 24 years the rate has increased 250% and 6 out of 7 are male. Suicide rates for those aged 75 and older are 9 to 12 times higher for men than women.

9. DIABETES: Although the diabetes death rate is nearly equal for women and men, this disease still kills far more men than women.

10. HOMICIDE: Men are victims in 4 out of 5 homicides. For African American men, who are victims 7 times more often than European American men, homicide is the fourth leading cause of death, and the number one killer for those ages 15 to 24.

11. CIRRHOSIS: Two and one-half times more men than women die from chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.

12. INJURIES: Injury rates are significantly higher for males. Men aged 17 to 44 have up to 60% more injuries than women. Men sustain most of the estimated 3 to 5 million annual sports injuries and account for 8 out of 10 traumatic spinal cord injuries.

In 1910 the average life expectancy for both men and women was about 48 years. Since that time, progress in medicine and improvements in overall public health have raised that age to over 70 years. But the progress has not been equal for both men and women. Today, women can expect to live to about 80 years, while men's expectancy is just over 72!