"That might be part of it, but I think another reason is related to income but in a different way, and that, simply, is that more educated people who have higher incomes have more to gain financially from living longer because they are earning more income," says Dr. Walden, a North Carolina Cooperative Extension specialist.

"Therefore, they are motivated to engage in behaviors that will lead them to live longer lives because this is going to give them more opportunity to earn those higher incomes either for themselves or for their children or grandchildren," he adds. "Now what this does beyond that issue is, I think, raise an important public policy question, and that is whether subsidizing and supporting education is maybe a back door -- but still a very important door -- to improving a healthy society."