Guns now leading cause for death, passes car crashes

(KYMA, KECY/CNN) - A new study indicates gun deaths in the U.S. have overtaken car crashes in terms of number of years of life lost due to trauma-related deaths.

It's important to note that the study, which came out Tuesday, measures mortality in total potential years of life lost.

The research examined data from the CDC between 2009 and 2018.

It found that in 2017 alone, there were 1.44 million years of potential life lost due to firearm deaths. That same year, motor vehicle crashes caused a loss of 1.37 million years of potential life.

The calculations were broadly based on the average U.S. life expectancy of 80 years.