Life expectancy for Americans has stretched to 78.8 years for a typical toddler born in 2012. That's a record, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and 36.5 days longer than in 2011.

Adults who were 65 in 2012 could expect to live an additional 19.3 years, on average, the report said. That's also 36.5 days longer than in 2011.

Young or old, females can plan on outliving males. At birth, the average girl has a life expectancy of 81.2 years, 4.8 years longer than the average boy. A typical woman who makes it to age 65 can anticipate living to the age of 85.5, 2.6 years longer than a typical man who reaches 65.

The gains are the result of small but steady decreases in Americans' age-adjusted death rate (a statistic that controls for the age distribution of the population as a whole). Black women saw the biggest decrease, with their age-adjusted death rate falling 2.3 percent between 2011 and 2012. The rate also fell 1.2 percent for white men and 1.1 percent for white women and black men. It held steady for Latino men and women.

The overall rates fell because Americans were less likely to die from eight of the 10 leading causes, the report said. Heart disease, the top killer, became less lethal, with a 1.8 percent decline in its age-adjusted death rate between 2011 and 2012. For cancer, the No. 2 cause of death, the age-adjusted mortality rate fell by 1.5 percent.

Los Angeles Times