Along with other gloomy economic news, the standing of the U.S. regarding retirement is also losing ground. In fact, Western Europe has us beat when it comes to retirement security—and that doesn't look likely to change any time soon. That's among the findings of the seventh issue of the Natixis Global Retirement Index, which reports that the U.S., which didn't even make the top 10, has not only slipped down two places in the standings—to 18th out of the 44 most developed countries and economies surveyed globally. In addition, the U.S. either stayed the same or lost ground in all four of the subindices: health, well-being, finances and quality of life. Each country was evaluated for 18 critical factors in those four subindices, and the shakeout was revealing. Meanwhile, further threats to retirement security await: low interest rates, long lifespans and the high cost of climate change. These global risks, says the report, are "weighing on retirees, policymakers and long-term global sustainability." It's no longer enough, according to Natixis, just to view the retirement issue through a financial lens. While the aim of retirement policy has been to help retirees "generate a sustainable income to carry them through decades of life after work," that's no longer enough—nor is a focus on better tools for savings and stronger incentives to save. Instead, the report says, "Rapidly aging populations have undercut the math behind retirement benefits as fewer people pay into national systems and more people take money out." If that's not enough to force change, there's also the ongoing shift of funding responsibility onto individuals via defined contribution accounts—something being driven both by policymakers and employers. Then there have been "Ten-plus years of dovish fiscal policy," which has "forced a generation of retirees to annuitize savings at ultra-low rates, raising the stakes on their ability to generate income and preserve capital over the long term." Don't forget, by the way, that those low interest rates affect not just individual retirees attempting to save for retirement, but also pension funds and annuities falling behind on growing their assets with which to pay annuitants—also thanks to those low interest rates. And last but far from least there are the "rapidly advancing effects of climate change[, which] continue to pressure retirees with greater health risks and a higher cost of living." Not just rising sea levels, severe storms, drought, wildfire and other related factors threaten the world's population—according to the report, WHO projects that climate change is expected to cause 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030 and 2050—but the EPA has warned that the increased vulnerabilities to illness caused by extreme heat threatens, in particular, older adults, particularly those with chronic illnesses. Illnesses aside, there's this: "The financial risk is massive considering that 40 percent of the world's population, or 2.4 billion people, lives within 60 miles of the coast. Ten percent lives in coastal areas that are less than 10 meters above sea level." With many older people flocking to the coasts upon retirement, that's a scenario that will have to change if they're to survive. So who's doing better than we are, and how can we change that so that American retirees are more secure as they age? Here's a look at the top 10 finishers in this year's index, as well as what they do differently. You might want to pay particular attention to the lower scores for both Finances in Retirement and Material Well-Being, since even for most countries in the top 10, there's plenty of room for improvement. READ MORE: 10 barriers to retirement preparedness 12 best cities for retirement 10 states with the most workers lacking access to retirement plans