Japan, San Marino top WHO's life expectancy report
Last Updated: Thursday, May 21, 2009 | 12:10 PM ET
CBC News
A Japanese girl born today could likely reach 86 years of age, the longest life expectancy anywhere in the world, while a Canadian girl could expect to see 83 candles on her last birthday cake, the World Health Organization said in a report Thursday.
A Canadian male will likely live until 78, while men in the tiny European country of San Marino, can expect to live to 81, the UN health agency said in its annual report, World Health Statistics 2009.
In contrast, boys born in Sierra Leone face the shortest life expectancy, at just 39 years. In Afghanistan, men and women live on average to 41 and 42 years respectively.
The report uses figures from 2007, the most recent that were available for the WHO's 193 member states.
Some countries have made progress in increasing life expectancy since 1990, partly by ending wars, and partly through strengthening health systems.
Eritrea increased its average life expectancy for men by 33 years, to 61, and by 12 years for women, to 65. In Liberia, men can now expect to live to 54 on average, up from 29, and the figure rose 13 years for women to 58.
Angola, Bangladesh, Maldives, Niger and East Timor also increased the average life expectancy for men and women by 10 years.
Steep decline in Zimbabwe
But life expectancy declined sharply in Zimbabwe, by 19 years for women to 44, and to 45 on average for men, compared with 57 in 1990. Life expectancy also fell in Swaziland to 49 for women, down 14 years, and for men, a decline of 12 years to 47.
WHO officials said they were encouraged that fewer children under five are dying: 12.5 million died in 1990 compared with nine million in 2007. The overall global trend for deaths among young children declined 27 per cent since 1990.
"The decline in the death toll of children under five illustrates what can be achieved by strengthening health systems," said Dr. Ties Boerma, director of WHO's department of health statistics and informatics.
Boerma credited increased use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets for malaria, oral rehydration therapy for diarrhea, increased access to vaccines and improved water and sanitation in developing countries for the decline.
The report also found:
- An estimated 1.2 billion people are affected by tropical diseases, such as 546 million people who were treated in 2007 to prevent the parasitic disease lymphatic filariasis (also known as elephantiasis) that causes enlargement of parts of the body.
- Availability of essential medicines at public health facilities is often poor and prices remain high, even for generic medicine.
- More than three million people in developing countries are now receiving antiretroviral therapy for HIV/AIDS.
- Adolescent pregnancy rates remain high. Globally, there were 48 births for every 1,000 women aged 15-19 years in 2006, down slightly from 51 per 1,000 in the year 2000.
- Out of every 100 deaths worldwide, 51 are due to noncommunicable conditions such as heart disease and cancer, 34 due to communicable, maternal or nutritional conditions; and 14 due to injuries such as traffic collisions.
Some of the 100 health indicators tracked in the report are included in the UN's Millennium Development Goals, which aim to achieve significant improvements in eight health and development areas by 2015.
With files from The Associated Press
