Life Expectancy, International Comparisons of

Life expectancy is the number of years an individual can expect to live if conditions remain constant. Age at death varies tremendously from country to country and from group to group within a country.

In most countries, life expectancy increased dramatically during the 1900s due, in part, to fewer deaths among children and pregnant women. Public health measures such as access to clean water, sanitation, and vaccinations for children were largely responsible for improvements in health. Human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS), however, is decreasing life expectancy in some countries.

Females live longer at every stage of life and in almost every country. While the average global life expectancy is 68 years, it is about 70 years for women and 65 for men. Life expectancies are reported separately by sex. One of the largest differences is in Russia where women live 13 more years than men. Life expectancy ranges from 86 years for women in Japan to 42 years for women in Afghanistan. Regionally, women in Africa have the shortest life expectancies. Explanations for this sex difference include biological advantages for women, their responsibilities for family health, and risky behaviors and occupations for [Page 858]men. Women's longer lives are typically coupled with higher rates of illness and disability, however.

Life expectancy is also reported by age; years of additional life vary at each age. Infant mortality rates (deaths from birth to one year per 1,000 live births) are roughly 400 times higher in the poorest countries than in the richest countries. Under-5 mortality rates (deaths by age 5 per 1,000 live births) are also much higher in poorer regions. Globally, almost 20 percent of deaths are children less than 5 years old. Average life expectancy is reduced dramatically when infants and children die. These deaths are unexpected in richer countries, but more common in other parts of the world. Most of these deaths are preventable with vaccines, antibiotics, and proper nutrition.

About half a million women die each year as a result of pregnancy and childbirth; maternal mortality is higher in poor countries or poor populations within richer countries. Women with access to good prenatal care, healthy diet, attended births, and access to birth control are at much lower risk of death during pregnancy and delivery.