Differentials in Mortality

8/4/2019 Differentials in Mortality

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Mortality

Regional differences

Urban and rural

differentials

Social statusdifferentials

Gender differentials

Important agedifferentials


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Regional Differences in Mortality

There are significant differences in mortality

among regions and countries in the world. Thesemay be attributable to various things such as theepidemiological transition or the societal wealthof a particular region.


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Death rates


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List of countries by death rates

1 Angola 23.40

2 Afghanistan 17.39

3 South Africa 17.09

4 Nigeria 16.06

5 Russia 16.046 Ukraine 15.74

7 Chad 15.47

8 Guinea-Bissau 15.27

9 Lesotho 15.1910 Central African

Republic 15.01

11 Somalia 14.87

12 Swaziland 14.60

13 Bulgaria 14.32

14 Mali 14.29

15 Niger 14.1116 Serbia 13.85

17 Belarus 13.77

18 Latvia 13.60

19 Zimbabwe 13.5820 Estonia 13.55


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List of countries by death rates

39 Germany 10.92

40 Japan 10.09

41 Italy 9.84

89 USA 8.38105 Canada 7.98

131 Hong Kong 7.07

132 China 7.03

133 Yemen 7.02

134 Taiwan 7.00

185 Philippines 5.02

188 Singapore 4.95

189 Malaysia 4.93

220 Jordan 2.69221 Bahrain 2.61

222 Qatar 2.43

223 Kuwait 2.11

224 UAE 2.06

World 8.12


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Death rates

Whether a country or a region has a high or

low death rate can be attributed to factors

such as its societal wealth, the advancement

in its medical technology, its health issues or

the age structure of its population.


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Life Expectancy


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List of countries by life expectancy

Country Overall Male Female

1 Monaco 89.73 85.77 93.84

2 Macau 84.41 81.45 87.52

3 San Marino 83.01 80.50 85.74

4 Andorra 82.43 80.35 84.64

5 Japan 82.25 78.96 85.72

6 Guernsey 82.16 79.50 84.95

7 Singapore 82.14 79.53 84.96

8 Hong Kong 82.04 79.32 84.979 Australia 81.81 79.40 84.35

10 Italy 81.77 79.16 84.53


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11 Jersey 81.38 78.96 83.94

12 Canada 81.38 78.81 84.10

13 France 81.19 78.02 84.54

14 Spain 81.17 78.16 84.37

15 Switzerland 81.07 78.24 84.05

16 Sweden 81.07 78.78 83.51

17 Israel 80.96 78.79 83.24

18 Iceland 80.90 78.72 83.1719 Anguilla 80.87 78.32 83.51

20 Bermuda 80.71 77.49 83.99


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44 European Union 78.82 75.70 82.13

50 USA 78.37 75.92 80.93

133 Philippines 71.66 68.72 74.74

160 World 67.07 65.21 69.05

162 Russia 66.29 59.80 73.17

216 South Africa 49.33 50.24 48.39

218 Swaziland 48.66 48.93 48.39

219 Chad 48.33 47.28 49.43220 Nigeria 47.56 46.76 48.41

221 Afghanistan 45.02 44.79 45.25

222 Angola 38.76 37.74 39.83


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Life expectancy

Whether a country or a region has a high or

low life expectancy can be attributed to

factors such as its societal wealth, the

advancement in its medical technology, itshealth issues, cultural practices and lifestyles

of its people.


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Regional Differences in Mortality


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Urban and Rural Differentials

More than a century

ago, urban areas

generally have lower life

expectancies and higherdeath rates due to

unfavorable living

conditions.


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For example, *i]n 1851, a boy born in inner

Liverpool had a life expectancy of only 26

years, compared with a boy born in the small

market town of Okehampton, who couldexpect to live to 57. (Daunton, 2004)


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Death rate in 19th century London was

high: 1840s: 25.2 per 1,000; 1850s: 23.6 per

1,000; 1860s: 24.3 per thousand. (Brown,

2004)


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However, urban areas benefited more from

the advances in medicine, sanitation and the

environment than the rural areas.

This led to better living conditions in the

urban areas.


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Social Status Differentials

Even in mortality, there

are social status

inequalities.

Those who have betterstatuses in the society

are generally at lower

risk of death and may

expect a longer life.


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On the other hand, those who have lower

statuses are at greater risk.

Moreover, Marx attributed the higher death

rate in the working classes to the evils of

capitalism and argued that mortality

differentials would disappear in a socialist

society. (pp. 191)


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Occupational Differentials

On average, laborers have higher mortality

rates than professional men and women.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics,

the most dangerous jobs in the US include

fishers, timber cutters and loggers, and

aircraft pilots and engineers in 2009.


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Social Status Differentials: Occupation


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Income and Education

There is an inverse relationship between

income and mortality as well as between

educational attainment and mortality.

Poor and poorly educated generally have

lower life expectancies.


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Race and Ethnicity

In most societies, the

dominance of some

groups and the

subordination of othersgenerally put the

subordinated ones in a

socially and

economicallydisadvantaged position.


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Race and Ethnicity

Thus, subordinated

groups generally have

higher risks at death

and lower lifeexpectancies


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Life expectancy by race and ethnicity

in the USARace/ethnicity Females Males

Total population 74.5 79.8

White, non-Hispanic 75.0 80.1

Black, non-Hispanic 68.4 75.3

Hispanic 77.6 83.4

Asian/Pacific Islander 82.0 87.2

American Indian 77.0 82.2


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Marital Status

It is said that married

people tend to live

longer than married

people. There are two possible

explanations:

Marriage is selective of

healthy people.

Marriage is good for the

health.


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Is marriage good for the health?


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Sex and Gender Differentials

Sex differences in

mortality are said to be

strictly biological while

gender differentials aresocial.

Generally, women live

longer than men do.


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Maternal Mortality

However, unlike men,

women are at risk at

maternal death.

The probability that anaverage woman in the

world will die from

complications in

pregnancy is 1 in 75.


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Maternal Mortality

In Canada, 1 in 7 700

In the USA, 1 in 3 500

In Mexico, 1 in 220

In sub-Saharan Africa, 1

in 11

In Afghanistan and

Sierra Leone, 1 in 7


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Sex and Gender Differentials


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Age Differentials

Like other animals,

humans are considered

more vulnerable to

death at certain ages. The very young and the

old are the ones with

the highest mortality

rates compared withthose in the middle.


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Age Differentials


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Rectangularization of Mortality


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Rectangularization of Mortality


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Sources

Main reference:

Weeks, John. Population. 9th ed. 2005

Data on death rates and life expectancies by

country https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-

factbook

London Great Stink and Victorian Urban Planning

(Martin Daunton, 2004) http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/trail/victorian_britain/s

ocial_conditions/victorian_urban_planning_01.shtml


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Sources

The City in European History: London in 19th

Century (Robert Brown, 2004)

http://www.uncp.edu/home/rwb/london_19c.ht

ml

Other sources: see notes. :-D


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Differentials in Mortality

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