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10
Dec 2019
Official projections of child life expectancy reduced by years
A report by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has shown that years have been knocked off official child life expectancy projections in the UK.
As well as slashing the likelihood of children reaching the age of 100, the report revealed that a female born in 2019 is now expected to live three less years on average than under previous calculations.
Official data from five years ago expected females born during that year to live on average until the age of 93.6, the figure is now 90.4.
Although it is still held that life expectancies are improving, experts say that previous calculations were too high, adding that the improvement is significantly smaller than previously thought.
The report also calculates that whereas data from 2016 estimated that a boy born in that year would reach the age of 89.7, that same boy is now expected to live for 87.8 years.
Speaking of the report, the ONS said “There has been considerable public debate about the causes of the slowdown in life expectancy improvements.
“Researchers have suggested a range of possible explanations for the slowdown – several factors are at play, none of which can be singled out as being the most important with any certainty.”
A number of reports, including by the Health Foundation think tank and Public Health England have attempted to get to the bottom of tie issue.
Public Heath England have said that an increasingly elderly population may be more vulnerable to diseases such as flu, as well as dementia and other long term health problems.
Other issues affecting life expectancy before old age have also been quoted, including deaths from drug misuse, with Scotland having the highest drug death rate in the EU.
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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
Freephone : 0800 304 738
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