Life expectancy rises to record level

Who is born this year has a good chance of a long life. Because according to a recent press release of the Federal Statistical Office, the life expectancy of newborns has increased significantly in the past ten years. According to the study, newborn boys are now on average 78 years and girls even 83 years old. However, big differences not only show up in the sexes, but also between the individual federal states.

Newborn girls are on average five years older
People are getting older in this country. This is the result of a bill published on Friday by the Federal Statistical Office for which all deaths from 2012 to 2014 as well as other population data were evaluated. The average life expectancy of newborn boys is now 78 years and two months, up two years and three months from the 2002/2004 mortality table. Currently born girls are even an average of 83 years and a month old - which corresponds to an increase of one year and six months. "Life expectancy has been rising steadily for years, which is why it's at record levels," a statistician told Reuters..

The average life expectancy in Germany has reached a new record high. (Image: pressmaster / fotolia.com)

Older men catch up on a ten-year comparison
Even older people reach an ever higher age. Based on the mortality table for 2012/2014, the remaining life expectancy of today's 65-year-old men is now 17 years and 8 months. According to the statistics, women of the same age have statistically 21 years to go. They are now one year and two months older than they were ten years ago, with men even recording an increase of one year and five months.
The statisticians were also able to discover differences when comparing the individual federal states. The highest life expectancy at birth, according to men and women in Baden-Württemberg at 79 years and five months and almost 84 years. The lowest values ​​reached men in Saxony-Anhalt with 76 years and two months as well as women in the Saarland with 82 years and two months.
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death
In 2014, the average death rate in Germany was 78.1 years. The most frequent cause of death of the 868,356 deaths (422,225 men and 446,131 women) was according to the Federal Statistical Office - as in previous years - a cardiovascular disease. Almost 40 percent of all deaths were due to this. The second most frequent cause of death was cancer, which killed a quarter of all deceased in 2014 (121,766 men and 101,992 women). 4% of all deaths were caused by a non-natural cause of death, such as an injury or poisoning (34,667 deaths).

Care and support of older people must be expanded
Men and women are getting older and older. But that does not only have advantages, because often a long life also means considerable restrictions. Just a few months ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that people are getting older, but also sicker. Accordingly, in Germany alone, just under a quarter of all 70- to 85-year-olds would suffer from five or more diseases at the same time (multimorbidity). Accordingly, the care and care of older people urgently needed to be expanded and adapted to current developments. Instead of focusing on the treatment of individual diseases, the WHO said that "integrated care" should be used to maintain people's physical and mental health as well as possible for as long as possible. (No)