SEX DIFFERENCES IN LIFE EXPECTANCY IN CANADA: IMMIGRANT AND NATIVE-BORN POPULATIONS

SummaryA growing body of research often indicates that immigrant populations in Western countries enjoy a lower level of mortality in relation to their native-born host populations. In this literature, sex differences in mortality are often reported but substantive analyses of the differences are generally lacking. The present investigation looks at sex differences in life expectancy with specific reference to immigrant and Canadian-born populations in Canada during 1971 and 2001. For these two populations, sex differences in expectation of life at birth are decomposed into cause-of-death components. Immigrants in Canada have a higher life expectancy than their Canadian-born counterparts. In absolute terms, immigrant females enjoy the highest life expectancy. Inrelativeterms, however, immigrant men show a larger longevity advantage, as their expectation of life at birth exceeds that of Canadian-born men by a wider margin than do foreign-born females in relation to Canadian-born females. It is also found that immigrants have a smaller sex differential in life expectancy as compared with the Canadian born. Decomposition analysis shows this is a function of immigrants having smaller sex differences in death rates from heart disease and cancer. Factors thought to underlie these differentials between immigrants and the Canadian born are discussed and suggestions for further research are given.

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A VARIED PATTERN OF CHANGE OF THE SEX DIFFERENTIAL IN SURVIVAL IN THE G7 COUNTRIES

Journal of Biosocial Science ◽

10.1017/s0021932005007212 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 38 (3) ◽

pp. 391-401 ◽

Cited By ~ 40

Author(s):

FRANK TROVATO ◽

NILS B. HEYEN

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Point Of View ◽

Industrialized Countries ◽

Circulatory Disease ◽

G7 Countries ◽

Death Rates ◽

The United Kingdom ◽

Life Expectancy At Birth ◽

The Difference

Over the course of the 20th century the sex differential in life expectancy at birth in the industrialized countries has widened considerably in favour of women. Starting in the early 1970s, the beginning of a reversal in the long-term pattern of this differential has been noted in some high-income countries. This study documents a sustained pattern of narrowing of this measure into the later part of the 1990s for six of the populations that comprise the G7 countries: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, England and Wales (as representative of the United Kingdom) and USA. For Japan, a persistence of widening sex differences in survival is noted. The sex differences in life expectancy are decomposed over roughly three decades (early 1970s to late 1990s) from the point of view of four major cause-of-death categories: circulatory diseases, cancers, accidents/violence/suicide, and ‘other’ (residual) causes. In the six countries where the sex gap has narrowed, this has resulted primarily from reduced sex differences in circulatory disease mortality, and secondarily from reduced differences in male and female death rates due to accidents, violence and suicide combined. In some of the countries sex differentials in cancer mortality have been converging lately, and this has also contributed to a narrowing of the difference in life expectancy. In Japan, males have been less successful in reducing their survival disadvantage in relation to Japanese women with regard to circulatory disease and cancer; and in the case of accidents/violence/suicide, male death rates increased during the 1990s. These trends explain the divergent pattern of the sex difference in life expectation in Japan as compared with the other G7 nations.

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Narrowing sex differences in life expectancy: regional variations, 1971-1991

Canadian Studies in Population ◽

10.25336/p6130b ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 89 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Frank Trovato ◽

N. M. Lalu

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Gender Gap ◽

Prince Edward Island ◽

Causes Of Death ◽

Average Length ◽

Decomposition Analysis ◽

Relative Contribution ◽

Life Expectancy At Birth ◽

Length Of Life

A number of industrialized nations have recently experienced some degrees of constriction in their long-standing sex differentials in life expectancy at birth. In this study we examine this phenomenon in the context of Canada’s regions between 1971 and 1991: Atlantic (Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island); Quebec, Ontario, and the West (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon and Northwest Territories). Decomposition analysis based on multiple decrement life tables is applied to address three questions: (1) Are there regional differentials in the degree of narrowing in the sex gap in life expectancy? (2) What is the relative contribution of major causes of death to observed sex differences in average length of life within and across regions? (3) How do the contributions of cause-of-death components vary across regions to either widen or narrow the sex gap in survival? It is shown that the magnitude of the sex gap is not uniform across the regions, though the differences are not large. The most important contributors to a narrowing of the sex gap in life expectancy are heart disease and external types of mortality (i.e., accidents, violence, and suicide), followed by lung cancer and other types of chronic conditions. In substantive terms these results indicate that over time men have been making sufficient gains in these causes of death as to narrow some of the gender gap in overall survival. Regions show similarity in these effects.

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Changing contribution of smoking to the sex differences in life expectancy in Europe, 1950–2014

European Journal of Epidemiology ◽

10.1007/s10654-020-00602-x ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 35 (9) ◽

pp. 835-841

Author(s):

Fanny Janssen

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Sex Difference ◽

Western Europe ◽

Decomposition Analysis ◽

European Countries ◽

Attributable Mortality ◽

Mortality Data ◽

Life Expectancy At Birth ◽

Related Part

Abstract This article provides a detailed and overarching illustration of the contribution of smoking to sex differences in life expectancy at birth (e0) in Europe, focusing on changes over time and differences between both European countries and European regions. For this purpose, the sex difference in e0 for 31 European countries over the 1950–2014 period was decomposed into a smoking- and a non-smoking-related part, using all-cause mortality data and indirectly estimated smoking-attributable mortality rates by age and sex, and a formal decomposition analysis. It was found that smoking-attributable mortality contributed, on average, 3 years (43.5%) to the 7-year life expectancy difference between women and men in 2014. This contribution, was largest in 1995, at 5.2 out of 9.0 years, and subsequently declined in parallel with the average sex difference in life expectancy. The average contribution of smoking-attributable mortality was especially large in North-Western Europe around 1975; in Southern Europe around 1985; and in Eastern Europe around 1990–1995, when smoking-attributable mortality reached maximum levels among men, but was still low among women. The observed parallel decline from 1995 onwards in the sex differences in e0 and the absolute contribution of smoking to this sex difference suggests that this recent decline in the sex difference in e0 can be almost fully explained by historical changes in sex differences in smoking, and, consequently, smoking-attributable mortality. In line with the progression of the smoking epidemic, the sex differences in life expectancy in Europe are expected to further decline in the future.

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The triple burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases and injuries on sex differences in life expectancy in Ethiopia

International Journal for Equity in Health ◽

10.1186/s12939-021-01516-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Myunggu Jung ◽

Gizachew Balew Jembere ◽

Young Su Park ◽

William Muhwava ◽

Yeohee Choi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Interpersonal Violence ◽

Respiratory Infections ◽

Decomposition Analysis ◽

Communicable Diseases ◽

Male Mortality ◽

Non Communicable Diseases ◽

Life Expectancy At Birth ◽

Males And Females

Abstract Background Ethiopia has experienced great improvements in life expectancy (LE) at birth over the last three decades. Despite consistent increases in LE for both males and females in Ethiopia, the country has simultaneously witnessed an increasing discrepancy in LE between males and females. Methods This study used Pollard’s actuarial method of decomposing LE to compare age- and cause- specific contributions to changes in sex differences in LE between 1995 and 2015 in Ethiopia. Results Life expectancy at birth in Ethiopia increased for both males and females from 48.28 years and 50.12 years in 1995 to 65.59 years and 69.11 years in 2015, respectively. However, the sex differences in LE at birth also increased from 1.85 years in 1995 to 3.51 years in 2015. Decomposition analysis shows that the higher male mortality was consistently due to injuries and respiratory infections, which contributed to 1.57 out of 1.85 years in 1995 and 1.62 out of 3.51 years in 2015 of the sex differences in LE. Increased male mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) also contributed to the increased difference in LE between males and females over the period, accounting for 0.21 out of 1.85 years and 1.05 out of 3.51 years in 1995 and 2015, respectively. Conclusions While injuries and respiratory infections causing male mortality were the most consistent causes of the sex differences in LE in Ethiopia, morality from NCDs is the main cause of the recent increasing differences in LE between males and females. However, unlike the higher exposure of males to death from injuries due to road traffic injuries or interpersonal violence, to what extent sex differences are caused by the higher male mortality compared to female mortality from respiratory infection diseases is unclear. Similarly, despite Ethiopia’s weak social security system, an explanation for the increased sex differences after the age of 40 years due to either longer female LE or reduced male LE should be further investigated.

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Wrestling with 9/11: Immigrant Perceptions and Perceptions of Immigrants

MIGRATION LETTERS ◽

10.33182/ml.v3i2.63 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 107-124 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Caroline Brettell

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Immigration Policy ◽

Asian Indians ◽

World Trade Center ◽

The United States ◽

Fort Worth ◽

Foreign Born ◽

Immigrant Populations ◽

Trade Center ◽

The Impact

Soon after 9/11 a research project to study new immigration into the Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area got under way. In the questionnaire that was administered to 600 immigrants across five different immigrant populations (Asian Indians, Vietnamese, Mexicans, Salvadorans, and Nigerians) between 2003 and 2005 we decided to include a question about the impact of 9/11 on their lives. We asked: “How has the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 affected your position as an immigrant in the United States?” This article analyzes the responses to this question, looking at similarities and differences across different immigrant populations. It also addresses the broader issue of how 9/11 has affected both immigration policy and attitudes toward the foreign-born in the United States.

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COVID-19 Mortality Rate and Its Incidence in Latin America: Dependence on Demographic and Economic Variables

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18136900 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (13) ◽

pp. 6900

Author(s):

Javier Cifuentes-Faura

Keyword(s):

Latin America ◽

Mortality Rate ◽

Population Density ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Latin American ◽

Positive Influence ◽

Death Rates ◽

Per Capita ◽

Latin American Countries ◽

Quality Infrastructure

The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has left millions infected and dead around the world, with Latin America being one of the most affected areas. In this work, we have sought to determine, by means of a multiple regression analysis and a study of correlations, the influence of population density, life expectancy, and proportion of the population in vulnerable employment, together with GDP per capita, on the mortality rate due to COVID-19 in Latin American countries. The results indicated that countries with higher population density had lower numbers of deaths. Population in vulnerable employment and GDP showed a positive influence, while life expectancy did not appear to significantly affect the number of COVID-19 deaths. In addition, the influence of these variables on the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 was analyzed. It can be concluded that the lack of resources can be a major burden for the vulnerable population in combating COVID-19 and that population density can ensure better designed institutions and quality infrastructure to achieve social distancing and, together with effective measures, lower death rates.

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Contribution of avoidable causes of death to premature mortality in Poland and selected European countries

Studia Demograficzne ◽

10.33119/sd.2020.2.4 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Bogdan Wojtyniak ◽

Jakub Stokwiszewski

Keyword(s):

Life Expectancy ◽

Central Europe ◽

Causes Of Death ◽

Average Rate ◽

Premature Mortality ◽

European Countries ◽

Annual Percent Change ◽

Death Rates ◽

Central European ◽

The Difference

Our study, availing the new, agreed by the OECD and Eurostat, lists of preventable and treatable causes of death, seeks to quantify the contribution of avoidable causes to premature mortality and its dynamics in Poland and Central European countries – Czechia, Hungary, Lithuania and Slovenia, in comparison with Sweden serving as a benchmark country in 1999–2017. We calculated age standardised death rates for the broad groups of avoidable causes and more specific ones, which comprised preventable and treatable cancer and diseases of the circulatory system (DCS), preventable injuries and alcohol-related diseases. Deaths from not avoidable causes were also analysed. The analysis of time trends in the death rates and calculation of the Average Annual Percent Change (AAPC) for the overall trend were performed with joint-point models. The contribution of changes in mortality from avoidable causes to increase life expectancy during 1999–2017 and contribution of the difference in mortality from these causes to the difference in life expectancy between five countries and Sweden were based on the decomposition of temporary life expectancy between birth and age 75 [e(0-75)]. For the calculation of life expectancy, we used the classic Chiang method and the decomposition of life expectancy by the death causes and age was conducted with the Arriaga method. The AAPC of death rates from avoidable causes in 1999–2017 was similar in all the countries but Lithuania, where the decline started later. The decline in the death rates from not avoidable causes is much slower than the rates from avoidable causes. Mortality from treatable causes was decreasing faster than from preventable causes in most populations. In 1999–2017, the average rate of mortality decline for preventable cancer was greater among men than among women, while for treatable cancer the sex-related differences were much smaller and in favour of women. As for preventable and treatable death from DCS, their decrease was faster among women than men in all the countries but Sweden. Improvements in mortality from causes that could be avoided through prevention or treatment made substantial positive contributions to the overall change in life expectancy in all the countries. The differences in temporary life expectancy e(0-75) between the analysed Central European countries and Sweden were much smaller in 2017 than in 1999, due to the reduction of the gap in mortality from avoidable causes. Our results show that among men, and to a lesser extent among women, mortality from preventable causes contributes more than mortality from causes that can be effectively treated to shorter life expectancy in the countries of Central Europe than in Sweden. This indicates that in reducing the health gap between the inhabitants of Central Europe and Western Europe, the healthcare system should consider disease prevention even to a greater extent than just treating them.

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