Health and mortality

Increased longevity with better health and well-being has been one of the greatest human achievements of all times. Life expectancy at birth for the world’s population has increased from 47 years in 1950–1955 to 70 years in 2010–2015, which together with fertility, has contributed to an increase in the world’s population from about 2.5 billion in 1950 to more than 7 billion today (United Nations, 2013c). A major contributor to the increase in longevity has been the decline of child mortality. Worldwide, mortality under age five has declined dramatically from an estimated 214 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1950–1955 to 52 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2010–2015 (United Nations, 2013c). These improvements in child mortality and longevity are associated with the “epidemiological transition”, where the pattern of morbidity and mortality shifts from predominately infectious and parasitic diseases towards a pattern with a growing burden of chronic and degenerative diseases.

Related Subject(s): Population and Demography