Longer life, better health

	45 years together Photo: Egidio Smiderle

Today, the average Canadian can expect to live well into his or her seventies. The life expectancy of a Canadian child born in 2001 is 79.7 years (82.2 for women, 77.1 for men). This is the longest it has ever been, reflecting lower mortality rates in most age groups, particularly infants.

The gap in life expectancy between the sexes narrowed from 5.2 years in 2000 to 5.1 years in 2001, which continues a two-decade long trend. From 1979 to 2001, life expectancy for women advanced 3.4 years, whereas for men it improved by 5.7 years.

In 2001, there were 219,538 deaths in Canada. That total was up 0.7% from 2000, continuing its general rise because of a growing and aging population. In fact, there were 12% more deaths in 2001 than in 1991, 28% more than 1981 and 40% more than 1971.

The death rate in Canada remained at 7.1 deaths per 100,000 people in 2001 because the Canadian population grew faster than the number of deaths.