Life expectancy ranking of Canadians among the populations in selected OECD countries and its disparities among British Columbians

Archives of Public Health

Li Rita Zhang¹  Drona Rasali² 

[1] Population and Public Health Program, Provincial Health Services Authority, 700-1380 Burrard Street, Vancouver V6Z 2H3, BC, Canada

[2] Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

关键词: Socio-economic disparity;    Longitudinal comparison;    Life expectancy;   

Others  :  1180720
DOI  :  10.1186/s13690-015-0065-0

 received in 2014-09-29, accepted in 2015-02-03,  发布年份 2015

【 摘 要 】

Background

Canada is among the world’s leading nations with the longest life expectancy at birth (LE₀), and British Columbia (BC) ranks top among Canadian provinces and territories for LE₀ in both men and women. This paper examined recent data as well as projected trends in LE₀ of Canadian men and women and explored the geographic and socioeconomic disparities in LE₀ specific to BC.

Methods

Using retrospective data on LE₀ and age-standardized mortality rates, Canada was compared to 11 other Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries with the longest LE₀. Projections were made using linear regression modelling to the year of 2023. The association between regional LE₀ and regional socioeconomic status (SES) was examined for the province of BC using its Local Health Area (LHA) level data on SES and LE₀.

Results

In 2009, Canadian men (LE₀: 78.7 years) and women (LE₀: 83.3 years) ranked 7^th and 8^th, respectively among the 12 OECD nations under comparison. Significantly smaller annual gains in LE₀ contributed to the losing of their top ranks in LE₀ for Canadian men and women in recent years, which was projected to sustain. Higher mortality risks, particularly for lung cancer and external causes of mortality among women was found for Canada compared to leading countries on these measures. Geographic variations were evident in LE₀ in BC, and there was a significant gap of 3.6 years in the average LE₀ for BC’s LHAs in the lowest SES tertile (78.6 years, 95% CI: 78.0-79.3) compared to those in the highest SES tertile (82.2 years, 95% CI: 81.6-82.8).

Conclusions

Canada continues to remain one of the OECD countries with longest living population. With the highest LE₀ in the country, British Columbia has an opportunity to address socio-economic disparities in LE₀.

【 授权许可】

   
2015 Zhang and Rasali.; licensee BioMed Central.

【 图 表 】

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