Women's Life Expectancy Increases, Closing Gap Between Rich and Poor Due to Better Health Care For 'Low-Income' Countries?

The World Health Organization has a released a study suggesting the life expectancy of women has greatly improved since reducing the spread of non-communicable diseases in developed countries.

"Given the substantial reduction in maternal mortality and the increase in the number of older women over the last 10 years, health systems in low- and middle-income countries must adjust accordingly, otherwise this trend will continue to increase," said Dr John Beard, director of the World Health Organization's (WHO) Department of Ageing and Life Course and one of the authors of the study, in a news release.

The findings were published in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization:

In France, the United Kingdom and Chile, the life expectancy of 50-year-old women increased by about 2.5 years to 36.7, 34.4 and 34.3 years, so that they can expect to live to 83 or 84 years thanks to improvements in these health areas, the study showed.

Meanwhile, in Mexico and the Russian Federation, the life expectancy of 50-year-old women increased more slowly, by 2.4 and 1.2 years, so they can expect to live to the age of 80 and 78 years, it showed.

While breast cancer incidence increased overall during the same 30-year period, there were fewer breast and cervical cancer deaths among women aged 50 years and older due to the provision of early diagnosis and timely treatment.

Between 1970 and 2010, female deaths in this age group from cardiovascular disease and diabetes fell on average by 66% in 11 affluent countries: Chile, France, Germany, Greece, Japan, New Zealand, Mexico, Poland, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, the study showed.

"Changing women's exposures at earlier stages of their lives, particularly in relation to sexual health, tobacco and harmful use of alcohol, is essential to reversing the epidemic of chronic diseases," Beard said.

The study is a first of its kind, as researchers analyzed the causes of death in women 50 years and older in a "wide rage of countries." According to the WHO's news release, the treatment and detection of non-communicable disease are "inadequate in many countries."

"The WHO study, one of a collection of articles in a special issue of the journal devoted to women's health beyond reproduction, found that the leading causes of death of women aged 50 years and older worldwide are cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke) and cancers, but that in developing countries these deaths occur at earlier ages than in the rich world." WHO said.

The WHO suggests the best way to prevent the non-communicable disease is to properly screen, diagnosis and help manage symptoms early on.

"The best way to address these conditions in low- and middle-income countries is to build on the existing health-care services, so that they can be detected early and managed with effective treatment," Beard said. "So, for example, maternal health care services can provide proper detection and management of gestational diabetes to help prevent mothers from becoming overweight or diabetic later in life."