Eurostat: Women in the EU live 5.4 years longer than men with life expectancy in the EU at 80.6 years
Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, has released its latest findings on life expectancy, indicating that women across the EU outlive men by an average of five and a half years. The report, based on 2022 data, sheds light on varying life expectancies across EU regions.
According to the report, the average life expectancy at birth in the EU stood at 80.6 years in 2022, with notable differences between genders. Women in the EU boasted a life expectancy of 83.3 years, marking an increase of 0.4 years compared to 2021, albeit a slight decrease from 2019. Conversely, men's life expectancy reached 77.9 years, showing a 0.7-year increase from 2021 but a 0.6-year decrease from 2019.
Highest life expectancy in Comunidad de Madrid, Spain
The gap in life expectancy between men and women varied across EU countries. For instance, in Latvia, women lived a staggering ten years longer than men, while in Estonia and Lithuania, the gap was 8.7 years. On the other end of the spectrum, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Sweden exhibited the smallest gender differences, with gaps of 2.9, 3.3, and 3.4 years, respectively.
While life expectancy in the EU saw a slight increase from 2021, it fell short of the pre-pandemic levels witnessed in 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic impacted this metric, with a decline observed in 2020 and 2021. Although there was a slight uptick in 2022, the EU's life expectancy did not reach the levels seen in 2019.
Among EU regions, the Comunidad de Madrid in Spain boasted the highest life expectancy at 85.2 years. It was closely followed by Provincia Autonoma di Trento in Italy (84.4 years), Ile de France in France (84.1 years), Stockholm in Sweden (84.0 years), and Comunidad Foral de Navarra in Spain (83.9 years).
Conversely, the report highlighted regions with the lowest life expectancy at birth, with four out of the five lowest regions located in Bulgaria: Severozapaden (72.3 years), Severen tsentralen (73.2 years), Yugoiztochen (73.7 years), and Severoiztochen (74.1 years). Additionally, one region in Hungary, Észak-Magyarország, shared the same life expectancy figure of 74.1 years.
Life expectancy in Greece
In Greece, notable regional variations were observed, with Epirus, North Aegean, and Crete recording the highest life expectancies at 82.7, 82.3, and 81.7 years, respectively.
The Eurostat report underscores the importance of understanding demographic trends and disparities across EU regions, providing valuable insights for policymakers and healthcare professionals alike.
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