Hongkongers are living longer, but extra time comes with disabilities and women suffer more than men, study finds
- On average, men’s life expectancy grew by about 43 months and women’s by about 25 months between 2007 and 2020, Chinese University study finds
- But estimated average number of years person can expect to live in full health only increased by 20 months for men and one month for women
Hongkongers are living longer but endure greater periods of disabilities before they die mainly because of “significant” socioeconomic inequalities, a university study has found.
Gary Chung Ka-ki, a research assistant professor of public health and primary care at Chinese University, called the results “alarming” and urged authorities to develop a comprehensive approach to healthy longevity.
“Our study strongly affirms that it is inadequate to focus on life expectancy alone, which may be a facade that conceals the problems related to the burden of disease,” he said. “The presence of socioeconomic inequalities in health expectancy across districts highlights the inadequacies of current efforts to address the underlying social determinants of health with an equity focus.”
On average, men’s life expectancy grew by about 43 months and women’s by about 25 months between 2007 and 2020, the study found. But the estimated average number of years a person could expect to live in full health only increased by 20 months for men and one month for women, according to the researchers.
The analysis, published in the September edition of The Lancet Regional Health – Western Pacific medical journal, used open-source information from the Census and Statistics Department on the age-gender-specific rates of mortality and disability in Hong Kong to estimate the number of years people aged 65 spent free of disabilities.
The research team then conducted a district-based analysis to examine the socioeconomic inequalities among older adults, using estimated disability rates of community-dwelling older adults, mortality records and other indicators, such as population size and socio-demographic characteristics.
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They found the proportion of life spent without disability was substantially smaller in older women than in older men, and that most of the life expectancy gained between 2007 and 2020 was spent with disabilities.
Researchers discovered almost 26 per cent of men and nearly 34 per cent of women had disabilities when they died. In 2007, the proportion was 20.3 per cent and 28.1 per cent, respectively.
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“While the gender difference in life expectancy remained apparent, the advantage of disability-free life expectancy in older women almost disappeared in 2020,” the researchers wrote.
“The substantially lower proportion of disability-free life in older women than that in men suggested a particularly heavy disability burden under prolonged life in older women … Women are living a longer life, but with greater disability.”
Roger Chung Yat-nork, an associate professor of public health and primary care, said that life expectancy only considered the quantity of life, and not its quality.
“So, an improved life expectancy does not necessarily reflect a better state of health,” he added.
The latest statistics from the United Nations show that Hong Kong has the world’s second-longest life expectancy at 85.83 years old, following Monaco’s 87.01.
