Pensioners 'getting older'

Older people in Britain are living longer than ever before, new research into life expectancy has found.

13:26 30 September 2005

Older people in Britain are living longer than ever before, new research into life expectancy has found.

Research by the Continuous Mortality Investigation (CMI), on behalf of the actuarial profession, has revealed that in comparison to the period 1990-1994, the mortality rate for both males and females in their late 60s has dropped by 30 per cent.

Octogenarians are also living longer as findings from 1999-2002 show that at the age of 85, life expectancy for men has risen by about two per cent a year and for women by 1.3 per cent a year.

However, the demographic that has seen the most significant change is in 65-year-old women. Whilst in 1994, 110 out of every 10,000 were expected to die; this figure has plummeted to just 74.

Brian Ridsdale, chairman of the CMI, said: "Life expectancy has improved dramatically over recent decades but all estimates of future mortality carry considerable uncertainty.

"Issues of individual choice, such as diet, smoking or drugs have the potential to slow down or even reverse mortality improvements. Individuals, by making choices, have a big impact on how long they live."