COVID-19 Causes Biggest Fall In Life Expectancy Since World War 2, Says Oxford Study

London: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought down the life expectancy by the largest amount since World War II, according to an Oxford University study on Monday. For American men, life expectancy dropped by more than two years in 2020.

The study examined 29 countries, out of which 22 showed that life expectancy was more than six months lower than what it was in 2019. There were reductions in life expectancy in as many as 27 countries. The 29 countries were from Europe, the US and Chile.

The most life expectancy reductions in 2020 across countries can be linked to official Covid deaths, according to the study. The COVID-19 pandemic has so far claimed close to 50 lakh lives globally.

“The fact that our results highlight such a large impact that is directly attributable to Covid-19 shows how devastating a shock it has been for many countries,” Dr Ridhi Kashyap was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.

Dr Kashyap co-led the study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.

GENDER

Men had a greater reduction in life expectancy than women in most of the countries studied. American men registered the largest decline at 2.2 years. Life expectancy fell by a greater amount for men in 15 countries.

AGE

The US saw a rise in fatality particularly among the working-age population. People above 60 years contributed more significantly to the increase in fatality rate in European countries.

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