Guernsey in top 10 places globally for a longer life

Latest figures show that, at birth, women in Guernsey are expected to live to nearly 86 and men to 82 – an average life expectancy of 83.5 across the population.

Islanders who hit their 65th birthday have a higher life expectancy still – nearly 88 for women and 85 for men, an average of 86.6 across the sexes.

Over the past three decades, average life expectancy in the Bailiwick has increased by more than six years and is nearly two years ahead of life expectancy in the UK and more than seven years ahead of the USA.

‘Guernsey’s high life expectancy values indicate a high average standard of living and very low levels of infant and child mortality,’ said head of health intelligence Jenny Cataroche.

Life expectancy locally fell three times in the past decade, most notably between 2016 and 2019 when it dropped by nearly a year. But the latest figures show it has increased again, unlike some places in the western world which have continued to experience declines, including the USA where it has dropped from nearly 79 to just above 76.

Although the trend remains for life expectancy locally to go up, increases have gradually become smaller and slower over the past three decades.

In the decade between 1990 and 2000, average life expectancy increased by about 4.5 years. In the decade to 2010, it rose by about 2.5 years. In the most-recent 10-year period, it grew by less than one year.

Health & Social Care believes that a new way of calculating life expectancy, which is currently not used in the Bailiwick, could provide a more accurate picture in the future.

‘To estimate how long a baby born today can expect to live, projected mortality data is needed,’ it said.

‘We do not have mortality projections for Guernsey but the [UK] Office for National Statistics has some modelled estimates and these have been used to project that baby boys born in the UK in 2020 can expect to live on average to 87.3 years and girls to 90.2 years.’

San Marino currently has the highest average life expectancy at birth in the world at 89 for women and 85 for men.