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Economy

Life expectancy at birth in Brazil stands at 75.5 years in 2022

A study unveils, for the first time, the pandemic's impact
Vitor Abdala
Published on 29/11/2023 - 12:47
Agência Brasil - Rio de Janeiro
Idosos na região central de Brasília.
© Marcelo Camargo/Agência Brasil

Life expectancy at birth in Brazil for the year 2022 is reported to be 75.5 years, as per data released on Wednesday (Nov. 29) in Rio de Janeiro by the Brazilian government´s statistic agency IBGE.

Unlike previous years, the study is based on the 2022 Demographic Census instead of revised population projections from 2018, derived from the 2010 Census.

For the first time, the data reveals the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Brazilian life expectancy. The figures for 2020 (76.8 years) and 2021 (77 years) did not account for deaths caused by the disease. Izabel Marri, a researcher at IBGE, acknowledges the unforeseen nature of the health crisis, stating, "We made an estimate without foreseeing a health crisis that would affect deaths."

The IBGE is also revising figures from previous years. Preliminary data suggests that life expectancy in the country in 2020 was 74.8 years, marking a two-year decrease from previous estimates. In 2021, the year with the highest pandemic-related deaths, life expectancy was 72.8 years, reflecting a 4.2-year reduction.

Marri notes, "Life expectancy in 2022 is as if we had recovered life expectancy a little compared to the worst year of the pandemic. After the worst year, with the biggest increase in deaths in the world, we can recover a calculation of life expectancy at birth."

Gender

In terms of gender, life expectancy for women is reported at 79 years, down from 80.1 years in 2019, while for men, it is 72 years, a decline from 73.1 years in 2019.