-

This reflexion is published in memory of Väinö Kannisto, who died unexpectedly on 16 February 2002.

-

How does a woman’s reproductive history influence her life span? We find that parity and both an early and late birth significantly influence longevity. The impact of a woman’s reproductive history on her life span is minor, however, compared to the influence of her level of education or...

Individuals at the same age in the same population differ along numerous risk factors that affect their chances of various causes of death. The frail and susceptible tend to die first. This differential selection may partially account for some of the puzzles in cancer epidemiology, including the...

We investigate whether heterogeneity can explain the differences in mortality between the United States and a more homogeneous country, i.e. Japan. The background of the analysis is the growing gap between life-expectancy in the United States and the world record leader since the 1980s. This...

Unique data from a 1998 healthy longevity baseline survey provide demographic, socio-economic, and health characteristics of the oldest old, aged 80-105, in China. This subpopu-lation is growing rapidly and is likely to need extensive social and health services. A large majority of Chinese...

There is a unique threshold age separating early deaths from late deaths such that averting an early death decreases life disparity, but averting a late death increases inequality in lifespans.

-