The Covid-19 pandemic has caused life expectancy in Switzerland to fall for the first time in decades. For males born in 2020 it decreased by 0.9 years to 81.0 years, and for females by 0.5 years to 85.1 years.
The last time such a decline occurred for men was in 1944 and for women in 1962, the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) said on MondayExternal link.
Life expectancy has fallen particularly sharply for the elderly. Last year a 65-year-old man could expect to live for another 19.3 years (down from 20.0 years in 2019) and a 65-year-old woman could expect to live for another 22.2 years (down from 22.7 years).
Such a sharp decline has never been observed among men, the FSO said. For women, however, it had been seen in 1944, due to a particularly hard winter.
More
More
Where the oldest Swiss live
This content was published on
Cantons Basel City, Jura and Ticino had the most 100-year-olds in Switzerland in 2018, new statistics reveal.
A comparison of mortality in Switzerland during the pandemics of 1918 and 2020 reveals significant differences, the FSO said. The number of deaths attributed to the Spanish flu in 1918 was significantly higher than those attributed to Covid-19 in 2020. The Spanish flu caused almost 22,000 deaths in 1918, equivalent to 5.6 deaths per thousand people.
According to the Federal Office of Public Health, there were 7,600 Covid-19-related deaths in 2020, or 0.9 per thousand. The 1918 influenza killed mainly men and women aged 20-40, whereas Covid-19 was most deadly for those over 80. Between 1917 and 1918, life expectancy at birth fell by 10.1 years for men and 8.4 years for women, and thus much more dramatically than between 2019 and 2020.
More
More
Swiss note many parallels between Covid-19 and Spanish flu
This content was published on
Implementing lockdown rules too late, then lifting them too soon or simply ignoring them – sound familiar?
However, the pandemics of 1918 and 2020 also have some striking similarities.
Both killed more men than women in absolute and relative terms. In 1918 and 2020 the second wave of infections occurred in the same months of the year, with the peak of deaths in both pandemics occurring around November.
In addition, in both cases the cantons in western Switzerland had higher overall mortality rates than the cantons in eastern Switzerland.
More
More
Coronavirus: the situation in Switzerland
This content was published on
An overview of the latest Covid-related information in the Alpine nation.
This content was published on
Swiss public broadcasters RTS and SRF are drastically reducing their communications via the social network X (formerly Twitter).
Israel: president of Swiss universities rejects academic boycott
This content was published on
Luciana Vaccaro, president of Swissuniversities, the umbrella group of Swiss universities, is not in favour of an academic boycott of Israeli universities.
First large-scale alpine solar plant approved in Switzerland
This content was published on
The approval was met with satisfaction by the project's organisers, but it also brings with it a certain amount of pressure.
Medieval squirrels may have ‘helped spread leprosy’
This content was published on
An examination of squirrel remains in the United Kingdom has opened up interesting questions and possibilities in terms of the history of the disease.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss population continues to age and diversify
This content was published on
In 2019, the Swiss population grew in size, aged, and became slightly more foreign, according to annual statistics published on Thursday.
This content was published on
Alice Schaufelberger, who spent most of her life in Zurich, had always been in good spirits, according to the head of the nursing home where she died.
This content was published on
It’s a select club and not necessarily one you want to join: dying on your birthday. That said, you’d be in good company.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.