London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1897
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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This table shews, therefore, that during the period 1891-7, as compared with the decennium
1881-90, there has been a mean annual saving of 3,587 lives, and that this represents a mean annual
saving of 142,460 years of "life capital." In previous annual reports I have similarly dealt with the
mortality figures of the periods 1891-4, 1891-5, and 1891-6, and it is interesting to compare the
results obtained for the four periods, viz.-
| Periods compared with 1881-90. | Mean annual number of lives gained. | Mean annual amount of "life capital" gained. | Proportion of "life capital" gained to each life gained. |
|---|---|---|---|
| years. | years. | ||
| 1891-4 | 1,042 | 79,606 | 76.4 |
| 1891-5 | 1,304 | 85,519 | 65.6 |
| 1891-6 | 2,461 | 104,742 | 42.6 |
| 1891-7 | 3,587 | 142,460 | 39.7 |
It will thus be seen that the mean annual number of lives saved has increased in each period,
while the amount of "life capital" in proportion to the number of lives saved has decreased, this
decrease being particularly marked in the periods 1891-6 and 1891-7. The following table, showing
the death rates at each age period in 1891-4, 1895, 1896, and 1897 will serve to make the explanation
of these facts more clear.
| Males. | Death rates per 1,000 living. | Increase or decrease per cent. (compared with death rates in 1881-90). | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891-4. | 1895. | 1896. | 1897. | 1891-4. | 1895. | 1896. | 1897. | |
| All ages | 21.53 | 19.90 | 19.58 | - 5.0 | - 10.0 | - 11.4 | ||
| 0- | 70.87 | 72.72 | 71.30 | 65.63 | - 3.0 | - 0.5 | - 2.4 | |
| 5- | 5.46 | 4.51 | 5.47 | 4.37 | - 7.9 | - 23.9 | - 7.8 | - 26.3 |
| 10- | 2.63 | 2.52 | 2.43 | 2.47 | - 9.9 | - 13.7 | - 15.4 | |
| 15- | 3.90 | 3.39 | 3.39 | 3.38 | - 3.7 | - 16.3 | - 16.3 | - 16.5 |
| 20- | 5.06 | 4.67 | 4.59 | 4.66 | - 7.0 | - 14.2 | - 15.6 | - 14.3 |
| 25- | 8.08 | 7.59 | 6.94 | 7.03 | - 6.6 | - 12.3 | - 19.8 | - 18.7 |
| 35- | 15.23 | 13.45 | 12.99 | 14.07 | - 13.2 | - 5.9 | ||
| 45- | 24.61 | 23.21 | 22.54 | + 3.1 | - 5.6 | |||
| 55- | 43.15 | 41.87 | 37.10 | 39.87 | + 4.4 | + 1.3 | - 3.5 | |
| 65- | 80.58 | 76.92 | 67.15 | 67.90 | + 3.3 | - 1.3 | - 13.9 | - 12.9 |
| 75- | 156.05 | 160.08 | 143.38 | 148.83 | + 2.7 | - 8.0 | - 4.6 | |
| 85 and upwards | 288.41 | 288.99 | 232.81 | 256.25 | - 3.1 | - 2.9 | - 13.9 | |
Table VI.
| Females. | Death rates per 1,000 living. | Increase or decrease per cent. (compared with death rates in 1881-90). | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1891-4. | 1895. | 1896. | 1897. | 1891-4. | 1895. | 1896. | 1897. | |
| 18.46 | 18.23 | 16.83 | 16.27 | -3.2 | -10.6 | -13.6 | ||
| 0- | 60.96 | 62.07 | 55.69 | - 3.6 | - 1.9 | - 12.0 | ||
| 5- | 5.72 | 4.79 | 5.36 | 4.58 | - 1.7 | - 17.7 | - 7.9 | - 21.3 |
| 10- | 2.57 | 2.42 | 2.25 | - 8.0 | - 1l.l | - 16.3 | ||
| 15- | 3.32 | 2.94 | 2.77 | - 7.3 | - 17.9 | |||
| 20- | 4.01 | 3.72 | 3.13 | 3.16 | - 8.9 | - 15.5 | - 28.9 | |
| 25- | 6.33 | 5.77 | 5.41 | 5.30 | - 7.2 | - 15.4 | - 20.7 | - 22.3 |
| 35- | 11.41 | 10.59 | 10.41 | 10.40 | - 7.3 | - 8.8 | - 8.9 | |
| 45- | 17.53 | 17.03 | 15.34 | 15.86 | + 1.7 | - 8.0 | ||
| 55- | 32.44 | 31.83 | 26.83 | 27.51 | + 5.4 | + 3.4 | ||
| 65- | 65.80 | 64.13 | 50.17 | 52.93 | + 4.0 | + 13 | - 20.7 | - 16.4 |
| 75- | 136.60 | 146.18 | 117.59 | 123.15 | + 1.7 | + 89 | - 12.4 | - 8.3 |
| 85 and upwards | 260.67 | 278.84 | 231.82 | 262.79 | - 1.5 | + 5.3 | - 12.4 | - 0.7 |
It will be seen from this table that the death rate at "all ages" for each sex has progressively
declined in each of the periods shown in the table. When the figures for separate age
groups are considered, however, there is seen to be considerable variation in the percentage
differences, some ages actually showing an increased death rate. Thus in the period 1891-4
the death rate at "all ages," when compared with the death rate obtaining for the period
1881-90, shows a decline of 2.6 per cent. for males and 2.0 per cent. for females, while the
percentage differences shown for the several age groups range from -9.9 to + 4.4 in the case of males
and -8.9 to + 5.4 in the case of females; similarly in 1895 the percentage differences range from