Londonderry women can expect to die younger: report

WOMEN in Londonderry die younger than anywhere else in Northern Ireland whilst the overall death rate here is significantly above the province-wide figure, according to a new report by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA).

The newly-published annual report by the Registrar General Northern Ireland reveals that life expectancy for women in Londonderry and Belfast was lower than anywhere else in 2010. By contrast the average Limavady woman lives longer than elsewhere in the province.

“Females born in recent years in Limavady have the highest life expectancy at 83.2 years, while females born in Belfast and Derry have the lowest life expectancy of just under 80 years,” states the report.

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Equally, the general death rate in Londonderry was also significantly higher than the rest of Northern Ireland.

The report reveals: “Two Local Government Districts, Belfast and Derry have a standardised mortality ratio significantly above the Northern Ireland average of 100. The highest, Belfast, is 18 per cent higher than the Northern Ireland average.”

Elsewhere, the report also reveals that the Waterside was one of the biggest growth centres in the province with growth rates in excess of 20 per cent; that East Londonderry fell in population; and that Londonderry had the second highest number of gay weddings and divorcees in NI.

“West of the Bann, the fastest-growing areas were mainly located on the outskirts of the major urban centres. This ‘overspill’ effect was most pronounced in Derry Urban Area, with a cluster of areas on the eastern fringe of the City registering growth rates in excess of 20 per cent,” the report points out.

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It adds: “In contrast, East Londonderry (-0.7 per cent) and Belfast West (-0.3 per cent) were the only Parliamentary Constituencies that experienced a loss in population between 2009 and 2010; net out migration and other changes outnumbered the excess of births over deaths (natural increase).”

Other revelations contained in the new study are that Londonderry has the lowest proportion (11.6 per cent) of people aged over 65 in Northern Ireland; that St Eugene’s Cathedral and St Patrick’s Church, Pennyburn, had the most weddings of all religious buildings; that seven per cent of Northern Ireland divorcees were residing in Londonderry in 2010 (the second highest figure in NI); and that Londonderry had the second highest number of gay weddings (10 civil partnerships) in 2010.