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Story: Death rates and life expectancy

Life expectancy, 1950s–2010s

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The age to which people can expect to live has increased steadily between the 1950s and 2010s, as this graph shows. Women have consistently had a higher life expectancy than men.

Using this item

Te Ara – The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Source: Statistics New Zealand

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How to cite this page

Ian Pool, Death rates and life expectancy – Disease trends and health policy, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/graph/26610/life-expectancy-1950s-2010s (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Ian Pool, published 19 April 2011.