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Cuba ratified as the country in which
to live to 120
• Life expectancy rate on the island
stands at 77 years and should increase to 80,
according to an international workshop of
specialists
BY JOAQUIN ORAMAS
CUBA
is a country with the conditions to live for 120
years with quality, as ratified in an international
workshop on life expectancy at birth, organized in
Havana with the participation of authorities on the
matter from various countries.
Professor Eugene Selman Housein, president of the
120 Years Club, gave a paper on public health care
and cultural and social development on the island.
These are linked to employment possibilities and
social security and assistance for the entire
population, which create the conditions for making
the proposal to live 120 active years more than a
utopia.
He
highlighted the special attention to older adults
and the ongoing work in Senior Citizens Centers,
where more than 400,000 elderly people do physical
exercise according to their possibilities and under
medical supervision. They also participate in
cultural and recreational activities, join
appropriate study courses and extend their
communication with other people. He detailed Cuba’s
fulfillment of conditions to extend existence,
including guaranteed medical attention, concern for
the environment, cultural development, adequate
alimentation, physical exercise and motivation.
In
another session, Juan Carlos Alfonso spoke on the
development and current context of life expectancy
in Cuba. He announced that the island has not
replaced its population from the fertility point of
view – the case of the developed countries – for 25
years.
Developing the concept he stated that after the
triumph of the Revolution the mortality rate in the
country began to decline, which has brought it to an
extremely advanced transition today, with an infant
mortality rate of six per 1,000 live births, the
lowest on the continent. At the same time he
informed that life expectancy rate at birth in Cuba
is 77 and the conditions are in place to reach 80
years.
In
that respect he affirmed that in the central
provinces of Cuba, particularly in Villa Clara, life
expectancy at birth is 78.2 and in women in excess
of 80 years.
The
demographic transition linked to overseas emigration
as a negative sign is producing a process of aging,
equally influenced by the decrease in fertility that
stands at 1.55, lower than that of France at 1.91,
he added, noting that last year there were less than
121,000 births on the island, where there are three
million women of reproductive age. The principal
causes of death in the country are cerebro-vascular
diseases, tumors, chronic illness, influenza and
pneumonia and accidents. These constitute 73% of
deaths, he stressed.
The
socio-demographic table in which populational aging
is imposed indicates -that in the next 15 years
there will be close to three million older adults in
the country and of those, 5-600,000 people aged 80
or over, he concluded.
Another interesting lecture was given by Dr. Jean
Marie Robin, who qualified healthful life expectancy
as a qualitatively superior indicator.
In
his presentation he said that life expectancy at
birth, despite being a positive indicator, is not
necessarily the best way to determine a population’s
state of health. He added that upon increasing the
life span, we might consider that the limit is not
exactly about longevity but instead mortality.
He
informed that studies in the European Union have
demonstrated that there are gaps in the relationship
between life expectancy at birth and the
prolongation of life. He affirmed that three
possibilities exist for the evolution of life
expectancy with disability; it increases, decreases
or remains stable.
Dr.
Esther Maria León, analyzed the behavior of life
expectancy in Cuba and in the region. She emphasized
that the number of illnesses is not related to the
perception of health and therefore the so-called
paradox of disability exists. This means that a
person could be disabled but be in good health.
The
workshop also examined the importance of utilizing
human capital in science and technology and the
existence of a policy that guarantees it.
In
the debate on the prolongation of life and
disability, promoted by Dr. Armando Seuc, the lost
years of life and the implied social problems were
examined. In addition he pointed out the dilemma: if
the prolongation of life is accompanied by
disability, when does it stop being an achievement?
In
the discussion regarding the issue of specialists,
the different components of disabilities were
stressed (organic, functional and social) and the
majority of the presentations underlined the social
aspects and the prevention of this condition
overwhelming the framework of health systems.
Dr.
Adán Grant discussed the evolution of the supply and
demand for disabled elderly assistance and affirmed
in this respect that Cuba is an example of how a
health system can be improved with scarce resources.
He recognized that in France the ultimate objective
would be to reach 120 years, but said that he is
sure that not all of the population is able to
attain that.
Upon closing the discussion, it was recalled that a
baby boom occurred on the island in the 60’s, and
Cuba should be prepared for its effects. |
