रिपोर्ट:जापान तोप्पेद वर्ल्ड'स लोंगेविटी रतिंग्स

Japan topped the world longevity ratings,




TOKYO :Japan on Friday welcomed the news it had topped the
world longevity ratings, but with its citizens living increasingly
longer lives it may soon become hard for the government to find
enough young taxpayers to support them.
The statistics for 2007 published on Thursday by the World Health
Organization put Japan on top of the longevity list, reporting that
the average life expectancy was almost 83 years _ 86 years for women
and 79 years for men _ up from 81 years in 2000.
``A steady increase of Japan's longevity reflects good medical
care, nutrition and successful economic development, and that alone
is a good thing,'' Norie Handa, a Cabinet Office official in charge
of aging issues, said Friday. ``What we really have to look at is
whether we can live long in good health, and peacefully.''
However, in a country where the birth rate has been declining for
decades _ the population fell by 51,000 last year, the sharpest
decline ever _ a longer life expectancy means a disproportionately
large elderly population.
The number of people over the age of 65 has reached 22.5 percent
of the population and in a dozen years will likely to surge to
nearly 30 percent, according to government estimates.
By contrast, the percentage of children in Japan is expected to
fall to below 11 percent in the next decade or so from the current
13 percent. The country already has the smallest percentage of
children among 31 countries, trailing Germany and Italy, according
to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications report.
Children make up about 20 percent of the U.S. population and 17
percent in neighboring South Korea.
The graying of society and the low birth rate is expected to
strain government services and pension programs, as well as lead to
labor shortages in the near future.
Crimes, alcoholism and suicides among the elderly are also a
growing problem because of low income, unstable employment and poor
living conditions. Weakening ties with relatives and neighbors have
also been exacerbated by a shortage of nursing homes, thus putting a
major burden on younger relatives.
Government efforts to boost the number of new babies have been
unsuccessful thus far, and lawmakers have long been reluctant to
relax the country's strict immigration laws.
``As we expect the further aging of the society, we still have a
lot to do to catch up,'' Handa acknowledged.
As part of his recent economic stimulus measures, Prime Minister
Taro Aso called for new financial support for child birth and an
expansion of neonatal intensive care units. His administration also
introduced a health insurance system last year to deal with
ballooning medical costs for people over the age of 75.
Officials have stepped up programs that encourage older citizens
to stay active and continue working. The government is gradually
extending the retirement age to 65 from 60, and is even pushing for
a further extension to 70.



check out for more details :

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36936620/ns/health-aging/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oldest_people

http://www.worldoldestpeople.info/