43,803 people died in Norway in 2023. This is over 2,000 fewer than the previous year, but at the same time 3,000 more than the level we had in the period 2015-2020, new figures from the Death statistics show.
Life expectancy for newborns increased by 0.5 years for men and 0.3 years for women in 2023 compared to the previous year. It is now 81.4 years for men and 84.6 years for women, which is almost exactly in line with 2019. Life expectancy is a more precise measure of mortality conditions than the number of deaths, because it takes into account the age and gender distribution in the population .
– Expected life expectancy is now back at the same level as before the pandemic, but that means that we have, in a sense, “lost” the usual increase we have seen far back in time. Whether we will ever catch up on the lost increase in life expectancy is an open question, says demographer Anders Sønstebø.
Figure 1. Life expectancy at birth for men and women 1950-2023
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The aging population affects the statistics
That total mortality is considered the same in 2019 and 2023 may seem strange when the number of dead has risen by over 3,000 people. The reason is to be found in the large post-war cohorts who are now starting to reach an age where there is a significantly greater risk of death. This is what we are used to calling the elderly wave.
– The probability that we will return to the same number of deaths as before the pandemic in the coming decades is therefore very small, even if the mortality rate were to continue to decline, says Sønstebø.
The most common age to die, i.e. the cohort with the most deaths during a year, also says something about the demographic changes in the population. In 2020, the majority of 89-year-olds died for both sexes, while in 2023 this had moved all the way down to 78 for the male part of the population. Women generally live longer, and here we actually see an increase up to 92 years in 2023.
Figure 2. Number of deaths by gender and age at death. 2023
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Low infant mortality
The first year of life is by far the most dangerous before one approaches the age of 50, but the infant mortality rate is nevertheless at a very low level in Norway. It is stable around 100 children who die before their first birthday, and most of these tragedies happen within the first month. In 2023, there were 2 deaths in the first year of life per 1,000 live births, approximately the same as in 2019.
– It is interesting to see that infant mortality was at its lowest during the pandemic years, says Sønstebø.
Figure 3. The proportion of deaths under the age of 1 per 1,000 live births, 1976-2023
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Increased mortality under the age of 40
In 2023, one can see a general tendency towards increased mortality for the age groups under 40, and not least among the 30-year-olds. This was most evident for the 35-39 age group, where there was an increase from 58 per 100,000 in 2022 to 72 the following year. This is the highest level since 2014. There is also an increase for men aged 40-44, while in all higher age groups there was a clear decrease in mortality.
– It is difficult to see any good demographic explanation for this phenomenon, but it is about small numbers that are extra exposed to chance when you compare deaths year by year, says Sønstebø. Statistics Norway does not have access to the causes of death, and consequently no basis to say anything about what the cause may be.
Two curve diagrams showing how the number of deaths and deaths per 1,000 (of the average population) respectively for the time period 1986-2023.
The mortality rate tells something about the frequency of deaths in the population. It can be calculated as the number of deaths per 1,000 people (of the average population). An increase in the number of deaths can be explained by the fact that the population is both increasing and getting older, so it is important to look at death rates in addition to the absolute numbers.
Instructions for use:
Use the age group and gender filters to change the display of the chart. You can read values by moving the cursor over the various lines.
At the bottom right you will find icons for sharing the visualization with others, either as a URL or code to embed the visualization. You can also share a customized view. Click the download icon to download as an image (.png, .pdf, .ppt) or the data (.xls or .csv).
Meta information:
All information about the figures can be found in the Death statistics.
Tallgrunnlag:
Number of deaths: The basis for the figures is in Statistikbank table 10325.
Mortality: The basis for the figures is in Statistikbank table 05381. (Note that the figures have been recalculated from per 100,000 to per 1,000).
Availability:
In this interactive visualization, we test the presentation of figures from Statistics Norway in an alternative and visual way, and the solution can be considered a pilot. We have emphasized developing such visualizations with relatively little resource effort and using third-party tools (here: Tableau Public). The purpose is to gain experience with new forms of dissemination, as well as to get input from users.
The service is optimized for larger screens, and there may be interactivity that is not as user-friendly on mobile clients. The tool meets most requirements for universal design, but data visualizations are in themselves most useful for people with a sense of sight. Send a request to the contact persons if you want access to this content in an alternative way.
2024-03-13 07:00:00
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