Health of older women in developed countries continues to improve: Gap with developing countries grows
The WHO study, one of a collection of articles in a special issue of the journal devoted to women’s health beyond reproduction, found that the leading causes of death of women aged 50 years and older worldwide are cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke) and cancers, but that in developing countries these deaths occur at earlier ages than in the rich world. The study is one of the first to analyse the causes of death of women aged 50 years and older from a wide range of countries. Its findings suggest that prevention, detection and treatment of noncommunicable diseases are currently inadequate in many countries. "Given the substantial reduction in maternal mortality and the increase in the number of older women over the last 10 years, health systems in low- and middle-income countries must adjust accordingly, otherwise this trend will continue to increase," said Dr John Beard, director of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Department of Ageing and Life Course and one of the authors of the study…