[00:00.10]From VOA Learning English,
[00:02.31]this is the Health Report.
[00:05.59]The World Health Organization says
[00:08.78]women aged 50 and older
[00:11.36]are generally in better health now
[00:14.50]than they were 20 to 30 years ago.
[00:18.53]But a new study confirms
[00:20.72]that older women in rich countries live longer
[00:24.82]than those in the developing world
[00:27.86]and the differences in life expectancy are widening.
[00:32.95]The World Health Organization says heart disease,
[00:37.73]stroke and cancers are the leading causes
[00:41.26]of death of women aged 50 years and older.
[00:46.14]But it says women in developing countries
[00:48.84]can often die from one of these problems at an earlier age.
[00:54.37]The study is one of the first to examine
[00:57.80]the causes of death of women aged 50 years and older
[01:02.25]from several rich and poor countries.
[01:05.89]It found that many women die at a young age
[01:10.02]because they live in places that lack for money
[01:13.66]to prevent, identify and treat non-communicable diseases.
[01:19.78]Colin Mathers is head of the WHO Mortality and Burden of Disease Unit.
[01:27.79]He says developed countries have the money
[01:30.84]and health systems to reduce and control heart disease.
[01:36.22]He says cancer of the cervix
[01:38.31]is one of the leading cancers among African women.
[01:43.09]He says the disease is largely preventable,
[01:47.27]but African countries have fewer resources to treat it.
[01:52.40]"There is simply not enough money to provide
[01:56.88]high quality health care to everyone that is accessible.
[01:59.76]And, also a matter of human resources,
[02:04.19]that there often are not enough trained doctors
[02:07.13]and nurses and other health professionals in the country."
[02:10.96]Dr. Mathers says donors give comparatively little money
[02:16.54]to fight non-communicable diseases in African.
[02:20.47]He says most of the money goes instead
[02:23.31]toward reducing the number of women dying during child birth.
[02:28.75]This has helped to bring down maternal mortality rates,
[02:33.57]but death rates among older women have increased.
[02:38.56]The study found on average, women over 50 live at least
[02:43.78]3.5 years longer than they did 20 years ago.
[02:49.16]Older women in Japan now can expect to live 88 years.
[02:55.08]In Germany, the life expectancy rate for older women is 84.
[03:00.90]Women in many other developed countries
[03:04.14]can expect to live to age 83 or 84.
[03:09.42]But women in poorer countries die about 10 years earlier.
[03:15.37]Dr. Mathers says major risks for older women include smoking,
[03:21.28]the harmful use of alcohol, and being overweight or obese.
[03:27.66]The World Health Organization says
[03:30.30]the number of long-lasting diseases can be cut
[03:33.93]through cost-effective methods to stop common diseases.
[03:38.95]These include prevention, early identification
[03:43.09]and control of high blood pressure, obesity and high cholesterol.
[03:49.17]And that's the Health Report from VOA Learning English
[03:53.95]. I'm Milagros Ardin.