The average life expectancy of Japanese women and men declined for the first time in 10 years in 2021, health ministry data showed Friday, as the country battled the COVID-19 pandemic.
The average life span for women was 87.57 years, down by 0.14 year from a year earlier, while that of men shrank 0.09 year to 81.47 years, according to the data.
It was the first decline since 2011, when a massive earthquake and tsunami hit northeastern Japan, causing meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear complex and leaving more than 15,000 dead and scores of people unaccounted for.