SOCIAL SCIENCES
The rise and fall of excess male infant mortality
*Davis School of Gerontology,
College of Letter Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, 3715 McClintock Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0191
Communicated by Samuel H. Preston, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, January 16, 2008 (received for review July 28, 2007)
Abstract
The male disadvantage in infant mortality underwent a surprising rise and fall in the 20th century. Our analysis of 15 developed countries shows that, as infant mortality declined over two centuries, the excess male mortality increased from 10% in 1751 to >30% by approximately 1970. Remarkably, since 1970, the male disadvantage in most countries fell back to lower levels. The worsening male disadvantage from 1751 until 1970 may be due to differential changes in cause-specific infant mortality by sex. Declines in infant mortality from infections and the shift of deaths to perinatal conditions favored females. The reduction in male excess infant mortality after 1970 can be attributed to improved obstetric practices and neonatal care. The additional male infants who survived because of better conditions were more likely to be premature or have low birth weight, which could have implications for their health in later life. This analysis provides evidence of marked changes in the sex ratio of mortality at an age when behavioral differences should be minimal.
birth weight | sex differences | mortality trends
Author contributions: G.L.D., E.M.C., S.V., and C.E.F. designed research, performed research, analyzed data, and wrote the paper.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: crimmin{at}usc.edu
© 2008 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA
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