The great increase in the average life span in China .......

There has been remarkable improvement in the health and well-being of most of China's people since the civil war. Life expectancy at birth has more than doubled in a little over four decades, rising from an estimated 35 years in 1949 to more than 71 years in 1992. In the same period, the annual death rate declined from 23 per 1,000 people to about six per 1.000. Two major factors help to account for this progress. First, there has been a steady general improvement in the diet of the average citizen, resulting from larger and more reliable crop production! The old problem of famine has largely disappeared, though poor harvests may still result in serious malnutrition. The second factor is the great improvement in the nature and quality of health care.