# Mortality statistics **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 23, 2005, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456 "2005-02-23T01:46:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pork\_Pie\_Hat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/58f4c7/32.png) [@Pork\_Pie\_Hat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Pie_Hat)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456/1 "2005-02-23T01:46:31Z")
What is the age at which a human being has the fewest chances of dying? ---
**Author:** ![meanoldman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@meanoldman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/meanoldman)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456/2 "2005-02-23T01:54:49Z")
Newer data likely exists. > **[nvsr49\_12.pdf](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr49/nvsr49_12.pdf)** > > 1761.70 KB ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456/3 "2005-02-23T05:49:01Z")
If you are alive today, your chance of dying yesterday is extremely small. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456/4 "2005-02-23T07:19:13Z")
When I studied life contingencies as part of my actuarial degree, the lowest population mortality rates were experienced at about ages 8, 9 and 10. I’ve just had a quick look at the latest copy of the Australian Life Tables and this still appears to be the case. ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2005, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mortality-statistics/291456/5 "2005-02-23T23:59:50Z")
A logarithmic curve of ‘probability of death within one year’ versus ‘age in years’ can [be found here (pdf)](http://www.aga.gov.au/publications/ALT1995-97.pdf). Curve drops rapidly from birth to the lowest probability at around 10 years old. The curve then rises, flattens out a quite a bit from 20 to 35 and then rises fairly straight again towards probability of 1 curving asymptopically towards 1 after about 85. The probability of death in the first year is the same as about age 55-60. Notice there is a little dip again for females from about 20-24. I think this is a more recent occurence - an older graph I have does not show this.