What is a life table, and what information (data) is required to construct one?

A life table, also known as an actuarial table or mortality table, is a statistical tool that represents the survival rates and life expectancy of a population at various ages. It is widely used in various fields such as demography, biology, insurance, and public health for analyzing the patterns of mortality, understanding the life expectancy, and making predictions or projections related to population trends.

To construct a life table, the following information is required: • Age Distribution: The age distribution of the population is needed to create age-specific categories. This data is typically arranged in age groups (e.g., 0-4, 5-9, 10-14 years, etc.) or single years of age. • Death Rates: The number of deaths in each age group for a specific period is required to calculate the age-specific mortality rates. This information helps to determine the probability of dying in each age interval. • Population: The total population for each age group is necessary to calculate the proportion of individuals who are alive at each age group. Optional data that can be incorporated into the life table include: • Birth Rates: The number of births in the population can be used to calculate age-specific fertility rates, which can be useful for projecting population growth. • Migration Rates: The number of individuals entering or leaving the population due to migration can be utilized for a more comprehensive understanding of population dynamics. Using this information, a life table can be constructed to calculate various indices, such as the probability of surviving from one age group to another, life expectancy at each age, and the overall survival function for the given population.