Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-11-18
SAFEST YEARS HELD
FROM 10TH TO 14TH
Public Health Service Survey
Finds Child Mortality Falls
After Age of 5.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY

From the tenth to the fourteenth
year is the safest time to be alive.
An extensive survey Of the health Of
school children Just published by the
Public Health Service shows this period
is approximately IL times safer, so FAR
as chances of death are concerned. than
from the first to the fifth year, in
elusive.
After the fifth birthday, the Stats
tical tables show, the chances of death
decrease enormously. There is no great
variation from the fifth to the nine
teenth year. From the fifth to the
tenth wear the probability of death is
1.3 times that during the period of
maximum safety. After the fourteenth
year it increases slightly, to II times
as great. The death probability slightly
more than doubles after the nineteenth
year, for the 20-to-24-year-old group.
Girls Advantage Falls OF.
Up to the twenty-ffth year, the
tables show, a boy has slightly less
chance of surviving than girl, but the
longer a girl lives the less her advan-
tage in this respect. From to IA
years she has a 20 per cent better
chance than her brother. From IS to
19 her chances are only about 10 per
cent better. From the twentieth to the
been cut down to approximately six
per cent. After the twenty-flfth year
the death probability goes up for both
sexes.
The Public Health Service study shows
that accidents constitute by far the
greatest cause of mortality between the
fifth and nineteenth years. The death
rate from automobile accidents is great
est from to years, declines consider
ably from 10 to IA, and then rises again.
The maximum, it is stated, comes at
a time when children are playing in
the streets, but are too small to watch
traffic. The 10-year-old is able to
look out for himself. After II years
he begins driving automobiles, and con-
sequently the death rate goes up After
the fifth year the probability OF fatal
accidents to girls declines rapidly, be-
cause Of their safer play habits.
Fatal Diseases Listed.
The next most frequent cause Of
death in the public school age group
is tuberculosis, followed In rapidly de-
scending order by heart diseases, pneu-
monia, diphtheria, appendicitis, in
huenza, typhoid fever, nephritis, scarlet
fever, rheumatism, throat diseases,
meningitis, diabetes, measles, cancer,
enteritis, infantile paralysis, epilepsy,
ear diseases, encephalttis, mastoid dis
seases, diseases of bones and joints, in
testinal obstruction and suicide.
But the chances of death from any
of these causes vary considerably, ac-
cording to age and sex. Broncho-pneu-
monia reaches minimum between the
tenth and fourteenth years. From the
fifth to the nineteenth year the death
rate from this cause Is only about one
thirty eighth as great as from the first
to the fifth year. Lobar pneumonia, on
the other hand, reaches its maximum
from the fifteenth to the nineteenth
year It's rate for boys Is much higher
than for girls.
Tuberculosis becomes a notable cause
of death only after the period Of maxi
mum safety, and continues to become
more and more important from the
fifteenth to the twenty fourth years.
The rate Is almost twice as high for
girls as for boys. This Is almost the
only field where the boys have an adj
vantage.
Diseases of the heart and kidneys