The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-02-02
1887 Healthiest Year
 On Record For U. s.
Decline in Deaths, Due to Alcoholism, Pneumonia
 Tuberculosis, Recorded By Official Statisticians

New York, Feb. 2.-Nineteen thirty-seven was the record health year of all time for the 17,700,000 in dustrial policyholders of the Metro politan Life Insurance company, &C., cording to the statiSticians of the company. Despite Setbacks ln the early months, the year ended with the lowest mortality ever recorded for these millions of men, women and children and established a new maximum of 6O7 years in their life expectancy. Now low death rates were recorded for eight specific causes of death, while the all-time low mortality rate for all causes of death combined was 8.221 per 1000, decline of 21 per cent from the figure for 1886.
 Savings in Life
 The crude death rate for the policyholders was 35.8 per cent be- low the rate of 12.53 per 1000 in 1911. The statisticians, in stressing this point, explain that if the 1911 death rate had prevailed in 1887, a total of 237, 7,693 deaths would have occurred among the industrial policyholders instead of the 139,816, which were actually recorded. This represents a saving of about 98,0O0 lives. Since 1911 the accumulated saving in lives has totaled 1,273,- 900.
 The health record for the year was remarkable in the right-about- face it made from bad to good. Get ting off to a bad start in the early months, the situation changed com- pletely by spring, and from May through the end of the year, every month, except October, established record low mortality rate, while September registered the lowest death rate for any month of any year in the entire history of the Metropolitan's industrial policyhold- CTS.
 A particularly gratifying feature of the 1897 mortality record, the death rate among children, adoles- cents, young adults, and in all ranges up to age 65. In early childhood, the 1887 death rate was less than one quarter of that prevailing in 1911, while in every age group up to 45, the rate was cut by at least one half.
 Eigkt Causes
 The eight specific causes of death for which the lowest mortality rates for all time were recorded among the insured group were typhoid few CT, tuberculosis, chronic nephritis, diseases arising out of pregnancy and childbirth, homicide, accidental burns, and railroad accidents.
 The combined death rate of 53.e per 100000 for accidents of all forms was the lowest ever recorded among the policyholders, and represented drop of ' per cent as compared with the 1886 rate.
 While the death. rate from auto mobile accidents was 20.9 per 100,- GOO in 1897 as compared with 20.1 per 100000 in 1886, representing a rise of 4 per cent, it was neverthe- less considerably under the high point of g per 100000 experienced by the industrial policyholders in 1881. In contrast with this, in the general population of the country, the 1897 death rate from this cause will be the highest ever experienced in the United States, if present esti- mates of 10000 automobile fatah- ties are borne out.
 The long continued decline in the policyholders' tuberculosis death rate persisted through 1886 and 1857, although in the general population of the country as whole in 1886 the last year for which official data are available g slight in