Urban-rural lifespan disparities and cause-deleted analysis: evidence from China.

In China, the urban-rural gaps in both life expectancy and lifespan disparity are shrinking as the rural residents are catching up fast, while the gender gaps remain large, and even widening. Causes of death with different age distribution patterns contribute differently to the level and direction of the urban-rural and sex differentials in life expectancy and lifespan disparity. Sex differentials were observed in cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, lung and liver cancers, and external causes, while urban-rural differences were found in lung and breast cancers, and external causes.