Heilbrigðisskýrslur - 01.12.1959, Page 235

Public Health in Iceland 1959. — A Summary.
1. The climatic conditions were, on
the whole, rather favourable. The
mean temperature was 1.1 centigrades
(C) above the average. Stormy days
'vere fewer than in the average year
except as regards the south coast. The
downfall was 23% above the average.
In Reykjavik there were 162 less
hours of sunshine than on the average.
The year 1959 was on the whole a
prosperous one for both fishing and
agriculture and the production in-
creased considerably. The total catch
°t fish was higher than ever before
nnd the production of milk and meat
increased somewhat. Prices rose
steeply in the second half of 1958 and
as a rusult prices and wages were
lowered by increased subsidies and
hy curtailing the cost of living in-
ccease in wages. Tlie cost of living
mdex therefore went down from 220
Points to 202 (in March) when a new
cost of living base was introduced.
the wage index was lowered to 175
Points from 202. By these operations
d was made possible to secure an un-
Diseases of the Heart
Cancer — Malisnant (
altered economic basis for the export
industries. The balance of imports and
exports was adverse by 486.7 million
krónur, the difference being covered
by invisible exports, foreign loans and
a worsening balance of payments of
the banks.
2. Population, Births and Deaths.
The population was on December lst
1959 173855 including Reykjavík
71037 (1958: 170156 and 69268). The
estimated midyear population was
172006 (168493). The marriage rate
was 7.8 (7.9), the birth rate 28.1
(27.4) and the death rate 7.2 (6.9) per
1000 inhabitants. The infant mortality
rate was 16.3 (18.3) per 1000 born
alive. The general death rate is now
slightly higher again. On the other
hand the infant mortality figure is
the lowest ever registered.
3. Causes of Deaths are shown on
pp. 63—70.
The following ten are tlie most
common:
Violence (all forms
Pneumonia (Lobar
and Lobular, Pn. of
Piseases of Infants (Pneumonia excepted)
Old Age ............................
Other and Unknown
Per 1000 of Per 1000 of the
Number deaths population
270 217.4 1.57
255 205.3 1.48
154 124.0 0.90
132 106.3 0.77
94 75.7 0.55
45 36.2 0.26
40 32.2 0.23
27 21.7 0.16
18 14.5 0.10
11 8.9 0.06
196 157.8 1.14