Life expectancy (blue plus magenta bars) and healthy life years (blue bar) at 65, for women and men in a few European nations in 2012: Notice that in each E.U. nation, overall life expectancy at age 65 is considerably longer than the years older people can expect to live in health. However, the gap between the two measures is wider for women than men. Bottom-line message: The statistical price of surviving into your older years is disability during the final years of your life, particularly if you are a female.

Data from: OECD, 2014, p. 19.