According to figures for 2004, released by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare on 22nd July, the average life expectancy for Japanese women reached 85.59 years, the 20th straight year as the longest-lived women in the world. They are followed by women from Hong Kong, whose average is now 84.3 years.

The average life span also rose for Japanese men to 78.64 years, second only to men in Iceland, who have an average of 78.8 years.