Why is trend for females to outnumber males in UK changing?

Question

The UK population is now estimated over 60 Million. Checking the census results going back to 1811 in Whitakers Almenack, I note there has always been a consistent ratio of woman outnumbering men in UK population every year up to 2001 when (in thousands) the census showed UK to have 28,581 males and 30,208 females. The male:female ratio has been virtually the same as that in total UK population thoughout 20th century as total population gradually increased. But looking at the age statistics for mid 2003 I note that in the 1 to 4 age group there were an estimated 1,384 thousand males compared to 1319 thousand females. Looking at ages between 20 and 29 in thousands, the ratio was 3697 males to 3682 females but in the 30 to 44 age group females outnumber males 6,817 to 6,701 and in the over 85 range the ratio is just 313 males to 791 females. All this clearly shows that the trend between total number of men and women has now reversed? What I am interested to know is WHY has this happened?

Answer 1

Dunno. I've just had a baby boy but most of the women from my ante natal class seem to have had girls. It made me wonder if there is a male/female ratio inequality going on.

There again you could probably find another group of women somewhere in the UK who've all had boys!!

I love my baby boy to bits and wouldn't change him for 100,000,000,000,000 girls, by the way. He makes me so proud and I'm gonna bring him up to be a strong, wonderful man.

Answer 2

I believe this is mainly a result of the change in ethnic background and the fact that in recent years a much higher proportion of the total UK population have come in to work, most recently from former Soviet Bloc countries like Poland and Roumania, and previously from Commonwealth countries like Pakistan. Many males have come over and settled here to work and earn money, which they send back home to their wives in their native country, and this is clearly reflected in the 20 to 29 age group figures. The reason why females so heavily outnumber males in the over 85 age group is because men die younger, and seem more prone than women to not being able to handle changing lifestyle after ceasing work.

The precise reasons for the change in male:female ratio among 1 to 4 year olds is far less clear, and there may be a large number of complex factors involved here.