Russian life expectancy has reached record highs, new data has revealed.

Russians born in 2016 are expected to live 71.87 years on average, according to state statistics agency Rosstat. Women still outlast men by several years, with the average Russian female living to 77.06, compared to 66.5 years for males.

The southern Russian region of Ingushetia boasted the highest life expectancy in the country, with residents expected to live 80.8 years on average. It was followed by Dagestan and Moscow, where newborns are predicted to live 77.2 years and 77 years respectively.

Areas in Siberia and Russia's Far East found themselves at the bottom of the table, with life expectancy for residents of the remote Tyva region languishing at 64.2 years. Children born in the Chukotka autonomous district are only expected to live until the age of 64.4, while those in Russia's Jewish autonomous region will live 65.8 years on average.

New plans laid out by the Russian government aim to raise national life expectancy to 76 years across the country by 2025.

In 2015, the OECD attributed Russia's slow increase in life expectancy to “the impact of the economic transition in the 1990s and a rise in risk-increasing behavior among men,” such as drinking and smoking.

Russian Life Expectancy Hits Record High