Demographic outcomes of 2020: statistical artifacts and social paradoxes of the pandemic

The paper presents an analysis of the main demographic indicators recorded in Russia as of the end of 2020. We have revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to the consolidation of the emerging trend of declining fertility and an increase in mortality. The contribution of coronavirus to the mortality structure was 7%, which is higher than the percentage of deaths from respiratory, digestive, and infectious diseases and is comparable to the proportion of deaths from external causes even in the 2019 structure, which did not include coronavirus. Life expectancy decreased by 1.8 years, and the reduction in women is more pronounced than in men, which somewhat smoothed the gender disparity in overall life expectancy. A statistical artifact is the recorded decrease in the incidence of the population. It is obvious that in the conditions of a pandemic, one should be careful about this indicator due to the decrease in the detectability of diseases, the combination of diagnoses with COVID-19. The same applies to the assessment of the mortality structure, in which 100% has been allocated to a larger number of causes, although coronavirus should join the class of infectious and parasitic diseases, which requires a reconsideration of the concept of epidemiological transition. In the conditions of the pandemic, the population showed some tendency toward destruction in self-preservation behavior. In particular, the proportion of those who adhere to moderation in taking alcohol, which is often taken as a remedy for stress, has decreased. At the same time, the majority implement the recommended and regulated measures: wearing masks, gloves, social distancing, sanitary treatment. Anti-vaccination sentiments are partly due to an insufficiently complete and contradictory information campaign regarding vaccination, active stuffing of fake information.