According to Michael Mosley, life expectancy rose through the Great Depression. In his Horizon programme Eat, Fast and Live Longer he claims:
From 1929 to 1933, in the darkest years of the great depression when people were eating far less, life expectancy increased by 6 years.
Since it seems strange to me that in four years life expectancy rose by 6 years, and that this happened just during Great Depression, can anybody confirm whether it is true?