The ratios are of q(x)'s, where q(x) is the proportion of people age x dying in the next year. So there could be 1,000 men age 21, of whom 1% or 10 die in the next year; and 1,100 women age 21, of whom 0.8% or 8.8.

By the time you get to 70, there are 500 men and 700 women around. 5% of the men, or 25, die in the next year; 4% of the women, or 28, die in the next year. So you can get more women dying than men, but still have a lower proportion of women dying.