WHO: Heart disease still the “top killer”

WHO: Heart disease still the “top killer”. WHO report announces the top ten causes of death in the world, heart disease is still the “top killer”. The report clearly pointed out that the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases must be strengthened globally.

According to a report released by the World Health Organization on the 9th, non-communicable diseases accounted for 7 of the world’s top ten causes of death in the past 20 years. Heart disease is still the “top killer” and diabetes and dementia are among the top ten.

The report called “Global Health Assessment 2019” covers global health data from 2000 to 2019. Data show that non-communicable diseases currently account for 7 of the top ten causes of death in the world, compared with only 4 before. Among them, heart disease has been the “top killer” in the past 20 years, and the number of deaths from heart disease currently accounts for 16% of all deaths. Since 2000, the number of deaths from heart disease has increased by more than 2 million, more than half of which occurred in the WHO Western Pacific Region, while the incidence of heart disease in the European Region has relatively decreased.

Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are among the top ten causes of death in the world, ranking third in the WHO Americas and Europe regions in 2019. Globally, women account for 65% of deaths from these diseases.

From 2000 to 2019, the number of deaths from diabetes worldwide increased by 70%, and the number of men who died of diabetes increased by 80%. In the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, the number of deaths from diabetes has more than doubled, the largest increase in all WHO regions.

The report also found that human life expectancy has increased in the past 20 years. Human life expectancy in 2019 will be more than 6 years longer than that in 2000, and the global average life expectancy has risen from nearly 67 years in 2000 to over 73 years in 2019.

In addition, the number of disabled people is on the rise. To a large extent, diseases and health problems with the highest fatalities are also the biggest causes of loss of healthy life. Compared with 2000, in 2019, nearly 100 million people lost their healthy lives due to heart disease, diabetes, stroke, lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The report clearly pointed out that the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases must be strengthened globally. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of non-communicable diseases need to be “swiftly strengthened” to substantially improve primary health care in a comprehensive and fair manner. He said, “From fighting non-communicable diseases to managing global pandemics, strong primary health care is clearly the foundation of everything.”