These are the top 10 causes of death around the world

Where in the world you live actually plays a huge part in determining what’s likely going to kill you. No, really…

Words by Mia Erickson at bodyandsoul.com.au

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It’s no secret that global health trends fluctuate over the years, reflecting our constantly evolving lifestyles and outside contributing factors. In addition to relying on data showcasing how we live our lives, stats exposing global mortality rates are equally as telling when it comes to understanding health trends around the world.

Recently published data from the World Health Organization lists the leading causes of death throughout the year 2021. As the data reveals, the 10 most common causes of death accounted for 39 million mortalities in 2021. To put that number in perspective, that’s 57 per cent of the total (68 million) deaths around the world that year.

Ranked in order of total number of lives lost, the list is comprised of two major categories, with some causes being cardiovascular in nature and some respiratory. The majority of the causes (seven out of 10) were noncommunicable diseases, in other words, those that are not transmissible directly from one person to another.

The top 10 causes of death globally

#1. Ischaemic heart disease

Ischaemic heart disease, where the heart is starved of oxygen due to a decrease in blood supply, is the number one killer across the globe according to the latest data. Causing 13 per cent of the world’s total deaths in 2021, cases of fatal ischaemic heart disease have jumped from 2.7 million in 2000 to 9.1 million in 2021. Usually caused by a build-up of plaque, our increasingly sedentary lifestyle and diet trends are likely to blame for this sudden and dramatic increase.

#2. Covid-19

A relatively new cause of death compared to other factors, COVID-19 has significantly disrupted the state of public health around the globe since it first emerged in 2019. In 2021, the disease was found to cause 8.8 million deaths, overtaking other long-standing conditions by one place.

#3. Stroke

Previously listed as the second most common cause of death globally, the 2021 data references stroke as the third leading killer, responsible for 10 per cent of total deaths. A stroke is categorised as a medical emergency, caused by interruption of blood supply to the brain which can lead to catastrophic consequences.

#4. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Like stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has been pushed down to 4th place as a result of the widespread devastation of COVID-19. Also known as emphysema or chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is responsible for 5 per cent of 2021 mortalities.

#5. Lower respiratory infections

One of the world’s most deadly communicable diseases (second only to COVID-19), lower respiratory infections such as bronchitis, bronchiolitis and pneumonia rank as the fifth leading cause of death in 2021. While still a significant player, the data reflects an overall decrease in the group of infections’ toll on public health, revealing the 2.5 million lives lost to lower respiratory infection in 2021 is 370,000 less than those the data from 2000.

#6. Trachea, bronchus and lung cancers

Other significant non-communicable diseases that are featured highly on the list are cancers of the trachea, bronchus, and lungs. Deaths caused by these have risen from 1.2 million in 2000 to 1.9 million in 2021.

#7. Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are ranked as the seventh leading cause of mortality across the world in 2021, claiming 1.8 million lives. As the data also reveals, gender is a significant determinant of the disease’s toll, with 68 per cent of all cases being women.

#8. Diabetes

Ranking as the eighth most common cause of death is diabetes, reflecting a 95 per cent total increase from the disease’s mortality rates in 2000. Health experts attribute this significant increase to a range of factors, such as rising levels of obesity, an ageing global population, dietary changes, and our increasingly sedentary lifestyles.

#9. Kidney disease

Over the last two decades, the prevalence of kidney disease and the number of subsequent deaths has risen significantly, moving the disease from nineteenth place to ninth after a 95 per cent increase over this period.

#10. Tuberculosis

Rounding out the list as the tenth most prevalent cause of death is tuberculosis, a deadly bacteria-borne communicable disease impacting the lungs. In low-income and lower-middle-income countries, tuberculosis was ranked 8th and 6th respectively.

Socio-economic factors leading the trends

As the data suggests, the relative socioeconomic status of a person’s country has a significant impact on not only their overall health but how and when they may meet their end. In low-income countries, communicable diseases were found to dominate the leading causes of death, outlining the devastation diseases of this nature can have when public health systems are not equipped to treat and contain an influx of cases.

Despite a decline in communicable disease-related deaths across the board globally, eight of the top ten causes of death in low-income nations were of this category. Additional significant causes of death in low-income countries include HIV/Aids, pre-term birth complications, birth trauma and birth asphyxia, diarrhoeal diseases, and malaria.

In contrast, the top ten causes of death in high-income countries mostly mirror the overall data, with most causes linked to population ageing. Aside from Covid-19-related mortalities, most leading causes of death are noncommunicable forms of disease.