Study: Global life expectancy increased by 6.2 years

Spread the love

Read Time:1 Minute, 59 Second

According to a study, global life expectancy increased by 6.2 years between 1990 and 2021. However, the coronavirus pandemic reduced global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, researchers from the University of Washington wrote in the journal “The Lancet.”

In their study on the global burden of disease, injury, and risk factors, they found that COVID-19 is the second leading cause of death in 2021. In 2019, the leading causes of death were still the same as in 1990.

Life expectancy fell during CoV
“In descending order, these were: coronary heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lower respiratory tract infections,” says the study led by Simon Hay from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). However, the COV pandemic has shifted this order.
According to the study, COVID-19 was the third most common cause of death in 2020 and second in 2021, ahead of stroke. According to the data, global life expectancy fell by 1.6 years between 2019 and 2021 due to deaths caused by Covid-19.

However, there were significant regional differences: In Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania, life expectancy due to COVID-19 decreased by 0.4 years, the least, while in Latin America and the Caribbean, it decreased the most at 3.6 years.

Fewer deaths after infections
According to the study, a decline in deaths from intestinal infections such as diarrhoea contributed to the generally observed increase in global life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. However, a decline in deaths from lower respiratory tract infections and reduced mortality from strokes and coronary heart disease were also cited as key factors.

The study is based on mortality estimates for 288 causes of death in more than 200 countries and regions. It was based on more than 56,000 data sources, such as autopsies, censuses and cancer registries.

The estimates for COVID-19 were derived from analyses of excess mortality due to the COV pandemic from 1 January 2020 to 31, 2021. The article states that the study is based on the expertise of more than 11,000 employees from over 160 countries and territories.

The absolute global life expectancy is not mentioned in the current study. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that it rose by six years between 2000 and 2019 – from 66.8 to 73.4 years.