Over the past two decades, the global burden of chronic diseases has significantly increased, accounting for 74 percent of all deaths by 2023, up from 58 percent. According to the World Health Organization, these conditions now comprise eight of the top ten leading causes of death worldwide. The rising prevalence of cardiopathies, dementia, and diabetes is driving a profound transformation in the global health landscape.
Global life expectancy has largely rebounded from the decline experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a 2023 average of 73.3 years, narrowly trailing the 73.4 years recorded in 2019. Meanwhile, healthy life expectancy has also shown improvement, reaching 62.8 years, albeit 0.4 years short of its pre-pandemic level.
The director of the WHO Department of Data, Digital Health, Analysis and Artificial Intelligence, Alain Labrique, emphasized the need for public health to focus on enabling individuals to live additional years in good health, as well as preparing health systems to adapt to evolving population needs.
Ischaemic heart disease is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, accounting for approximately 16% of global deaths, translating to nearly 9.5 million fatalities in 2023.
According to the World Health Organization, the top ten causes of death in 2023 accounted for 54% of the total global fatalities, resulting in approximately 33 million out of 61 million deaths worldwide.
According to global health statistics, ischemic heart disease accounted for approximately 9.5 million deaths, representing 16% of total fatalities. Annually, this condition has claimed the lives of approximately 3 million people since the year 2000. Accidents ranked as the second leading cause of death, resulting in around 6.8 million fatalities, while chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ranked third, with approximately 3.6 million deaths.
According to recent data, lower respiratory tract infections ranked fourth in terms of mortality, resulting in approximately 2.7 million deaths and reclaiming their position as the leading cause of transmissible disease-related fatalities. This shift was followed by notable increases in deaths attributed to Alzheimer's and other dementia, diabetes, tracheal, bronchial, and lung cancers, hypertensive heart disease, kidney diseases, and diarrhea.
Alzheimer's disease and other dementia-related deaths have significantly increased over the past two decades, with a notable shift in ranking from 19th place in 2000 to fifth place in 2023. Notably, these diseases caused approximately 2.1 million deaths in 2023, a threefold increase from the number of deaths recorded in the preceding years.
The prevalence of diabetes continued to increase, while kidney disease rose in prominence as a leading cause of mortality. This trend is indicative of a global shift towards chronic illnesses, which is also becoming more pronounced in lower-income countries.
For the first time since the COVID-19 health crisis began in 2020, the virus has fallen out of the top 10 global causes of death.
Significant strides have been made in combating various diseases in low-income countries. Between 2000 and 2023, fatalities from HIV and AIDS declined by 62%, and the incidence of diarrhea was reduced by half. Despite these advances, seven of the top ten leading causes of death in these economies continue to be infectious diseases.
In high-income countries, a notable disparity persists between the leading causes of death, with nine out of the top ten being non-communicable diseases. Alzheimer's and other dementia have now surpassed other causes to claim the third spot.
Global health metrics have shifted beyond mortality rates, with significant increases in the worldwide age-adjusted rate of lost healthy years of life. Between 2019 and 2023, this rate rose by approximately 20% for depressive disorders and 45% for anxiety disorders.
According to the World Health Organization, approximately 110 million years of healthy life were lost globally in 2023 due to disability or premature death caused by two major conditions. Notably, the Americas experienced the largest regional increase in the risk of death and loss of health associated with drug use disorders between 2000 and 2023.
According to the World Health Organization, recent data indicates a significant shift in global health trends, with life expectancy nearing pre-pandemic levels, while simultaneously experiencing a growing burden of heart disease, diabetes, dementia, and mental health disorders.
Labrique emphasized that the significance of these estimates extends beyond numerical values. He noted that the updated data enable countries to establish informed health policies and prioritize their efforts based on empirical evidence.
