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The WHO says global life expectancy reached 73.3 years in 2023, close to 2019 levels, but healthy life expectancy and dementia trends show uneven recovery.
Global life expectancy reached 73.3 years in 2023, nearly returning to the 73.4 years recorded in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization said Friday.
The figure comes from the WHO annual Global Health Estimates report. The pandemic had pushed global life expectancy down to 71.5 years in 2021. Living longer is one of the great achievements of public health, said Alain Labrique, head of the WHO data department. He said the next challenge is to ensure those additional years are lived in good health, while health systems adapt to changing population needs.
Healthy Life Expectancy and Mental Health
The WHO said healthy life expectancy has recovered from the pandemic more slowly. It stood at 62.8 years in 2023, which is 0.4 years below the 2019 level. The report also found that dementia deaths have tripled since the COVID-19 pandemic. Health loss linked to anxiety and depression has risen sharply as well.
Between 2000 and 2023, the WHO Americas region recorded the largest increases in risk of mortality and healthy life loss. The Western Pacific saw substantial declines over the same period. Of the 61 million deaths worldwide in 2023, the 10 leading causes accounted for 33 million. Noncommunicable diseases represented eight of those 10 leading causes.
Global Mortality and Noncommunicable Diseases
NCDs now account for 74 percent of global deaths, up from 58 percent in 2000 when the GHE study began. The world's biggest killer is ischaemic heart disease, responsible for 16 percent of deaths. Ischaemic heart disease has seen the largest increase in deaths between 2000 and 2023, rising from 3.0 million to 9.5 million. Stroke and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were the second and third leading causes of death in 2023.
Stroke was responsible for approximately 11 percent of total deaths, while COPD accounted for about six percent. Lower respiratory infections, the world's most deadly communicable disease, came fourth. Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia came fifth in 2023, killing 2.1 million people. COVID-19 dropped out of the top 10 leading causes of death for the first time since the pandemic exploded.
COVID-19 and HIV Trends
COVID-19 was directly responsible for an estimated 5.3 million deaths in 2020, when it ranked third. It caused 9.4 million deaths in 2021, when it ranked first. The disease fell to 900,000 directly attributable deaths in 2023, making it the 14th leading cause of death. Deaths from HIV and AIDS have fallen by 62 percent since 2020.
HIV and AIDS moved from the world's seventh leading cause of death in 2000 to 22nd place in 2023. The WHO findings show progress against some infectious diseases while chronic conditions and mental health burdens grow.
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CTVToronto:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Global Life Expectancy WHO Report Healthy Life Expectancy Noncommunicable Diseases Dementia Deaths
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