1.1.2: A Healthy Population
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How long would you like to live? What would you like to be able to do throughout life, especially into your later years? Striving for health by implementing wellness practices will impact both your quantity and quality of life.
Leading Causes of Death in the United States
Across the entire U.S. population, Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer are the top two causes of death. However, variation exists for age and ethnicities. For example, until age 44 the leading cause of death is unintentional injuries, then between 45-64 the leading cause of death is Cancer followed by Cardiovascular disease, and beginning at age 65 Cardiovascular Disease takes the number one rank [3] .
Table \(\PageIndex{1}\) includes the top ten causes of death for the years 1900, 1950, 2000, 2010, 2018, and 2020. 2018 was purposefully included to show the difference in causes of death pre-COVID. In 2020, the list of the top causes shows COVID* taking the spot for the third most deaths. As you review the data in Table \(\PageIndex{1}\) , it is helpful to compare the leading cause of death with life expectancy. The life expectancy in 1900 was 48.3 years, by 1950 life expectancy increased to 71.1 years, and from 2010 to 2018 life expectancy remained fairly stable at 78.7 years. From 1900 to 2000, life expectancy almost doubled and the causes of death changed from causes predominantly related to infectious diseases and sickness, to causes of death highly related to lifestyle choices, like the choice to eat a healthy diet and stay physically active.
| Rank | Cause of death 1900 | Cause of death 1950 | Cause of death in 2000 | Cause of death in 2010 | Cause of death in 2018 | Cause of death in 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pneumonia and Influenza: 40,362 | Diseases of the heart: 535,705 | Heart disease: 710,760 | Heart disease: 597,689 | Heart disease: 655,381 | Heart disease: 696,962 |
| 2 | Tuberculosis: 38,820 |
Malignant neoplasms, including neoplasms of
lymphatic and hematopoietic tissues: 210,705 |
Cancer: 553,091 | Cancer: 574,743 | Cancer: 599,274 | Cancer: 602,350 |
| 3 | Diarrhea, enteritis, and ulceration of the intestines: 28,491 |
Vascular lesions affecting central nervous
system: 156,751 |
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 167,661 | Accidents (unintentional injuries): 167,127 | Accidents (unintentional injuries): 167,127 | *COVID-19: 350,831 |
| 4 | Diseases of the heart: 27,427 | Accidents: 91,249 | Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 122,009 | Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 138,080 | Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 159,486 | Accidents (unintentional injuries): 200,955 |
| 5 | Intracranial lesions of vascular origin: 21, 353 | Certain diseases of early infancy: 60,989 | Accidents (unintentional injuries): 97,900 | Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 129,476 | Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 147,810 | Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 160,264 |
| 6 | Nephritis: 17,699 |
Influenza and pneumonia, except pneumonia
of newborn: 47,120 |
Diabetes: 69,301 | Alzheimer’s disease: 83,494 | Alzheimer’s disease: 122,019 | Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 152,657 |
| 7 | All accidents: 14,429 | Tuberculosis: 33,959 | Influenza and pneumonia: 65,313 | Diabetes: 69,071 | Diabetes: 84,946 | Alzheimer’s disease: 134,242 |
| 8 | Cancer and other malignant tumors: 12,769 | General arteriosclerosis: 30,734 | Alzheimer’s disease: 49,558 | Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 50,476 | Influenza and pneumonia: 59,120 | Diabetes: 102,188 |
| 9 | Senility: 10,015 | Nephritis: 24,677 | Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 37,251 | Influenza and pneumonia: 50,097 | Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 51,386 | Influenza and pneumonia: 53,544 |
| 10 | Diphtheria: 8,056 | Diabetes mellitus: 24,419 | Intentional self-harm (suicide): 31,224 | Intentional self-harm (suicide): 38,364 | Intentional self-harm (suicide): 48,344 | Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 52,547 |
| Intentional self-harm (suicide): 45,855 |
Reflection: Quantity and Quality of Life Then and Now
Have you been able to trace your family tree? If you are able to trace your history back in time, something you might notice is how long each of your relatives lived. Did you know that those born in 1900 lived on average just 47.3 years and by 2000 on average Americans lived to 76.8 years [4] ? Life expectancy almost doubled in just one century.
Life expectancy is often used a measurement of the overall health of a population. Life expectancy at birth represents the average number of years that a group of infants would live if the group were to experience the age-specific death rates present in the year of birth. Life expectancy averages vary based on many different demographics such as between males and females and regions of the world. Take a moment to review the world life expectancy charts provided by Our World in Data [5]
Have you thought about what actions took place, or healthy goals were achieved, to be able to double life expectancy?
In the early 1900’s, the leading cause of death was infectious diseases, now the leading cause of death is two chronic diseases, cardiovascular disease and cancer. As a nation and world, several actions were implemented to reduce death from infectious diseases, these actions include clean drinking water, development of medications, development and requirement of vaccines, workplace safety such as wearing hard hats, vehicle safety such as wearing seatbelts.
Read about the Ten Great Public Health Achievements — United States, 2001–2010 [6]
Reflection: Take a moment and think about how your life would have been different if you were born in 1900. What would your daily life be like? What challenges might you face? What might you wish you had that has not been developed yet? Ask yourself what you have now that you would not have had in the early 1900’s that has increased your quantity and quality of life?
Your Choices, Your Risk: What is your risk factor?
Many of the risk factors for Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer are related to your lifestyle choices, thus the choices you make may impact your chances of being diagnosed with Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer. Part of learning how to take charge of your health requires understanding your risk factors for different diseases. Risk factors are things in your life that increase your chances of getting a certain disease. Some risk factors are beyond your control, you may be born with them or exposed to them through no fault of your own.
Some risk factors that you have little or no control over include your:
- Family history of a disease
- Sex/gender — male or female
- Ancestry
Some risk factors you can control include:
- What you eat
- How much physical activity you get
- Whether you use tobacco
- How much alcohol you drink
- Whether you misuse drugs
- Whether you get good sleep
You can have one risk factor for a disease or you can have many. The more risk factors you have, the more likely you are to get the disease. For example, if you eat healthy, exercise on a regular basis, and control your blood pressure, your chances of getting heart disease are less than if you are diabetic, a smoker, and inactive. To lower your risks, take small steps toward engaging in a healthy lifestyle, and you’ll see big rewards.
People with a family health history of chronic disease may have the most to gain from making lifestyle changes. You can’t change your genes, but you can change behaviors that affect your health, such as smoking, inactivity, and poor eating habits. In many cases, making these changes can reduce your risk of disease even if the disease runs in your family. Another change you can make is to have screening tests, such as mammograms and colorectal cancer screening. These screening tests help detect disease early. People who have a family health history of a chronic disease may benefit the most from screening tests that look for risk factors or early signs of disease. Finding disease early, before symptoms appear, can mean better health in the long run.