Leading Cause of Preventable Death
| Cause | Deaths caused (millions per year) |
|---|---|
| Hypertension | 7.8 |
| Smoking | 5.0 |
| High cholesterol | 3.9 |
| Malnutrition | 3.8 |
| Sexually transmitted infections | 3.0 |
| Poor diet | 2.8 |
| Overweight and obesity | 2.5 |
| Physical inactivity | 2.0 |
| Alcohol | 1.9 |
| Indoor air pollution from solid fuels | 1.8 |
| Unsafe water and poor sanitation | 1.6 |
| Intervention | Percent of all child deaths preventable |
|---|---|
| Breastfeeding | 13 |
| Insecticide-treated materials | 7 |
| Complementary feeding | 6 |
| Zinc | 4 |
| Clean delivery | 4 |
| Hib vaccine | 4 |
| Water, sanitation, hygiene | 3 |
| Antenatal steroids | 3 |
| Newborn temperature management | 2 |
| Vitamin A | 2 |
| Tetanus toxoid | 2 |
| Nevirapine and replacement feeding | 2 |
| Antibiotics for premature rupture of membranes | 1 |
| Measles vaccine | 1 |
| Antimalarial intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy | <1% |
| Cause | Deaths caused | % of all deaths |
|---|---|---|
| Tobacco smoking | 435,000 | 18.1 |
| Poor diet and physical inactivity | 365,000 | 15.2 |
| Alcohol consumption | 85,000 | 3.5 |
| Infectious diseases | 75,000 | 3.1 |
| Toxicants | 55,000 | 2.3 |
| Traffic collisions | 43,000 | 1.8 |
| Firearm incidents | 29,000 | 1.2 |
| Sexually transmitted infections | 20,000 | 0.8 |
| Drug abuse | 17,000 | 0.7 |
Read more about this topic: Preventive Medicine
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