According to a study, global life expectancy fell by 1.6 years during the Corona years 2021 and 2022. “For adults around the world, the coronavirus pandemic has had more serious consequences than any other event in half a century, including conflicts and natural disasters,” said the study’s authors. The evaluation is part of the multi-year Global Burden of Disease study at the University of Washington, which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
More on the topic: Corona virus
Adenovirus: A cold rarely comes alone
Coronaviruses: A terribly annoying family
Corona pandemic: How much of the pandemic damage could have been avoided?
In the two Corona years 2021 and 2022, excess mortality, i.e. the difference between the actual number of deaths and the number of deaths that would have been expected without a pandemic, was 15.9 million deaths worldwide, according to the study. The World Health Organization (WHO) had previously assumed that the number of excess deaths would be one million lower.
According to the evaluation, life expectancy fell in 84 percent of the 204 countries and areas examined over the two years. This makes the “destructive” effects of new viruses clear.
15.9 million dead
In the first two years, excess mortality, i.e. the difference between the actual number of deaths and the number of deaths that would have been expected without the pandemic, was 15.9 million deaths worldwide, according to the study. The World Health Organization (WHO) had previously assumed that the number of excess deaths would be one million lower.
© ZEIT ONLINE
Newsletter
New: Finally Monday
By registering, you acknowledge the data protection declaration.
Thank you! We have sent you an email.
Check your mailbox and confirm your newsletter subscription.
According to the study, the death rate among men and boys aged 15 and over rose by 22 percent in 2020 and 2021 and by 17 percent among women and girls. The places where life expectancy fell the most in the Corona years include Peru, Bolivia and Mexico City.
Decades of increase in life expectancy
The decline in life expectancy is all the more striking as the global average lifespan has steadily increased over the past few decades. In contrast to adults, mortality among small children under five years of age continued to decline in the Corona years, according to the evaluation. Accordingly, around half a million fewer small children died worldwide in 2021 than in 2019.
In the longer term, despite the Corona setback, people are still living significantly longer than before. While the global average life expectancy was 49 years in 1950, it was 72 years in 2021, the authors explained. However, humanity must prepare for “the next pandemic” and combat “the great inequalities between countries in health care,” warned co-author Hmwe Hmwe Kyu.
According to a study, global life expectancy fell by 1.6 years during the Corona years 2021 and 2022. “For adults around the world, the coronavirus pandemic has had more serious consequences than any other event in half a century, including conflicts and natural disasters,” said the study’s authors. The evaluation is part of the multi-year Global Burden of Disease study at the University of Washington, which is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
In the two Corona years 2021 and 2022, excess mortality, i.e. the difference between the actual number of deaths and the number of deaths that would have been expected without a pandemic, was 15.9 million deaths worldwide, according to the study. The World Health Organization (WHO) had previously assumed that the number of excess deaths would be one million lower.