Heart disease again becomes top global killer as study highlights ‘toll’ of chronic conditions, rising youth deaths

Heather Evans almost died – twice in the same day.

The Calgary resident suffered two consecutive heart attacks in 2004, at just 39 years old. One of his sisters had suffered a heart attack at the age of only 36. Over the next two decades, a devastating pattern became apparent: coronary artery disease It ran through Evans’ family, and ultimately took the lives of five of his seven siblings.

“There are always these empty chairs at the table,” Evans told CBC News. “We look at each other and it’s just…deep sadness and deep heartache that never goes away.”

A new report on global deaths was published on Sunday lancet medical journalIt turns out that Familiar threats like heart disease are returning as the top causes of mortality worldwide, ousting COVID-19 as the No. 1 global killer.

Evans’ last remaining sister is now in palliative care, while her last remaining brother is experiencing heart failure. At the age of 61, Evans’ own heart is also failing. But through exercise, a healthy diet and quadruple bypass open-heart surgery in 2018, she is doggedly trying to overcome one of the top causes of death in the world.

“It will eventually take us down,” Evans said. “But we will not let it affect our spirit.”

Heart disease, stroke remain major health threats

Heart disease, stroke and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) took the top spots in the latest 2023 data, just two years after COVID fell to 20th as the leading cause of global death in 2021.

Deaths from infectious disease in general – including deaths associated with measles and tuberculosis – have declined, while chronic conditions that are not infectious, such as diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and drug use disorders, are increasing.

Patients and researchers warn that these slow-moving health threats don’t always get the same attention as global crises, yet their impact on people’s health and well-being remains massive.

“It’s not as dramatic as an outbreak,” said Michael Brauer, chief research scientist at the Washington Post. Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation Professor at the University of Washington and at the University of British Columbia. “But I think we still don’t appreciate the harm that these chronic diseases cause.”

Brauer joins a team of 16,500 researchers analyzing global mortality data on hundreds of diseases since 1990 in more than 200 countries and territories.

In Canada, he said the latest data shows heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s are the top three causes of deaths. He told CBC News that another worrying trend is that while the overall global mortality rate is declining and life expectancy is rising, the death rate among adolescents and young adults has increased in various parts of the world, including this country.

‘Deaths of despair’ among teens, young adults

Brauer said the team’s data for Canada showed an increase in death rates across all age groups from 15 to 49. The report said the high death rates among young adults across North America reflect an ongoing trend of “so-called deaths of despair”, referring to deaths primarily caused by suicide, drug abuse and alcoholism.

The research team said this is a call to action for policy makers to prioritize better care that addresses the social determinants of health – factors such as housing, education and social support – for these younger age groups.

Jane Meyer, an Ottawa mother who Lost her teenage daughter Charlie to suicide Earlier this year, it was said that closing health care gaps to better support struggling youth should be a key focus, given how many Canadian teens struggle with mental health problems and addiction.

“We definitely need to hear from young people. We need to listen to them. We need to understand the stressors they have in their lives,” he said.

Charlie was a much-loved child who suffered from complex mental health struggles that ultimately escalated to suicide and multiple suicide attempts, her mother explained.

While her daughter received ongoing support from local health care teams and her school community, Meyer said more proactive, long-term treatment options could help improve care for vulnerable young patients who may slip through the cracks of the system.

He added, “Often, we would sit in the emergency room for 12 hours before we could see a psychologist.”

Need for more youth-specific support

James MacKillop, a professor at McMaster University and the Peter Boris Chair of Addiction Research at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, agreed that there is a clear need for youth-specific treatment programs in Canada, as well as early intervention efforts involving specialized mental health professionals.

They also said the reasons for higher mortality rates in younger age groups may be complex, ranging from increased feelings of isolation to toxic drug supplies.

Canada-wide opioid death rate to actually increase in 2024 decreased by 17 percent The total number, however, remains higher than a year ago, according to the most recent report from the Public Health Agency of Canada. Meanwhile the Canadian Center on Substance Use and Addiction pointed to changes in drug supply – and the reality that many vulnerable users have already died – as reasons for the decline in drug-related deaths.

Canadian pediatricians are now attempting to better understand the effects of substance use, particularly on children and adolescents. Canadian Pediatric Surveillance ProgramA joint project of the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPS) recently launched the first national surveillance study on life-threatening harms associated with illicit substances.

Drug overdoses are already the leading cause of death for teens in British Columbia, and are a growing concern in the rest of the country, the society said in a statement to CBC News. Its “three-year study will allow practitioners and policymakers to co-develop overdose interventions with youth to reduce harm and improve health outcomes.”

Look Opioid deaths are falling, advocates stress action is still needed:

Well-Known, Modifiable Risk Factors

McMaster’s McKillop said the complex, overlapping factors involved in mental health and addiction can’t always be recognized by ranking causes of death.

The good news, he added, is that “many of the things that contribute to global mortality can now be modified.”

Brauer, one of the researchers on the Lancet report, agreed. Many risk factors for chronic health conditions are well known, including smoking, alcohol, diet and physical activity levels, he said, all of which can be addressed to help prevent early death.

In Calgary, Evans emphasized that scientists have made great strides in treating patients like him, allowing him to survive more than two decades after two heart attacks. But she says she worries that without social change and greater focus on healthy eating, personal fitness and stress reduction, more Canadian families will experience losses like hers.

“If I had known, I would have tried my best to eat a little better, and I would have exercised a lot more than when I was younger, you know?” He said.

“There are a lot of components to what we can do that can certainly give us the best chance of surviving this disease later in life.”