
Cigarette smoking causes premature death:
- Life expectancy for smokers is at least 10 years shorter than for nonsmokers. 1,2
- Quitting smoking before the age of 40 reduces the risk of dying from smoking-related disease by about 90%. 2
Full Answer
Are the leading causes of death preventable?
Many of the leading causes of death, both in the United States and worldwide, are preventable with lifestyle changes.
Can We prevent premature death?
The study suggests that, if all states had the lowest death rate observed for each cause, it would be possible to prevent: 34 percent of premature deaths from heart diseases, prolonging about 92,000 lives 39 percent of premature deaths from chronic lower respiratory diseases, prolonging about 29,000 lives
How many Americans die prematurely from the 5 leading causes of death?
Each year, nearly 900,000 Americans die prematurely from the five leading causes of death – yet 20 percent to 40 percent of the deaths from each cause could be prevented, according to a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The five leading causes of death in the United States are heart disease, cancer,...
How many lives are prolonged by premature diseases?
34 percent of premature deaths from heart diseases, prolonging about 92,000 lives 21 percent of premature cancer deaths, prolonging about 84,500 lives 39 percent of premature deaths from chronic lower respiratory diseases, prolonging about 29,000 lives 33 percent of premature stroke deaths, prolonging about 17,000 lives

Why is preventable death important?
Preventable death estimates are an important public-health tool that help state and federal officials establish prevention goals, priorities, and strategies. Health care providers can prevent premature deaths by offering preventive services such as counseling patients on how to quit smoking, how to prevent heart disease and stroke, and how to avoid unintentional injuries.
What were the leading causes of death for people under 80 in 2014?
In 2014, the five leading causes of death for people under age 80 were diseases of the heart, cancers, stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases (CLRD), such as asthma, bronchitis, and emphysema), and unintentional injuries (accidents). These causes accounted for 63 percent of deaths from all causes in that year.
What are the major modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease?
The 12 major modifiable risk factors selected based on these criteria are shown in Table 1. High blood pressure and high low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were selected as major modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular mortality, with their effects on cardiovascular diseases established in observational as well as randomized studies. High blood glucose, overweight–obesity (high BMI), physical inactivity, five dietary factors, alcohol use, and tobacco smoking were selected as major modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and other diseases. The mortality-reducing effects of omega-3 fatty acids and of replacing saturated fatty acids (SFA) with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (denoted as PUFA and PUFA-SFA replacement interchangeably hereafter) have been confirmed in randomized trials. The mortality effects of other risk factors were considered probable or convincing based on the breadth and consistency of evidence from well-conducted observational studies. The relationship between dietary salt (sodium) and cardiovascular mortality was based on convincing effects on blood pressure in intervention studies, as well as on disease outcomes in at least one study.
What are the risk factors for heart disease?
The American Heart Associationand American Cancer Societyprovide a rich resource for patients and caregivers on many important risk factors including diet, sodium intake, and smoking
What is the World Health Report 2002?
The World Health Report 2002Reducing Risks, Promoting Healthy Lifeprovides a global analysis of how healthy life expectancy could be increased
What is MedlinePlus?
The MedlinePlus encyclopediacontains a page on healthy living (in English and Spanish)
What are the causes of premature death?
Modifiable risk factors fall into three main groups. First, there are lifestyle risk factors. These include tobacco smoking, physical inactivity, and excessive alcohol use (small amounts of alcohol may actually prevent diabetes and some types of heart disease and stroke). Second, there are dietary risk factors such as a high salt intake and a low intake of fruits and vegetables. Finally, there are “metabolic risk factors,” which shorten life expectancy by increasing a person's chances of developing cardiovascular disease (in particular, heart problems and strokes) and diabetes. Metabolic risk factors include having high blood pressure or blood cholesterol and being overweight or obese.
What causes the most deaths in the US?
Smoking and high blood pressure, which both have effective interventions, are responsible for the largest number of deaths in the US. Other dietary, lifestyle, and metabolic risk factors for chronic diseases also cause a substantial number of deaths in the US.
What are the risk factors that affect the number of deaths?
Our aim was to estimate the mortality effects of the following 12 modifiable dieta ry, lifestyle, and metabolic risk factors in the United States (US) using consistent and comparable methods: high blood glucose, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and blood pressure; overweight–obesity; high dietary trans fatty acids and salt; low dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acids (seafood), and fruits and vegetables; physical inactivity; alcohol use; and tobacco smoking.
What is the power of preventive care?
You have the power to moderate or eliminate many of the top preventable health risk factors that lead to illness or premature death. Making healthy lifestyle decisions and following a regular schedule of preventive care is the key to better health results and a higher quality of life.
How to prevent death from Marshfield Clinic?
Avoid alcohol or use in moderation. Maintain a healthy weight. Exercise regularly. Eat a healthy diet. Making and maintaining these decisions is easier said than done, but with the help of your Marshfield Clinic doctor, you can prevent or lessen many risk factors for serious illness or premature death.
Is preventive care good for health?
Preventive care doesn’t guarantee good health – some illnesses and conditions develop without warning. However, preventive care and healthy lifestyle decisions give you the best chance to avoid or moderate many serious problems. The list at the bottom of this article, details the top preventable risk factors for premature death.
What causes heart disease?
Heart disease is a term used to describe a range of conditions that affect your heart and blood vessels. These conditions include:
What causes cancer?
Cancer is the result of rapid and uncontrolled cell growth in your body. A normal cell multiplies and divides in a controlled manner. Sometimes, those instructions become scrambled. When this happens, the cells begin to divide at an uncontrolled rate. This can develop into cancer.
What causes accidents?
Accidents lead to more than 28 million emergency room visits each year. The three leading causes of accident-related death are:
What causes a stroke?
A stroke occurs when the blood flow to your brain is cut off. Without oxygen-rich blood flowing to your brain, your brain cells begin to die in a matter of minutes.
What causes influenza and pneumonia?
Influenza (the flu) is a highly contagious viral infection. It’s very common during winter months. Pneumonia is an infection or inflammation of the lungs.
What causes septicemia?
Septicemia is the result of a bacterial infection in the bloodstream. It’s sometimes called blood poisoning. Most cases of septicemia develop after an infection somewhere else in the body becomes severe.
How to prevent kidney disease?
Consider the following: Eat a lower-sodium diet. Stop smoking and drinking. Lose weight if you’re overweight or obese, and maintain it. Exercise for 30 minutes, five days a week.
