| Causes of death in the United States |
January 24, 2010 - October 6, 2010
Author: Bart klein Ikink
The most common conventional causes of death in industrialized countries are cardiovascular disease, cancer, Alzheimer's Disease and accident (in that order). Alzheimer's victims usually die of pneumonia, a lung condition or a cerebrovascular condition, so Alzheimer's victims are often declared to die of other causes.
FORMAL NAME | INFORMAL NAME | % ALL DEATHS |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Diseases of the heart | heart attack (mainly) | 28.5% |
| (2) Malignant neoplasms | cancer | 22.8% |
| (3) Cerebrovascular disease | stroke | 6.7% |
| (4) Chronic lower respiratory disease | emphysema, chronic bronchitis | 5.1% |
| (5) Unintentional injuries | accidents | 4.4% |
| (6) Diabetes mellitus | diabetes | 3.0% |
| (7) Influenza and pneumonia | flu & pneumonia | 2.7% |
| (8) Alzheimer's Disease | Alzheimer's senility | 2.4% |
| (9) Nephritis and Nephrosis | kidney disease | 1.7% |
| (10) Septicemia | systemic infection | 1.4% |
| (11) Intentional self-harm | suicide | 1.3% |
| (12) Chronic Liver/Cirrhosis | liver disease | 1.1% |
| (13) Essential Hypertension | high blood pressure | 0.8% |
| (14) Assault | homicide | 0.7% |
| (15) All other causes | other | 17.4% |
Source: Benbest.com - Causes of death
Seventy percent of all cancer deaths are the result of seven cancers:
CAUSE | PERCENT OF TOTAL | NUMBERS |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Lung | 30.9% | 154,900 |
| (2) Colon | 9.6% | 48,100 |
| (3) Breast | 8.0% | 40,000 |
| (4) Prostate | 6.0% | 30,200 |
| (5) Pancreas | 5.9% | 29,700 |
| (6) Lymphoma | 5.2% | 25,800 |
| (7) Leukemia | 4.3% | 21,700 |
Source: Benbest.com - Causes of death
On average a few hundred Americans die of terrorist attacks each year while 150,000 people die each year of lung cancer, which is often caused by smoking, 45,000 people die needlessly every year because there is no guaranteed healthcare for all US citizens (see also: Independent - Johann Hari: This corruption in Washington is smothering America's future) and 40,000 people die each year of traffic accidents. Even though it is difficult to prove, environmental pollution is most likely an important cause of death and diseases (see also: Science Daily - Air Pollution Linked To Early Death).
Terrorism is not a significant cause of death while Islamic extremists are the perpetrators of only 6% of the terrorist attacks in the United States. Islamic terrorism gets so much attention because a number of high profile attacks killed many people. Images like planes flying into WTC buildings and those buildings collapsing did much to install fear. On the FBI’s official website, there exists a chronological list of all terrorist attacks committed on U.S. soil from the year 1980 to 2005 (see also: Terrorism 2002-2005). The diagram below shows the terrorist attacks on U.S. soil by group, from 1980 to 2005, according to FBI database.
Source: Loonwatch.com - All Terrorists are Muslims... Except the 94% that Aren’t
The diagram below shows the terrorist attacks on U.S. soil by type, from 1980 to 2005, according to FBI database.
Source: Loonwatch.com - All Terrorists are Muslims... Except the 94% that Aren’t
Money spent on health care or reducing environmental pollution most likely will increase life expectancy far more than money spent on the war on terrorism. More American soldiers are killed in Afghanistan and Iraq than are killed in the United States by Islamic extremists. Therefore the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are very inefficient in saving American lives, like they are ineffective in finding Osama Bin Laden or in eliminating the causes of Islamic extremism.