PEDESTRIANS ACCOUNT FOR INCREASING RATE OF FATALITIES IN WRECKS
a much greater hazard.”
Medicine has improved our ability to combat fatal illnesses. But while deaths from natural causes have gone down, deaths from preventable causes have ticked up, and the result is that Americans’ life expectancy has actually decreased over the past few years, Kolosh said.
Here’s a look at the trends:
While deaths from natural causes have gone down, deaths from preventable causes have ticked up, and the result is that Americans’ life expectancy has actually decreased over the past few years.
Opioids: 1in96
An influx of illegal fentanyl has worsened the opioid crisis.
The total number of deaths from opioid overdoses first surpassed the total number of deaths from vehicle crashes years ago.
But the report found that 2017 was the first year in which accidental opioid deaths exceeded the number of accidental vehicle crashes. (Intentional overdoses or vehicle crashes were counted as suicides.)
“Something that was a nonissue 30 years ago now looms as this incredible monster of an issue,” Kolosh said.
Overdoses of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, have been driving the increase, according to data on opioid deaths from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pedestrian deaths: 1 in 556
They are becoming more frequent.
Car crashes continue to be a leading cause of preventable death, with crashes involving pedestrians accounting for a bigger proportion of the fatalities, especially in urban areas of the country.
While Kolosh said the reasons behind the increase have not been thoroughly studied, distracted driving is widely considered to be a factor.
When it comes to deadly car crashes, the report made a notable finding: About half of those who died in crashes studied in the United States were not wearing seat belts.
Falls: 1 in 114
Falling can be risky, especially if you’re older.
The probability of dying in a fall increased to 1 in 114. Kolosh attributed the uptick to the fact that more older adults are reporting falls. Some of them at first might not seem particularly serious.
“They’re slipping or tripping in their bathrooms, or in their kitchens,” Kolosh said. But researchers are finding that even some of these minor falls may lead to hospitalization and a chain of events that may then result in death.
Among the ways to prevent falls, according to the CDC: Exercise that focuses on strength, flexibility and balance.