Every day, more than 3,000 adolescents die across the world — that’s 1.2 million each year. But they don’t have to: Most of these deaths are preventable, according to a new report from the World Health Organization.
Though the largest cause of death in 10- to 19-year-olds was road injury in 2015, when age, sex and region were accounted for, the leading causes of death shifted, reports CNN. Most adolescent deaths are happening in Southeast Asia and Africa.
Overall, road injury was the most common cause of death in adolescent boys, ages 15 to 19. Pregnancy complications like sepsis and obstructed labor were the biggest cause of death in girls ages 15 to 19. In low- and middle-income African countries, communicable illnesses like HIV/AIDS and meningitis were larger culprits of adolescent death. For girls ages 10 to 14, lower respiratory infections like pneumonia were the leading killers.
“Adolescents have been entirely absent from national health plans for decades,” Dr, Flavia Bustreo, assistant director-general at the World Health Organization, said in a statement. “Relatively small investments focused on adolescents now will not only result in healthy and empowered adults who thrive and contribute positively to their communities, but it will also result in healthier future generations, yielding enormous returns.”
The third leading cause of death for adolescents worldwide in 2015 was suicide and accidental death from self-harm. Self-harm was also the second leading cause of death in older adolescent girls and the second or leading cause of death for European and Southeast Asian adolescents. These details come on the heels of Netflix’s hit series ” 13 Reasons Why,” which has spurred controversy over whether it glorifies teen suicide.
The road to reducing these premature deaths is manifold. Parents, families and communities all play a vital role , according to Dr. Anthony Costello, director of maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health at the World Health Organization.
“Adolescents are very vulnerable,” Dr. Sonia Saxena, a primary care expert at Imperial College London, told CNN. She was not a part of the report. “That transition needs support … and when adolescents don’t have that support, you get risky behavior.”
The World Health Organization also notes that while the majority of these deaths could be stopped, adolescents who lack proper nutrition, who have mental health disorders or are grappling with substance abuse may not always have access to care. This could be because it either isn’t available or they don’t know it exists.
Reducing adolescent deaths could include everything from better seat-belt laws and more comprehensive sexual education.
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More Than 1.2 Million Adolescents Die Each Year, Report Says originally appeared on usnews.com
