A newly published study called “The Global Burden Of Disease” details the state of world health. Although the human lifespan is increasing, the amount of healthy years is not. The top ten causes of death are:
| World | Deaths in millions | % of deaths |
| Ischaemic heart disease | 7.25 | 12.8% |
| Stroke and other cerebrovascular disease | 6.15 | 10.8% |
| Lower respiratory infections | 3.46 | 6.1% |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 3.28 | 5.8% |
| Diarrhoeal diseases | 2.46 | 4.3% |
| HIV/AIDS | 1.78 | 3.1% |
| Trachea, bronchus, lung cancers | 1.39 | 2.4% |
| Tuberculosis | 1.34 | 2.4% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 1.26 | 2.2% |
| Road traffic accidents | 1.21 | 2.1% |