GBD 2019: Global Burden of 87 Risk Factors in 204 Countries and Territories, 1990-2019

This article from The Lancet estimates mortality, years of life lost (YLLs), years of life lived with disability (YLDs), and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for 87 risk factors in 204 countries and territories using the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019. The article examines risk factors from 1990 to 2019, as well as from 2010 to 2019. The authors found that the largest declines in risk exposure from 2010 to 2019 were risks associated with social and economic development, including household air pollution; unsafe water, sanitation, and handwashing; and child growth failure. Global declines in risk were also seen for tobacco smoking and lead exposure. The greatest increases in risk exposure were for ambient particulate matter pollution, drug use, high fasting plasma glucose, and high body mass index. High systolic blood pressure was the highest Level 2 Risk factor for global deaths in 2019, accounting for 10.8 million deaths, followed by tobacco, which accounted for 8.71 million deaths. The burden of risk factors also varied greatly between age groups and locations.

Led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, GBD is a global effort with researchers from over 150 countries and territories. IHME and other partnering organizations have developed numerous resources to disseminate and visualize the findings of the GBD studies, data visualizations and interactives, country profiles, policy reports, research articles, infographics, and the GBD Results Tool, which allows users to search GBD data.