Overall Global Leading Cause of Death

  • Ischemic heart disease (coronary artery disease) – Still the #1 cause of death worldwide.
  • Followed by: Stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lower respiratory infections, and cancer (e.g., lung, liver, colorectal).

Breakdown by Category

By Age

Age GroupLeading Cause(s) of Death
Infants (<1)Neonatal conditions, birth complications, infections
Children (1–14)Accidents (injuries), infections (low-income countries), cancers (e.g., leukemia)
Youth (15–24)Road injuries, suicide, homicide (varies by country)
Adults (25–44)Injuries (road, drug overdose), suicide, HIV/AIDS (in some countries), heart disease
Middle Age (45–64)Heart disease, cancer (esp. lung, colorectal, breast), liver disease
Older Adults (65+)Heart disease, stroke, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease

By Gender/Sex

GroupLeading Cause of Death
Cisgender MenHeart disease, cancer (lung, liver), accidents
Cisgender WomenHeart disease, cancer (breast, lung), stroke
Transgender IndividualsElevated risk from violence, suicide, and HIV/AIDS (especially trans women of color); limited large-scale data
Non-binaryInsufficient population-specific data, but risks often parallel those of trans populations or assigned sex at birth

By Race/Ethnicity (Example: United States)

GroupTop CausesUnique Issues
White (non-Hispanic)Heart disease, cancer, drug overdose
Black or African AmericanHeart disease, cancer, higher stroke risk
Hispanic/LatinoHeart disease, cancer, diabetes
Native AmericanAccidents, liver disease, diabetes, suicide
Asian AmericanCancer (leading cause), stroke, heart disease

Note: Disparities arise from systemic inequalities, access to care, and social determinants of health.


By Sexuality (LGBTQ+)

  • Limited global data, but in many regions:
    • Higher risk of suicide, mental health disorders, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS (especially among MSM and trans women).
    • Discrimination and healthcare avoidance contribute to worsened outcomes.
  • Common causes of death still include heart disease and cancer, with higher rates of premature death linked to stigma and healthcare disparities.

By Geographic Region

RegionLeading Cause(s)
High-Income CountriesHeart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, stroke
Low- and Middle-Income CountriesInfectious diseases (TB, HIV), maternal mortality, stroke, heart disease
AfricaHIV/AIDS, malaria, lower respiratory infections
AsiaStroke, heart disease, chronic lung disease
North AmericaHeart disease, cancer, drug overdose (opioid crisis)
EuropeHeart disease, stroke, cancer
Latin AmericaViolence (in younger adults), heart disease, diabetes

By Profession

  • Agricultural/farm workers: High injury rates, pesticide exposure, suicide
  • Construction workers: Falls, injuries, exposure to toxins (e.g., asbestos)
  • Healthcare workers: Infectious disease, burnout, mental health risks
  • Military/first responders: Combat-related injuries, PTSD, suicide
  • Office workers: Sedentary lifestyle risks (heart disease, diabetes)

Occupation-linked deaths often relate to environmental exposures, physical risks, or psychological stressors.


Conclusion:

Across almost all demographics, heart disease remains the leading cause of death, followed by cancer, stroke, and—in certain populations—accidents, suicide, or infectious diseases. However, the underlying causes (social, economic, political) differ significantly based on identity, geography, and profession.

Would you like this formatted into a chart, infographic, or specific to a country or report you’re working on?

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Self-sabotage is self-sabotaging. Why would anyone do this?Self-sabotage is self-sabotaging. Why would anyone do this?

As I always like to say, there are as many reasons why people self-sabotage as there are people. A common theme is to protect the self from failure, feeling things we don’t want to feel, and to control our experiences.

One of the hidden culprits behind self-sabotage is the need for perfection and control. Self-sabotage has a strange way of helping us maintain the illusion that if only we had put in more effort or had better circumstances, everything would have worked out as it should. Social psychologists call this counter-intuitive strategy of regulating self-esteem ‘self-handicapping.’ It’s very seductive to engage in self-sabotage because the hidden payoff is high. It’s often easier to be a perfect whole rather than a real part. It’s a short-term solution that sidesteps the more arduous but ultimately more fulfilling work of individuation and self-realization. It takes risk, patience, suffering, and ultimately wisdom to come to the place where you can let go of self-sabotage and learn how to be real.

Behaviour is said to be self-sabotaging when it creates problems in daily life and interferes with long-standing goals. The most common self-sabotaging behaviors include procrastination, self-medication with alcohol and other drugs, comfort eating, and forms of self-injury such as cutting.

Self-sabotage originates in the internal critic we all have, the side that has been internalized by the undermining and negative voices we’ve encountered in our lives. This critic and ‘internal sabotuer,’ functions to keep the person from risking being hurt, shamed, or traumatized in the ways they had been in the past. While it keeps the individual safe, it does so at a very high cost, foreclosing the possibility of new, creative, and three-dimensional experiences. Like an addiction, self-sabotage insidiously lulls and deludes us into thinking that it has the answer. In fact, it is the problem masquerading as the solution. Nothing stops self-sabotage faster in its tracks than shining this particular light on it. Consciousness is true power. We need to let go of our illusions of omnipotence and perfection and see that it is only when we are real and imperfect that we can create a true work of art. Then and only then we can enjoy the gifts of being Real.

– Michael Alcée, Ph.D., Relational therapist/ Clinical psychologistArt: Bawa Manjit, Acrobat

Self-Sabotage | Psychology Today Australia

Polyvagal Theory and Trauma – Dr. Stephen PorgesPolyvagal Theory and Trauma – Dr. Stephen Porges

Stephen Porges, psychiatry professor and researcher, on the polyvagal theory he developed to understand our reactions to trauma:

[Paraphrased] Polyvagal theory articulates three branches of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) that evolved from primitive vertebrates to mammals. First, there is a system known as ‘freeze’, which involves death feigning or immobilisation. Second, the ANS has a ‘fight or flight’ system, which is a mobilisation system. And third, with mammals, there is what Porges calls, a social engagement system (SES), which can detect features of safety, and actually communicate them to another. The SES may also be referred to by some as ‘rest and digest’, which Porges theory suggests is a function of the Vagus Nerve – the tenth cranial nerve, a very long and wandering nerve that begins at the medulla oblongata. When an individual experiences feelings of safety (within an SES state), the autonomic nervous system can support health restoration. In terms of dealing with a life threat, an ordinary person will most likely go into a feigning death, dissociative state of ‘freeze’.

Polyvagal theory in psychotherapy offers emotional co-regulation as an interactive process between therapist and client which engages the social engagement system of both therapist and client. Social engagement provides experiences of safety, trust, mutuality and reciprocity in which we are open to receiving another person, just as they are.

The following extract has been retrived from https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/jun/02/stephen-porges-interview-survivors-are-blamed-polyvagal-theory-fight-flight-psychiatry-ace

Polyvagal theory has made inroads into medical and psycho-therapeutic treatment, but how should it inform how people treat each other?


“When we become a polyvagal-informed society, we’re functionally capable of listening to and witnessing other people’s experiences, we don’t evaluate them. Listening is part of co-regulation: we become connected to others and this is what I call our biological imperative. So when you become polyvagal-informed you have a better understanding of your evolutionary heritage as a mammal. We become aware of how our physiological state is manifested, in people’s voices and in their facial expression, posture and basic muscle tone. If there’s exuberance coming from the upper part of a person’s face, and their voice has intonation modulation or what’s called prosody, we become attracted to the person. We like to talk to them – it’s part of our co-regulation.

So when we become polyvagal-informed, we start understanding not only the other person’s response but also our responsibility to smile and have inflection in our voice, to help the person we’re talking to help their body feel safe.”

Clink on the link below to hear Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, one of the world’s leading experts on developmental trauma, explain how our long-term health and happiness can be compromised by prior exposure to violence, emotional abuse, and other forms of traumatic stress.

https://youtu.be/53RX2ESIqsM