Illnesses nobody caught

About this video

Some illnesses spread from person to person, because they are caused by germs: a cold, flu, measles. These are communicable (infectious) diseases. Others don't spread: you can't catch them from anyone. These are noncommunicable diseases, or NCDs. They usually last a long time, often for the rest of a person's life. The main groups are diseases of the heart and blood vessels (such as heart attacks and strokes), cancers, long-lasting lung diseases, and diabetes.

In 2023 about 61 million people died around the world. The biggest cause was ischaemic heart disease, where the blood vessels that feed the heart muscle get narrowed or blocked: about 9.5 million deaths, roughly 1 in 6. Of the ten biggest causes of death, eight don't spread. NCDs killed at least 43 million people in 2021, about 3 in 4 of all deaths not caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and about 18 million of them died before the age of 70. They are not a problem of rich countries: about three quarters of NCD deaths happen in low- and middle-income countries.

A risk factor is something that makes an illness more likely, not certain. The World Health Organization names the main ones for NCDs: tobacco use, not being active enough, drinking too much alcohol, unhealthy diets, and air pollution indoors and outdoors. High blood pressure is linked to about 1 in 4 NCD deaths, and most people with it feel nothing, so only a measurement can tell. Many of these risks can be lowered, and getting ill doesn't prove someone did something wrong. This video goes with the lesson Illnesses That Don't Spread in Knaph's Health Level 1 course. It is general information, not medical advice.

Transcript

1. 0:00A cold spreads from person to person. But nobody caught a grandfather's weak heart, or an aunt's diabetes. These illnesses don't spread.
2. 0:13The main groups are heart and blood vessel diseases, cancers, long-lasting lung diseases, and diabetes.
3. 0:24In 2023, of the ten biggest causes of death in the world, eight don't spread. Heart disease alone caused about one death in six.
4. 0:37In 2021 they caused about three in four deaths, apart from COVID-19. Most of these deaths are in low and middle income countries.
5. 0:50The main risk factors are tobacco, not moving enough, too much alcohol, unhealthy diets and air pollution. A risk factor makes illness more likely, not certain.
6. 1:06High blood pressure is linked to about one in four of these deaths. Most people with it feel nothing. Only a measurement can tell.
7. 1:18Many of these risks can be lowered.