November 12, 2023 11:05
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Yonhap News Agency, Seoul, November 12 (Xinhua) The “Health at a Glance” report (hereinafter referred to as the “Report”) released by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on the 12th showed that the death rate caused by air pollution in South Korea is approximately 43 per 100,000 people, higher than According to the OECD average, only 7 countries including South Korea have increased in the past 20 years.
According to the report, as of 2019, South Korea’s death rate due to air pollution was 42.7 per 100,000 people, which is 1.5 times the OECD average (28.9) and higher than New Zealand (6.3) and Sweden, which have fewer deaths. (6.5 people) and Finland (7 people) more than 6 times.
From 2000 to 2019, the number of deaths due to air pollution decreased by 32% on average in most OECD member countries, with only seven countries including South Korea (20%) and Japan (30%) increasing. Among non-member countries, India (97%), China (58%), and Indonesia (43%) also increased significantly.
File photo: The gray center of Seoul is Yonhap News Agency (Reprinting and copying of pictures is strictly prohibited)
At the same time, the scale of losses caused by extreme weather events continues to expand. The number of people affected by extreme heat in 38 OECD member countries increased from 21.6% from 2000 to 2004 to 29.2% from 2017 to 2021, and in South Korea it jumped from 18.3% to 60.1%. And the number of people dying from the heat is also increasing. According to statistics from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the number of hot summer days this year ranks fourth in history, and 32 people died from febrile diseases, four times the number last year.
File photo: On August 1, at the East Seoul Postal Logistics Center in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, a staff member who was sorting mail had his T-shirt more than half soaked with sweat. According to the weather forecast, the body temperature in most parts of the country will reach around 35 degrees Celsius that day.yonhap news agency
On the other hand, although the new crown epidemic has come to an end, the mental health problems of Koreans are still showing a “red light.” During the epidemic, the average life expectancy of OECD member countries decreased by 0.7 years, and South Korea increased by 0.3 years, but the suicide rate ranked first among member countries. The prevalence rate of depression in South Korea was 19.6% in 2020, and dropped slightly to 17.7% in 2022 after the epidemic. (over)
Data picture: Screenshot of the OECD’s “Health at a Glance” report on trends in excess mortality caused by air pollution (the reproduction of pictures is strictly prohibited)
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Tags: South Koreas air pollutionrelated mortality rate higher OECD average Yonhap News Agency
