Geneva, October 2, 2026 – Global life expectancy has bounced back to near pre-pandemic levels, but people are living more years in poor health as noncommunicable diseases take over as the leading cause of death, WHO’s latest data shows.
According to WHO’s Global Health Estimates 2026, global life expectancy reached 73.3 years in 2023, just 0.1 years below 2019. However, healthy life expectancy recovered more slowly at 62.8 years, still 0.4 years below pre-COVID levels.
NCDs Now Dominate Global Deaths
Noncommunicable diseases accounted for 74% of global deaths in 2023, up from 58% in 2000. Eight of the world’s 10 leading causes of death are now NCDs.
Cardiovascular disease remains the top killer, with ischaemic heart disease causing 9.5 million deaths. The risk is rising in WHO’s Western Pacific and South-East Asia regions.
Diabetes and dementia are also rising fast. Dementia jumped to the 5th leading cause of death in 2023 from 19th in 2000, with deaths tripling. Diabetes mortality has increased substantially, especially in South-East Asia.
Mental Health Burden Grows
Between 2019 and 2023, disability from depression rose 20% and anxiety rose 45%. Together they caused 110 million years of healthy life lost.“Living longer is one of the great achievements of public health,” said Dr Alain Labrique, WHO. “The next challenge is to ensure those additional years are lived in good health.”WHO said the data should help countries reshape health systems to tackle aging, NCDs and mental health.SEO Package
Note – AI used to summarise WHO media release for the above report.
