Respiratory Infection Mortality: Cuba and Argentina Rank Among the Top
Cuba and Argentina's respiratory deaths rank 3rd and 4th globally, fueled by high smoking and pollution.
Respiratory diseases are the 3rd most common cause of death in the world. In 2019, almost 4M people worldwide died from this affliction. Cuba and Argentina suffer from them far more than the average country. They have the 3rd and 4th highest death rates from respiratory infections worldwide.
While countless factors contribute to respiratory diseases, smoking is a particularly potent driver of complications. Cuba and Argentina report significantly higher smoking rates than the rest of Latin America.
A second factor is air pollution. According to the World Health Organization, most people globally breathe undesirable pollution levels. Both countries are above the World and LatAm's average in this regard. In recent years, governments have taken action to mitigate exposure to air pollution; the most evident example in LatAm is Uruguay, which has reduced exposure dramatically since 2011 — from 93% to 22%. Latin America remains at an 87% exposure level.
An aging population, too, plays a role in the prevalence and severity of respiratory infections. Older people are more susceptible and often experience more severe symptoms. Age likely contributes particularly to Cuba's respiratory problem; the country has a median age of 41, compared to Argentina's 31 and LatAm's 30.