• Home > Global > Poor diet is a factor in one in five deaths, global disease study reveals

Poor diet is a factor in one in five deaths, global disease study reveals

by Sarah Boseley, Health Editor

Poor diets can lead to early death.  Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA

Malnutrition is due to eating poorly; eating the wrong amounts and kinds of foods – either overeating, and under-eating.

A recent comprehensive study done by the the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, compiled data from every country in the world. Poor diet is a factor in one in five deaths around the world, according to this study.

Millions of people are eating the wrong sorts of food for good health. Eating a diet that is low in whole grains, fruit, nuts and seeds and fish oils and high in salt raises the risk of an early death, according to the huge and ongoing study Global Burden of Disease.

The study, based at the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, compiles data from every country in the world and makes informed estimates where there are gaps. Five papers on life expectancy and the causes and risk factors of death and ill health have been published by the Lancet medical journal.

  • World Hunger Education
    Service
    P.O. Box 29015
    Washington, D.C. 20017

  • About WHES & Hunger Notes
    For the past 40 years, since its founding in 1976, the mission of World Hunger Education Service is to undertake programs, including Hunger Notes, that
    • Educate the general public and target groups about the extent and causes of hunger and malnutrition in the United States and the world
    • Advance comprehension which integrates ethical, religious, social, economic, political, and scientific perspectives on the world food problem
    • Facilitate communication and networking among those who are working for solutions
    • Promote individual and collective commitments to sustainable hunger solutions.