An astonishing 414,000 Poles died in 2018, which is a 3 percent increase compared to 2017. This is a worrying sign, as Statistics Poland originally foresaw such a death-rate as late as 2032.
According to professor Piotr Szukalski of the University of Łódź, the ageing of society is responsible for 1 to 2 percent of the increase. This is due to the increase in seniors because more people from the post-war demographic high are turning 70. “A higher death rate may mean a stagnation in the average life expectancy of Poles,” he said.
Szukalski also drew attention to the fact that in 2017, the average life expectancy of women decreased by 1.5 months to 81.8 years, whereas the life expectancy for men increased by a week to 74 years.
The main reasons for this increased death rate include smoking, bad diets and high blood pressure
The main reasons for this increased death rate include smoking, bad diets and high blood pressure. In 2017, the factors for which humans had an effect on, were responsible for 37.3 percent of the losses in healthy life years. Diet was responsible for 14.2 percent and smoking 17.2 percent.
Another reason for the increase is the unconsciousness of Poles towards the threats of bad diets. According to the authors of the report for the National Institute of Public Health the “results show an immediate need for more effective health education of the Polish society.”
