What doesn’t kill you…

Last Friday on my drive home from work, while sitting in the usual afternoon traffic snarl and listening to the radio in my car, I was shocked by a news story regarding the death toll from traffic accidents during the Thai New Year celebrations – 397 people in just seven days.

To put this into perspective – during the month of March this year 112 people died on Australian roads.

My curiosity level was heightened. Which country in the world had the worst record when it came to road safety? As per usual this situation called for the (presumed) source of all knowledge; Google and Wikipedia.

The World Health Organisation statistics reveal that 1.25 million people died worldwide in traffic accidents. China tops the list with a staggering 261,367 fatalities; which is followed by India with 207,551.

Yes – I realise that these are the two most populated nations on earth, so naturally you would expect them to have the highest totals.

So I went a little deeper to try and find a figure which would reflect a more accurate picture of the situation, and gain a snapshot that also considers the nation’s population as part of the equation. I then stumbled on series of figures based on road deaths per 100,000 of the total population.

China and India, according to these figures, were in fact not as bad as they first appeared (in terms of statistic averages).

They were both close to the worldwide average of 17.4 deaths per 100,000 people.

Thailand, on the other hand, was not good at all with a figure of 36.2 people. Australia stood out with a figure of 5.4, which was nearly half of that in the United States at 10.6.

But where was the most hazardous place to drive? Without a doubt it was Libya, with a staggering
73.4 road deaths per 100,000.

On the journey of life; death in a traffic accident is just one of the obstacles you are hoping to avoid.

The other ‘obstacles’ which dominate our media headlines include murder, wars, civil conflicts, and terrorist attacks.

According the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime – 437,000 people worldwide were murdered in 2012 (this is the most recent data available at the time of writing).

This figure equates to a global average of 7.6 people per 100,000. Australia – once again – is very low with an average figure of 1.1.

Jamaica and the Bahamas (both islands I would like to visit one day) have figures between 30 to 39  people per 100,000.

Conflicts and war on the other hand, according to the International Institute of Strategic Studies, accounted for approximately 180,000 deaths across 42 different conflicts in 2014.

In the same year – the Global Terrorism Index stated that 32,658 people died in terrorist attacks. From this figure 78 per cent of these deaths occurred across five countries including Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Syria.

So – what is the biggest cause of people dying on a worldwide basis? Surprisingly it is internal over external causes that are the biggest ‘obstacles’ you will face.

Cardiovascular disease killed 17.5 million people in 2012. That means that three out of every ten deaths were due to heart disease and stroke.

Out of the ten leading causes of death in the world, nine are health related, and road death is actually second last on this list.

Wars, murders, and terrorist attacks don’t even make the top ten – they are a long way down the list.

So, in Australia, the reality of someone’s situation is that dying in a road accident, war, conflict, or being murdered – shouldn’t be your biggest concern.

While I cannot predict the future – the biggest obstacle the majority of the population will face on the path to a long and healthy retirement is the choices you make in relation to your health and lifestyle.

Retirement is not an excuse to become lazy and complacent. You may not have the responsibilities of work anymore, or a growing family, but you do have a responsibility to yourself to not waste this precious time you do have and to look after your own health and wellbeing.

Remember to remain active for as long as you are able to. Stimulate your mind, eat well (lots of fresh fruit and vegetables is my tip!), always try to remain positive; don’t dwell on the negatives or the mistakes of the past; enjoy your life, and the remaining time you have.

As you embark on your journey into retirement and the next phase of your life – these factors should be your highest priorities and concerns.

 

Source | Mark Teale, Manager – Technical Advice
Centrepoint Alliance