What will SA’s life expectancy be in 22 years?

According to an international study done by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, diabetes will be the leading cause of death by 2014.

South Africa’s average life expectancy of 62,4 years is expected to rise to 69,3 in 22 years.

By then diabetes will have risen above HIV/Aids, lower respiratory infections, road injuries, interpersonal violence, and tuberculosis to the leading cause of death in SA, according to the study.

Diabetes currently affects at least 1,83 million South Africans while obesity rates among children have nearly doubled in six years. Obesity is a major contributing factor to diabetes, heart disease and strokes and research shows that 80 per cent of weight loss attempts fail.