All-cause mortality means death due to any cause. The term is commonly used in medical research where it is often expressed as the total number of deaths that occur within a specific timeframe and population.
For example, a 2022 report in the journalTobacco Induced Diseasesstates that “smoking was associated with a significantly increased risk of all-cause mortality.” In other words, smoking cigarettes increases the risk of dying prematurely due to cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, or any other cause.
Learning about all-cause mortality and the leading causes of death can help you make healthier choices. This article discusses the risk factors for all-cause mortality along with how to minimize your risk of certain causes.
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Understanding All-Cause Mortality
The wordmortalitymeans death. In this context, all-cause mortality is death due to any disease, complication, or hazardous exposure (i.e. radiation).
All-cause mortality often comes up when discussing statistical results. Disease-tracking epidemiologists can use all-cause mortality in their analyses to track infection rates and the speed at which a disease is spreading.
What Does Lower All-Cause Mortality Mean?Having a lower all-cause mortality risk is ideal, as it means you are less likely to develop or die from any cause of death, including the leading ones.
What Does Lower All-Cause Mortality Mean?
Having a lower all-cause mortality risk is ideal, as it means you are less likely to develop or die from any cause of death, including the leading ones.
Leading Causes of Death
All-cause mortality rates help researchers understand the leading causes of death in an entire population, a particular race, or any other group.
According to the CDC, the leading causes of death in 2022 were, in rank order:
1)Heart disease:Thisis the leading cause of death globally and in the United States. More than four out of five cardiovascular disease (CVD) deaths are due to heart attacks and strokes. One-third of CVD deaths occur in people who are younger than 70.
4)COVID-19:At least 350,831 people died from COVID-19 in the United States in 2020.5)Stroke:This cause shares numerous risk factors with heart disease, but it is a separate medical event that injures the brain.6) Chronic lower respiratory diseases:Asthma,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and workplace-related chemical inhalations all fall under this category.7)Alzheimer’s disease:Related death rates increased 70% between 2000 and 2020. Choking due todysphagia(trouble swallowing) andpneumoniapresent the greatest mortality risk in people with Alzheimer’s disease.8)Diabetes:This diseaseis linked to an increased mortality due to the fact that it poses an increased risk cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, chronic lower respiratory disease, influenza (flu) and pneumonia.
9)Kidney disease:Approximately 40% of people with chronic kidney disease are unaware that they have it.
10)Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis:According to the CDC, 4.5 million adults have diagnosed liver disease and more than 50,000 die from it each year.
Mortality Risk Factors
As you review this chart, it’s important to remember that these are not theonlyrisk factors.
Lowering Your Mortality Risk
Don’t Smoke
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality, and between 80% to 90% of those deaths are linked to cigarette smoking.
If there is one thing you can do to drastically reduce your cancer mortality risk it’s saying no to cigarettes every time. At least 70 chemicals in cigarettes and tobacco products have been identified as cancer-causing.
Quitting smoking at any age can lower the risk of cancer mortality.
Making a Quit-Smoking Plan
Eat Healthy
On the opposite end, red meat and processed meat were associated with a two-fold increased risk of all-cause mortality.
“The Seven Countries Study,” published in the journalNutrients,observed that traditional Japanese, Mediterranean, and Indo-Mediterranean diets were most beneficial for reducing all-cause mortality risk.
Both Japanese and Mediterranean diets have traditionally been rich with rice, vegetables, grains, legumes, fish, and fruit. The Japanese diet is also rich with seaweed, green tea, bran oil, soybean, egg, and tofu, while the Mediterranean diet boasts plenty of nuts and olive oil.
Stars of the Indo-Mediterranean diet include millets, porridge, beans, peppers, garlic and onion, brown rice, and spices. Turmeric, cumin, fenugreek, cloves,cardamom, and coriander are particularly beneficial in this diet due to their strong anti-inflammatory and cardio-protective effects.
Can You Eat Your Way to a Longer Life?
Exercise Often
Moderate physical activities include walking fast, riding a bike on level ground, pushing a lawn mower, or doing water aerobics. Intense physical activities include jogging or running, swimming laps, or jumping rope.
Muscle-strengthening exercises should target all-major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms). Simple yet effective muscle-strengthening exercises you can do at home include:
Benefits of Aerobic Exercise
Protect Your Skin
Chronic exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation is extremely harmful to your skin and one of the leading risk factors for cancer.
UV rays come from the sun and artificial sources, most notably tanning beds. It should go without saying that you should avoid tanning beds at all costs. Avoiding the sun can be a little more tricky.
Skin Protection Tips From Dermatologists
Get Routine Health Screenings
Prevention is key to lowering your all-cause mortality risk. Along with minimizing any preventable risk factors you may have, you should also schedule regular physical exams or health screenings with your healthcare provider.
Adults (18 to 65) should have a physical exam every one to five years at minimum. At age 65, health screenings should take place at least once per year.
Regardless of your age, you may need more frequent health screenings if you have a medical condition that requires monitoring. For example, if you have diabetes, heart disease, or kidney problems, you may need to have your blood pressure checked more frequently.
During your physical exam, your healthcare provider will take your height and weight, test your blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart rate, and check your eyes and ears.
Depending on your age, you may need to have other screenings done. For example:
Health Screenings: What You Need, When
Summary
All-cause mortality risk refers to the risk of death as a result of any disease, complication, accident, or exposure. Many conditions related to mortality can be avoided or delayed, or the risk reduced through healthy lifestyle choices.
Avoiding smoking, eating well, remaining active, maintaining a healthy weight, and regularly visiting your healthcare provider can make a huge difference in lowering your all-cause mortality risk.
A Word From Verywell
General health check-ups are important for everyone, not just people who are older or who have risk factors for disease. Physicals and health screenings can catch diseases in their earliest stages, when they may be able to be treated successfully.
If you have a family history of cancer, heart disease, or any other other medical condition, be sure to inform your healthcare provider so that all preventive steps can be taken to lower your mortality risk.
28 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hok Lim K, Ling Cheong Y, Li Lim H, et al.Assessment of association between smoking and all-cause mortality among Malaysian adult population: Findings from a retrospective cohort study.Tob Induc Dis. 2022 May;20(1):50. doi:10.18332/tid/147656Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Leading causes of death.Ahmad FB, Cisewski JA, Anderson RN.Mortality in the United States — Provisional data, 2023.MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep2024;73:677–681. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7331a1World Health Organization.Cardiovascular diseases.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer deaths.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Injuries and violence are leading causes of death.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2020 final death statistics: COVID-19 as an underlying cause of death vs. contributing cause.GBD Chronic Respiratory Disease Collaborators.Prevalence and attributable health burden of chronic respiratory diseases, 1990-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.Lancet Respir Med. 2020 Jun;8(6):585-596. doi:10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30105-3Liang CS, Li DJ, Yang FC, et al.Mortality rates in Alzheimer’s disease and non-Alzheimer’s disease dementias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lancet. 2021 Jul;2(8):479-488. doi:10.1016/S2666-7568(21)00140-9Li S, Wang J, Zhang B, Li X, Liu Y.Diabetes mellitus and cause-specific mortality: a population-based study.Diabetes Metab J. 2019 Jun;43(3):319-341. doi:10.4093/dmj.2018.0060Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic kidney disease basics.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.American Heart Association.Understand your risks to prevent a heart attack.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer risk factors.Dessie Z, Zewotir T.Mortality-related risk factors of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 42 studies and 423,117 patients.BMC Infect Dis. 2021 Aug;21(1):855. doi:10.1186/s12879-021-06536-3Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Accidents or unintentional injuries.Boehme A, Esenwa C, Elkind M.Stroke risk factors, genetics, and prevention.Circ Res. 2017 Feb;120(3):472-495. doi:10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.308398World Health Organization.Chronic respiratory disease.Armstrong R.Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease.Folia Neuropathol. 2019;57(2):87-105. doi:10.5114/fn.2019.85929Ismail L, Materwala H, Al Kaabi J.Association of risk factors with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.Comput Struct Biotechnol J. 2021 Mar;19(1):1759-1785. doi:10.1016/j.csbj.2021.03.003National Institute on Aging.What causes Alzheimer’s disease?.Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffman G, et al.Food groups and risk of all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.Am J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jun;105(6):1462-1473. doi:10.3945/ajcn.117.153148Singh R, Fedacko J, Fatima G, Magomedova A, Watanabe S, Elkilany G.Why and how the Indo-Mediterranean diet may be superior to other diets: The role of antioxidants in the diet.Nutrients. 2022 Feb;14(4):898. doi:10.3390/nu14040898Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Adult activity: An overview.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Ultraviolet radiation.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Sunscreen and your morning routine.Mount Sinai.Physical exam frequency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Screening for colorectal cancer.Additional ReadingAllen NB, et al. Favorable Cardiovascular Health, Compression of Morbidity, and Healthcare Costs. Circulation. 2017;135:1693-1701. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.026252Arnson Y, et al. Impact of Exercise on the Relationship Between CAC Scores and All-Cause Mortality. JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. 2017. pii:S1936-878X(17)30350-9. doi:10.1016/j.jcmg.2016.12.030.
28 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hok Lim K, Ling Cheong Y, Li Lim H, et al.Assessment of association between smoking and all-cause mortality among Malaysian adult population: Findings from a retrospective cohort study.Tob Induc Dis. 2022 May;20(1):50. doi:10.18332/tid/147656Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Leading causes of death.Ahmad FB, Cisewski JA, Anderson RN.Mortality in the United States — Provisional data, 2023.MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep2024;73:677–681. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7331a1World Health Organization.Cardiovascular diseases.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer deaths.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Injuries and violence are leading causes of death.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2020 final death statistics: COVID-19 as an underlying cause of death vs. contributing cause.GBD Chronic Respiratory Disease Collaborators.Prevalence and attributable health burden of chronic respiratory diseases, 1990-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.Lancet Respir Med. 2020 Jun;8(6):585-596. doi:10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30105-3Liang CS, Li DJ, Yang FC, et al.Mortality rates in Alzheimer’s disease and non-Alzheimer’s disease dementias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lancet. 2021 Jul;2(8):479-488. doi:10.1016/S2666-7568(21)00140-9Li S, Wang J, Zhang B, Li X, Liu Y.Diabetes mellitus and cause-specific mortality: a population-based study.Diabetes Metab J. 2019 Jun;43(3):319-341. doi:10.4093/dmj.2018.0060Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic kidney disease basics.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.American Heart Association.Understand your risks to prevent a heart attack.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer risk factors.Dessie Z, Zewotir T.Mortality-related risk factors of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 42 studies and 423,117 patients.BMC Infect Dis. 2021 Aug;21(1):855. doi:10.1186/s12879-021-06536-3Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Accidents or unintentional injuries.Boehme A, Esenwa C, Elkind M.Stroke risk factors, genetics, and prevention.Circ Res. 2017 Feb;120(3):472-495. doi:10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.308398World Health Organization.Chronic respiratory disease.Armstrong R.Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease.Folia Neuropathol. 2019;57(2):87-105. doi:10.5114/fn.2019.85929Ismail L, Materwala H, Al Kaabi J.Association of risk factors with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.Comput Struct Biotechnol J. 2021 Mar;19(1):1759-1785. doi:10.1016/j.csbj.2021.03.003National Institute on Aging.What causes Alzheimer’s disease?.Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffman G, et al.Food groups and risk of all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.Am J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jun;105(6):1462-1473. doi:10.3945/ajcn.117.153148Singh R, Fedacko J, Fatima G, Magomedova A, Watanabe S, Elkilany G.Why and how the Indo-Mediterranean diet may be superior to other diets: The role of antioxidants in the diet.Nutrients. 2022 Feb;14(4):898. doi:10.3390/nu14040898Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Adult activity: An overview.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Ultraviolet radiation.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Sunscreen and your morning routine.Mount Sinai.Physical exam frequency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Screening for colorectal cancer.Additional ReadingAllen NB, et al. Favorable Cardiovascular Health, Compression of Morbidity, and Healthcare Costs. Circulation. 2017;135:1693-1701. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.026252Arnson Y, et al. Impact of Exercise on the Relationship Between CAC Scores and All-Cause Mortality. JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. 2017. pii:S1936-878X(17)30350-9. doi:10.1016/j.jcmg.2016.12.030.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Hok Lim K, Ling Cheong Y, Li Lim H, et al.Assessment of association between smoking and all-cause mortality among Malaysian adult population: Findings from a retrospective cohort study.Tob Induc Dis. 2022 May;20(1):50. doi:10.18332/tid/147656Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Leading causes of death.Ahmad FB, Cisewski JA, Anderson RN.Mortality in the United States — Provisional data, 2023.MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep2024;73:677–681. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7331a1World Health Organization.Cardiovascular diseases.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer deaths.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Injuries and violence are leading causes of death.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2020 final death statistics: COVID-19 as an underlying cause of death vs. contributing cause.GBD Chronic Respiratory Disease Collaborators.Prevalence and attributable health burden of chronic respiratory diseases, 1990-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.Lancet Respir Med. 2020 Jun;8(6):585-596. doi:10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30105-3Liang CS, Li DJ, Yang FC, et al.Mortality rates in Alzheimer’s disease and non-Alzheimer’s disease dementias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lancet. 2021 Jul;2(8):479-488. doi:10.1016/S2666-7568(21)00140-9Li S, Wang J, Zhang B, Li X, Liu Y.Diabetes mellitus and cause-specific mortality: a population-based study.Diabetes Metab J. 2019 Jun;43(3):319-341. doi:10.4093/dmj.2018.0060Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic kidney disease basics.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.American Heart Association.Understand your risks to prevent a heart attack.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer risk factors.Dessie Z, Zewotir T.Mortality-related risk factors of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 42 studies and 423,117 patients.BMC Infect Dis. 2021 Aug;21(1):855. doi:10.1186/s12879-021-06536-3Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Accidents or unintentional injuries.Boehme A, Esenwa C, Elkind M.Stroke risk factors, genetics, and prevention.Circ Res. 2017 Feb;120(3):472-495. doi:10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.308398World Health Organization.Chronic respiratory disease.Armstrong R.Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease.Folia Neuropathol. 2019;57(2):87-105. doi:10.5114/fn.2019.85929Ismail L, Materwala H, Al Kaabi J.Association of risk factors with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.Comput Struct Biotechnol J. 2021 Mar;19(1):1759-1785. doi:10.1016/j.csbj.2021.03.003National Institute on Aging.What causes Alzheimer’s disease?.Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffman G, et al.Food groups and risk of all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.Am J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jun;105(6):1462-1473. doi:10.3945/ajcn.117.153148Singh R, Fedacko J, Fatima G, Magomedova A, Watanabe S, Elkilany G.Why and how the Indo-Mediterranean diet may be superior to other diets: The role of antioxidants in the diet.Nutrients. 2022 Feb;14(4):898. doi:10.3390/nu14040898Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Adult activity: An overview.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Ultraviolet radiation.Johns Hopkins Medicine.Sunscreen and your morning routine.Mount Sinai.Physical exam frequency.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Screening for colorectal cancer.
Hok Lim K, Ling Cheong Y, Li Lim H, et al.Assessment of association between smoking and all-cause mortality among Malaysian adult population: Findings from a retrospective cohort study.Tob Induc Dis. 2022 May;20(1):50. doi:10.18332/tid/147656
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Leading causes of death.
Ahmad FB, Cisewski JA, Anderson RN.Mortality in the United States — Provisional data, 2023.MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep2024;73:677–681. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7331a1
World Health Organization.Cardiovascular diseases.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer deaths.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Injuries and violence are leading causes of death.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.2020 final death statistics: COVID-19 as an underlying cause of death vs. contributing cause.
GBD Chronic Respiratory Disease Collaborators.Prevalence and attributable health burden of chronic respiratory diseases, 1990-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.Lancet Respir Med. 2020 Jun;8(6):585-596. doi:10.1016/S2213-2600(20)30105-3
Liang CS, Li DJ, Yang FC, et al.Mortality rates in Alzheimer’s disease and non-Alzheimer’s disease dementias: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Lancet. 2021 Jul;2(8):479-488. doi:10.1016/S2666-7568(21)00140-9
Li S, Wang J, Zhang B, Li X, Liu Y.Diabetes mellitus and cause-specific mortality: a population-based study.Diabetes Metab J. 2019 Jun;43(3):319-341. doi:10.4093/dmj.2018.0060
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic kidney disease basics.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.
American Heart Association.Understand your risks to prevent a heart attack.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Cancer risk factors.
Dessie Z, Zewotir T.Mortality-related risk factors of COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 42 studies and 423,117 patients.BMC Infect Dis. 2021 Aug;21(1):855. doi:10.1186/s12879-021-06536-3
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.FastStats - Accidents or unintentional injuries.
Boehme A, Esenwa C, Elkind M.Stroke risk factors, genetics, and prevention.Circ Res. 2017 Feb;120(3):472-495. doi:10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.308398
World Health Organization.Chronic respiratory disease.
Armstrong R.Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease.Folia Neuropathol. 2019;57(2):87-105. doi:10.5114/fn.2019.85929
Ismail L, Materwala H, Al Kaabi J.Association of risk factors with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.Comput Struct Biotechnol J. 2021 Mar;19(1):1759-1785. doi:10.1016/j.csbj.2021.03.003
National Institute on Aging.What causes Alzheimer’s disease?.
Schwingshackl L, Schwedhelm C, Hoffman G, et al.Food groups and risk of all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.Am J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jun;105(6):1462-1473. doi:10.3945/ajcn.117.153148
Singh R, Fedacko J, Fatima G, Magomedova A, Watanabe S, Elkilany G.Why and how the Indo-Mediterranean diet may be superior to other diets: The role of antioxidants in the diet.Nutrients. 2022 Feb;14(4):898. doi:10.3390/nu14040898
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Adult activity: An overview.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Ultraviolet radiation.
Johns Hopkins Medicine.Sunscreen and your morning routine.
Mount Sinai.Physical exam frequency.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Screening for colorectal cancer.
Allen NB, et al. Favorable Cardiovascular Health, Compression of Morbidity, and Healthcare Costs. Circulation. 2017;135:1693-1701. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.026252Arnson Y, et al. Impact of Exercise on the Relationship Between CAC Scores and All-Cause Mortality. JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. 2017. pii:S1936-878X(17)30350-9. doi:10.1016/j.jcmg.2016.12.030.
Allen NB, et al. Favorable Cardiovascular Health, Compression of Morbidity, and Healthcare Costs. Circulation. 2017;135:1693-1701. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.116.026252
Arnson Y, et al. Impact of Exercise on the Relationship Between CAC Scores and All-Cause Mortality. JACC Cardiovascular Imaging. 2017. pii:S1936-878X(17)30350-9. doi:10.1016/j.jcmg.2016.12.030.
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