Coronary heart disease leading cause of death in Hume

HERE’S what you can do to protect yourself against the biggest killer in Hume.

CORONARY heart disease is the leading cause of death in Hume, according to the latest health statistics.

And health experts warn poor lifestyle is largely to blame.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data shows the disease has claimed 506 lives in the five years up to December 2016, representing about 13.3 per cent of all deaths in Hume.

The institute has compiled a national database of the top 20 causes of death from January, 2012 to December, 2016.

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The second biggest killer in Hume was lung cancer, which caused 254 deaths, or 6.7 per cent.

Cerebrovascular disease, known to cause strokes, claimed the lives of 200 people, or 5.2 per cent.

Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease accounted for 159 deaths, making up 4.2 per cent, and chronic obstructive pulmonary (COPD) diseases, such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis, took the lives of 175 people, or 4.6 per cent.

Monash University clinical outcomes research chair professor Danny Liew said many causes of death were due to lifestyle choices.

He said Australia was a “fat” country where obesity caused many health problems. “The answer is simple — stop smoking, lose weight, stop drinking and exercise,” he said.

Leading causes of death in Hume

Coronary heart disease

Lung cancer

Cerebrovascular disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases

Dementia and Alzheimer’s

Influenza and pneumonia

Colorectal cancer

Diabetes

Cancer of an unknown site

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