The Global Burden of Disease 2023 (GBD 2023) report, released by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) during the World Health Summit 2025 in Berlin on Sunday, reveals the world is healing from the Covid-19 pandemic yet facing deepening health inequalities.
While life expectancy has largely returned to pre-pandemic levels, new data show that non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mental health issues, and youth mortality are emerging as growing global threats.
The landmark study, published in The Lancet, draws from over 55,000 data sources and contributions from 16,500 researchers worldwide, assessing 204 countries and territories.
It shows that global health recovery is uneven, and progress in some areas is being offset by rising chronic diseases and risk factors like obesity and diabetes.
Life expectancy rebounds, but not equally
Life expectancy has returned to pre-pandemic levels in nearly two-thirds of countries.
However, mortality among young adults and adolescents is rising in parts of Eastern Europe and high-income North America.
New methods also revealed that female mortality in sub-Saharan Africa is 61% higher than previously estimated, highlighting long-standing gender and regional disparities in global health outcomes.
The report finds that the average age of death from heart disease still differs by up to 30 years between high- and low-income nations.
“Despite major progress, premature mortality remains a global injustice,” IHME researchers noted.বিস্তারিত