Gambia Health

CONTENT

Major Cause of Death Major Risk Factors of Death Cancer Analysis Tables (Appendix)

Causes of death across Gambia are changing because of Population Increase, Life Expectancy rise and Living Standard.On this below article we provide graphical representation of major causes of death in Gambia.

Highlights of Gambia BMI and Diet Compositions

Comprehensive data on food supply and consumption is published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Data was analyzed by The Global Graph and is published in these below Highlights, Graphs and Tables (Data Quality & definitions)

• As per United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), average person in Gambia gets their caloric supply from :
• Carbohydrates : 84.09%84.09%
• Fat : 31.02%31.02%
• Plant protein : 9.17%9.17%
• Animal protein : 2.73%2.73%
• 27.02% increase in caloric supply : Currently Gambia gets 2628/kilocalories per person per day worth of caloric supply when compared to 2069/kilocalories per person per day in Year 1961
• Cereals & Grains, Oils & Fats and Sugar are three major diet compositions in Gambia
• Rice, Wheat and Maize are three major Cereal preferences in Gambia
• National and World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations on vegetable intake is to range between 200-250g per day and in Gambia average intake is 58.33 grams
• Oranges & Mandarines, Apples and Dates are three major Fruit Types Intake in Gambia
• National and World Health Organization (WHO) typically set a guideline of 200g Fruit Intake per day and in Gambia average Fruit intake is 23.64grams
• In Gambia, average male height is in the decreasing trend and female height is in decreasing trend
• 27.90% of population is suffering from obesity and this trend is continously increasing from last few years
• Average Male BMI in Gambia is in the range of normal and Average Female BMI is in range of normal (BMI = Body Mass Index - The WHO define a BMI <=18.5 as 'underweight'; 18.5 to 25 as 'normal/healthy'; 25.0 to 30.0 as 'obese')

Breakdown of the average per capita intake of cereals by specific cereal-based commodity types, measured in kilocalories per person per day. This figure measures the primary equivalent of all food products derived from a given commodity (e.g. "wheat" represents the primary equivalent of its derived products). Data refers to cereal food supply at the consumer level but does not account for consumer wastage in

Cereal Preferences in Gambia

Rank	Cereals	kcal/capita/day
1	Rice	601
2	Wheat	363
3	Maize	123
4	Sorghum	107
5	Rye	4
6	Oats	0

This below table shows the Diet Compositions (Average per capita dietary energy supply by commodity groups, measured in kilocalories per person per day) in Gambia

Diet Compositions in Gambia

Rank	Type	kilocalories per person per day
1	Cereals & Grains	1619
2	Oils & Fats	499
3	Sugar	258
4	Dairy & Eggs	88
5	Meat	69
6	Alcoholic Beverages	28
7	Fruits & Vegetables	23
8	Starchy Roots	22
9	Pulses	12
10	Other	10

Major Cause of Death

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Cardiovascular diseases was a major cause of death in Gambia with 1559 registered deaths (in year 2016) i.e. 15% of total deaths. Overall Cardiovascular diseases, Neonatal deaths and Lower respiratory infections were the highest types of death causes in Gambia.

Major Cause of Death in Gambia
• We see the maximum number of deaths is seen in age group Under-5 with 3851 deaths (year 2016).
• 37.51% kids below age 5 years die because of Neonatal disorders.
• Lower respiratory infections, Diarrheal diseases and HIV/AIDS are the major cause of death in kids aged 5 - 14 years.
• HIV/AIDS, Cancers and Cardiovascular disease are the major cause of death in people aged 14 - 49 years.
• Cardiovascular diseases, Cancers and Lower respiratory infections are the major cause of death in people aged over 50 years.
• Overall, it's observed that 28% of people aging over 50 years die because of Cardiovascular diseases.

Read more about Cardiovascular diseases

Major Risk Factors of Death

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• Three Major factors of death in Gambia are High blood pressure, Household air pollution and Unsafe sex. Every year around 497 people die due to High blood pressure.
• Child wasting and Low birth weight are the major risk factor of kids death aging under 5 years.
• Iron deficiency and Unsafe water source are the major risk factors of death of people aging between 5 to 14 years.
• Unsafe sex, High blood pressure and Household air pollution are the death risk factors of people aging between 15 to 49 years.
• High blood pressure, Household air pollution and High body-mass index (obesity) are the major death risk factors of people aging between 50 to 69 years.
• High blood pressure is the major death risk factors for people aging more than 70 years.

Cancer Analysis

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0.14% of Gambia population was suffering from cancer i.e. 1275 people (average of years 2011-2016). Highest number of cancer patients deaths were recorded due to Liver cancer (Count : 252) and Cervical cancer was also concerning with 69 deaths in a year. In last few years it has been observed that, people suffering from Gallbladder & biliary tract cancer have 0% of survival chance.Gambia was really successful in diagnosing Kidney cancer where 86% of people were cured.Highest number of cancer patients i.e. 573 people were of age group 15-49 year olds.In 2016, 394 were suffering from Liver cancer out of which 252 people were dead. This means 63.96% death rate of people suffering from Liver cancer. This below data represents major cancer types in Gambia and number of deaths due to particular cancer types :

Highlights of Cancer in Gambia :
• 0.14 % of Gambia population is suffering from cancer
• Highest number of deaths were registered due to Liver cancer
• Kidney cancer was most cured cancer in Gambia
• Liver cancer got lowest survival rate

Tables (Appendix)

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Major Cause of Deaths in Gambia (and it's count)

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Dementia	99	0.96%
Cardiovascular diseases	1559	15.06%
Kidney disease	127	1.23%
Respiratory disease	238	2.3%
Liver disease	229	2.21%
Diabetes, blood and endocrine disease	430	4.15%
Digestive disease	209	2.02%
Hepatitis	31	0.3%
Cancers	941	9.09%
Parkinson's disease	8	0.08%
Fire	48	0.46%
Malaria	286	2.76%
Drowning	73	0.71%
Homicide	24	0.23%
HIV/AIDS	877	8.47%
Drug disorder	14	0.14%
Tuberculosis	459	4.43%
Road incidents	184	1.78%
Maternal deaths	252	2.43%
Neonatal deaths	1443	13.94%
Alcohol disorder	9	0.09%
Natural disasters	0	0%
Diarrheal diseases	694	6.7%
Nutritional deficiencies	291	2.81%
Meningitis	364.32918616	3.52%
Diabetes, blood and endocrine disease	430	4.15%
Tuberculosis	459	4.43%
Diarrheal diseases	694	6.7%
HIV/AIDS	877	8.47%
Cancers	941	9.09%
Lower respiratory infections	1063.16045766	10.27%
Neonatal deaths	1443	13.94%
Cardiovascular diseases	1559	15.06%

Gambia - Cause of Death in Age : Under 5 years

Cause Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Homicide	2	0.05%
Lower respiratory infections	194	5.04%
Diarrheal diseases	199	5.17%
Congenital birth defects	0	0%
Neonatal infections	2	0.05%
Nutritional deficiencies	416	10.81%
Protein-energy malnutrition	0	0%
Malaria	1443	37.51%
Measles	18	0.47%
Diabetes, blood and endocrine disease	20	0.52%
HIV/AIDS	25	0.65%
Digestive diseases	19	0.49%
Cardiovascular disease	173	4.5%
Tuberculosis	15	0.39%
Drowning	17	0.44%
Road accidents	3	0.08%
Cancers	22	0.57%
Fire	56	1.46%
Kidney disease	4	0.1%
Liver disease	9	0.23%
Hepatitis	20	0.52%
Heat-related deaths (hot or cold exposure)	313	8.14%
Homicide	479	12.45%
Drug use disorders	101	2.63%
Natural disasters	297	7.72%

Gambia - Cause of Death in Age : 5 - 14 years

Cause Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Suicide	2	0.69%
Homicide	1	0.35%
Nutritional deficiencies	13	4.5%
Protein-energy malnutrition	13	4.5%
Natural disasters	0	0%
Heat-related deaths (hot or cold exposure)	1	0.35%
Diarrheal diseases	34	11.76%
Road accidents	20	6.92%
Tuberculosis	8	2.77%
HIV/AIDS	28	9.69%
Drowning	18	6.23%
Malaria	26	9%
Fire	5	1.73%
Cancers	23	7.96%
Hepatitis	2	0.69%
Digestive diseases	7	2.42%
Diabetes, blood, and endocrine diseases	22	7.61%
Liver disease	4	1.38%
Respiratory disease	4	1.38%
Kidney disease	5	1.73%
Cardiovascular disease	10	3.46%
Lower respiratory infections	43	14.88%

Gambia - Cause of Death in Age : 15 - 49 years

Cause Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Suicide	38	1.69%
Homicide	19	0.84%
Nutritional deficiencies	26	1.16%
Protein-energy malnutrition	22	0.98%
Natural disasters	0	0%
Heat-related deaths (hot or cold exposure)	6	0.27%
Diarrheal diseases	84	3.73%
Road accidents	86	3.82%
Tuberculosis	176	7.83%
HIV/AIDS	698	31.04%
Drowning	22	0.98%
Malaria	41	1.82%
Fire	10	0.44%
Cancers	332	14.76%
Hepatitis	17	0.76%
Digestive diseases	58	2.58%
Diabetes, blood, and endocrine diseases	105	4.67%
Liver disease	82	3.65%
Respiratory disease	39	1.73%
Kidney disease	37	1.65%
Cardiovascular disease	216	9.6%
Drug disorder	11	0.49%
Alcohol disorder	4	0.18%
Parkinson's disease	0	0%
Dementia	0	0%
Lower respiratory infections	120	5.34%

Gambia - Cause of Death in Age : 50 - 69 years

Cause Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Suicide	20	0.99%
Homicide	2	0.1%
Nutritional deficiencies	22	1.09%
Protein-energy malnutrition	18	0.89%
Natural disasters	0	0%
Heat-related deaths (hot or cold exposure)	2	0.1%
Diarrheal diseases	73	3.6%
Road accidents	38	1.88%
Tuberculosis	138	6.81%
HIV/AIDS	115	5.68%
Drowning	8	0.39%
Malaria	28	1.38%
Fire	9	0.44%
Cancers	379	18.71%
Hepatitis	7	0.35%
Digestive diseases	63	3.11%
Diabetes, blood, and endocrine diseases	120	5.92%
Liver disease	95	4.69%
Respiratory disease	84	4.15%
Kidney disease	37	1.83%
Cardiovascular diseases	573	28.28%
Dementia	11	0.54%
Parkinson's disease	1	0.05%
Drug disorder	2	0.1%
Alcohol disorder	3	0.15%
Lower respiratory infections	178	8.79%

Gambia - Cause of Death in Age : 70 + years

Cause Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Suicide	10	0.5%
Homicide	0	0%
Nutritional deficiencies	31	1.56%
Protein-energy malnutrition	29	1.46%
Natural disasters	0	0%
Heat-related deaths (hot or cold exposure)	1	0.05%
Diarrheal diseases	88	4.43%
Road accidents	22	1.11%
Tuberculosis	117	5.89%
HIV/AIDS	11	0.55%
Drowning	6	0.3%
Malaria	19	0.96%
Fire	8	0.4%
Cancers	190	9.56%
Hepatitis	2	0.1%
Digestive diseases	59	2.97%
Diabetes, blood, and endocrine diseases	127	6.39%
Liver disease	43	2.16%
Respiratory disease	106	5.33%
Kidney disease	40	2.01%
Cardiovascular disease	740	37.22%
Parkinson's disease	6	0.3%
Dementia	87	4.38%
Drug use disorders	1	0.05%
Alcohol use disorders	2	0.1%
Lower respiratory infections	243	12.22%

Major Risk Factors of Death (count) in Gambia

Major Risk Factors	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Unsafe water source	497	5.17%
Poor sanitation	417	4.34%
No access to handwashing facility	462	4.8%
Household air pollution	1013	10.53%
Outdoor air pollution	754	7.84%
Non-exclusive breastfeeding	83	0.86%
Discontinued breastfeeding	6	0.06%
Child wasting	861	8.95%
Child stunting	103	1.07%
Low birth weight	682	7.09%
Secondhand smoke	177	1.84%
Alcohol use	261	2.71%
Drug use	45	0.47%
Diet low in fruits	321	3.34%
Diet low in vegetables	233	2.42%
Unsafe sex	868	9.02%
Low physical activity	105	1.09%
High blood sugar	376	3.91%
High cholesterol	297	3.09%
High body-mass index (obesity)	484	5.03%
High blood pressure	1041	10.82%
Smoking	349	3.63%
Iron deficiency	25	0.26%
Zinc deficiency	18	0.19%
Vitamin-A deficiency	86	0.89%
Low bone mineral density	55	0.57%

Gambia - Risk of Death in Age : Under 5 years

Risk Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Discontinued breastfeeding	6	0.2%
Non-exclusive breastfeeding	83	2.75%
Child stunting	103	3.42%
Low birth weight	682	22.61%
Drug use	0	0%
No access to handwashing facility	253	8.39%
Secondhand smoke	51	1.69%
Poor sanitation	250	8.29%
Unsafe water source	298	9.88%
Household air pollution	246	8.16%
Outdoor air pollution	182	6.03%
High body-mass index (obesity)	0	0%
High blood pressure	0	0%
High blood sugar	1	0.03%
Child wasting	861	28.55%
Iron deficiency	0	0%

Gambia - Risk of Death in Age : 5 - 14 years

Risk Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Drug use	0	0%
Alcohol use	0	0%
No access to handwashing facility	21	14.79%
Unsafe water source	24	16.9%
Unsafe sex	7	4.93%
Iron deficiency	24	16.9%
Secondhand smoke	5	3.52%
Household air pollution	23	16.2%
Outdoor air pollution	17	11.97%
High body-mass index (obesity)	0	0%
High blood sugar	1	0.7%
High blood pressure	0	0%
Poor sanitation	20	14.08%
Iron deficiency	0	0%

Gambia - Risk of Death in Age : 15 - 49 years

Risk Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Iron deficiency	24	1.31%
Low bone mineral density	2	0.11%
Drug use	37	2.01%
Alcohol use	109	5.93%
No access to handwashing facility	55	2.99%
Unsafe water source	60	3.26%
Poor sanitation	51	2.77%
Smoking	92	5%
Secondhand smoke	17	0.92%
Low physical activity	7	0.38%
Diet low in fruits	64	3.48%
Diet low in vegetables	43	2.34%
Unsafe sex	698	37.96%
High body-mass index (obesity)	115	6.25%
Household air pollution	132	7.18%
Outdoor air pollution	101	5.49%
High total cholesterol	49	2.66%
High blood pressure	137	7.45%
High blood sugar	46	2.5%

Gambia - Risk of Death in Age : 50 - 69 years

Risk Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Iron deficiency	0	0%
Low bone mineral density	12	0.5%
Drug use	7	0.29%
Alcohol use	116	4.87%
No access to handwashing facility	58	2.43%
Poor sanitation	44	1.85%
Unsafe sex	144	6.04%
Smoking	169	7.09%
Secondhand smoke	46	1.93%
Unsafe water source	52	2.18%
Diet low in vegetables	100	4.19%
Diet low in fruits	144	6.04%
Low physical activity	36	1.51%
Outdoor air pollution	219	9.19%
Household air pollution	292	12.25%
High body-mass index (obesity)	238	9.98%
High blood sugar	151	6.33%
High total cholesterol	134	5.62%
High blood pressure	422	17.7%

Gambia - Risk of Death in Age : 70+ years

Risk Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Iron deficiency	0	0%
Low bone mineral density	41	1.9%
Drug use	2	0.09%
Alcohol use	35	1.62%
Smoking	88	4.07%
Secondhand smoke	58	2.69%
Household air pollution	320	14.81%
Outdoor air pollution	236	10.93%
No access to handwashing facility	75	3.47%
Poor sanitation	53	2.45%
Unsafe water source	63	2.92%
Unsafe sex	19	0.88%
Low physical activity	62	2.87%
Diet low in vegetables	91	4.21%
Diet low in fruits	113	5.23%
High cholesterol	114	5.28%
High blood pressure	482	22.31%
High blood sugar	177	8.19%
High body-mass index (obesity)	131	6.06%

Gambia - Number of Deaths by Cancer Type

Cancer Type	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Liver cancer	Patients : 394 | Deaths : 252	63.96%
Breast cancer	Patients : 233 | Deaths : 47	20.17%
Larynx cancer	Patients : 11 | Deaths : 5	45.45%
Kidney cancer	Patients : 58 | Deaths : 8	13.79%
Thyroid cancer	Patients : 26 | Deaths : 5	19.23%
Ovarian cancer	Patients : 54 | Deaths : 13	24.07%
Stomach cancer	Patients : 41 | Deaths : 37	90.24%
Uterine cancer	Patients : 46 | Deaths : 10	21.74%
Bladder cancer	Patients : 30 | Deaths : 10	33.33%
Cervical cancer	Patients : 473 | Deaths : 69	14.59%
Prostate cancer	Patients : 66 | Deaths : 26	39.39%
Testicular cancer	Patients : 5 | Deaths : 1	20%
Pancreatic cancer	Patients : 35 | Deaths : 20	57.14%
Esophageal cancer	Patients : 16 | Deaths : 14	87.5%
Nasopharynx cancer	Patients : 6 | Deaths : 1	16.67%
Colon & rectum cancer	Patients : 80 | Deaths : 35	43.75%
Non-melanoma skin cancer	Patients : 9 | Deaths : 3	33.33%
Lip & oral cancer	Patients : 49 | Deaths : 9	18.37%
Brain & nervous system cancer	Patients : 39 | Deaths : 18	46.15%
Tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer	Patients : 39 | Deaths : 12	30.77%
Gallbladder & biliary tract cancer	Patients : 6 | Deaths : 6	100%

Gambia - Number of Deaths due to Cancer - Age Wise

Age	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Under-5s	75	5.88%
5-14 year olds	30	2.35%
15-49 year olds	573	44.94%
50-69 year olds	431	33.8%
70+ year olds	166	13.02%

Source :
http://www.gapminder.org/data/documentation/gd004/
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTWDRS/Resources/477365-1327525347307/8392086-1327528510568/WDR09_bookweb_1.pdf