Life expectancy in a violent country can be reduced by 14 years

The length of life in violent countries is less predictable and the Life expectancy of young people can be up to 14 years shorter compared to other peaceful states, according to a study by an international team led by the Oxford University and in which the Ikerbasque researcher at the Spanish University of the Basque Country Tim Riffe participated.

This study, published in the prestigious journal Sciences Advances, confirms that the impact of violence on mortality goes beyond shortening lives, since when living in a violent country, citizens also have more uncertainty about life.

To reach these conclusions, the researchers used mortality data from 162 countries and the Internal Peace Index between 2008 and 2017.

Thus they observed that the most violent countries are also those with the greatest uncertainty of life.

READ ALSO: The coronavirus has the capacity to cause accelerated aging

In the case of the Middle East, it is the deaths related to the conflict at early ages that contribute the most to the perception of high uncertainty.

In Latin America, they noted a similar pattern resulting from homicides and interpersonal violence.

At the other extreme they concluded that the uncertainty of life was “remarkably low” between 2008 and 2017 in most northern and southern European countries.

The study also finds that “cycles of poverty, insecurity and violence magnify pre-existing structural patterns of disadvantage for women”.

READ ALSO: Transform CO2 into polyester, the goal of a French company

Thus, the researchers affirm that in some Latin American countries the murders of women have increased in recent decades and exposure to violent environments is having “social and health consequences, particularly for children and women.”

“Although men are the main direct victims of violence, women are more likely to experience its consequences in violent contexts”they maintain.

In general, living in a violent society “it creates vulnerability and uncertainty, and that in turn can lead to more violent behaviour”maintains this study, which “estimates a gap of around 14 years in life expectancy between the least and most violent countries”.

READ ALSO: Spanish Glovo announces 250 layoffs, 6.5% of its workforce

Riffe believes that it is important to show in a “broad sense” what are the effects that violence has on the health of the population, with the aim that it can be considered a public health problem and therefore prevention programs can be developed.

“Violence, as a cause of death, is in principle easier to prevent than other major causes, such as cancer, and the benefits of doing so are both immediate and long-lasting”holds.

The study is based on the massive use of data and is based, in part, on mortality estimates modeled by the Global Burden of Disease project, since many of the included populations do not have direct demographic information on mortality, Ikerbasque specifies in a Press release.

Source: EFE

READ ALSO: Oscar 2023: the streaming platforms where you can see the nominated films