What are the mortal differences between the United States and the Philippines?
Many people suffer from different causes of death and no two country is the same, but, specifically between Filipinos and Americans, there are both similarities and differences between lifestyle and struggles. We give you statistics on the most common factors that lead to risk of developing illnesses and tips as to how to prevent them.
This project focuses on analyzing and comparing the leading causes of death in the United States and the Philippines for the year 2021, aiming to uncover underlying health challenges and potential areas for public health improvement in both nations. Utilizing data from the World Health Organization's Global Health Estimates, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Philippine Statistics Authority, we examined mortality rates, demographic structures, and health behaviors. We also had visualizations such as bar graphs, pie charts, scatter plots, choropleth maps, population pyramids, and line graphs to depict the top causes of death, contributing risk factors, geographic distributions, and demographic trends. Key insights reveal that ischemic heart disease and stroke are predominant causes of death in both countries, with lifestyle factors like smoking, obesity, and hypertension playing significant roles. The United States shows higher mortality rates from Alzheimer's disease and certain cancers, while the Philippines faces greater challenges with tuberculosis and lower respiratory infections. Geographical disparities in stroke mortality within the U.S. and a declining trend in smoking rates in the Philippines highlight the importance of targeted public health interventions. Overall, we hope through our efforts we may underscore the need for tailored health strategies to address both shared and unique challenges faced by the U.S. and the Philippines.
The group of graphs below provides an overview of the top leading causes of death between the two countries.
On this scatter plot, we can see more clearly that COVID-19's effect differs largely between the US and the Philippines. We also see that dying due to a stroke is much more common in the Philippines and that the U.S has four unique leading death rates to itself, being alzheimers, lung and colon cancers, and drug use disorders. Lastly, the violin diagram shows us that the US has slightly more extreme leading causes of death whereas the Philippines has more of an average between the top ten leading causes (indicated by the wide violin base).
On this scatter plot, we can see more clearly that COVID-19's effect differs largely between the US and the Philippines. We also see that dying due to a stroke is much more common in the Philippines and that the U.S has four unique leading death rates to itself, being alzheimers, lung and colon cancers, and drug use disorders. Lastly, the violin diagram shows us that the US has slightly more extreme leading causes of death whereas the Philippines has more of an average between the top ten leading causes (indicated by the wide violin base).
Demographics
The group of graphs below provides an overview of the demographics of the two countries, showcasing population and gender spread.
Here, we can see that the US has a much more diverse age population, peaking at ages 30-34 and 60-64 and being overall very well-rounded; we can presume this because the US has developed very well and has above-average social and health services. On the other hand, the Philippines has more of a traditional pyramidal age population, excelling with a 5-9 and 10-14 population but dropping off with people above the age of 30; we may make such an observation because the Philippines is still a developing country with subpar social and health services as well as a different diet and food culture. Likewise, we can infer that Alzheimers, a neurodegenerative disease, and COVID-19, a communicable disease that preys on the elderly, is less prominent among the leasing causes of death in the Philippines because the majority of natives are not yet at an age where neurodegenerative and high-risk elderly diseases are a likely reason for death.
Catalog
Want to know more about strokes? The number one leading cause of death in both countries? Cultural differences between the two countries and more? Look below!
Here depicted is a choropleth of the United States' stroke-related deaths. We can deduce that Southeastern states have an overarching issue with heart disease, which could be due to obesity (poor diet and less quality exercise). We can also see that northern states have less strokes, so we may deduce their populations suffer less from factors that cause a stroke, like high blood pressure and obesity. Lastly, Northeastern states have the lowest risk of dying because of a stroke. This may be because of the more active and big-city exercise in northeastern cities, especially New York and Massachusetts.
Here depicted is a line graph of the Philippines' population and the smoker population. We can deduce that the smoker population has gone down in the past twenty years, which intuitively makes sense as the Philippines develops and, therefore, gains more insight about its negative effects. Combined with the pie charts in the section below, though, we see that smoking is still 12% of the reason that people contract/die from lower respiratory infections, meaning that smoking is still an ongoing issue in the Philippines. Lastly, we see that the Philippines' population has steadily been increasing, and, when paired with the population density graph, we can deduce that it will only keep going up as people continue to grow up, stop smoking, and gain better social and health services.
Key Takeaways
In conclusion, it seems that America has a very large obese population and the Philippines has a very large smoking population. Major cultural factors could include the subpar school system, safety, and regulations/drug protocols that the Philippines unfortunately has since it is still developing as a country. Moreover, since America does not promote the most active culture yet promotes an overconsumption culture in many ways, America becomes one of the leading countries when it comes to heart disease.
Health Tips from John Updog
Health stuff can feel overwhelming sometimes, especially when it involves big scary words like “ischemic heart disease” or “Alzheimers!” But honestly, I’ve come to realize that a lot of prevention starts with everyday choices. Trying to stay aware of what puts people at risk and what I can do myself personally helps a lot, so I made a list of what you guys can do:
Heart Health
Heart disease is still one of the leading causes of death, and the things that often lead to it—smoking, being overweight, high blood pressure, and cholesterol—are more common than we like to admit. I try to pay attention to these without being extreme about it.
What I do (or try to not do):
- I quit smoking for good with a support group.
- I exercise regularly and go on walks, which also gives me a plethora of mental benefits.
- I stray from processed food. I’m not always perfect, but I feel better when I try.
- I ask my doctor about blood pressure and cholesterol.
Mental Health
We can't change our genetics, but we can definitely prevent mental decay.
- I continuously learn and challenge my brain by watching documentaries and doing the hard work. Say no to AI!
- I check in on my mental health. When I have felt down, I do not ignore it anymore. Depression is real
- Sleep eight hours a night.
- Wear a helmet when I go biking. Traumatic brain injury is... Well, traumatic
Lung Health
Lower respiratory infections—like pneumonia—can be really serious, especially for people who live in crowded places or who have other health problems.
- I keep up with vaccines. COVID, flu, whatever is recommended.
- I try to keep my room airy and clean. I open windows when I can.
- Again, avoid smoking! That's a no brainer.
- I wash my hands often, especially after going out.
We can't prevent everything, and life gets in the way - but we can always do something.
Top Leading Causes of Death Datasets
https://data.who.int/countries/608, https://data.who.int/countries/840. We formatted these statistics of the Philippines and the US into csvs that were based on the death rate according to 100,000s of people.
Pie Charts
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/coronary-heart-disease/risk-factors. This website was used for the pie charts on ischemic heart disease.
https://manilastandard.net/business/314549490/illicit-trade-pushes-philippine-smoking-prevalence-to-18-9.html, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3798639/, https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/791784/hypertension-prevalence-in-philippines-rises-to-37-in-2021/story/, https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/Philippines/diabetes_prevalence/, https://www.unicef.org/philippines/press-releases/everybody-needs-act-curb-obesity. These websites were used for the Philippines data on ischemic heart disease as well as the reasonings as to the top five factors.
State Stroke Choropleth
https://www.statista.com/statistics/671114/death-rate-from-stroke-leading-us-states/. This was used to get the separate state data for our choropleth.
Population Pyramid Data
https://www.populationpyramid.net/philippines/2021/, https://www.populationpyramid.net/united-states-of-america/2021/. These two websites gave us the population pyramids for the Philippines and the United States, giving us a breakdown of the respective populations based on sex, age, and even percentage.
Smoker Data
https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/PHL/philippines/population#:~:text=Total%20population%20for%20Philippines%20in%202023%20was%20117%2C337%2C368%2C%20a%201.54,a%201.47%25%20increase%20from%202021. This website gave us the total population of the Philippines, from which we used select years from 2000 - 2020.
https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/PHL/philippines/smoking-rate-statistics#:~:text=Philippines%20smoking%20rate%20for%202020,a%202.9%25%20decline%20from%202010. This website gave us the smoking rates of people in the Philippines above the age of 15 in the form of a bar graph with percentages ranging from select years from 2000 - 2020.
