Alec Hogg: Covid-19 is now SA’s no. 2 killer

I am indebted to my regular correspondent in New Zealand for the graphic above. It tracks the registered cause of death for all countries and provides fascinating comparisons..As you can see, Covid is still a long way behind HIV/Aids, but is easily the second highest reason for mortalities. The graphic is broken down into days so plays like a video. That illustrates how Covid surpassed heart disease in September last year; strokes in January and heart disease in July..___STEADY_PAYWALL___.You can play around with the numbers by clicking on the graphic above, or here..Interesting to see the differences between countries. For instance, in the UK, Covid and heart disease are also #2 and #3; but top killer among the Brits is Alzheimers & Dementia, which doesn't even make SA's top 10..On the other hand, violence and road traffic accidents are #8 and #11 in SA but neither make the top 25 in the UK..The US data shows covid to be the #1 reason for deaths in that country, with heart disease second – both more than double the third highest killer. Alzheimers comes in 6th in the US, which has road accidents at 18th and homicides at number 25..Closer to home, Zimbabwe also has HIV/Aids as the biggest killer, road accidents are third and covid just outside the top 10, just behind "maternal conditions" and one higher than violence. In Mozambique HIV/Aids is also #1, with road accidents 8th and Covid way down the list at 25th..Kinda puts things into perspective, doesn't it?.More for you to read today:.– 'Hotel Rwanda' hero found guilty and sentenced to 25 years for terrorism-related charges– US stocks slide amid Chinese property fears– Pfizer, BioNTech say Covid-19 vaccine is safe for children aged 5 to 11.NB FOR YOUR WALL STREET JOURNAL ACCESS….As a Premium subscriber you are entitled to full membership of wsj.com (normal price $29 a month). Be sure to action your access through the Premium link on the BizNews website. Because of The Wall Street Journal's credential requirements, be sure to create a password which has at least 8 characters and includes at least one letter and one number – NB it MAY NOT contain any special characters (ie #, !, @ etc). To maintain access to WSJ.com, you MUST enter our partner's website via BizNews Premium at least once a month. A final PS, if you had previously signed up for WSJ you'll need to clear the cookies from your device. Our help desk can assist – support@biznews.com.If you'd like to help sustain our independent voice, why not share the love by making a gift that keeps giving? Click here to access the BizNews Premium subscription signup form, and be sure tick the relevant box (see below). At R100 a month and inclusive of full membership of The Wall Street Journal, it's a mind-expanding gift at an incredibly modest price.

Alec Hogg: Covid-19 is now SA’s no. 2 killer

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