Child mortality in the United States, from Firearms is the number one cause of death
Firearms rose to No. 1 as the leading cause of death for children and teens in the United States, overtaking car accidents, which fell to No. 2.
This is evidenced by official statistics analyzed by researchers from the University of Michigan.
University of Michigan researchers Jason Goldstick, Rebecca Cunningham and Patrick Carter identified the leading causes of death in people ages 1 to 19 using data provided by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The death rate from firearms use among children and adolescents from 2019 to 2020 increased by 29% and took the lead.
“The rising death rate from firearms is a long-term trend that shows we are still unable to protect our younger generation from this scourge,” says lead author Jason Goldstick.
“Recent investments by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health in firearms injury prevention research, as well as federal funding to combat violence in the community, are steps in the right direction, but extraordinary new efforts are required if we really want to.” reverse this troubling trend.
More than 4,300 people aged 1-19 in the United States died as a result of firearms in 2020, including suicides, homicides, and unintentional deaths.
In the same year, car accidents killed about 3,900 children and adolescents, and deaths from drug poisoning increased by more than 83% – to more than 1,700 deaths – and became the third leading cause of death in this group.
It is noteworthy that the number of deaths on American roads during the past twenty years has decreased sharply due to the measures taken to ensure the safety of the vehicles themselves and to increase the discipline of their drivers.
