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# Leading death causes in the U.S.
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/leading_death_causes_1411100756/
- Published: 2010-11-14T08:54:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-22T16:11:39.000Z
- Description: CDC's National Vital Statistics Reports counted 2,423,712 U.S. deaths in 2007, led by heart disease at 616,067 and cancer at 562,875. Life expectancy was 77.9 years and infant mortality 6.75 per 1,000 live births, ranking the U.S. 46th of 224 countries.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Miscellaneous, Health News, Cancer, Heart Disease, Stroke, #vivvo-import

On May 20, 2010, JiaQuan Xu MD and colleagues from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a list of leading death causes for the year 2007 in the Vol 58, Number 19 issue of the National Vital Statistics Reports.

The researchers found the following:

(Data were recorded in 2007 for the U.S. population and published in May 2010)

*Number of deaths: 2,423,712*

*Death rate: 803.6 deaths per 100,000 population*

*Life expectancy: 77.9 years*

*Infant Mortality rate: 6.75 deaths per 1,000 live births*

*Number of deaths for leading causes of death:*

*Heart disease: 616,067*

*Cancer: 562,875*

*Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 135,952*

*Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 127,924*

*Accidents (unintentional injuries): 123,706*

*Alzheimer's disease: 74,632*

*Diabetes: 71,382*

*Influenza and Pneumonia: 52,717*

*Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 46,448*

*Septicemia: 34,828*

(cited from cdc)

Note:

According to media reports, the U.S. infant mortality rate (6.75 deaths per 1,000 live births) is much higher than those found in many other industrialized countries. According to CIA World Factbook cited at Wikipedia, the U.S. is ranked No. 46 for the infant mortality rate among 224 countries and regions.

Deaths from accidents according to some other studies can be much higher. Medical errors alone, according to a [study](http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/11856.php?ref=foodconsumer.org) led by healthgrades.com, resulted in as many as 195,000 likely preventable deaths for any of years 2000, 2001 and 2002.