Lung Diseases Claiming More lives

Lung diseases are increasingly contributing to premature deaths among Iranians, said Health Ministry spokesperson Iraj Harirchi on Saturday. “Chronic lung diseases used to be the 16th cause of death 25 years ago in Iran, but today they are the 7th leading cause of death,” he said at a press conference, IRNA reported. Noting that 5% of all global deaths are due to respiratory diseases (three million people annually worldwide), he said 90% of the deaths occur in low and middle income countries. “Chronic respiratory diseases are the fourth cause of death worldwide, and are expected to rank 3rd by 2020,” he added. The most important factor causing or worsening such conditions is smoking tobacco products, followed by air pollution.