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Daily Data Insights

Bite-sized insights on how the world is changing, published every weekday.

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Bar chart showing the number of medical doctors per 1,000 people in countries of different income levels. Rich countries have 10 times as many as low income countries.

Rich countries have ten times as many doctors per person as poor ones

There are considerable differences in access to healthcare across the world.

Rich countries have around ten times as many doctors per person as poor countries. You can see this in this chart, which shows the number of medical doctors per 1,000 people in a population. This includes generalist physicians as well as specialists.

The global average is around 1.7 doctors per 1,000. In low-income countries, the figure is around five times lower.

Explore more data on healthcare spending and access →

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Since 2000, homicide rates have dropped sharply in Europe but barely changed in the United States

Homicide rates measure the number of intentional, illegal killings per 100,000 people annually.

Since 2000, rates in the United States have fluctuated around 6 homicides per 100,000. They fell from a peak of 6.7 in 2001 to 4.4 in 2014 but climbed back to 6.4 in 2022. Preliminary data suggests they fell back to 5.7 in 2023.

Over the same period, Europe’s rates fell from nearly 8 per 100,000 people in 2000 to just above 2 — a drop of almost three-quarters.

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Bar chart showing the share of households with air conditioning across countries. In Japan, the US, and South Korea, most households have AC. In India and South Africa, less than 10% do.

There are huge inequalities in access to air conditioning across the world

In some countries such as Japan, the United States, or South Korea, almost all households have air conditioning in their homes. In others, almost none do. This includes countries like India or South Africa where extreme heat is frequent.

In this chart, you can see the share of households that had air conditioning (AC) in 2018. This data comes from the International Energy Agency.

Paying for the upfront cost of an AC unit is a key barrier to adoption, so as incomes rise, more people get access to them.

Access to air conditioning is becoming increasingly important as the world warms and extreme heat becomes more common.

Read more about how populations can protect themselves against extreme heat →

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This chart, titled "How do cancer death rates vary by age?", displays the annual cancer death rate per 100,000 people in the United States between 2018 and 2022, using data from death certificates classified by ICD-10 codes. Each subplot represents a different type of cancer, with age on the x-axis and death rate on the y-axis. Each subplot shows a rise in death rates at older ages. This chart is authored by Saloni Dattani and published on "Our World in Data," with data sourced from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Wonder database (2024). The chart is licensed under CC-BY.

Cancer death rates rise steeply with age

Cancer death rates rise steeply with age.

The chart shows this for a wide range of cancers, including bladder, breast, colorectal, stomach, and prostate cancer. The data comes from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Long-term exposure to risk factors — such as smoking, radiation, and certain infections — damages our cells. This damage accumulates with age, increasing the chances of cancerous mutations. In addition, our cells’ ability to repair this damage also weakens, allowing the mutations to accumulate.

Cervical cancer has a slightly different shape: its risks rise at a much younger age and then slow down. This is because it is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), typically spread through sexual contact at younger ages. Without HPV, it’s very rare for this cancer to develop, and infection can be prevented with early vaccination.

Read more about the risks of cancer with age

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A line chart showing Japan's birth rate from 1950 to 2023. Highlighted is a sharp dip in 1966, where birth rate drops over 20%, from 18.5 to 14.5 births per 1000 people. In 1967 the line returns back to around 19 births per 1000 people.

Japan’s birth rate dropped sharply in 1966, influenced by cultural beliefs

Demographic trends, such as births and deaths, can be influenced by many factors. Wars or pandemics can lead to higher death rates, while lower child mortality and access to contraception reduce the number of births.

But specific cultural beliefs can also have a strong effect, as in Japan in 1966. As you can see in the chart, the UN estimates that births decreased by about 20% from 1965 to 1966.

The reason behind this drop is unusual. Children born in 1966 had the “fire horse” as their birth sign. According to astrological predictions, women born that year would bring bad fortune, especially for their future husbands.

Families who either believed this, or wanted to avoid the risk of their daughters having difficulty in the marriage market, chose not to have children that year. Couples may have abstained or used contraception, and in addition, the induced abortion rate in 1966 was significantly higher than in the surrounding years.

The next year of the fire horse is 2026. With the decline of these beliefs in Japan, fewer arranged marriages (where the birth sign might be a significant factor), and generally declining birth rates, we are unlikely to see this sharp drop in births again.

Explore more data on births and fertility in our Population & Demography explorer

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Bar chart showing milk consumption per person across regions. Europe is the highest, followed by North America. Asia and Africa are both below the global average.

Europeans consume more milk and dairy products than in other regions

On average, Europeans consume more dairy products than people in other regions.

This chart shows the milk supply per person in each of the world’s regions. This is based on data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. It’s based on supply — the amount of milk available for consumption. It includes consumer waste, so it is a bit higher than the amount that is consumed in the end.

As you can see, the per-capita supply for Europe is more than twice the global average. People across Africa and Asia consume far less.

These numbers include dairy products such as yogurt and cheese, based on how much milk is used to produce them.

Explore country-by-country data on milk supply →

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A line graph titled "Regional trends in average years of schooling, 2000 to 2022" shows the average number of years that adults over 25 participated in formal education across different regions. The vertical axis represents years of schooling, ranging from 0 to 8 years, with marked lines at 2, 4, 6, and 8 years. The horizontal axis indicates the years from 2000 to 2022.

Four distinct data series are represented by colored lines: 

- **Latin America and the Caribbean** 
- **East Asia and the Pacific**  
- **South Asia** 
- **Sub-Saharan Africa** 

A note on the graph emphasizes that both Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have seen significant improvements in average years of schooling. The data source is indicated as the UNDP, Human Development Report (2024).
Four distinct data series are represented by colored lines: 

- **Latin America and the Caribbean** (purple line) shows a consistent increase, reaching just above 8 years in 2022.
- **East Asia and the Pacific** (blue line) gradually rises, reaching around 6 years in 2022. 
- **South Asia** (red line) increases to slightly below 6 years, reflecting slow growth over the years.
- **Sub-Saharan Africa** (green line) shows a gradual increase, with a 50% rise since 2000, adding about 2 years, reaching close to 4 years by 2022.

A note on the graph emphasizes that both Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have seen significant improvements in average years of schooling. The data source is indicated as the UNDP, Human Development Report (2024). The graph is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY).

People across developing regions are spending far more time in school than 20 years ago

In 2000, adults in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa had, on average, fewer than five years of schooling. That’s not enough to complete primary education.

But, as the chart shows, a lot of progress has been made since then. Adults older than 25 have gained more than two additional years of schooling, a 50% increase since 2000.

Latin American and East Asian countries have also made substantial gains, starting from a higher baseline.

This data is about adults. Children today can expect many more years of schooling, showing just how much progress has been made.

Of course, simply being in school isn’t enough; kids also need to learn while they’re there. And while more years of schooling generally mean more learning opportunities, it’s important to remember that millions of children in these regions still aren’t in school at all.

Discover more insights on access to basic education

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What share of children die before their fifth birthday?

What could be more tragic than the death of a young child? Child mortality, the death of children under the age of five, is still extremely common in our world today.

The historical data makes clear that it doesn’t have to be this way: it is possible for societies to protect their children and reduce child mortality to very low rates. For child mortality to reach low levels, many things have to go right at the same time: good healthcare, good nutrition, clean water and sanitation, maternal health, and high living standards. We can, therefore, think of child mortality as a proxy indicator of a country’s living conditions.

The chart shows our long-run data on child mortality, which allows you to see how child mortality has changed in countries around the world.

Explore and learn more about this data
Explore and learn more about this data

Share of population living in extreme povertyWorld Bank

Life expectancy at birthLong-run estimates collated from multiple sources by Our World in Data

Per capita CO₂ emissionsLong-run estimates from the Global Carbon Budget

GDP per capitaLong-run estimates from the Maddison Project Database

Share of people that are undernourishedFAO

Literacy rateLong-run estimates collated from multiple sources by Our World in Data

Share of the population with access to electricityWorld Bank

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