What Are the Deadliest Diseases in History?
WHO estimates tuberculosis killed 1.23 million people worldwide in 2024, more than any other single infectious agent; hepatitis B killed about 1.1 million.
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Where Tuberculosis Rates Run Highest
Alaska had the highest reported TB rate of any state in 2025, 10.4 cases per 100,000 people, in CDC provisional data.
About 1 in 33 US Babies Is a Twin
In 2024, 30.1 of every 1,000 US live births were twins, about 1 in 33 babies (3.0%), according to final CDC natality data.
Source: CDC National Center for Health Statistics · Data year 2024 · per year
How Many US Births Are C-Sections?
About 1 in 3 US births, 32.5%, were cesarean deliveries in the 12 months ending June 2026, provisional CDC data show.
How Many Older Americans Have Alzheimer’s?
About 1 in 9 Americans age 65 and older, an estimated 7.4 million people, live with Alzheimer's dementia in 2026, the Alzheimer's Association reports.
What Does Food Poisoning Cost the US?
Food poisoning costs the US about $74.7 billion a year in 2023 dollars, across about 47.8 million illnesses, USDA Economic Research Service estimates.
How Rare Is Tetanus in the US?
CDC surveillance shows an average of 26.8 US tetanus cases a year from 2009 to 2023, and 18 in 2023, about 1 in 18.6 million people.
How Many US Kids Have Cavities?
In 2017 to March 2020, 11.1% of US children ages 2 to 5 had untreated decay in their baby teeth, and 50.1% of those ages 6 to 9 had ever had tooth decay.
Broken Heart Syndrome: The Odds in the US
Broken heart syndrome is real: US hospitals admitted about 40,000 patients a year with it from 2016 to 2020, and about 1 in 15 died there (our arithmetic).
Food and Cancer
Macro image of fresh garlic on rough wooden chopping board Shallow focus. Can eating right prevent cancer? The odds a person will ever be…
Which Cancers Are Deadliest in the US?
Lung cancer causes the most US cancer deaths, a projected 124,990 in 2026; of SEER's common sites, pancreatic has the lowest five year survival, 13.7%.
Hollywood’s Juicy Fruit, Starving on the Vine
Even a partial list of body image problems that a child may run up against can be petrifying—anorexia nervosa, bulimia, body dysmorphic disorder, severe…