January 12, 2017.
According to the latest edition of the Weekly Epidemiological Bulletin (BEH), published by Public Health France, more than 11 million home-related accidents occurred in 2012, causing the death of 21,470 people.
Falls cause many deaths
Home accidents are the third leading cause of death in France, after cancer and cardiovascular disease. In 2012, 21,470 people died as a result of an everyday accident, according to the Public Health France agency. Domestic accidents kill 5 times more than road accidents. This mortality is still too high, but it has fallen by 2.2% each year since 2000.
The people most affected by these everyday accidents are the elderly. By themselves, they represent two thirds of the victims. And the accidents that most often lead to death are falls (9,600 deaths in 2012), but also suffocations (2,940) and intoxications (2,040). Drowning is the most common accident in children aged 1 to 14.
Put in place preventive measures
According to the French Public Health agency, “ many deaths could be avoided by appropriate preventive measures “. To prevent falls, the authors of the report recommend, for example, that seniors practice regular physical activity, remove carpets from their homes, improve lighting in the home or install a ramp on the stairs.
There are also regional disparities in this area. The Bretons and the inhabitants of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Limousin and the Languedoc-Roussillon region are more victims of domestic accidents than Ile-de-France residents. And apart from the elderly, men are more affected than women by these everyday accidents.
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Read also: How to prevent accidental falls in seniors?
