Under-five mortality rate decreases in Turkey but still above developed world’s
ANKARA
The under-five mortality rate in Turkey dropped to 11.2 per 1,000 live births in 2017 from 15.5 in 2010, but still remains way above that of developed countries’, data released Feb. 19 by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) showed.
The figure stood at 5.3 in Europe in 2017, slightly less than 5.7 in northern America, according to estimates by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Australia and New Zealand have achieved one of the best regional rates with 3.8. In Finland, it stood at a steady 2.3 for two years in a row, which is again a little above Norway’s 2.6 record, the same rate with Japan.
In Syria, the figure worsened to 17 from 16 in 2010, after the country was hit by war.
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The UNICEF estimates point to 66.3 deaths in every 1,000 children under the age of five in the least developed countries category.
The world average is at 39.1
Neonatal mortality rate in Turkey dropped to 5.8 per thousand live births in 2017 from 7.6 in 2010. It still below 1.5 in Norway and South Korea, 1.8 in Finland, 2.9 across Europe or 3.6 in North America. The world estimate of the UNICES is at 18.
While maternal mortality ratio was 16.4 per 100,000 live births in 2010 in Turkey, this ratio decreased to 14.6 in 2017, according to TÜİK.
The proportion of births attended by skilled health professional was 91.6 percent in 2010 and 98 percent in 2017.
In the same period, the number of physicians per 100,000 population increased from 167 to 186.
TÜİK’s “Sustainable Development Indicators” study also included figures on child obesity, one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
In 2013, 1.7 percent of children under five years of age in Turkey were wasted when compared to their height, while 10.9 percent of children in the same age group were overweight.
Globally, in 2016 the number of overweight children under the age of five is estimated to be over 41 million. Almost half of all overweight children under 5 lived in Asia and one quarter lived in Africa.
