Articles
Tracking poison ingestion deaths for South Africa: The need for access to timely reliable data
South Africa's President highlighted rising foodborne illnesses. Analysis of 2017-2020/21 surveys revealed an increase in child poisoning deaths, mostly unintentional and caused by pesticides. Adult poisoning deaths also rose, with pesticides being the leading cause. Improved death data and prompt reporting of agricultural poisoning are urged for rapid public health response.
The President of South Africa addressed the nation on 15 November 2024 regarding the rise in foodborne illnesses and related child deaths. In the absence of a clear profile of injury deaths from official cause-of-death data, we used empirical, nationally representative surveys from 2017 and 2020/21 to analyse poisoning deaths.
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