Worldwide Deaths Due to Measles Falls 74% since 2000

Due to the increase in vaccines being administered around the world, the amount of death associated with the Measles disease has fallen dramatically. In the year 2000, 750,000 people around the world died from Measles.  A 2007 study shows a decrease amounting to 74% of this 2000 total. In 2007, just under 200,000 people died from the disease.

The biggest decreases were in underdeveloped countries where the decreases were north of 90%. These places include countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Sudan.  This was due to a United Nations effort to decrease the amount of death worldwide by 90% by 2010.

About 90% of the people who died from the measles were children under the age of five. This is a number people fighting the diease want to change.  Also, about 67% of the total number of deaths originated in India, a country which needs more vaccination availability.

India was the last country to adopt the worldwide initiative to give all children two doses of the lifesaving vaccine. The Indian government has been working to fix this problem and save more lives.