An Astonishing Graph

kottke.org December 02, 2025 By Jason Kottke

a graph of child mortality that shows rates of 50% until around 1800 and then a steep drop to 4% in 2020

For most of human history, around 50% of children used to die before they reached the end of puberty. In 2020, that number is 4.3%. It’s 0.3% in countries like Japan & Norway.

This dramatic decline has resulted from better nutrition, clean water, sanitation, neonatal healthcare, vaccinations, medicines, and reductions in poverty, conflicts, and famine.

Before ~1800, almost every parent lost a child; now it’s such an uncommon experience that people have forgotten and want to ban vaccines.

Tags: infoviz Ā· science

šŸ’¬ Join the discussion on kottke.org →

a graph of child mortality that shows rates of 50% until around 1800 and then a steep drop to 4% in 2020

For most of human history, around 50% of children used to die before they reached the end of puberty. In 2020, that number is 4.3%. It’s 0.3% in countries like Japan & Norway.

This dramatic decline has resulted from better nutrition, clean water, sanitation, neonatal healthcare, vaccinations, medicines, and reductions in poverty, conflicts, and famine.

Before ~1800, almost every parent lost a child; now it’s such an uncommon experience that people have forgotten and want to ban vaccines.

Tags: infoviz Ā· science

šŸ’¬ Join the discussion on kottke.org →

Comments 0

Log in to post a comment.

No comments yet. Be the first to comment!

Advertise with Us

Reach our audience with your ads