The media paints a bleak picture of the world and its future. In fact, studies show that constant exposure to the news can lead to increased rates of anxiety and depression. The cure? Turn it off—and find some good news.
Unfortunately, good news doesn’t generate clicks, and the media is more about money than information. “Father of three comes home, cooks dinner, plays catch with kids” doesn’t create as much interest as “father of three comes home and murders family.”
There are two bits of good news to take away from this, though. The first is that all of the brutal, horrible stories you read draw attention because they are exactly that: news. They’re noteworthy because they are not the normal course of things. The second bit of good news is that the world is safer now than ever before, and all indications suggest it will only continue to improve.
A Decrease in Crime
Crime rates in the United States peaked in 1991 with rates of 716 violent crimes per 100,000 people. That may not sound like many, but scale it down and nearly 7.2 people out of every 1,000 became victims of violent crime. As of 2016, that rate was down to 366 per 100,000 people.
2015 marked the 14th year in a row that crime rates fell. Since then, rates have remained stable, with a slight decline each year.
A Decrease in Pain
Crime rates aren’t the only things that have dropped. Famine, infant mortality, and disease have plummeted in the last few years. Fewer wars are fought each year. Despite all the evidence to the contrary—in spite of what news stories might lead you to believe—the world is becoming safer. It’s becoming better. Take a look.
In the 2000s, 2,806,850 people died due to famine. Nearly three million souls were lost because there wasn’t enough food. Between 2010 and 2016, that number hangs around 255,000. I refuse to say “only,” because any life lost to starvation is one life too many, but we must celebrate progress even if we aren’t at the finish line.
Improvements in food distribution, agricultural science, and accessibility have reduced the amount of starvation in the world. More children go to bed each night with a proper dinner than at any point in history. To put it in perspective, 4.3 people out of 100,000 died due to famine in the early 2000s. Now that number is 0.5 out of 100,000.
In the 1870s, that number was 142.2 out of every 100,000 people.
An Increase in Life
For the first time in history, people in countries across the globe can expect to live to 60 years of age or beyond. Longer lifespans is an astounding achievement, especially given the amount of war and famine that faced humanity in the early part of the 1900s. In fact, the United Nations calls it one of the most significant social transformations of the 21st century.
By 2050, the number of people alive over the age of 60 is projected to reach 2.1 billion. The reasons for this increase in average lifespan are numerous, but boil down to many of the same issues we touched on earlier. When fewer people die because of war, disease, and crime, then they have the chance to live their natural number of years.
Best of all, the quality of life for the elderly is also improving. While some countries still lack access to the necessary medical care and resources to help those in need, organizations like Doctors Without Borders and the World Health Organization are bridging those gaps.
Reasons to Smile
It can be hard to remain positive when the news seems bleak, but take heart. All is not lost. The world is a kinder, safer, gentler place than it has ever been, and you can do your part to keep it that way. As our ability to leave recognize and celebrate our differences grows, so too will the collective happiness of humanity
The next time someone talks about how much worse the world is today than it was 50 years ago, keep these statistics in mind. Remember that a news story can be spun any given direction, but that numbers don’t lie. We’re in the safest era of human history right now, and each day we strive to make it a little bit better.
Photo: Sofía/Creative Commons