08 August 2003 03:03
Minister: Occupational Illness a Problem
The mortality rate among Russia's working-age population is alarmingly high due to the large number of
occupation-related illnesses that can affect industry workers and the poor quality of preventive health care, Deputy
Health Minister Gennady Onishchenko told Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Thursday.
Of the more than 2 million people who die in Russia every year, more than 600,000 are of working age and 480,000 are
men, Onishchenko was quoted by the newspaper as saying.
Alcoholism and a high accident rate are traditionally listed as the main reasons for the country's
extraordinarily high mortality rates among men, but these are not the only factors.
"In the new conditions of the market economy we cannot efficiently prevent illnesses and battle occupational
illnesses," Onishchenko said.
In recent years, every fifth person suffering from an occupational illness has stopped working before reaching the
age of 45, he added.
Those working in heavy industry, coal and metal mining are most at risk. Noise, whole-body vibrations and exposure to
industrial aerosols are the main reasons for health deterioration. Most occupational illnesses are not fatal in their
nature but can often develop into more severe disorders, leading to death.
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