What is the biggest health issue in South Korea?

Asked by: Ms. Abby Gleason  |  Last update: November 8, 2025
Score: 4.7/5 (51 votes)

Health issues
  • Obesity. ...
  • Smoking. ...
  • Drinking alcohol. ...
  • Infectious disease. ...
  • Air pollution. ...
  • Tuberculosis. ...
  • Chronic disease. ...
  • Unequal distribution of physicians. There are 2.5 doctors and 7.9 nurses per 1,000 people in South Korea (2020).

What is the most common health problem in South Korea?

The results of the present study reveal that the burden of disease per 100,000 of the Korean population originates primarily from; cancer (1,525 Person Years, PYs), cardiovascular disease (1,492 PYs), digestive disease (1,140 PYs), diabetes mellitus (990 PYs), and certain neuro-psychiatric conditions (883 PYs).

What is the no. 1 disease in Korea?

As the leading cause of death in Korea [1], cancer has been a major public health concern in the country since 1983. 250,000 patients were newly diagnosed with cancer in Korea, and 27% of deaths were due to cancer in 2020 [2].

What causes the most deaths in South Korea?

Cancer remained the leading cause of death among South Koreans last year, according to data from Statistics Korea. A total of 352,511 deaths were recorded in 2023, a decrease of 5.5 percent from the previous year, marking a decline after three years of increases.

What are the main issues in South Korea?

While the Republic of Korea (South Korea) broadly respects the rights of its citizens, there are significant human rights concerns, especially regarding lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, women, migrants, racial minorities, older people, and people with disabilities.

Why Do Koreans Feel Depressed? Mental Illness & Therapy

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What are the main problems in Seoul?

Seoul also faces serious challenges. Overpopulation and urbanization have led to housing, transportation and parking shortages, pollution, and resource overuse. These are issues that other municipalities face, but they're amplified by Seoul's population density.

Is South Korea a stressful country?

Despite being one of the most economically advanced countries in the world, evidence indicates that South Korea faces an alarmingly high prevalence of population-level psychological stress.

What is the number one killer in Korea?

SEOUL, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Cancer remained South Korea's top cause of death in 2022, statistical office data showed Thursday. Cancer caused 162.7 deaths per 100,000 people here in 2022, up from 161.1 deaths in the previous year, according to Statistics Korea.

Why do South Koreans live so long?

Although the steady increase in life expectancy was not affected by 2 recent economic recessions, in the early 1980s and late 1990s,3 the nation's industrialization and the subsequent improvements in living standards, nutrition, and health care have often been cited as major contributors to Koreans' remarkable ...

What is the main religion in South Korea?

The majority of South Koreans have no religion. Buddhism and Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism) are the dominant confessions among those who affiliate with a formal religion.

Are Koreans very healthy?

As per the World Health Organization, in the Republic of Korea, life expectancy at birth (years) has improved by 7.59 years from 76.2 years in 2000 to 83.8 years in 2021.

What is Korean sickness food?

Samgyetang

This hot stew made with chicken and ginseng is a popular dish in Korea and is traditionally eaten when a person is sick with a cold or flu.

What is the life expectancy of a Korean person?

The life expectancy for South Korea in 2024 was 83.64 years, a 0.16% increase from 2023. The life expectancy for South Korea in 2023 was 83.50 years, a 0.18% increase from 2022. The life expectancy for South Korea in 2022 was 83.35 years, a 0.18% increase from 2021.

What percent of Koreans are overweight?

Obesity prevalence has steadily increased over the past 11 years between 2009 and 2019 for the total population; from 29.7% in 2009 to 36.3% in 2019 (Fig. 1A). Obesity prevalence has increased significantly in men from 35.6% in 2009 to 46.2% in 2019, and 23.9% in 2009 to 27.3% in 2019 in women.

What medications are illegal in Korea?

Bringing prescription drugs into the Republic of Korea

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) states that any narcotics-containing medication (including CBD oil) is strictly prohibited from import into Korea, even with the doctor's prescription.

Is it safe to go to Korea right now?

Latest update. Latest update:We continue to advise exercise normal safety precautions in South Korea. Avoid protests and demonstrations relating to the current domestic political situation.

At what age do South Koreans retire?

Current Retirement Age in South Korea

Article 19 of the Act on the Prohibition of Age Discrimination in Employment and the Promotion of Employment for the Elderly has an obligation to comply with the statutory retirement age requirement that “the employer shall set the retirement age of workers at least 60 years old.”

What is the Korean diet?

The Korean diet is characterized by high vegetable intake, which is due to the agricultural environment in Korea. Vegetables such as lettuce, peppers, carrots, or cucumbers, were often consumed raw with sauces made of gochujang, doenjang, kanjang, or vinegar, and topped with sesame seeds.

Why are South Koreans so rich?

South Korea's education system and the establishment of a motivated and educated populace were largely responsible for spurring the country's high technology boom and economic development. South Korea began to adapt an export-oriented economic strategy to fuel its economy.

What is the top predator in Korea?

The yellow-throated marten (Martes flavigula), an endangered species in South Korea, is an important apex predator of that country's temperate forest ecosystem.

What is the worlds No 1 killer?

The world's biggest killer is ischaemic heart disease, responsible for 13% of the world's total deaths.

What is the main cause of death in South Korea?

In 2023, the leading cause of death among people aged 10 to 39 years in South Korea was suicide, which accounted for more than half of all deaths among people in their twenties. The leading cause of death among people over 40 was cancer.

Is depression high in South Korea?

Between 17.8 and 27.9 percent of those aged 65 or older in South Korea are likely to suffer from depression, significantly higher than the rate in other countries. Factors associated with late life depression in Korea include living alone, smoking, financial hardships and intellectual disability.

Which country do Korean like the most?

Favourite & Least Favourite Countries

The results from this internal survey showed that the United States emerged on top with 22% of Koreans' considering the United States as a country they considered favourably.

Do people walk a lot in Korea?

As opposed to other countries, like the United States (where I'm from), Korean cities are designed to be walkable. Not many people, especially not the younger non-employed people, use cars to get around. A twenty-or-more minute walk is completely normal!