Most teenager deaths caused by road accidents, report finds

Road traffic injuries are the biggest killer of teenagers globally, according to international data from the World Health Organization.

More than 1.2 million adolescents died in 2015, and road injuries were to blame for around one in 10 of these deaths.

Most of the road fatalities involved males between the ages of 10 and 19.

Chest infections and self-harm were the biggest global killers of girls and young women, however.

The top five killers of teens (aged 10-19)

1. Road injury

2. Lower respiratory infections

3. Self-harm (intentional and accidental suicide)

4. Diarrhoeal diseases

5. Drowning

According to the global report, more than 3,000 adolescents die every day.

Over two-thirds of these deaths happen in low- and middle-income countries in Africa and South East Asia.

Road accidents

Most young people killed by the top cause - road crashes - are "vulnerable" road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists.

Males aged 15-19 make up the biggest share of these 115,302 fatalities, mostly in poorer countries in Europe, the Americas and the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Although far fewer in number, road injuries are still the leading cause of adolescent death in high-income countries, shortly followed by deaths from self-harm.

In some countries road safety education and legislation encouraging drivers to slow down appears to be having the desired effect, reducing road accident rates, says the WHO report author, Dr Anthony Costello.

But other countries are lagging, he says.