Asthma deaths reach decade-high levels and number of Australians dying of dementia grows

Dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, accounted for more than 10% of all deaths for the first time, new data reveals

• Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

Dementia has accounted for more than 10% of all deaths for the first time, while the number of people dying from asthma is at decade-high levels, new data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveals.

There were 188,421 deaths registered in 2025. Of these, 19,019 deaths were caused by dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, the ABS deaths data released on Tuesday shows. It has been the leading cause of death in Australia since 2024.

Continue reading…