Posted by:
Brother Of Jerry
(
)
Date: March 04, 2024 09:55PM
I realize this is not going to play well here, but it is likely safer going on a mission than not, if for no other reason, it keeps young men out of cars for a couple years.
The death rates for US males 15-24 is 122 per 100,000 per year. For females, it is 45 per 100,000 per year. The difference I assume is basically testosterone poisoning. Men do stupid stuff.
So, 70,000 missionaries, mostly male, let's say there are 50,000 young male missionaries. There should be 60 male deaths a year, 8 or 9 female deaths, or more than 1 per week. The number of missionaries dying is nowhere near that high.
Yes, death rate also varies by ethnicity. The Black death rate is about a third higher than the white rate, but white is still the largest single group in the US, so correcting for ethnicity, the white male death rate for that age group is probably around 100 per 100,000. That would still be 50 male missionaries per year dying, to have an average death rate for white male 20 year olds.
Whatever medical deficiencies there are in the missionary program, statistically, it is pretty obviously safer than not going.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/241572/death-rate-by-age-and-sex-in-the-us/the CDC has enough similar charts and tables to stun an ox, if you're interested in going down that rabbit hole.
On a related note, I had to hunt up a new doctor 2 years ago because mine is serving an LDS medical mission in Thailand, providing medical service/consulting to missionaries in several missions in SE Asia. He had a nice Jewish name. Who knew he was LDS? Oy.