Hi readers!
Shocking title, isn’t it? For me it was too shocking.
I heard this phrase during the conference on “Food security and climate change” organized by Pakistan Academy of Sciences starting November 16th, through 18th, 2025. Since the theme of the conference was part of my field which is very close to my heart, I participated in it however, except myself, all the participants spoke on the subject including the living legends such as Professor Dr. Atta ur Rahman (and others like of him) who uttered the words mentioned in the title which I heard for the first time. When I asked him about the details, he said, “these words are not mine” but he very kindly gave me references: the scripts from which formed the basis of this blog.
Dear readers! the title of one of references was “Dead before 50”: The Australians are dying young at the edge of the system. It is written by Cameron Carr in SBS News, October 24, 2025. There are “devastatingly common” reasons behind many of the deaths, reported an advocate.
Dear readers! the story of “dead before 50 says “that more Australians are dying often in their 30s to early 50s and narrated the reasons for such deaths: the most common among them is the homelessness.
Some 14,000 people accessing specialist homelessness services (SHS) died in the decade of 2023, according to an Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) analysis. The annual death toll rose from 914 to 1,459 over the same period: nearly a 60 per cent increase.
Approximately half of the dead people were in the age of 35-54, while one in eight (1,700 in total) were 25-34 years while one in 77 (180 total) were children under 14. Despite the fact that the average death age in Australia is 82 but, among those approaching SHS were 55 to 27 years younger.
The disparity was even greater for people sleeping rough (uneven or coarse i.e. on footpaths and along roadsides) as their average age at death was 47: similar to those experiencing other forms of homelessness. Among these people, prevalence of death by suicide or overdosing was common.
The chief executive officer of Homelessness Australia (CEO:HA), says, many of these deaths are avoidable as the main cause of these intensifying deaths is lack of affordable social housing.
The federal government is plaining to build 1.2 million homes by 2029 to cater the needs of homeless people especially the youth struggling for stable and affordable housing.
SHS supported about 280,000 people in 2023-24, with almost half of whom are unaccompanied (person not living with a parent or guardian (if under 18) or living alone (aged 18-24).
The second main cause of deaths is trauma combined with homelessness. Many people coming to homeless services are fleeing domestic and family violence. Children abuse, neglect and other forms of violence at home is another form of trauma that homeless experienced before approaching SHS.
When these people come to homeless services and don’t get access to the housing they need to move on with their life appeared double edge soared. On one side it is like “eroding their hope in life” and on the other end, it “traps” people in homelessness. This is risky for people experiencing mental health challenges and dangerous environments. It is very common for the rough sleeping people to be subject to violence on the streets but also, when people are couch surfing (stay temporarily in a series of other people’s homes, typically by sleeping on their sofas) or in rooming houses that they can experience violence, said CEO:HA . “That’s where we see the suicides and overdoses as a direct consequence of those experiences,” she further said.
A rooming house is a dwelling where multiple single bedrooms are rented out individually to unrelated tenants who share common areas like the kitchen and bathrooms. These types of residences are often more affordable than traditional apartments, as they feature shared living spaces which includes utilities in the rent as well. Rooming houses are a common source of budget-friendly housing for single adults, students, and young professionals.
The third main cause of death is accidental poisoning which includes deaths from a drug overdose which is very common among people who accessed SHS in their last year of life. The most common accidental poisoning was caused by the consumption of the drug gamma-hydroxybutyrate or GHB.
Deaths by suicide and coronary heart disease, were other causes reported during the period 2013 to 2023: the data of which is being reported in this blog.
CEO:HA explained that these deaths and illnesses are more likely to occur if they experience shortcomings across a number of areas of their life, particularly coronary heart disease. If you experience a lot of stress, you are not in a position to eat well and exercise then the consequence of all this is worsening heart conditions.
Among males, the most common underlying cause of death was consistently accidental poisoning (15 to 22 per cent), followed by suicide (11 to 16 per cent) and coronary heart disease (7.4 to 10 per cent).
Among females, accidental poisoning caused 11 to 17 per cent of deaths, and suicide 8.8 to 16 per cent. These were consistently the two most common underlying causes of death with rankings changing between years.
These top two causes were followed by a mix of other causes, including coronary heart disease, liver disease and lung cancer.
Around 8,700 males and around 5,300 females accessed SHS support in their last year of life over the study period, according to the AIHW.
Approximately two-thirds of SHS clients are female, with around 2 in 5 females experiencing homelessness at the start of support. While fewer SHS clients are males, around half are experiencing homelessness at the start of support.
Dear readers! the writeup sadanand me so much that I can’t find appropriate words to express my feelings. Australia is a developed and advanced country and and is a dream of every traveler. Compare to her, we stands nowhere but countless thanks to Allah Almighty that no one sleep hungry, no one sleep along roadside, no one sleep in boxes and on one sleeps rough. Our societal structure is such that we made mud huts with a layer of husk or wheat/rice straw on the floor and comfortably sleep inside even with the families and in harsh winters and summers. The charity services are so extensive that no one can go hungry. We are both very poor and very rich: all living in open environment and fresh air. We work hard (never mind doing even menial jobs) to earn our lively hood and never mind wearing even old and secondhand clothes. We always remained thankful to Allah almighty no matter whether we are poor or rich. This contentment is the blessing that not everyone can have it and is one of the most important reasons that Pakistan is surviving and will keep surviving Inshallah till the end of times.
I wrote this blog to show you dear readers the glimpses of those glittering but are not gold.
See you next time. Take care, Bye.
