Choking deaths on food in the USUS gluten-free product sales
As gluten-free product sales have grown, choking deaths have risen, adding yet another health food to the choking correlation catalog. The gluten is removed from the bread, the bread is still potentially dangerous to the elderly, and the chart does not distinguish between the two problems. The gluten-free label solves one issue. The aging population creates another. The coefficient treats both equally.
Gluten-free sales grew from about 1 billion to over 7 billion dollars between 2008 and 2021. Choking deaths rose with the aging population. Fourteen data points, both up. The gluten-free products and the choking victims are different consumers addressing different concerns. The correlation is shape.
Fourteen years of gluten-free and choking is the gluten-free entry in the choking series: the food category that defined health anxiety correlating with the death category that defines geriatric risk. The label is checked, the airway is not, and the coefficient makes no distinction.
As an Amazon Associate, getspurious.com earns from qualifying purchases. Learn more.
Want to learn more about why correlations like “Choking deaths on food in the US” vs “US gluten-free product sales” don't prove causation? Read our guide to statistical thinking.
