Cancer was the leading cause of death among the citizens of Seoul last year, claiming more than 13,000 lives, data from the city government showed Wednesday.
   
According to the data, 42,063 Seoulites died last year, the highest number of annual deaths since the city government began tracking related data in 1983. Last year also marked the highest death rate of 420.1 per every 100,000 citizens.
   
A total of 13,028 Seoul citizens died from cancer last year, accounting for 31 percent of the total deaths in the nation's capital.
   
Other major causes of death included brain and heart conditions, suicide and diabetes.
   
The biggest cause of death among people aged 10-39 was suicide.
   
Suicide was responsible for slightly more than 35 percent of deaths among teenagers, with the comparable figure reaching 51.6 percent for 20-somethings. Suicide accounted for 39.7 percent of deaths among people in their 30s, according to the data.
   
South Korea is notorious for its high youth suicide rate, a phenomenon often attributed to the country's break-neck development, which intensified competition among peers.
   
The data also showed that the obesity rate among Seoulites aged
19 and older rose to 23.2 percent last year from 20.6 percent in 2008.
   
The adult smoking rate fell to 21.7 percent from 24.2 percent over the cited period. (Yonhap)