Germans feel healthy

Germans feel healthy: they exercise more and eat more fruits and vegetables. However, there is a significant increase in diseases such as diabetes and asthma.

On behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) carried out a telephone survey. The result: A large majority of the population living in Germany feels healthy. More and more people are doing sports and eating healthier. A total of 21,262 citizens aged 18 and over from all parts of Germany interviewed the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) by phone about their physical well-being. More and more people are doing sports, eat healthy and do not smoke. Younger people are less chronically ill compared to the last survey in 2003. Here, the proportion fell by four percent.

Connection between education and health
It becomes clear that health still has something to do with the social status and education of people. People with low educational status are less likely to rate their health as good or good than those with intermediate or upper education. One-tenth of the Germans is severely restricted in terms of health. One quarter of the 65 year olds had to go to a clinic for treatment within one year.

70 percent feel healthy
The results in detail: About 70 percent of Germans find their own health status good to very good. The overall health is the same for women (68 percentage points) and men (70 percentage points). There are no significant changes compared to 2003. However, older women in particular feel even fitter and healthier than they did then.

Hardly any regional differences
The differences between regions and federal states are small. Women in Saarland, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Brandenburg are more likely to have mental health problems and chronic illnesses than in other regions. In the state of Bavaria, people eat the least fruits and vegetables. Citizens in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate are vaccinated less than in the other regions. Differences in health among men are less pronounced than among women.

Rates of increase in chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes
Young people under 30 today are less often chronically ill than in recent years. Here, the percentage points for women fell by eight and in men by four percent. However, more and more people are suffering from conditions such as asthma and diabetes. Two-fifths of the older generation in particular are affected. One in five (men and women alike) from the age of retirement suffers from diabetes type II. This is also a significant increase recorded.

More and more people are doing sports and smoke less
More and more people are doing sports. The proportion of out-of-competition athletes has increased by around 4 percent. About two-thirds of Germans regularly exercise. It is also pleasing that sog. „Anti-smoking campaigns“ have achieved a significant success. Especially younger people do not seem to see it as more than „cool“ to smoke. In 2009, around 29 percent of women and 38 percent of men still smoke, but today only 26 percent smoke women and 34 percent of men.

Cooperation between Robert Koch Institute and Ministry of Health
The questionnaire included a total of 34 categories. Topics such as alcohol consumption, frequency of visits to doctors, admissions to clinics, consumption of vegetables and fruits, sports activities, accidents and dental care were surveyed. In addition, the survey was interested in age, region and educational status. The results of the survey provide a comprehensive, up-to-date picture of public health. Already in the year 2003 a smaller telephone survey (telephone survey 2003) was carried out, in this way data of illness and health development can be compared.

The Citizen Health Survey is part of the so-called health monitoring conducted by the Robert Koch Institute on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health and supplements the study on adult health in Germany (DEGS) and the study on the health of children and adolescents in Germany (KiGGS). The aim of the surveys and studies is the continuous monitoring of the health of inhabitants in Germany. The ministry wants to monitor risk factors, diseases and trends. On the basis of the observations, appropriate measures can be taken, for example, to counteract negative trends in the area of ​​health.

The Ministry of Health presents the results according to age, gender and education in subdivided tables. Regional differences are also published, key messages formulated and the results evaluated. Topics include general health, chronic diseases, health determinants, and health system performance. Between July 2008 and June 2009 respondents provided information on their state of health, condition, lifestyle and living conditions. The GEDA study will be carried out on a regular basis, with a constant core area and flexible topics on current issues. The results will be presented at the central public health congress "Modern Medicine". (sb, pm, 22.09.2010)