Estonian Human Development Report

More documents

Recommendations

Info

2.5. Lifestyle and behaviour as a source of health risks As stated above, there has been an increase in the prominence of causes of death related to lifestyles and behaviour, characteristic of industrial countries. The most common among these factors are obesity, smoking, and alcoholism. Estonia is no exception in this regard. However, risks related to the use of narcotics and sexual behaviour are becoming more dangerously frequent in Estonia, especially among young people. In discussing these problems below, we will be paying special attention to the health and risk behaviour of youth. Physical activity The main cause of excessive weight gain and obesity is insufficient physical activity. In 2006, 32% of adult men (ages 16–64) and 30% of women engaged in sports at least once a week for 30 minutes or more. Of the entire adult population, 43% engage in sports very rarely or not at all Figure 2.5.1. Moderate engagement in sports (at least an hour a day) by age and country 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 11 13 15 11 13 15 Boys Source: HBSC 2005/2006 Girls Slovakia Finland Latvia Lithuania Estonia Sweden Switzerland Figure 2.5.2. Excessive weight (BMI>25) among people aged 20–64 in new EU member states (%) 59.8 13.6 46.2 Slovakia 57.4 56.6 56.5 55.8 55.4 54.1 53.9 53.2 13.2 46.0 17.8 18.1 13.3 13.5 42.7 17.3 14.6 16.5 9.1 10.1 MEN 44.2 38.7 Source: HealthGAP 38.4 42.5 38.1 39.2 40.4 36.6 36.9 32.5 Czech Republic Poland Hungary Slovenia Bulgaria EU10 Lithuania Estonia Romania Latvia Bulgaria Estonia Hungary Latvia Czech Republic Lithuania Slovakia EU10 Slovenia Poland Romania WOMEN 29.3 15.3 28.2 15.9 26.5 15.7 25.0 15.1 26.9 13.2 24.3 14.0 23.0 14.6 24.6 12.1 25.5 10.8 24.2 10.7 21.5 9.8 44.6 44.1 42.2 40.2 40.1 38.3 37.6 36.7 36.3 34.9 31.3 (Tekkel et al. 2007). These indicators have not changed significantly during the past ten years, although there has been a change in the preferred sports (Arvisto et al. 2004). In youth, physical activity is related, on the one hand, to good academic results and, on the other hand, to a greater likelihood of also engaging in sports as an adult. According to the ESPAD survey, there are fewer drug users among people who engage in sports (ESPAD, 2008). In Estonia, a total of 70,000 children aged 7–18 (approximately 1/3 of all children) are included in the activities of sports clubs and schools. According to a study conducted in 2003, 69.4% of boys and 55.6% of girls were engaged in physiologically sufficient sports training activities (2–3 hours a week or more). It is worth noting that the level of activity rose by ten per cent in the case of girls over the previous decade, while the level of activity among boys remained the same (Arvisto et al. 2004). There are considerable differences between the daily levels of children’s physical activity between countries. The highest level of activity was characteristic of children in Slovakia, while children in Switzerland tended to be the most passive (Figure 2.5.1.). In all of the countries, however, boys and young children are much more physically active. According to the survey, 24% of 11-year-old boys and 21% of 11-year-old girls play sports on a daily basis. By the age of 15, this percentage drops to 19% among boys and 9% among girls (HBSC 2005/2006). The last ESPAD survey shows, however, that more than 80% of young people aged 15–16 engage in sports at least once a week, although the most common way of spending free time is using the computer and the Internet (ESPAD, 2008). Nutrition and obesity The share of overweight people in the society has increased gradually since 1998 when 31% of adult (ages 15–64) men and 24% of women were overweight and 12% of men and 15% of women suffered from obesity. According to a 2006 survey, 36% of men and 25% of women were overweight, while 15% of men and 16% of women suffered from obesity. In international comparison, excess weight is a serious problem for the population of Estonia: in 2002, Estonian women were the 5 th most overweight and men the 11 th most overweight among EU countries, with both groups well ahead of the EU15 average indicators (Figure 2.5.2.). Overweight is not yet as significant a problem among Estonian children and young people. In 2006, 15% of 13- year-old boys and 6% of 13-year-old girls were overweight, while the corresponding percentages among 15-year-olds were 10% and 4%, respectively (HBSC 2005/2006). The nutrition habits of the Estonian population have improved significantly over the past decade. The most important change has occurred with regard to the consumption of food fats. While only 28% of all Estonian residents aged 16–64 used vegetable oil as the main cooking fat at the beginning of the 1990s, by 2006 this percentage had increased to 92% (Tekkel et al. 2007). | 40
Also, daily fresh fruit consumption has increased from 11% among men and 22% among women in 1992 to 18% and 36%, respectively, in 2006. A similar increase has occurred with regard to the consumption of vegetables (ibid). Alcohol consumption Europe has the highest alcohol consumption levels in the world, and the use of alcohol is deeply ingrained in many of the region’s cultures. Alcohol is one of the principal global risk factors in terms of social damage and deterioration of health. According to data from 2002, the excessive consumption of alcohol caused the Estonian population to lose 22,248 life years, constituting 6.7% of the total burden of disease. Men account for 99% of the life years lost due to alcohol and the majority of the burden consists of losses due to premature deaths (Lai T, 2004). Taking into account the increase in alcohol consumption in Estonia as described below, it is likely that the damage caused by alcohol to people’s quality of life is even more serious today. Alcohol consumption has grown steadily throughout the past decade: the amount of alcohol consumed per resident has increased from 9.9 litres in 2002 to 12 litres by 2006 (see Figure 2.5.3.). The percentage of people who consume alcohol at least several times a week has grown from 37% to 46% among men and from 6.6% to 13.6% among women. The increase has affected all age groups, excluding young men (aged 16–24), whose indicators have vascillated between 32% and 37% in recent years (Tekkel et al. 2007). Consumption has grown in the case of both light and strong alcoholic drinks (Estonian Institute of Economic Research 2008). Women’s alcohol consumption has doubled, and there has also been a growth in the percentage of women aged 15–64 who consume large amounts of alcohol (6 or more alcohol units 8 ) which was 9.8% in 2000, compared to 12.5% in 2006. Although the rate of alcohol-related mortality is highest in the 45–54 age group, deaths resulting from alcohol use do occur at younger ages also. Young people’s deaths are usually caused by injuries and many deaths resulting from injuries can be connected to alcohol use. Alcohol consumption is also related to suicidal behaviour and homicide. The overall level of alcohol use among young people in Estonia is average in the European context (Figure 2.5.4.). Young people’s alcohol consumption varies significantly from country to country. In all age groups, the highest percentage of youth had consumed alcohol during the past week in Bulgaria and the lowest percentage in Norway. In most cases, daily alcohol use was more common among boys and increased significantly between the ages of 13 and 15. Several studies indicate that in comparison with other countries, the number of young alcohol consumers is higher than average in Estonia. Whereas 55% of Estonian school students had been drunk during the past year in 1999, by 2003 the level of young alcohol consumers had grown significantly and reached 68% (the corresponding European average indicators were 52% and 53%) (ESPAD, 2008). Figure 2.5.3. Increase in alcohol consumption in Estonia in 2002–2006 (legal sales minus exported alcohol plus illegal alcohol, yearly pure alcohol consumption per capita, litres) 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 9.9 10.1 10.7 11.1 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Source: Estonian Institute of Economic Research Figure 2.5.4. Percentage of respondents who have consumed alcohol during the past week by ages 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Source: HBSC 2005/2006 Smoking 11 13 15 11 13 15 Boys Girls The use of tobacco is a risk factor related to six of the eight most common causes of death in the world: respiratory tract cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular diseases, respiratory tract inflammations, tuberculosis. In 2002, diseases related to smoking constituted 8.3% of the total burden of disease of the Estonian population. Furthermore, the number of life years lost due to premature death related to smoking was three times higher than the number of healthy life years lost with regard to decreased quality of life. Men lose nearly four times as many life years due to smoking as women. As in the case of alcohol consumption, the 45–54 age group (i.e. working age people) accounts for half of all life years lost due to smoking (Lai T, 2004). According to a health behaviour study of Estonian adults, the share of smokers among men has remained constant in Estonia since the beginning of the 1990s, while the percentage of smokers has increased somewhat among women. In recent years, however, there has been a noticeable downward trend, as 41% of men and 19.5% of women smoked on a daily basis according to a 2006 survey (Fig- 12 Bulgaria United Kingdom Sweden Latvia Lithuania Estonia Finland Norway 8 Definition of unit of alcohol – The term drink or unit of alcohol is used internationally. In Estonia, one drink is considered to be 10 g of absolute alcohol. The size of a drink depends on its alcohol content: the stronger the alcohol, the smaller the amount that constitutes one drink. 41 |
Page 1 and 2: Estonian Human Development Report
Page 3 and 4: Estonian Human Development Report T
Page 5: 4.2. Ethnic differentiations in sat
Page 9: Preface This year, the Estonian Hum
Page 12 and 13: CHAPTER 1 Estonian Human Developmen
Page 14 and 15: Figure 1.1.3. Life expectancy in co
Page 16 and 17: Figure 1.2.2. Life expectancy at bi
Page 18 and 19: to reality. The greatest inaccuracy
Page 20 and 21: Figure 1.2.9. Internal migration ev
Page 22 and 23: 12. Marksoo, A. 1992. “Dynamics o
Page 24 and 25: Table 1.3.1. PISA 2006 study result
Page 26 and 27: Table 1.3.2. Number of students in
Page 28 and 29: 1.4. The gross domestic product and
Page 30 and 31: Figure 1.4.3. Estonian GDP (right a
Page 32 and 33: 1.5. Changes in the Estonian Human
Page 34 and 35: 2.2. Health of Estonian residents i
Page 36 and 37: Table 2.2.4. Differences in life ex
Page 38 and 39: Figure 2.4.1. Healthy life years of
Page 40 and 41: Figure 2.4.4. Various accidents, tr
Page 44 and 45: Figure 2.5.5. Smoking in Estonia in
Page 46 and 47: Figure 2.6.1. Overview of the compo
Page 48 and 49: Table 2.6.2. Use of specialized med
Page 50 and 51: dren. The majority of services are
Page 52 and 53: Figure 2.8.2. How much a health dis
Page 54 and 55: 2.10. Policy recommendations aimed
Page 56 and 57: CHAPTER 3 Quality of life and life
Page 58 and 59: Table 3.2.1. Characteristics of liv
Page 60 and 61: Table 3.2.4. An assessment of the e
Page 62 and 63: Figure 3.2.4. Difference in the job
Page 64 and 65: Table 3.2.6. Agreement with stateme
Page 66 and 67: Figure 3.3.1. Satisfaction with lif
Page 68 and 69: Figure 3.3.4. Percentage of people
Page 70 and 71: Figure 3.4.1. Types of quality of l
Page 72 and 73: Figure 3.5.1. Percentage of teenage
Page 74 and 75: Figure 3.5.4. Percentage of respond
Page 76 and 77: Arieh A., Conti C., Kutsar D., Nicg
Page 78 and 79: Figure 3.6.2. Subjective quality of
Page 80 and 81: Pieper, A. Sixsmith, Care related q
Page 82 and 83: Figure 3.7.1. The placement of Euro
Page 84 and 85: Figure 4.2.1. Life satisfaction by
Page 86 and 87: Table 4.2.1. Factors forming genera
Page 88 and 89: Annexes Annex 4.2.1. Socio-demograp
Page 90 and 91: Figure 4.3.1. Changes in the assess
Page 92 and 93:
Figure 4.3.4. Attitudes of the Esto
Page 94 and 95:
olds considered themselves to be pa
Page 96 and 97:
Table 4.4.3. Agreement of the Russi
Page 98 and 99:
Table 4.5.2. The prospects of non-E
Page 100 and 101:
Figure 4.5.4. Certainty of Estonian
Page 102 and 103:
mote equal opportunities. At the (e
Page 104 and 105:
CHAPTER 5 Quality of life in a cons
Page 106 and 107:
Figure 5.2.1. GDP and AIC per capit
Page 108 and 109:
Figure 5.2.3. Distribution of consu
Page 110 and 111:
Figure 5.2.4. Indexes of environmen
Page 112 and 113:
Table 5.3.1. Comparison of countrie
Page 114 and 115:
Figure 5.3.3. Comparison of types o
Page 116 and 117:
Table 5.3.5. Connections between po
Page 118 and 119:
Table 5.4.1. Who and what are the f
Page 120 and 121:
Table 5.4.3. Young people’s asses
Page 122 and 123:
Figure 5.4.6. Time spent on the con
Page 124 and 125:
Table 5.4.6. The perception of prob
Page 126 and 127:
5.6. Summary To briefly summarize t
Page 128 and 129:
Table 6.2.1. Objective and subjecti
Page 130 and 131:
Figure 6.2.4. Relationship between
Page 132 and 133:
Figure 6.2.7. Difference between th
Page 134 and 135:
Figure 6.3.1. GDP, government secto
Page 136 and 137:
Figure 6.3.3. Employed 15-74-year-o
Page 138 and 139:
Figure 6.3.8. Percentage of social
Page 140 and 141:
References 1. Aaviksoo, A., G. Paat
Page 142 and 143:
Figure 6.4.1. Labour market flexibi
Page 144 and 145:
Figure 6.4.3. Creations of jobs ind
Page 146 and 147:
Figure 6.4.5. Public expenditures o
Page 148 and 149:
Figure 6.4.6. Ratio of the particip
Page 150 and 151:
6.5. Cities as development engines
Page 152 and 153:
Table 6.5.2. Existence of developme
Page 154 and 155:
have been underfinanced or are not
Page 156 and 157:
Table 7.1. Factors that favour and
Page 158 and 159:
Table 7.2. Potential economic devel
Page 160 and 161:
Authors Chapter 1 Ene-Margit Tiit,
Page 162 and 163:
Margit Keller (PhD) is a Senior Res
Page 164 and 165:
Special prizes Estonian Human Devel
Page 166 and 167:
Estonian Human Development Report H
Page 168 and 169:
Estonian Human Development Report H
Page 170 and 171:
Estonian Human Development Report T
Page 172 and 173:
Honorable mentions Estonian Human D
Page 174 and 175:
Estonian Human Development Report P
Page 176 and 177:
Estonian Human Development Report A
Page 178:
Estonian Human Development Report T
show all

Estonian Human Development Report

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?