Health in Italy

overview of health in Italy

Italy is known for its generally very good health system. Life expectancy is 80 for males and 85 for females. It is 5th in the world for life expectancy. [2] Iinfant mortality is low. Italy has a lower rate of adult obesity (below 10%[3]) than most Western countries. This is one of the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet.[4] The number of smokers was 22% in 2012, down from 24.4% in 2000 but a bit above the OECD average.[5] Smoking in public places including bars, restaurants, night clubs and offices in only allowed in specially ventilated rooms since 2005.[6]

Olive oil and vegetables are central to the Mediterranean diet.[1]

As with any developed country, Italy has enough water. The levels of nutrition and sanitation are high. Medical care is free under a universal healthcare system, The principle is that healthcare is a human right and should be accessible to everyone regardless of their ability to pay.[7]

Only 379,000 babies were born in Italy in 2023. The average number of children per woman fell to 1.2. There were more than 4.5 million people over the age of 80.[8]

References

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  1. Duarte, A., Fernandes, J., Bernardes, J. & Miguel, G. (2016). "Citrus as a Component of the Mediterranean Diet". Journal of Spatial and Organizational Dynamics. 4: 289–304.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "World Health Statistics 2016: Monitoring health for the SDGs Annex B: tables of health statistics by country, WHO region and globally". World Health Organization. 2016. Archived from the original on 23 June 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  3. "Global Prevalence of Adult Obesity" (PDF). International Obesity Taskforce. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2008.
  4. Dinu, M; Pagliai, G; Casini, A; Sofi, F (10 May 2017). "Mediterranean diet and multiple health outcomes: an umbrella review of meta-analyses of observational studies and randomised trials". European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 72 (1): 30–43. doi:10.1038/ejcn.2017.58. hdl:2158/1081996. PMID 28488692. S2CID 7702206.
  5. "OECD Health Statistics 2014 How Does Italy Compare?" (PDF). OECD. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015.
  6. "Smoking Ban Begins in Italy | Europe | DW.COM | 10 January 2005". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 21 June 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  7. Butticè, Claudio (2019). Universal health care. Health and medical issues today. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood. ISBN 978-1-4408-6844-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  8. "Italy's births drop to historic low". www.ft.com. Retrieved 2024-03-29.