People under 30 in Austria are most psychologically stressed

2023-11-30 12:05:02

Reinhard Raml from the market research institute IFES explained this on Thursday in Vienna at the presentation of the Austrian Health Report on behalf of the pharmaceutical company Sandoz. Younger people are more likely to be exhausted and feel uncomfortable in their own bodies. What they want is more digitalization in the health sector.

The Austrian Health Report 2023 shows that the health of the overall population has continued to deteriorate – even though the pandemic has been overcome. There is still a situation “that can be described as ‘land under’,” said Raml. Around two thirds (65 percent) rate their general health as very good or good. That is less than 70 percent in the previous year and significantly less than in the period before the Covid pandemic. 16 percent are not at all satisfied with the health system and only 45 percent are very satisfied. “We have never had such a bad result,” reported the IFES managing director.

Reasons cannot be completely narrowed down

A total of 1,003 people were surveyed, 363 of whom were 16 to 19 year olds, which roughly corresponds to the so-called Generation Z. 29 percent of this younger age group rate their mental health as very good or good, compared to 63 percent of those ages 30 to 44, 60 percent of those ages 45 to 59, and 80 percent of people ages 60 and older. This means that the mental health of Generation Z is visibly below the average for the population, reported Raml. 15 percent of younger people even describe their mental health as very bad or poor.

The reasons for the increased psychological stress on Generation Z cannot be completely pinpointed; the changed media landscape may be a contributing factor, said Raml. The people in this generation are “always on” or “digital natives,” explained HR manager Klaudia Aldjic, who was named “Top Voice Next Generation” by the LinkedIn platform. Younger people constantly have information about crises available on their smartphones, and there is “uncertainty and fear of the future.” However, there are no studies that prove that certain media usage causes mental illness, emphasized Christina Breil from the Institute for Health Promotion and Prevention (IfGP).

Providing health information is important

It is important to provide health information – “quality assured, easily accessible, user-friendly and target group-specific,” recommended Breil. “Generation Z is a generation that is very interested. We should take advantage of this opportunity,” said Sandoz CEO Peter Stenico. For example, 50 percent of younger people consider the introduction of pharmacy delivery services to be very important or important and 80 percent want health data and more at the touch of a button. A few days ago, the government announced a digitalization offensive in the health sector and the development of a health app. “It is important that you have one page where everything is stored centrally,” Aldjic advised against individual “island solutions”.

The doctor Arshang Valipour called for health literacy and a healthy lifestyle to be promoted through prevention programs starting in kindergarten and school. Exercise and a healthy diet reduce illnesses including psychological problems, Alzheimer’s and cancer. “The more we sit, the sooner we die,” he summarized briefly. He recommended 150 minutes of exercise per week, regular sleep and moderate to no alcohol consumption. Austria is also almost at the bottom of the list in Europe when it comes to smoking cessation programs. “The work-life balance also has an impact on our psychological well-being,” emphasized Valipour.