Euskadi has more alcoholics and obese individuals but fewer smokers and chronic disease patients | El Correo

The article reveals a deterioration in perceived health status in the Basque Country, where positive self-perception has significantly declined over two years. Although the region remains slightly above the national average, this subjective decline correlates with concerning objective indicators, such as rising obesity rates and patterns of heavy alcohol consumption. These data suggest that, despite maintaining among the lowest obesity rates in Spain, lifestyle habits are having a real negative impact on the physical well-being of the population. In parallel, a paradoxical transformation in behaviors is observed: while daily physical activity increases and sedentary behavior decreases, other harmful habits such as smoking persist, albeit with a slow decline in prevalence. The survey also highlights greater visibility and diagnosis of chronic diseases, particularly high cholesterol and hypertension, as well as a pronounced gender gap in mental health, with women reporting depressive symptoms more frequently than men. This combination of improvements in exercise and worsening in other factors creates a complex and multifaceted health scenario. This publication is relevant to the open data community because it demonstrates how INE’s open datasets enable the construction of nuanced narratives about public health. By integrating variables such as subjective perception, biological indicators, and sociosanitary habits, open data facilitate the analysis of long-term trends and the identification of demographic inequalities. This empowers researchers and citizens to constructively critique public policies, using information as a tool to promote transparency and continuous improvement of the healthcare system from an evidence-based perspective.

Source: elcorreo.com
Published on 2026-11-13

Euskadi has more alcoholics and obese individuals but fewer smokers and chronic disease patients | El Correo

Related news