Sunday,
November 04, 2007
Italians Lifestyles Model For
The
ANNOTICO Report
Italians
lead one of the healthiest lifestyles in
Thanks to Pat Gabriel
ITALIAN LIFESTYLE MODEL
FOR
(ANSA) -
The report, which
collates three years of observations and comparisons by scientists from a
variety of countries, held
Explaining the
results of the study, one of the Italian researchers said
"
"Italians
have halved their alcohol consumption, partly because they now only drink once
a day instead of twice, owing to changes in eating and meal habits.
"Two decades
ago, Italians and French had one of the worst records for cirrhosis of the
liver but there has been a massive reduction over the years".
The study found
that
The study also
noted that just 12 out of 100,000 Italians develop cirrhosis of the liver,
compared to 24 Germans and 96 Hungarians.
According to La Vecchia, the vast majority of such cases are caused by
alcohol abuse or by the quality of the alcohol, for example drinking
out-of-date liquor or moonshine.
Turning to
smoking, the researcher highlighted the "excellent results" of a 2005
Italian law banning smoking in public places.
"Today, the
main problem we face is of people in their fifties and sixties, who started
smoking copious amounts in the 1970s and have not yet stopped," he said.
"People in
their twenties today smoke far less than this older generation used to at the
same age, and by the time they reach their fifties, they will have stopped
altogether.
"We are on
the road to wiping out all smoking". The most recent figures suggest that
33.6% of Italian
men and 27.8% of Italian women smoke.
The survey found
that Swiss men smoked the least, at 16.5%, while Russians smoked the most, at
66.2%. The percentage of smokers was to some extent reflected in the number of
deaths from lung cancer. Around 31 deaths of every 100,000 in
This compares to
42 in
Finally, the
report highlighted the general levels of health enjoyed by Italians, in terms
of a low body mass index (BMI), a fairly active lifestyle and a nutritional and
balanced diet.
La Vecchia stressed the important role played by the Italian
healthcare system in maintaining these standards.
"The Italian
health service may be criticized by everyone but it really is an example, a
global model," he
concluded.
"Individual
incidents come under fire but the most important treatments are available for
everyone, and are
basically provided for free".
The
ANNOTICO Reports Can be Viewed (and are Archived) on:
Italia
Italia
Mia: http://www.ItaliaMia.com (3 years)
Annotico
Email: annotico@earthlink.net