Europe Health 2006

Illnesses & treatments

The data on this site is a sample from the vast amount of unique information we have.

Please contact us to find out more.

The most frequently occurring illnesses across the 15 countries we surveyed are high blood pressure, sight problems, obesity and stress – in every case there are significant variations by country. View table

High blood pressure is most prevalent in the CEER countries of Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Russia.  Stress appears to be highest in Poland and Romania. 

When asked about ailments suffered over the past year 63% of people said they’d had backache or muscle pain, and 58% had suffered from a cough, cold or sore throat.  Headaches are also a common complaint amongst all but those in Switzerland and the Czech Republic.

For advice and information about each of the 10 ailments listed, on average, people are most likely to refer to a doctor or pharmacist rather than friends & family, the internet or the media. 

Whilst overall they’re most likely to have purchased over the counter (OTC) treatments for colds/coughs/sore throats, headaches and indigestion there are major variations by country. Use of OTC medicines is by far the highest in the UK.  For example when treating a cough or cold 52% of all UK respondents purchased a remedy over the counter, compared to just 19% in France.  For details of treatment by country for colds/coughs/sore throat. View table

On average across Europe 12% of people who had suffered from coughs/colds/sore throats had tried homeopathic remedies and 9% with backache or muscle pain had visited an alternative health practitioner.

Conclusions for marketers

Not only do the illnesses and ailments differ by country – so do the preferred treatments.