Statistics released by the Federal Statistics Office (FSO) on Thursday mark a jump in the pill-popping habits of Swiss citizens over the past decades. In 1992, 38% of the population took at least one medicine per week; by 2017 it was 50%.
As for types of medication, painkillers are the most frequent – almost one-quarter of the population had consumed them in the week before the 2017 survey, double the 1992 amount.
Next most popular were medicines for hypertension (16%), cholesterol levels (8%), and heart issues (7%). Psychoactive medication usage did not significantly increase, with the exception of anti-depressants.
Though the reasons for the increasing figures are not fully known, the FSO did say that workplace stress could contribute to health and psychological problems. Some 20% of workers experience often or always stress on the job.
This said, the 22,134 Swiss who took part in the 2017 survey were largely happy with their situation: 85% reckoned themselves in good health, while 92% said their quality of life was good. Three-quarters said they were satisfied with their work.
More
More
Opioid painkiller prescriptions surge in Switzerland
This content was published on
Prescription for powerful opioid medication have increased twenty-fold in the last thirty years, a recent study has found.
Bodycams: essential for good law enforcement, or a privacy risk?
Did you ever come across bodycams in your place of residence and if so, how do you think the use of bodycams alter the relationship between the public and (transport) police?
This content was published on
Swiss wheelchair racer Catherine Debrunner won the 5,000 metres to bring home Switzerland’s first gold medal at the Paralympics in Paris.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Medicines: Is Switzerland too rich to save money?
This content was published on
Switzerland could save millions of francs by prescribing low-priced biotech drug copies, known as biosimilars, instead of expensive biologicals.
This content was published on
Older patients are often excluded from clinical trials, with the result that much remains unknown about how they are affected by medications.
This content was published on
Swiss officials seized 1,060 shipments of illegally imported medicines in 2017. There was an increase in illegal imports from Eastern Europe.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.