Health in Switzerland

Health in Switzerland relates to a variety of issues. Namely, water and sanitation, diet and fitness, various addictions, mental fitness, communicable diseases, hygiene and the environment.

In the 2023 OECD "Health at a Glance" report, Switzerland's health statistics indicate several advantages relative to the OECD averages. The country records a life expectancy of 83.9 years, which is 3.6 years higher than the OECD average. Its preventable mortality rate is 94 per 100,000 people, which is below the OECD average of 158 per 100,000. The treatable mortality rate in Switzerland, at 39 per 100,000, is also below the OECD average of 79 per 100,000. Additionally, 3.9% of the Swiss population reports their health as bad or very bad, less than the OECD average of 7.9%. The prevalence of diabetes in Switzerland is lower than the OECD average. Switzerland performs better than the OECD benchmarks on 95% of the health indicators analyzed.

A new measure of expected human capital calculated for 195 countries from 1990 to 2016 and defined for each birth cohort as the expected years lived from age 20 to 64 years and adjusted for educational attainment, learning or education quality, and functional health status was published by The Lancet in September 2018. Switzerland had the twelfth highest level of expected human capital with 25 health, education, and learning-adjusted expected years lived between age 20 and 64 years. According to a study conducted by Swiss insurance company CSS in 2023, about one third of the Swiss "feel unhealthy or ill".

Risk factors
In 2023, Switzerland exhibits a smoking prevalence of 19.1%, higher than the OECD average of 16.0%. The country's alcohol consumption per capita is closely aligned with the OECD average, at 8.5 litres compared to the OECD's 8.6 litres. Obesity prevalence in Switzerland is notably lower, at 11.3%, compared to the OECD average of 18.4%. Moreover, Switzerland reports fewer deaths from air pollution, with 16 deaths per 100,000 population, versus the OECD average of 28.9. Overall, Switzerland performs better than the OECD average in 90% of the health risk factors reviewed.

Health system resources
In 2023, Switzerland's health system investment notably exceeds OECD averages, with a per capita expenditure of $8049, significantly higher than the OECD's average of $4986 (USD PPP). This expenditure accounts for 11.3% of Switzerland's GDP, compared to the OECD average of 9.2%. The country also has a higher density of healthcare professionals, with 4.4 practicing doctors and 18.4 practicing nurses per 1,000 population, above the OECD averages of 3.7 and 9.2, respectively. Switzerland's hospital bed capacity stands at 4.4 per 1,000 population, on par with the OECD average of 4.3. Switzerland performs better than the OECD standard in 55% of assessed health indicators.

Mental illness
It is estimated that one out of six persons in Switzerland suffers from mental illness. Other studies estimate that between 20 and 30 per cent of the population suffers from clinical psychological disorders. The annual cost for brain disorders is CHF15 billion ($13.7 billion) - more than CHF2,000 per person according to Swiss medical sources (2008).

Switzerland has the highest rate of psychiatrists per population in the OECD (Iceland has half as many psychiatrists as in Switzerland and is ranked second).

According to study, people working in healthcare or hospitality industries are two economic sectors most affected by mental illness.

Patients in psychiatric clinics can be subjected to medication against their will, isolation and restraint. One in four patients in psychiatric services is now hospitalized against their will. "This figure is surprisingly high compared to other European countries" according to Swiss sources.

The percentage of SMEs that are significantly affected by failures due to mental illnesses in 2022 stands at 26%.

Stress
Studies reveal that over 27% of Swiss workers are stressed and nearly 30% of Swiss people say that they are "emotionally exhausted". Health Promotion Switzerland says that job-related stress results in a loss of productivity worth about $6.6 billion per year or 1% of Switzerland's GDP.

Apprentices have been reported to have a high level of stress with 92.4% experiencing stress at work, 53.2% of them often or always.

Anxiety
The most common psychiatric illnesses are anxiety disorders with 710,000 cases (2008)

Migraine
Migraine cases as part of "neurological illnesses" stand at 630,000 cases (2008).

Depression
Around 345,000 people saw a doctor about depression in 2008.

Bipolar
As of 2022, about 80,000 people were diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Schizophrenia
As of 2021, nearly 85,000 people in Switzerland were suffering from schizophrenia.

Sleeping disorders
52% of the Swiss say they have problem sleeping (2022).

Alzheimer
About 150,000 people have Alzheimer in Switzerland (2022). This number is predicted to increase to 315,000 by 2050.

Cancer
Some 23,100 men and 19,650 women were diagnosed with cancer every year between 2013 and 2017, according to a Swiss report; with an increase of 3,350 new cases compared with the previous five-year period (because of an aging population). According to studies, alcohol consumption, smoking and pollution are main factors contributing to cancer.

Internet
On average in 2019, 16–25 years olds spend 4 hours on the internet every day. Between 73,000 and 290,000 people in Switzerland had "problematic" time usage of the internet.

Gambling
Nearly 3% of people in Switzerland gamble excessively spending 122 Swiss Francs per month on average. Over 70 thousand persons were banned from Swiss casinos for excessive gambling in 2020.

Illegal drugs
As of 2017, out of a population of 8 million, Swiss people smoke more than half a million joints per day. The Swiss health office estimates there are 220,000 regular consumers of cannabis in Switzerland despite a legal ban.

Drug use is 14% of men and 6.5% of women between 20 and 24 saying they had consumed cannabis in the past 30 days, and 5 Swiss cities were listed among the top 10 European cities for cocaine use as measured in wastewater. Since the early 90's, when drug use was dramatically increasing in urban areas, Switzerland has pioneered effective drug policies of harm reduction, prevention and treatment, including HAT as well as decriminalisation of recreational cannabis use. With the revision of Swiss federal narcotics regulations in 2008, the medical use of cannabis was also legalised.

The number of opioid-related calls made to Tox Info Suisse, the national poisoning hotline, increased by 177% between 2000 and 2019. During the same period, sales of opioids almost doubled, from 14,300 units sold per 100,000 inhabitants to 27,400, with Fentanyl being the third most sold opioid in Switzerland.

Analysis of Swiss police records suggests that participants in medical drug rehabilitation programs tend to reduce cocaine, cannabis and heroin use, and the need to commit other crimes to buy their drugs, such as shoplifting, burglary or car theft.

Legal pills
An estimated 350,000 people in Switzerland are addicted to sleeping pills. As of a 2022 study, a quarter of the Swiss use painkillers. Overall, the study found 55% Swiss respondents had taken medication in the last week.

Alcoholism
According to official statistics, the percentage of adults drinking alcohol every day has decreased by 50% over the past 25 years, from 20% to 11%. Overall, 82% of the population regularly drinks alcoholic beverages. In 2016, Swiss hospitals treated 11,500 people for alcohol poisoning; about half of the patients were diagnosed as alcoholics. Among those who seek help to quit drinking, the average age is 46; 70% are male.

Smoking
Between 2008 and 2018, the percentage of smokers has remained stable at around 27%.

HIV/AIDS
By the end of 2020, Switzerland had 236 registered HIV new infections (about a third fewer than in 2019, partly because of the COVID-19 pandemic). In 2018, 17,000 people were infected with HIV/AIDS according to official statistics.

Gonorrhea
Switzerland had 4,000 cases of gonorrhea in 2021.

Chlamydia
In 2021, Switzerland had 12,000 cases of chlamydia which is a sexually transmissible disease.

Chemicals

 * Lead poisoning
 * PFAS pollutants have been found in 134 sites in Switzerland (2023).

Carcinogens

 * Asbestos:
 * Glyphosate:
 * Dioxin: High levels of dioxin have been detected in Lausanne in 2021.

Soil contamination
In Switzerland, there are officially 38,000 polluted sites, 4,000 of which represent a real threat to groundwater.

Radiation
According to official study, 5G is not harmful to health. Critics say the study was not conducted in "realistic" conditions however.

In 2023, low-level radioactive were found in a landfill in Solothurn.

Nutrition and obesity
As of 2017, the share of people classified as overweight (body mass index (BMI) 25 to 30) has remained stable at 42% of the population. However, over the last 25 years, the percentage of obese people (BMI>30) has more than doubled, from 5% in 1992 to 11% in 2017.

Sports and fitness
Since 2002 until 2018, the number of people who are physically active has increased from 62% to 76%.

Major causes of death
Between 2013 and 2017, around 9,400 Swiss men and 7,650 women died from cancer every year. This means that around 30% of all male deaths and 23% of all female deaths were due to cancer. Over the past four decades, the number of suicides per 100,000 residents has dropped from 24.9 to 9.5 (2022).