Health in Switzerland: big differences between the sexes
The results of the Swiss Health Survey 2022 (SGB22) show clear differences between women and men. Women are more likely than men to report living with at least one chronic illness (55% compared to 44%). Men, on the other hand, are more often overweight or obese (52% compared to 34%) and smoke more often (27% compared to 21%). The new publication by the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) shows that, in addition to biological factors such as gender, socially determined gender roles also influence health and reinforce social inequalities in this respect.
In 2022, women had a life expectancy at birth that was 3.8 years longer than men (85.4 years compared to 81.6 years). However, women's advantage in terms of life expectancy at birth is mitigated by the smaller difference in life expectancy in good health. It is 0.4 years higher than that of men (72.1 years compared to 71.8 years). Women therefore often spend the additional years of life with certain health problems. For example, women are more likely to report limitations in everyday life for at least six months (30% compared to 24%) and are more likely to report suffering from at least one chronic illness (55% compared to 44%) or specific pain such as back or low back pain (50% compared to 40%).
Women are more dissatisfied with their weight
In 2022, half of men (52%) and a third of women (34%) were overweight or obese. Although women are less affected, they are generally more dissatisfied with their body weight than men (28% compared to 23%). This trend is even clearer among the overweight. In 2022, a total of 52% of women and 29% of men were dissatisfied with their weight. Weight is not only influenced by biological factors, but also by gender-specific norms regarding body and corpulence. In society, a slim body for women is considered the norm for beauty and health. For men, on the other hand, a stronger body, which is positively connoted with strength, is the ideal.
Smoking: The difference between women and men is narrowing
The gender gap in smoking has been decreasing for thirty years. It halved from 13 to 6 percentage points between 1992 and 2022. In 2022, women aged between 15 and 24 smoked just as often as men of the same age (26% compared to 25%). The fact that women started smoking later can also be explained by social gender norms. Accordingly, the health consequences of smoking such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer or respiratory diseases only became noticeable later in women.
Women suffer more frequently from mental health problems
In SGB22, more women (12%) than men (8%) reported moderate to severe symptoms of depression. Among 15- to 24-year-olds, the difference is even twice as great (26% of women compared to 13% of men). According to their own statements, women between the ages of 15 and 24 were also significantly more likely to have received treatment for mental health problems in the last twelve months than men (14% compared to 4%).
These gender differences in the risk of developing depression over the course of a lifetime are well known. The differences appear during puberty and persist into old age. They are partly explained by the increased production of sex hormones during puberty, but also partly by gender-specific social factors, in particular psychosocial stress.
Women are more frequently affected by sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace or in public spaces. They are also more exposed to unpaid domestic and family work, which is often invisible and performed in addition to paid work. Gender and/or sexually diverse people are also more susceptible to mental health problems than heterosexual cis women and cis men.
Source: bfs.admin.ch
