CSS Health Study: Women under heavy psychological strain due to double burden

The CSS Health Survey shows that Swiss people are in worse health compared with the start of the pandemic: in March 2020, 22 percent of respondents said they did not feel entirely healthy. In 2023, this proportion has risen to 34 percent. The increase among seniors is striking: from 30 percent in 2020, the proportion has risen to 46 percent this year. Before and during the pandemic, the number of sick days among seniors was 2.6 per year, well below the average of 3.8. In the year of the increased Corona measures (2021), the figure for seniors dropped to 2.2 days and rose to more than double that in 2023, at 4.5 days.

Exhausted nation

More than two-thirds of those who felt ill reported that they often suffered from fatigue and exhaustion (68%). It is not excluded that the exhaustion is also due to Covid diseases. Pain (48%), infectious diseases (41%), and stress (40%) were also frequently mentioned. The impaired health also affects everyday life: Those affected suffer from sleep problems and lack of exercise, even reduce their social life and suffer from strained relationships.

Shortages of medicines

A good half of the population needed medicines last year. 37 percent of them were affected by supply problems for medicines. Most were able to find equivalent alternatives. For 7 percent of those in need of medication, on the other hand, supply difficulties had a negative impact on treatment.

Mental well-being worst among women (41-50 years)

Mental health is a major challenge for Switzerland: While just under three-quarters of the population was always or mostly well in 2021, only a good two-thirds are still well in 2023. Young adults are still worse off than the rest of the population. However, the mood has brightened slightly: the proportion of young adults who are doing well mentally has risen from 57 to 60 percent. In contrast, a persistent negative trend is evident among adults: Since 2021, the proportion of those who are completely mentally healthy has fallen from 75 to 67 percent. Mental health is worst among women between the ages of 41 and 50. This is the age at which work and family stress are often mixed. Seniors continue to be the most mentally robust.

Seniors are more likely to keep mental health problems to themselves

Out of five respondents, two (39%) do not turn to anyone when they are not feeling well psychologically. It is mainly older people who keep quiet, while younger people find it easier to talk about problems. This contrasts with how mental health problems are handled in the workplace. 40 percent of young adults have already stayed away from work at some point because of their mental health, while among adults the figure is much lower at 23 percent. Of all respondents, only 45 percent openly communicated the reasons for staying away from work, 40 percent put forward another reason, and the rest did not give a reason. Young adults are particularly likely to give a false reason, at 51 percent. Possibly because mental illness is associated with reduced performance.
Young adults struggle to find professional support
38 percent of those who are mentally unwell said they had sought professional help. However, a majority of 62 percent do not seek support from a psychiatrist or psychologist in this situation. However, not everyone who seeks professional help finds the support they need. For just under half of those surveyed, this proved difficult.

Young adults in particular, who are often unwell anyway, are more likely to struggle to get professional support. It is also more difficult for people who are in an acute mental crisis to find a place in therapy.

More flexibility at work reduces stress

How does work affect our mental well-being? A large majority of the Swiss population (70 percent) considers a mental illness due to performance stress to be a threat to health. Contrary to the assumption that the spatial and temporal flexibilization of the working world leads to more pressure, three out of four employed respondents assess the flexibilization at work as positive. It has a relieving effect: work can be adapted to one's own form of the day and to private matters. This positive perception is somewhat more widespread among women, who still take on more care work today, than among men.

Quality of life is more important than a long life

If the population had to choose between a long life, a fulfilling life or a healthy life, only 2 percent would choose a long life. For 54 percent, a fulfilling life comes first, for 44 percent it is health. For seniors, health is more important compared to fulfillment. Interestingly, people who are (more likely) ill also consider a fulfilling life to be the most important aspect of their lifetime.

Great reservations about monetization of lifetime
The rapid development of innovative medicines has meant that many patients who were once considered terminally ill now have a chance of being cured or at least having their lives extended. But these advances in medicine also bring ethical and financial challenges. 45 percent of respondents were unwilling to pass judgment on what the maximum price per year for life-prolonging drugs should be. 71 percent who expressed an opinion on this question are of the opinion that life-prolonging drugs should not increase premiums by more than an additional 40 francs per month.

The detailed health study can be found here:

css-hallo-leben-studie-2023-de (1)

About the study

The CSS Health Study has been examining how the Swiss population is doing since 2020. It is conducted by the Sotomo research institute. 2,432 people in German-, French- and Italian-speaking Switzerland were surveyed. The age groups surveyed are divided into young adults (18 - 35 years old), adults (36 - 65 years old) and seniors (over 65 years old).