We all know that many factors contribute to the health of a population in any given country.
And while many of us are aware that these global health variations exist, a look at the health outcomes of each country’s population reveals the extent of these massive health differences.
If you were asked to write down the one country that you thought was unhealthy I wonder which you would name!
A few came to mind when I was reading an article on the most healthy and unhealthy countries in the world, before I scrolled down the top 10 in each category, but I have to say some of the listed countries did not pop in to my head!
If I said to you the Czech Republic is the least healthy country in the world, according to new research, would you believe me?
Clinic Compare, a clinic comparison website gathered its data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) by analysing alcoholic consumption, tobacco consumption and the prevalence of obesity in 179 countries around the world. The UK came 19th in the list, with Britons also being the 9th heaviest drinkers in the world.
According to the research, the residents of the Czech Republic hit it pretty hard, emerging as some of the world’s biggest boozers.
Each individual reportedly consumes 13.7 litres of alcohol per annum, that’s 550 shots – so 1.5 shots a day. They also ranked 11th highest for tobacco consumption.
Russia came second, followed by Slovenia, Belarus, Slovakia and Hungary.
Eastern Europe came out as the unhealthiest region in the world, occupying nine out of the top 10 spots. The one exception was the US, which ranked 10th in joint place with Lithuania.
As for the world’s fattest region, it’s Oceania, with 41pc of the population in Samoa having a BMI over 30. Fiji, Tonga, Tuvalu and Kiribati were also included in the top 10 list for obesity.
The healthiest country was Afghanistan, boasting the second lowest rate of obesity in the world. Just 2.7pc of the population had a BMI over 30.
Plus, residents only smoked 83 cigarettes a year and drank the least alcohol.
The country’s laws, which forbid the consumption and possession of alcohol probably have something to do with this.
Guinea was named the second healthiest country, followed by Niger and Nepal, none of whom rival the drinking culture perpetuated in Eastern European countries.
And in another article, researchers from 24/7 Wall St. reviewed health factors such as life expectancy, maternal and infant mortality rates, and the incidence of tuberculosis and identified the healthiest and least healthy countries.
And guess which country was named the number one healthiest? Iceland!
The small nation of Iceland ranks as the healthiest country in the world. It performs better than most nations in life expectancy, infant and maternal mortality, and incidence of diseases like tuberculosis.
Health spending is quite high in Iceland, with the equivalent of $4,662 per capita spent on health care. Iceland has a state-funded, universal health care system and citizens are required by law to register with a physician, which may further increase the frequency with which residents receive preventative care.
Iceland was followed by Japan at number two and Italy as third healthiest in the world!
The UAE, came in at number seven. Though life expectancy at birth in the country is about a year and a half shy of life expectancy in the US, the rate of women who die giving birth is less than half the rate of 14 deaths per 100,000 live childbirths in the US.
Healthy outcomes in the UAE are largely the result of healthy behaviours. UAE residents are far less likely to drink to excess than those in nearly every other country on this list.
Partially because alcohol is heavily restricted, annual per capita alcohol consumption is equal to only 1.8 litres in UAE. In comparison, Americans consume an average of 8.8 litres of alcohol annually.