They do little physical activity, eat little fruit and vegetables and 4 out of 10 are struggling with the balance, especially moving forward with age. So much so that, among the over 65s, weight problems affect almost 6 out of 10 people.
It is the photograph of the Italian adult and elderly population taken by the 2016-2019 Silver Steps and Steps surveillance systems, coordinated by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS) and aimed at monitoring and preventing health risk factors.
As for the 18-69 age group, 40% are excess weight, of which 3 are overweight and one obese. Just one in 10 consumes the amount of fruit and vegetables recommended by the guidelines for proper nutrition, or 5 portions per day.
Sedentary lifestyle is more frequent with advancing age, among women and among people with a more disadvantaged socio-economic status or with a low level of education. In some southern regions the share of sedentaries abundantly exceeds 50% of the population (Basilicata and Campania). As for alcohol, one in six adults consume it at risk. Furthermore, the number of smokers is still high: one Italian out of 4, between 18 and 69 years old, does not give up cigarettes. Percentage that goes down with age and drops to 10% among over 65s.
This publication of data, the authors underline, "takes place after the difficult months of Covid-19 and is the sign of an important commitment by the prevention departments in the area, even at this time of particular difficulty on the health system".
