7.1 General context
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Main trends in the health conditions of young people
Health conditions of young people in Luxembourg are good. The youth report (MENJE & UL, 2021) reveals that the majority of young people have a positive perception of health. However, differences are identified based on socio-demographic characteristics. For instance, boys and young men rate their health better than girls and young women; adolescents with a low social status rate their health somewhat worse than average. Accordingly, adolescents with a low social status more often perceive themselves as to fat, complain more often about heath issues, depressive symptoms and are more often diagnosed with mental illnesses. With regard to mental health, psychosomatic complaints are reported more frequently among girls and young women, adolescents with low social status and adolescents aged between 15 and 17 years compared to boys and young men, as well as adolescents with high social status and adolescents in other age groups.
Health of young people has improved in recent years and more young people rate their health as 'excellent' compared to 15 years ago. The positive trend is also reflected in changes in individual behaviour, such as the decline in bullying, the reduced alcohol and tobacco consumption, the increase in healthy eating and improved oral hygiene. Other improvements relate to the social environment: more pupils are able to talk to their parents about their concerns. Despite these positive trends, problems and risks have increased in some areas. Current data show increased numbers of young people who are overweight, a decrease in physical activities and an increase in psychosomatic complaints. In addition, school stress has continuously increased in recent years, especially among girls. In an international comparison, Luxembourgish young people are usually in the upper midfield in terms of subjective assessments of their well-being and health. The trends regarding the change in physical and mental health assessments and behaviour are largely similar to international trends and developments in the neighbouring countries.
Mortality is another important health indicator. In Luxembourg, injuries (80%) are the most frequent cause of mortality among adolescents (15-24 years of age, yearly average between 2005 and 2015). Other types of diseases are of much lower importance: tumours (7%), diseases of the central nervous system (4%), diseases of the circulatory system (3%), and other causes (6%) (Direction of Health, 2017).
Road accidents and suicides are the most frequent causes of death by injury (68%), a statistic that proves risk behaviour and mental problems to be very prevalent in young people in Luxembourg. Both factors can lead to serious consequences. The risk of death caused by injury is three times higher for men than for women. According to the report, there was no significant change in the number of deaths caused by injuries between 2002 and 2010. This may be due to the small absolute number of cases (Direction of Health, 2015).
Main concepts
There are no country-specific concepts related to health and well-being.