Self-rated state of health

Recommended by the EU and included in the MEHM (Minimum European Health Module, a module incorporated into European health surveys), this indicator is very well known and used. It covers various areas concerning health (physical, mental and social). Many longitudinal studies have shown that it is a very good predictor of mortality or serious illness. It is thus a good synthetic indicator of the population’s health as it rather subjectively reflects the overall quality of life of individuals implicitly.

The proportion of persons saying that they are in good to very good health varies in a statistically significant way by migration status. Persons from the first generation have the lowest rate (81%), followed by those without a migration background (86%). With a rate of 88%, the second or subsequent generations were more likely to say that they were in good or very good health. This is partly explained by the fact that the population with a migration background from the second or subsequent generations is younger than that without a migration background and the first generation.

From 2012 to 2019, the proportion of persons who said that they were in good to very good health significantly increased in most population groups. This increase was not statistically significant in the population with a migration background from the second or subsequent generations. The population with a migration background from the first generation saw the greatest increase (+2.5 percentage points).

In most cantons, the proportion of people without a migration said more often they were in good to very good health than the population with a migration background. This difference is nonetheless only statistically significant in the cantons of Bern, Lucerne, Glarus, Zug, St. Gallen, Ticino and Valais.