Long and healthy life in Spain
Spain is the country for you if you would like to live a long and healthy life. Several studies places Spain at the top when it comes to quality of life and healthcare. You can live the good life in Spain. Lovely Spanish food make you live longer.
Long and healthy life
The study Global Burden of Disease study predicts that the average lifespan in Spain in 2040 will be 85,8 years. With that, Spain has overtaken Japan. Japan has been in the top spot for many years, but we now have a new winner.
The researchers believe this will happen due to the Spanish lifestyle and diet with a lot of vegetables, whole foods and lots of olive oil. And of course the slower pace of life. The men will, in the prediction, to have a little shorter life expectancy on average due to smoking more and being more overweight than women.
The top five health drivers that explain most of the future trajectory for premature mortality are high blood pressure, high body mass index, high blood sugar, tobacco use, and alcohol use. The authors point to actions such as education, changes in lifestyle and income per capita in order to combat premature mortality.
Great quality of life
There are many surveys placing Spain in the very top of countries with the best quality of life. In the 11th HSBC Expat Explorer survey, 22,000 people from 163 countries that have moved abroad for work have been asked question on lifestyle etc. Spain comes in second place after New Zealand when it comes to climate and quality of life. 8 of 10 say their quality of life is better in Spain than in their home countries. When you look at climate, lifestyle, culture etc Spain always comes in on top but when you add financial factors such as salaries Spain doesn’t do as well.
Efficient Healthcare
Recently, a new rapport was released by Bloomberg where the healthcare systems’ efficiency in 56 countries were measured. The included countries had a life expectancy of at least 70 years, a GDP of $5,000 per capita and a population of at least 5 million people. The efficiency is measured by looking at a country’s spending on healthcare and the population’s lifespan (among other things).
The USA spends almost most on health care, but the average lifespan is less than 80 years. Spain comes in at number three after Hong Kong and Singapore and has an average lifespan of 82.8 years. With that, Spain is the number one country in Europe in regards to health care efficiency.
Spain spends on average 3200 per person on health care per year. In the USA that number is 12000. Out of 56 countries Sweden comes in at spot number 22, UK at 35 and Germany at 45. Second last, we find the USA and at the bottom we find Bulgaria.
Free, universal healthcare for all in Spain
In addition, some researchers see a strong correlation between efficiency and free and universal healthcare. The least efficient system is when the citizens pay via private insurances.
Spain has had free health care for a long time for all residents regardless of citizenship. However, when someone has immigrated to Spain without working and contributing to the system, they have often got the information that they needed private health cover. Now, it is going to become clearer as to what the rules are.
Contributed to the system or not
This summer, the new government communicated that the healthcare will not be linked to contributions but to residency. Also, illegal immigrants will qualify for free health care, on all different levels not only emergency care.
If you are a resident of another EU-country visiting Spain, you need to bring your blue EU-card. That entitles you to free health care should something unexpected happen.
Long and healthy life in Spain
Spain often proudly say that most centenarians live there. But, also other countries claim the same thing, for example Japan. But I am sure we can all agree on that many people live to old age in Spain. Many people live a long and healthy life. In the beginning of 2018 one of the oldest men in Spain died at the age of 113. The oldest woman died in 2024 at the age of 117. One of the oldest was Magdalena Oliver Gabarro, a resident in Catalonia. She was 114 years old.
Best family doctor
Besides having an efficient health sector, Spain is also awarded for excellent patient care. The organization World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) choose the best family doctor in the world every second year and in 2018 Veronica Casado won the award. She works in the Spanish town of Valladolid. She has also conducted research into how to improve the Spanish primary care. She believes the award is for all family doctors in Spain and doesn’t see it as a personal award.
Happy on the beach
We don’t really need a study to confirm what we all already know; the beach and the ocean works wonders for our wellbeing. But there are of course some studies anyway. One found that people living close to the sea rate their wellbeing higher than other people. And even those who only visit a beach once in a while will feel the positive influences; the beach reduces stress, increases creativity, may reduce the feeling of depression, and you may even get a different perspective on life after a stroll on a beach.
In summary it is easy to see that the quality of life in Spain is high. If you spend a lot of time on the beach, eat a Mediterranean diet and refrain from smoking and drinking you can look forward to a long and healthy life in Spain.
