Eight out of ten Indians perceive themselves to be healthy

Eight out of ten Indians perceive themselves to be healthy: Bupa Health Pulse 

The third edition of international survey released by Max Bupa reveals emerging health concerns and attitude of people across 13 countries
 

Top findings:

·       Self perception of health is very high

·       Diabetes is the top most health worry among Indians, ahead of heart diseases

·       Increasing number of Indians are using internet for health related advice. Over nine in ten (92%) Indians interviewed seek some kind of medical advice online
 

New Delhi, July __, 2013: 80% of online Indian adults consider themselves to be healthy, according to the third edition of Bupa Pulse, a global research study conducted across 13 countries between January and December last year. The research also reveals that 78% smokers and 76% or regular drinkers perceive themselves as healthy, while 57% respondents feel they  were more healthier as a child than their children are, in general, these days.
 

According to the survey, Diabetes is the biggest health concern amongst Indians. While 32% respondents perceive diabetes as the top health worry, 26% of them cite heart disease as a major health concern followed by stroke at 12%. The overall awareness about diabetes is highest among people between the age group of 25-44 years but only 32% of Indians aged between 18-24 years are most worried about diabetes and its health impact. 51% of people interviewed around the world recognize genetics as a key risk factor in the development of diabetes, with this being the strongest pre-determined risk factor. Almost one third of the people globally did not recognize that being overweight as a key risk factor.
 

The survey also shows increasing dependence on the internet amongst people across countries to address their healthcare concerns. 87% of online adults globally use the internet to search for advice about their health and medical conditions. China emerged as the most internet or digital savvy country at 96% followed by India at 92%, where people also admitted to have expressed positive healthcare experience on social media. Globally, 45% of respondents would like to chat with doctors and medical professionals online, with Brazil at 61% and India at 41%.
 

Manasije Mishra, Chief Executive, Max Bupa said, “Through the Bupa Pulse survey, Since the last three years we have been have been studying people’s health attitudes and anticipated health trends globally and in India to comprehend their health concerns and how they are accessing health information and services. Over the years, people across the globe and especially in India, are becoming more aware about their health. It is our endeavour to help our customers become more informed and engage in managing their health and health costs better through the safety net of health insurance.”
 

The survey shows that perception of being healthy increases with income. In India, 74 percent of adults with a household income of less than Rs 3 lakh consider themselves to be healthy, this increases to 80 percent for people with household income between Rs 3-5 lakh. This further increases to 82 percent of respondents with household income between Rs 5-15 lakh and is the highest at 88 percent for respondents with income over Rs 15 lakh.
 

23% of the respondents in India with a poor diet cite lack of time due to work commitments as the primary barrier in improving one’s diet, followed by liking unhealthy food too much at 20%. The current biggest issues that have a negative impact on the health of people in India are high levels of stress (28%), unhealthy diets (22%), low levels of physical activity (18%), obesity (13%) and high rate of smoking (9%).

Note to the editors:
 

About Bupa Health Pulse: Bupa Health Pulse is Bupa’s annual international healthcare survey. The survey looks at people's attitudes towards their health and healthcare across 13 countries around the world. It explored how people are engaging with medical professionals and accessing health information and services, to try to identify the key opportunities and barriers to patients becoming better informed and more engaged in managing their health.
 

Technical notes: Ipsos MORI interviewed 14,528 members of the general public, aged 18+, across 13 countries in 2012. These were Great Britain (2,024), USA (1,003), Australia (1,204), New Zealand (1,008), Egypt (1,068), Saudi Arabia (1,179), Thailand (1,003), Mexico (1,017), Hong Kong (1,004), Brazil (1,000), India (1,011), China (1,002) and Spain (1,005). Some data was weighted to ensure views were based on a nationally representative audience in each country.