Brussels, 02/05/2005 (Agence Europe) - The first detailed results of a European survey of health, ageing and retirement in Europe (SHARE) were presented on 28 April in Brussels. The EU European Commission DG Research Programme was awarded €2.9 million over three years, the US “National Institute on Ageing” and several national agencies, provided collected data on life circumstances of around 22 000 European citizens aged 50 and over in 11 countries, ranging from Scandinavia to the Mediterranean. The objective was to establish reliable data for researchers and decision-makers working in public health, the economy and social sciences. Project coordinator Professor Axel Börsch-Supan (University of Mannheim, Germany) affirmed that, “Northern Europeans are healthier and wealthier …but that this does not translate into corresponding mortality differences…people in the South of Europe live longer”. Mr Börsch-Supan explained that, “Old Europe” has the highest proportion of older citizens of any continent, and the population ageing process will continue for the better part of this century”. Therefore, about 16% of the European Union's pre-enlargement Member States are aged 65 or over, but many expect this to almost double to 28% by 2050. The main conclusions of the investigation arte as follows: 1) health: there is a strong relation between health behaviour and socioeconomic status. For instance, depression is more frequent among persons with low income, particularly in the northern countries of Europe; 2) employment: in countries where early retirement is allowed and/or is generous (typically Southern countries, but also Austria and France) - there is no clear relation between health insurance and health: the prevalence of receipt of disability benefits among those aged 50-64 varies dramatically across the 11 countries, from 16% in Denmark to 3% in Greece; good working conditions translate into fewer cases of early retirement: quality of work is strongly linked to well-being; low quality jobs causes poor health and depression; 10% of 65-74 year olds work voluntarily. The Dutch are the most active with 25% doing voluntary work, followed by the Swedes and Danish. On the other hand, Spain and Greece have fewer than 4% declaring that they do voluntary work throughout the age range; 3) family and social networks: family unity between generations remains solid, and the potential for everyday support is high all across Europe, particularly in the South. About a third of the persons aged 65 and over reported that they spent time looking after others or grandchildren: in the North, parents give in the South, they receive: 28% of senior citizens said that they had given or received more than EUR 250 over the past twelve months; 4) economic status: poverty is often mitigated by non-financial resources. For example living in the same household or same building, remains an important solidarity mechanism, not only in Southern countries but also in Germany.
(http: //http://www.share-project.org/launch )