STADA Health Report 2023: Europeans cut back on fresh food and fear medicine shortages

• Europeans cut back on health spending: 25 percent reduced their expenses for fresh food and sports

• More than 1 in 3 Europeans (39 percent) consider the current supply situation for medicines to be “critical”

• STADA Health Report 2023: Representative survey with over 32,000 respondents from 16 European countries

STADA Health Report: Representative online study by Human8 on behalf of STADA.
Research time frame:
March-April 2023, UZB July 2023.
Sample: around 2,000 respondents each from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Uzbekistan.

Once again, the past year has put Europe to the test – with a series of crises, ranging from war to inflation. This has taken a toll on Europeans, prompting them to prioritize savings, even when it comes to crucial health-related expenses. While alarming, this reaction is not surprising: after all, half of Europeans express concern about their personal finances and 38 percent anticipate a lingering impact from the ongoing economic crisis.

Cutting corners at the expense of our health

The economic climate has forced many to cut back on spending - with serious consequences for crucial everyday investments which are meant to support our health. Europeans have reduced their spending particularly on two essential preventive measures: sports and fresh food (25 percent each). That is not only true for those who are financially struggling (35 percent and 38 percent), but for Europeans without financial problems as well (20 percent and 17 percent).

Looking at the individual countries, people in France (37 percent), the Czech Republic (36 percent) and Germany (33 percent) are saving the most when it comes to fresh food. Among all 16 participating countries, One in five (19 percent) say they are now spending less on vitamins and mineral supplements (VMS), and 15 percent are cutting back on medication. On the other side, 42 percent of Europeans say they have not made any cutbacks at all – especially Uzbekistan (57 percent), the Netherlands (55 percent), the UK (51 percent), Switzerland (49 percent) and Germany (48 percent) say their expenses have not changed in light of the current economic pressures.

Although spending on wellness treatments is considered by some to be less essential to staying healthy, Europeans have had to cut back significantly in this respect as well. One in three Europeans (34 percent) say they have cut back on wellness treatments such as massages or acupuncture.

Europeans are concerned about supply situation for medicines

The opinions about the current medicine supply shortages divide Europe: on average, around two in five Europeans (39 percent) consider the situation as “critical” and almost half (48 percent) as “uncritical”. Just over one in ten (12 percent) are unsure.

Looking at the most concerned countries, Portugal (56 percent), the Czech Republic (53 percent) and Germany (50 percent) stand out. On the other side, Kazakhstan (24 percent), Serbia (27 percent) and the UK (32 percent) are significantly less concerned about the supply situation. Europeans between the ages of 45 to 69 years seem to be the most concerned: 43 percent in this age group consider the situation regarding medicine supply to be “critical”.

About STADA Arzneimittel AG
STADA Arzneimittel AG is headquartered in Bad Vilbel, Germany. The company focuses on a three-pillar strategy consisting of generics, specialty pharma and consumer healthcare products. Worldwide, STADA Arzneimittel AG sells its products in approximately 120 countries. In the financial year 2022, STADA achieved group sales of EUR 3,797.2 million and reported earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of EUR 884.7 million. As of 31 December 2022, STADA employed 13,183 people worldwide.

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