The Instituto Nacional de Estadística published the results of the Encuesta de Salud de España for 2025. According to the press release, 68.3 per cent of Spain’s population rated their health over the previous twelve months as “good” or “very good”; that is 5.8 percentage points fewer than in 2023. At the same time, a significantly higher share of people aged 15 and over—66.2 per cent—said they had at least one chronic illness; in 2023, the figure was 57.7 per cent. These figures come explicitly from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística and are considered representative of Spain.
The distribution is uneven: women reported a higher prevalence of chronic illnesses (70.9 per cent) than men (61.4 per cent). The most common diagnoses include high cholesterol (21.1 per cent), high blood pressure (20.0 per cent) and chronic back pain (17.8 per cent). In addition, 16.2 per cent of respondents aged 15 and over reported symptoms of depression in the two weeks before the survey, an increase of 1.6 points on 2023.
At the same time, use of healthcare services increased: 26.5 per cent had visited a GP in the four weeks before the survey, and 17.8 per cent had seen a specialist; 7.8 per cent had been admitted to hospital in the previous twelve months, and 32.1 per cent said they had visited the emergency department at least once. These increases on 2023 point to growing demand for care.
Preventive measures present a mixed picture: the flu vaccination rate among people aged 65 and over fell to 64.0 per cent (2023: 67.0 per cent), while screening tests such as mammograms and stool tests for early detection of bowel cancer increased. Overall, more than half of adults reported overweight and obesity, an indicator of long-term health challenges.
The Instituto Nacional de Estadística notes that the data are based on self-reports; detailed tables by region and age group accompany the report. The findings provide a basis for policy and health planning in Spain in the face of a growing burden of chronic illness.
Editor: Clara Simonichek (Article created with AI assistance).