IBGE, the Brazilian bureau of statistics, released today the 2008 edition of its Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios (Pnad), a reduced version of the census. In my latest post I quoted an economist who, based on this report’s data, concluded that Blacks have consistently improved their financial situation in the last 15 years. The statistics published today highlight the state of the country’s health.

These are the main conclusions:

• 77.3% of the interviewees consider themselves healthy or very healthy (this percentage is higher in the upper classes). Only 3.8% said their health was bad or very bad.

• On the other hand, 11.2 million people over 14 informed they have physical limitations. For them, it is difficult to walk 100 meters (328 feet) or to go to the bathroom by themselves. This is a slightly growing trend that affects 7.5% of all men and 9.1% of women. Among the elder population, 27% face that type of restriction.

• 31.3% had at least one chronic disease diagnosed and 5.9% had three or more. This numbers were higher in richer families. The most common: hippertension (14%), column diseases (13.5%), arthritis or rheumatism (5.7%), bronchitis or asthma (5%), depression (4.1%), cardiac condition (4%) and diabetes (3.6%). 8.1% of the population over 35 had diabetes

• 95% inform that, when they needed health care, either public or private, they could be seen by a doctor in their first attempt. IBGE doesn’t mention this, but it is highly probable that they spent many hours in the waiting room of public clinics. 85% considered the service either good or very good (most of the times, they visited a posto de saúde (a small clinic, not a hospital)

• 27.5 million families were registered in Saúde da Família, a national health care program focused on families, not individuals, and promoted by multidisciplinary teams, including community health agents

• 26.3% had a private health plan (either paid by themselves or their employers). But note this: while 35.6% of the families in the Southeast (region that includes Rio and São Paulo) and 30% of those in the South have access to private health, only 13.3% of the population of the Northeast (Bahia, Pernambuco and other states) and 13.2% in the North (that includes the Amazon region) had that benefit.

• Only half of Brazilian women (54%, more precisely) have an annual mammogram. In 2003, this percentage was even smaller, 42.5%

• 88.5% visited the dentist at least once in their lives.

• 19 million Brazilians stopped smoking daily (although they might smoke occasionally)

• 75.2 million people watch TV for at least three hours a day and 16.2 million used a computer for the same period

• 3.7 million said they were the victims of some form of violence in 2008 and 660 thousand needed health care because of that

• Only 73.2% of those who drive or use the front passenger seat wear a seat belt. 4.8 million people were involved in some traffic accident in 2008.