On Tuesday, December 2, the Committee for Public Health, Welfare and Sport met with the Council for Public Health & Society. The independent advisory body for government and parliament was invited by the committee to discuss three recently published reports by the Council on healthy living, aging, and mental health. The meeting was divided into three sessions, one per report. Members of the Council provided explanations about their advice each time.
Planetary Boundaries
The first part concerned the report Too Hot Under Our Feet. As a society, you cannot be healthier than the planet allows, the Council stated. The Council drew the Chambers attention to justice in the transition to healthy living within planetary boundaries: standards in climate and pollution are increasingly not met. The burdens that arise mainly fall on socially vulnerable groups. Think of the consequences of heat stress. Policy considerations should henceforth also take into account the health effects of measures. Currently, economic effects dominate.
The second session concerned the report ‘The Ripple Effect’ on aging. The theme of aging is not new and has the attention of politics, but there are tensions between and within policy domains, according to the Council. Facilities such as libraries must be profitable, yet we want to keep elderly people living at home as long as possible. Social cohesion is important, living environments must be appropriate, and the ideal is that elderly people participate as much as possible. The Council advises looking at aging from a societal perspective, thus considering all generations. A coherent approach and more long-term steering would help.
The third and final session concerned mental health. The report ‘Hit the Brakes!’ states that the mental health of many is under pressure. This affects many people, while the causes of this pressure often transcend the individual. Thus, the solutions partly lie outside the individuals themselves, says the Council. The Council advocates for a socio-cultural change to calm the hyper-nervous society. This way, we can achieve a more relaxed society with fewer mental health problems.
The discussion can be watched again here.