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Unhealthy lifestyles of the poor and rich and how to combat them
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
Wealthy people tend to eat foods that contain proteins and fats, while poor people's diets consist mainly of foods that contain carbohydrates.
Scientists came to this conclusion in a new study after analyzing the diets of people from 17 countries.
On August 26, 2012, at the next congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC), the results of a large study, PURE (Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology study), were published, in which 154,000 people from 628 settlements took part.
The study analyzed data on diet, physical activity and smoking.
The research found that people with low incomes or living in countries with poor economic conditions lead a more active lifestyle, which is associated with greater energy expenditure at work and at home.
It is noteworthy that in developed countries, the lack of physical activity of people at work was not compensated for even by the high level of recreational activity (physical activity of a person in his or her free time).
The smoking situation looked significantly better in high-income countries, where residents quit the habit more often than the poor.
According to Professor Salim Yusuf, director of the cardiology clinic at the University Hospitals of Ontario in Canada and leader of the study, policymakers need to focus on the problem of cardiovascular disease and focus on different aspects of life, as well as on the differences in living conditions between people in rich and poor countries.
The study was conducted in 17 countries under the supervision of the Population Health Research Institute, with support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Indian Council of Medical Research, as well as a number of other organizations and pharmaceutical companies.
"These findings highlight the need for a differentiated approach to health care for rich and poor people within a country, and for countries with different living standards," concluded Professor David Wood, a cardiovascular specialist at the University of London.