HONG KONG, 29 May 2018 – AIA Group (“AIA”) today launched the AIA Healthy Living Index Survey (“The Survey”), the fourth edition since 2011, which highlights the prevailing health trends, motivations and concerns for individuals and communities across the Asia-Pacific region.
Overall, people’s satisfaction with their health and habits has declined since the previous AIA Healthy Living Index in 2016. Eighty-one per cent of respondents are satisfied with their health, down slightly from 84 per cent in 2016.
A key insight emerging from the survey is that most respondents believe that environmental factors are adversely affecting their health. In particular, air pollution was cited as the number one environmental concern affecting people’s health in all but three of the 16 markets that took part in the survey.
On the subject of the environment:
- 62 per cent of people on a regional basis think that air pollution is affecting their health.
- In Hong Kong, 72 per cent think that air pollution is having a negative impact on their health. Food safety is also a concern (59 per cent), particularly among those over 45 years of age (63 per cent). Those between 30-44-years old are more likely than others to be concerned about poor sanitation standards (48 per cent).
- When asked what actions people have taken to mitigate the effects of environmental degradation, people in the Asia-Pacific region are most likely to say that they have tried wearing anti-pollution masks (43 per cent) – including 76 per cent who have done so in Taiwan and 73 per cent in Cambodia.
- People in mainland China are taking the lead in taking action to reduce the impact of environmental pollution on their health, through ways such as using an air purifier (52 per cent) and checking pollution levels before going out (37 per cent).
- Food safety was cited by a majority in mainland China (72 per cent) and Vietnam (70 per cent) as a primary concern.
Among other findings of note:
- Only 62 per cent rate themselves positively on the amount of exercise they are getting, and only 60 per cent are satisfied with the frequency of their medical check-ups – both down nine percentage points from 2016.
- Technology is proving a positive force for change. Most people (68 per cent of all respondents) consider health and activity tracking technology to be easy to use and 65 per cent think these devices motivate positive changes in behaviour. That said, one in three (37 per cent) who have tried such trackers have stopped using them.
- Across the region, 50 per cent of people are concerned about the potential costs of critical illness. When asked to estimate the cost of treatment for cancer they expect they would have to bear, 46 per cent estimate an amount that would have serious financial implications for them.
Commenting on the Survey, Stuart A. Spencer, Group Chief Marketing Officer, AIA, said:
“Of particular interest from the 2018 HLI survey is the concern people in our region have regarding the impact of the environment on their health. Clean air and safe water, food and sanitation are basic requirements needed for a healthy life. The adoption of actions designed to address environmental issues in the Asia-Pacific region will be crucial in helping to combat non-communicative diseases which are linked to up 60 per cent of deaths worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation*. This percentage rises substantially in many markets around the Asia-Pacific region.
The AIA Healthy Living Index surveyed 11,000 adults in 16 of our markets and was commissioned by AIA and conducted by IPSOS, a leading consumer research company. For more details, please visit Whitepaper (aia.com)
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About the AIA Healthy Living Index
The 2018 AIA Healthy Living Index is the fourth Asia-Pacific wide survey on health and wellbeing AIA has conducted since 2011.
The survey findings highlight prevailing health trends and indicate areas in which individuals and communities can move towards sustaining more healthy lifestyles.
The Asia-Pacific region is experiencing rapid growth in demand for quality healthcare that outstrips the development of resources and infrastructure. This phenomenon is creating significant opportunities for innovative technology and healthcare funding solutions to improve the quality and availability of care across the region.
For the 2018 Index we carried out surveys among 11,000 adults in 16 of our markets — Australia, Cambodia, mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Korea, Macau, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
In addition to producing the AIA Healthy Living Index itself, which measures consumers’ satisfaction with their health and wellness behaviours, the 2018 Survey had several additional objectives. In each market, we wanted to find out:
- How the issue of financing healthy activities and medical treatment affects people’s ability to live healthily;
- What motivates people to adopt healthy behaviours, what factors make it hard for them to sustain them, and how they can make sustainable changes to adopt a more healthy lifestyle;
- What role technology is playing in people’ attempts to adopt healthier habits.
About AIA
AIA Group Limited and its subsidiaries (collectively “AIA” or the “Group”) comprise the largest independent publicly listed pan-Asian life insurance group. It has a presence in 18 markets in Asia-Pacific – wholly-owned branches and subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, New Zealand, Macau, Brunei, Cambodia, a 97 per cent subsidiary in Sri Lanka, a 49 per cent joint venture in India and a representative office in Myanmar.
The business that is now AIA was first established in Shanghai almost a century ago in 1919. It is a market leader in the Asia-Pacific region (ex-Japan) based on life insurance premiums and holds leading positions across the majority of its markets. It had total assets of US$216 billion as of 30 November 2017.
AIA meets the long-term savings and protection needs of individuals by offering a range of products and services including life insurance, accident and health insurance and savings plans. The Group also provides employee benefits, credit life and pension services to corporate clients. Through an extensive network of agents, partners and employees across Asia-Pacific, AIA serves the holders of more than 30 million individual policies and over 16 million participating members of group insurance schemes.
AIA Group Limited is listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited under the stock code “1299” with American Depositary Receipts (Level 1) traded on the over-the-counter market (ticker symbol: “AAGIY”).
AIA Group Contacts
| Stephen Thomas | +852 2832 6178 |
| Allister Fowler | +852 2832 1978 |
| Emerald Ng | +852 2832 4720 |
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