Our Health and Wellbeing Profile 2020 has revealed the following statistics about health and wellbeing in our city.
- Just under half of local adults surveyed engaged in the recommended amount of physical activity, which is 30 minutes or more, four days a week.
- The pandemic led to more people riding bikes for recreation across Melbourne, with weekend numbers growing by more than 50 per cent from February to May 2020.
- In November, after the Heath and Wellbeing Profile was published, weekend bike riding numbers were found to be more than three times the pre-COVID baseline.
- The proportion of local residents who produce or preserve and consume their own food is rising, with an increase from 58.9 per cent in 2019 to 61.4 per cent in 2020.
- The proportion of residents who reported experiencing food insecurity increased from 25.8 per cent in 2019 to 32.9 per cent in 2020. To find out how to access healthy, fresh food in Melbourne, check out our Community Food Guide.
- Only seven per cent of adults surveyed consumed the recommended two serves of fruit and three serves of vegetables each day. However, this was up from four per cent in 2019.
Do you need support?
The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened a number of existing health and wellbeing challenges in our community, including mental health, social isolation, alcohol and drug use, food security and family violence.
If you need support, contact Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 for short-term counselling and referrals, or Lifeline on 13 11 14 for 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention services.
To find out more interesting facts, visit Health and Wellbeing Profile.
