Poles are increasingly leaving the labor market due to lifestyle-related diseases, while addictions—poorly addressed by the state—continue to worsen the nation’s health. Experts warn that rising cardiovascular risks, depression, obesity, and addiction require modern solutions, as restrictions and prohibitions have failed to deliver results. Experiences from other countries show that one effective method of reducing health risks is harm reduction.
“We are currently facing an epidemic of lifestyle diseases. Unfortunately, Poland is among the highest-risk countries in Europe. Atherosclerosis and its consequences—coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral artery disease—as well as diabetes and obesity are widespread. These are the main health challenges of our time,” said Dr. Małgorzata Jasiewicz, cardiologist and assistant professor at the Department of Cardiology and Internal Diseases at Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, in an interview with Newseria.
Obesity, smoking, alcohol abuse, sedentary lifestyles, and mental health issues are major risk factors for lifestyle diseases. They negatively impact the cardiovascular system and increase the risk of cancer. These factors—especially the combination of obesity, smoking, and inactivity—are responsible for the growing share of preventable deaths.
According to the NIPH–NIH report Health Situation of the Polish Population and Its Determinants 2025, two-thirds of deaths among people under 75 are linked to preventable causes. Cardiovascular diseases and malignant cancers accounted for more than 60 percent of all deaths in 2023.
“In 2022, out of nearly 460,000 deaths, about 160,000 were caused by cardiovascular diseases—80,000 heart attacks and 78,000 strokes. This also affects the number of people dropping out of the labor market. When disease begins after age 40, we see a high number of years lived with disability,” Dr. Jasiewicz explained.
Poland’s DALY rate (disability-adjusted life years), which measures years lost due to premature death or disability, is significantly higher than in Western European countries. Prevention is key, yet—as the expert notes—even a heart attack or severe illness does not always lead to improved diet or more physical activity.
“We see, for example, that about 40 percent of people remain obese. We know obesity is a chronic disease and difficult to treat—medications may now be a game changer. But when it comes to recommended physical activity, like 30 minutes a day, around 55–60 percent of people remain inactive. And about 55 percent of smokers continue smoking. This shows how difficult it is to change habits and break addictions,” said the cardiologist.
Poland is among the European leaders in childhood and adolescent obesity. According to WHO COSI data, one in three young children in Poland is overweight, and 15 percent of eight-year-olds are obese. The number of suicides, although falling below 5,000 in 2024 for the first time since 2020 (4,845, a drop of 7.4% year-on-year), remains high. Lack of physical activity and poor diet further increase cardiovascular risk. Proper prevention—from smoking reduction to exercise, sleep hygiene, and weight control—can extend life expectancy by as much as a decade and sharply reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
“It is extremely difficult to change habits, even after a serious condition like a heart attack. We need a different approach—focusing on achievable goals. Trying to change everything at once often fails because it is too difficult. It must be done step by step, gradually, even one element at a time,” said the expert from Nicolaus Copernicus University.
Experts emphasize that traditional educational campaigns and prohibitions are insufficient because people with addictions will always find ways to obtain substances that help them regulate emotions. Countries that have achieved the greatest success in reducing smoking—such as Denmark and the United Kingdom—have implemented broad harm reduction strategies, including alternative nicotine products with significantly lower health risks. Experts believe a similar approach in Poland could reduce the number of heart attacks, strokes, and deaths. Controlled drinking programs, for example, already exist in Polish addiction treatment centers, as do harm-reduction programs for opioids. However, there are no such initiatives for smoking.
“The carcinogenic effects come mainly from combustion products, which also drive atherosclerosis. If we cannot persuade a patient to quit smoking entirely, we should reduce the harm by recommending less harmful alternatives—such as heat-not-burn products or oral tobacco like nicotine pouches. Evidence shows this approach works, especially in Denmark and the UK, where smoking rates have dropped to 5 percent—an official target—and lung cancer rates have fallen significantly. This proves the effectiveness and success of such policies,” emphasized Dr. Małgorzata Jasiewicz.
