Health and health care; personal characteristics
| Characteristics | Margins | Periods | Self-perceived health Good or very good (%) | Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5),12 plus Feelings of anxiety or depression, 4 wks (%) | Oral Health Oral health, 12 years or older Good or very good (%) | Oral Health Oral health, 12 years or older Fair (%) | Oral Health Oral health, 12 years or older Bad or very bad (%) | Functional limitations GALI limitation, 4 years or older GALI limitation (%) | Medical contacts Contact with GP Persons with at least 1 contact (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total persons | Value | 2025 | 76.9 | 41.7 | 73.1 | 21.8 | 5.1 | 31.1 | 69.1 |
| Sex: Male | Value | 2025 | 79.5 | 36.0 | 71.5 | 22.9 | 5.6 | 27.5 | 66.3 |
| Sex: Female | Value | 2025 | 74.4 | 47.2 | 74.6 | 20.7 | 4.7 | 34.7 | 71.9 |
| Age: 0 to 3 years | Value | 2025 | 95.7 | . | . | . | . | . | 69.3 |
| Age: 4 to 11 years | Value | 2025 | 96.8 | . | . | . | . | 6.3 | 61.8 |
| Age: 12 to 15 years | Value | 2025 | 94.5 | 27.0 | 90.1 | 9.4 | 0.5 | 9.3 | 53.7 |
| Age: 16 to 19 years | Value | 2025 | 87.4 | 48.2 | 85.0 | 14.2 | 0.8 | 15.2 | 63.8 |
| Age: 20 to 29 years | Value | 2025 | 82.4 | 52.5 | 75.7 | 21.0 | 3.3 | 20.7 | 66.2 |
| Age: 30 to 39 years | Value | 2025 | 80.2 | 44.1 | 75.6 | 19.9 | 4.5 | 24.5 | 66.8 |
| Age: 40 to 49 years | Value | 2025 | 76.8 | 43.6 | 73.4 | 20.6 | 6.0 | 26.0 | 65.3 |
| Age: 50 to 54 years | Value | 2025 | 70.6 | 40.6 | 70.3 | 21.3 | 8.5 | 35.7 | 69.1 |
| Age: 55 to 64 years | Value | 2025 | 65.3 | 38.9 | 69.0 | 23.8 | 7.2 | 43.3 | 72.8 |
| Age: 65 to 74 years | Value | 2025 | 67.0 | 32.2 | 67.9 | 26.7 | 5.4 | 47.4 | 78.4 |
| Age: 75 years or older | Value | 2025 | 59.8 | 40.2 | 65.9 | 27.9 | 6.2 | 60.4 | 81.3 |
| Primary, lower secondary | Value | 2025 | 58.9 | 46.9 | 62.2 | 28.0 | 9.9 | 51.5 | 73.8 |
| Upper secondary | Value | 2025 | 71.4 | 38.9 | 69.9 | 24.2 | 5.9 | 36.8 | 70.6 |
| Tertiary | Value | 2025 | 79.7 | 38.4 | 78.0 | 18.7 | 3.3 | 29.2 | 70.8 |
| Source: CBS. | |||||||||
Table explanation
This table contains data on the perceived state of health and on contacts with providers of medical care of the Dutch population from 0 years on in private households. These data can be grouped by several personal characteristics. For several topics a different age demarcation applies. The age boundaries are listed at the relevant topics.
Data available from: 2014
Status of the data: final.
Changes by March 13, 2026
The 2025 figures have been added. The table has been expanded with information on diabetes (other than type 1 or type 2). As of 2025, the new topic "Neck disorder" will replace "disorder of the neck or shoulder", the new topic " Arthrosis, 12 plus " will replace " Arthrosis of Hip/knee 12 or older" and the new topic “Non-prescribed medicines, since 2025” will replace “Non-prescribed medicines (2014-2024)”. Besides that, the personal characteristic of poverty (classified as poor, near-poor and not poor or not near poor) has been added.
Within the characteristic 'position in household', the category 'other member of household' has been changed to 'member other household', because that is more correct and some minor textual changes are made in the explanations of the categories of positions in household.
When will new data be published?
Data on reporting year 2026 will be published in the second quarter of 2027.
Description topics
- Self-perceived health
- Good or very good
- Percentage of persons who answered ꞌgoodꞌ or ꞌvery goodꞌ to the question: ꞌHow do you assess your general state of health?ꞌ / ꞌHow does your child assess his, her general state of health?ꞌ. Parents or caretakers answer this question on behalf of children under the age of 12 years.
- Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5),12 plus
- The figures relate to the Mental Health Inventory 5 or ꞌMHI-5ꞌ. This is an international standard for a specific measuring of psychological distress, consisting of 5 questions. MHI-5 is actually an extract of ꞌShort Format 36ꞌ (SF-36), an elaborate international standard for measuring health. MHI-5 deals with questions related to how one felt during the last 4 weeks. The following questions were asked:
1. Did you feel very nervous?
2. Were you so down in the dump that nothing could cheer you up?
3. Did you feel calm and quiet?
4. Did you feel depressed and down?
5. Were you happy?
Every question has the following 6 answer categories: all the time, most of the time, often, sometimes, rarely, and never. The answer categories in positively worded questions of the MHI questionnaire (questions 3 and 5) have been consequently awarded the values 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and 0. The answer categories in negatively worded questions (questions 1, 2 ad 4) have been awarded the turned-down values. Next, per person the sum scores have been calculated and multiplied by 4, so that the minimum sum score of a person can be 0 (very unhealthy) and the maximum score 100 (perfectly healthy). A score of 60 or more means that a respondent has no psychological distress.
A score of less than 60 means that a person does have psychological distress.
Until 2023, instead of ‘psychological distress’, the term ‘poor mental health’ was used.
However, researchers at the Trimbos Institute determined in 2024 that the cut-off point of 60 as previously used was no longer sufficient for a number of reasons. The previous determination of the cut-off value of the MHI-5 used a method that depends on the prevalence of mental disorders. Because the prevalence has proven to be variable, this cut-off value is no longer sufficient. Furthermore, the classification of mental disorders has changed since the previous cut-off value determination: the DSM-5 is currently used, while the old cut-off value was based on the criteria of DSM-III-R. More information about recalibration of the MHI can be found in the fact sheet of the Trimbos Institute (see table explanation).
The variable 'Psychological distress, past 4 weeks' will therefore no longer be supplemented from 2024 and from September 2024 CBS will only include the series on the variable Feelings of anxiety or depression, 4 wks (last 4 weeks).- Feelings of anxiety or depression, 4 wks
- The percentage of people aged 12 years or older who score 76 or lower on the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5) for adolescents aged 12 years and older and adults. These people have had feelings of anxiety or depression in the past 4 weeks.
- Oral Health
- Oral health, 12 years or older
- For the years 2019 to 2021, the figures refer to people aged 15 or older. As a result, the figures from before 2022 cannot be compared one-to-one with the figures from 2022 onwards.
- Good or very good
- Percentage of persons of 12 years or older who answered ‘good’ or ‘very good’ to the question: ‘How do you assess your general state of teeth and gum?’
- Fair
- Percentage of persons of 12 years or older who answered ‘fair’ to the question: ‘How do you assess your general state of teeth and gum?’
- Bad or very bad
- Percentage of persons of 12 years or older who answered ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’ to the question: ‘How do you assess your general state of teeth and gum?’
- Functional limitations
- Functional limitations (physical) are observed by means of 3 groups of questions:
a. The OECD indicator for persons in the age category of 12 years or older.
b. The ADL (Activities of Daily Living) indicator for persons in the age category of 55 years or older.
c. Temporary activity limitations and bed-days for persons of all ages.
Besides, a general question about the functional limitations (GALI-indicator) is asked.- GALI limitation, 4 years or older
- Percentage of persons that for at least the past 6 months are limited because of a health problem in activities people/children usually do. This internationally used and adjusted indicator for health limitations is called the GALI, which stands for Global Activity Limitation Indicator. This indicator is calculated for all persons 4 years and older.
In 2014, this indicator was calculated by use of 2 questions, in 2015 both questions are combined in 1 question. This had no effect on the outcome.- GALI limitation
- Percentage of persons that for at least the past 6 months are limited because of a health problem in activities people/children usually do
- Medical contacts
- Persons are asked if they had contact with their GP, specialist, dentist, dental hygienist, orthodontist, physiotherapist, exercise therapist, psychologist, psychotherapist or psychiatrist, and if he or she is treated by alternative healer. Also, if there were hospital admissions or day care admissions. For children up to 12 years old, these questions are answered by the parent/guardian. Most questions after medical contacts are asked to persons of all ages. Contacts that do not often occur in the case of children are posed from an older age.
- Contact with GP
- From 2021, the introductory text for the question about GP contacts has been changed to: Now something about contacts with the GP. This includes visits to the GP practice, home visits, telephone consultations, video calling, contacts via email or other e-consultations. Contacts with a replacement GP or with the GP post must also be included. Contacts with the practice assistant and the practice nurse should not be included.
Until 2021, the introductory text was 'Contacts with the GP include visits to the GP practice, home visits and telephone consultations. Contacts with a replacement GP or with the GP post also count. Contacts with the practice assistant and the practice nurse do not count.'
Contacts in the 12 months prior to the survey date are asked in the questionnaire. The questions are asked to respondents of all ages.- Persons with at least 1 contact
- Percentage of persons in the population who contacted a GP at least once in the 12 months preceding the interview.