A third of adults who had more than one partner in a year do not use condoms, the only form of contraception that can reduce the risk of sexually transmitted diseases.
According to a study that looked into the nation’s health-related habits, five per cent of sexually active adults had sex with more than one person over the previous 12 months. Of these, 67 per cent used condoms.
The European Health Interview Survey: Lifestyle 2008, launched yesterday by Health Minister Joseph Cassar, showed that 80 per cent of the Maltese adult population was sexually active at some point in their lifetime.
Among the sexually active, 65 per cent reported never using contraception compared to 50 per cent in 2002, when the last lifestyle survey was carried out.
Those saying they regularly used contraception stood at 13 per cent compared to 10 per cent in 2002.
The most popular contraception method was withdrawal at 38 per cent.
The survey, based on interviews with about 5,000 people, showed that weekly binge drinking – defined as six or more drinks in one occasion – was six times higher in 2008 when it reached 13 per cent compared to two per cent in 2002.
Monthly binge drinking tripled from four per cent in 2002 to 13 per cent in 2008.
The survey also showed Maltese adults remained among the most obese in the EU. About 58 per cent of adults were obese or overweight: 22 per cent were obese and had a body mass index over 30 and 36 per cent were overweight and had a BMI over 25. The BMI is the calculation of weight in relation to height. A person of normal weight would have a BMI ranging between 18 and 25.
There was no marked difference in the number of smokers between 2002 (26.1 per cent) and 2008 (25.2 per cent).
However, there was a shift from daily to occasional smoking, with the number of daily smokers declining from 23 per cent in 2002 to 20 per cent in 2008. Occasional smoking rose from three to six per cent.
Most non-smokers said they were never exposed to passive smoking. Such exposure usually occurred in public places and public transport where 23 per cent experienced passive smoking even though a smoking ban was introduced in 2004.
Dr Cassar said the research would help formulate strategies to address the nation’s health. After launching the sexual health policy last year, the government would soon launch national strategies for cancer and obesity.
The health authorities were now working on the 2013 lifestyle survey.
An open day will be held at the Health Ministry in Valletta tomorrow between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. People will be offered advice on several issues including obesity and weight loss, smoking cessation and vaccination. Check-ups will be offered for blood pressure and breast screening, among others.
• Malta has the highest proportion of obesity among men in the EU and the third highest among women.
• 74 per cent eat fruit daily and 51 per cent eat vegetables every day.
• More than half the people rarely or never consumed alcohol in the previous 12 months and 15.3 per cent drank at least once a week.
• Most drank at the dinner table. An average of 16 drinks were consumed by those who drank at least once a week with the most popular drink being beer.
• The substance with the highest lifetime consumption was prescribed tranquillisers, used by 18.7 per cent.
• Cannabis ranked highest among illegal drugs used, at 4.7 per cent, followed by cocaine and ecstasy at one per cent each.
• Compared to 2008, moderate physical activity more than doubled, reaching 16.6 per cent from 7.1 per cent in 2002. However, high activity remained consistent at 26 per cent.