Environmental determinants of health of the population of Ukrainian regions in the context of sustainable development

Abstract

The World Health Organisation's 2030 Agenda notes that health and well-being, in combination with environmental factors and human work, are the outcomes, determinants and systemic factors that contribute to sustainable societal development. Sustainable Development Goal 3 – "Promote healthy lives and well-being for all at all ages" – is the main one and covers several environmental determinants of health, and in fact, environmental determinants of health are directly or indirectly related to all the Sustainable Development Goals. Health is a prerequisite for the full realisation of human biosocial potential and sustainable development of Ukraine. Accelerating technological progress, growing environmental pollution and a significant increase in the number of stressors in the modern lifestyle increase the risk of developing various diseases. To determine the health of the population, an integrated approach is used, characterised by medical, statistical and demographic indicators: pre-existing conditions, morbidity, disability, and physical development. The article presented here identifies and studies the patterns of changes and trends in demographic processes and morbidity of different categories of population in Vinnytsia, Chernihiv and Lviv regions of Ukraine. We have noted that there is a deep demographic crisis, which is manifested in a sharp decline in the population of different regions of the country. It has been established that the processes of depopulation, increased mortality of younger people from diseases and an increase in the level of demographic old age have several prerequisites for further deepening of these processes. Despite the similar dynamics of demographic processes in the surveyed regions, in terms of sustainable development, the least threatening situation is observed in the Lviv region, and the most alarming in the Chernihiv region, which is primarily due to socio-economic factors.