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HEALTH

The essential Swiss websites you need to use for health matters

If you just moved to Switzerland (or even if you have lived here for a while), your learning curve about health-related matters in the country may be steep. These sites will help you find the information you need.

Published: 20 June 2024 15:04 CEST
The essential Swiss websites you need to use for health matters
There quite a few online health resources in Switzerland. Photo: Pixabay

Staying healthy is probably one of your top priorities, but doing so in a foreign country is not easy.

That is why having some reliable resources that you can check out and follow will be helpful.

First: The Local

No, we are not doctors, but we have published a number of factual articles over the years about many aspects of healthcare in Switzerland that our readers find helpful.

You can find a compilation of these health-related stories here. 

Federal Office of Public Health 

Obviously, when it comes to matters of health, the Health Ministry has lots of information that will be relevant to you at one time or another.

Aside from matters of health policy (which is important for all residents of Switzerland), the site also has a regularly updated Infectious Diseases Dashboard to let you know what communicable illnesses are currently circulating in Switzerland — and how to avoid them.

It also provides age-specific health information and recommendations — for instance, for children and teenagers, as well as for the elderly.

Hospital websites

Individual hospitals in your area are good sources of information as well, and many of them are in English.

You can find there general health information, care and treatment options, online emergency room signup, new medical technologies being used, and other patient resources:

Geneva University Hospitals (HUG)

Vaud University Hospital (CHUV)

Zurich University Hospital

Basel University Hospital 

If you live in an area without a university medical centre, your local hospital is also a valuable source of health-related information.

Appointment booking platform

This website is especially useful for people who don’t yet have a doctor in Switzerland but need to set an appointment with one. 

It gives you an option of choosing a specialty and location, and then displays doctor’s names and addresses, background information about them, and which time slots they have available.

You can easily set up an appointment this way.

Your health insurer’s website

This may not be an intuitive choice for impartial information about healthcare but you may be surprised.

For instance, Sanitas insurance site has information about emergency care decisions, and how to void unnecessary medical treatments.

CSS has health information geared specifically to men and women.

Helsana talks about ways to combat stress and sleep problems.

These are just a few examples on what valuable tips you can find on your insurer’s website.

Websites devoted to specific medical conditions

If you seek information about a specific illness — such as treatment options in Switzerland — there are plenty of online resources for that as well.

For instance:

Heart and cardiovascular 

Diabetes 

Osteoporosis 

Mental illness 

General pain 

Other diseases 

Last but not least, while not related to health, these websites will also provide useful information for international residents:

The Swiss websites that can help you save money
 
The most useful website resources to help you get Swiss citizenship 
 
 

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For members

FOOD AND DRINK

EXPLAINED: What does the ‘bio’ label on foods in Switzerland really mean?

All major Swiss supermarkets have products designated as ‘bio’, which refers to their ‘organic’ farming or manufacturing methods. But what exactly does this label represent?

Published: 24 June 2024 11:31 CEST
EXPLAINED: What does the 'bio' label on foods in Switzerland really mean?

In its press release published in June 2024, Bio Suisse, an umbrella group for organic food producers, said that residents of Switzerland are international ‘bio’ champions. 

“With consumption of 454 francs per capita, Switzerland ranks first in international comparison,” the organisation said. “In no other European country is the organic basket of goods as large.”

In terms of preference for organic food, “Switzerland is ahead of Denmark, Austria, Luxembourg and Sweden. Germany follows in sixth place and France just behind in seventh place,” Bio-Suisse added.

This finding is not surprising because the consumption of this more expensive type of food is directly linked to income: the wealthier the country, the more its residents are willing to spend on organic products.

What does a ‘bio’ label stand for in Switzerland?

In a nutshell, organic products must meet much higher standards and comply with more requirements than the ‘conventional’ foods in the way they are grown and manufactured.

Contrary to most conventional production methods, organic farming is more sustainable — that is, it protects the environment and conserves resources instead of depleting them.

A total of 7,362 organic farmers and producers are members of Bio Suisse.

In addition, more than 2,300 operations abroad are also certified according to the Bio Suisse standards, which means their farming / production methods are equivalent to those practiced in Switzerland.

Can you trust a ‘bio’ label, or is it just a lot of hype (as some people claim?)

In Switzerland, this process is strictly controlled by various organic farming ordinances, which are enforced by the Federal Office for Agriculture (BLW). 

This means that every farm that produces, prepares, trades or imports organic products is inspected and certified at least once a year by one of the four accredited and approved certification bodies in Switzerland.

These laws also set out the principles by which agricultural products and foodstuffs labelled as organic must be made, and which non-toxic substances are authorised for use in organic farming and for preparing organic food.

Why are organic products more expensive than conventional ones?

Among the main reasons are more rigorous production and certification standards, which must meet all the requirements set out by the BLW.

Also, operational costs involved in the use of natural, pesticide-free fertilisers and high-quality animal feed, are higher in organic farming than in conventional one.

Additionally, the supply of organic food in Swiss supermarkets is more limited than that of conventional one, which pushes prices up.

And then there is this often-asked question: is organic food in Switzerland in really healthier?

Some people will swear by the better quality and higher nutritional value of organic products, while others will say the benefits are exaggerated.

There is no definite answer to this question, except this: some studies have shown possible health benefits of organic foods when compared with foods grown using conventional process.

However, there is limited information to prove how these differences can give potential overall health benefits.

But Zurich authorities believe in the ‘power’ of organic foods: in 2022, they mandated that most of the food served in the city’s hospitals, care centres, childcare facilities, and schools, be organic.

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