Finns Call for Structures That Make Healthy Choices Easier
People in Finland want to live healthily, but everyday life makes it difficult to do so. A survey by the Cancer Society of Finland, found that 91% of respondents believe society should make healthy choices as easy as possible. This finding reflects a strong belief that individual motivation alone is not enough to maintain healthy behaviours. According to Heidi Löflund-Kuusela, Head of Health Promotion at the Cancer Society of Finland, Finland needs societal structures that actively support healthy ways of living.
In fact, 72% of people in Finland said following healthy habits in everyday life is difficult, even though awareness of the link between healthy lifestyles and cancer risk is high. This gap between awareness and action shows why supportive and health-promoting environments are crucial to enable people live healthier lives.
Supporting Healthy Environments and Alcohol Prevention
The Cancer Society of Finland highlights that health-promoting environments, such as affordable access to nutritious food and safe spaces for physical activity, play an essential role in supporting wellbeing. These environments make healthy choices more accessible and reduce the burden on individuals. For instance, having exercise areas close to home or easy access to healthy foods helps make wellbeing a natural part of daily life.
Financial accessibility remains a significant barrier. As Senior Specialist Taija Puranen explains, when people constantly worry about what they can afford, cheaper and less healthy options often become the default. Even if healthy food is not always expensive, financial strain limits people’s choices. This can have lasting consequences for health and wellbeing. Lowering taxes on healthy foods and raising taxes on unhealthy foods, alcohol, and tobacco and nicotine products would make healthier choices easier and fairer for everyone.
If you constantly have to think about what you can afford in the grocery store, a cheap pack of sausages will often end up in the basket instead of fresh fish and vegetables,” said Ms Puranen, according to the Cancer Society of Finland.
Even if healthy food is not always expensive, financial strain limits people’s choices. This can have long-term consequences. Everyone should have access to a balanced diet. Lowering taxes on healthy products and raising taxes on unhealthy foods, alcohol, and tobacco and nicotine products are examples of ways society can make healthier choices easier.”
Taija Puranen, Senior Specialist, Cancer Society of Finland
Research also emphasises that raising alcohol taxes is a highly effective way to prevent cancer and improve health equity. The study shows that alcohol use is a proven cause of at least seven types of cancer. Fiscal policies that reduce affordability of alcohol and other unhealthy products can therefore prevent harm and protect people’s health.
Prevention Needed as Cancer Burden Grows
Finland faces a rising cancer burden. According to the Cancer Society of Finland, by 2040 the country will record around 49,000 new cancer cases annually.
This projection reinforces the need to invest in prevention and health promotion, not just treatment.
Providing more environments and opportunities that enable healthy living will help prevent new cancer cases and support people already living with cancer.
The Cancer Society plays a leading role in promoting young people’s health, reducing tobacco and nicotine use, increasing awareness of cancer risks, and encouraging healthy lifestyles among people diagnosed with cancer. Ms Löflund-Kuusela notes that public trust in the organisation remains strong, but funding cuts threaten its ability to meet the growing need for health promotion and prevention programs.
Finland’s upcoming national cancer strategy, to be released soon, is expected to reflect these priorities. It will likely emphasise how investing in prevention, including alcohol policy improvements, benefits the entire society. By building heath promoting environments and by addressing alcohol harm through taxation and lowered availability, Finland can ensure freedom from harm and improve people’s wellbeing for generations to come.