Introduction and three fundamental questions

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Public health is a major theme of the Swedish presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2024. Today, good and equal health for all is much more than solely a question of mitigating the impact of significant traditional risk factors such as smoking or alcohol use. Health also involves meaningful and active leisure, screen time and digital media use, as well as addressing loneliness and social isolation.

These questions were raised at the digital conference in May 2024 on good and equal health in the Nordics. In his opening remarks, Jakob Forssmed, Minister for Social Affairs and Public Health in Sweden, highlighted the need to ensure good and equal health outcomes for all members of society, starting with our children and youth. 

– All children and adolescents should have access to active and meaningful leisure time in community with others through, for example, sports, arts, or music. This is important here and now and it lays the foundation for good health later in life.

Jakob Forssmed drew attention to the challenges of health promotion and stressed the importance of cooperation, particularly focusing on children most in need. In this process, social and economic conditions, access to community resources, and social relationships all play a significant role.

– I’m deeply concerned about the increased use and time we spend – children and young people in particular – on screens and digital media. The screen seems to enter every corner of our lives and seems to push other things aside, such as taking part in physical activities, doing homework, or sleeping, which are very important aspects for health. And we know too little about how this is affecting us.

The Swedish Minister also underscored the importance of combatting loneliness and social isolation. He described loneliness as a complex cross-sectoral issue that demands cooperation and broad efforts across multiple policy areas.

– Loneliness and social isolation have such a negative impact on our physical and mental health, not to mention the human suffering they cause.

After highlighting these three health hazards of our time, Jakob Forssmed posed three questions framing the conference theme:

How do we get all children involved in leisure and community activities – including those who, for various reasons, think it is impossible or a big step to join a club or an association?
How can we create a constructive dialogue about how society can support children and young people to build a healthy relationship with digital media?
What role can society play in combatting loneliness and social isolation?

This conference report aims to answer these questions based on the presentations given at the digital conference ‘Good and equal health in the Nordics’, broadcast live from Stockholm on May 7, 2024. The questions emphasise how the conference framed the broad concept of health not merely as the absence of disease, but rather conceived as a state of physical, mental, and social well-being.