Elderly people: state of health and living environment. The case of Budrio (northern Italy)☆

Abstract The authors studied a random sample of elderly people from Budrio, a small rural town in northern Italy. Standardized morbidity rates for Budrio were compared with the results of a previous study concerning four other Italian towns, to verify whether differences in environmental conditions can affect health. Comparisons suggest that diseases of the skeletal and respiratory systems are significantly more common in Budrio, probably due to agricultural activities which represent a risk factor for both types of disease. Some climatic features, such as damp and fog, which are very common in the Budrio area, may accentuate the symptoms of these diseases.