Mens Sana in Corpore Sano: a pilot study on the health of Italians living in Norway

“Mens Sana in Corpore Sano” is the first study on the health and lifestyle of Italians in Norway. The study is carried out by Italian researchers at INN University, OsloMet, and NTNU Trondheim, in collaboration with Comites Oslo. Other partners include the Italian Embessy of Norway and local groups in Trondheim, Bergen, and Stavanger.
Background:
Although Italians constitute less than 1% of the total immigrant population in Norway, the Italian community in Norway has been rapidly growing in the past 5 years. In 2013 Statistics Norway registered 2,756 ‘first-generation’ Italian immigrants, while in 2018 the number of first-generation Italian immigrants was 4,315. In spite of this rapid growth, little is known about the lifestyle and health of the Italians in Norway.
Moving to a different country brigs several challenges in relation to the process of adjusting to a different cultural and structural context. Alongside practical barriers such as (especially in the first period) poor knowledge of the language and the health system, other challenges may lead to changes in a person’s lifestyle, especially with respect to their nutrition, physical activity and social relations.
The purpose of this study is to investigate this important issue in order to shed light on the challenges and barriers that might make it difficult for the Italians to maintain a healthy lifestyle in Norway. Using a ‘mixed methods’ approach, we are conducting an online survey and several interviews to have both a broad and in-depth insight into this issue. The knowledge generated by this study can assist initiatives that aim to promote good health among the Italian community in Norway.

The study uses a mixed-methods design, with the distribution of an electronic questionnaire and qualitative interviews. The investigation started in the autumn of 2018 and was completed in the spring of 2019. The study was conducted according to the international guidelines for ethical research and approved by the Norwegian Centre for Research Data. I The electronic survey was distributed during the period between 15 March and 24 April 2019. A total of 330 people (156 men and 174 women) responded to the survey. As we had no access to a personal data list from the embassy, the questionnaire was distributed through different channels, such as the COMITES’ mail list, adverts on the embassy’s website and several Facebook groups for Italians in Norway. The following were the inclusion criteria: age ≥18 years; resident in Norway at the time of the survey; having spent most of their childhood (up to age 16 years) in Italy; knowledge of Italian language. The data presented in this report have been analysed descriptively (using Excel and SPSS), and displayed using graphics and tables. Through a set of preliminary analyses, no relevant difference between men and women came out so it was decided to present, with the exclusion of socio-demographic data, the results for the entire sample. Besides the questionnaire, we conducted qualitative interviews with 14 people, who were chosen with the purpose of representing the variation across migrants in Norway, with regard to the number of years of residence and the reasons for moving. Moreover, we tried to achieve a certain variation of gender and age. The final interviewed sample has the following characteristics: eight women and six men, half of whom have lived in Norway for more than 10 years – four between 5 and 10 years and three for <5 years; three of those interviewed originally moved to Norway for reasons of study, three for family relationships, two to follow the partner and the remainder for professional reasons; most were interviewed live in Oslo. Interviews were conducted face to face or via Skype, recorded, transcribed, and analysed to explore and detail the more significant topics for the investigation, such as the definition of ‘feeling healthy’, changes in food habits after migration, connection with nature and physical exercise, and social relationships and identity. The analysis was conducted with the supported of the program Nvivo 12.