Social isolation and exclusion are associated with poor health status and premature death. Social cohesion – the quality of social relationships and the existence of trust, mutual obligations and respect in communities or in the wider city – helps to protect people and their health.
In the past 20 years, studies focused upon the relation between cultural access and physical and psychological health through cross sectional or longitudinal surveys, provided clear and solid evidence that participation in cultural activities is beneficial for health. Evidence on the relationship between cultural attendance and life expectation, shows that cultural access improves chances of survival in longitudinal samples.
On this base Fondazione GENS Onlus partecipate European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing with the project:
"Seeding culture harvesting well-bieng and health"
with the aim of collecting scientific data supporting the hypotesis that encouraging culltural participation is a public health preventive measure.
Cultural welfare may represent an innovative preventive and health promoting tool for healthy aging.
