RIVM European Reference Lab for vector-borne infections The European Commission (EC) has designated RIVM as the current European Reference Lab (EURL) for vector-borne viral pathogens.
Menno de Jong appointed director of RIVM Centre for Infectious Disease Control Starting 1 May 2024, Professor Menno de Jong will take on the role of director of RIVM’s Centre for Infectious Disease Control (CIb) . He succeeds Jaap van Dissel, who is retiring in April 2024.
In 2023 more Dutch people play sports on a weekly basis In 2023, 56% of the Dutch population aged four and over played sports at least once a week. This figure marks an increase from 53% in 2022. Notably, the percentage of individuals with physical disabilities who played sports weekly saw a significant rise, from 23% to 29%.
Number of Combined Lifestyle Intervention participants more than doubles in one year The number of participants that has started the Combined Lifestyle Intervention (CLI) has more than doubled over the course of a single year. Nationwide, over 82,000 people have now started the CLI. According to RIVM’s annual report, most of the participants achieve a good outcome.
Adherence to Physical Activity Guidelines particularly low among young adults The number of people in the Netherlands aged four and over who meet the Physical Activity Guidelines has fallen since 2020. In 2022, 44.3% of the population was sufficiently physically active.
Improper use of methylphenidate Students sometimes use ADHD medicines that have not been prescribed to them in order to study more effectively. It is suspected that they obtain these medicines from other people, who do have a prescription. Sewage research conducted by RIVM supports this theory.
Less than half of Dutch people met the Physical Activity Guidelines in 2021 In 2021, 47% of people aged four years and older in the Netherlands got the amount of physical activity recommended by the Physical Activity Guidelines. Children aged 4 to 11 years were most likely to meet the standard. Conversely, young people between the ages of 12 and 17 fell short. This is the outcome of a study conducted by RIVM.
No new SARS-CoV-2 variants discovered in wastewater on aircraft from China Wastewater on aircraft from China has not been found to contain any new variants of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 so far. These findings are from several tests performed by RIVM. However, the wastewater was found to contain coronavirus particles.
Dutch people eat more healthy foods: more plant products, less red and processed meat Dutch people are eating and drinking more healthily. We know this because of RIVM’s new Dutch National Food Consumption Survey (Voedselconsumptiepeiling, VCP). Dutch people are eating more plant products, like fruit and vegetables, unsalted nuts and legumes.
People working from home more likely to have health problems People who worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic were more likely to have physical complaints than people working on location (location workers). Examples included upper back pain, lower back pain, and pain in arms, neck and/or shoulders. These findings are from RIVM research.