People facing poverty are more likely to experience difficulties with everyday physical and cognitive activities than those in a more secure financial position, according to 2025 data published by Eurostat.
The figures show a clear gap between people at risk of poverty and those who are not, particularly in relation to mobility, vision, memory and personal care.
Walking was the most frequently reported difficulty among people at risk of poverty, affecting 24.9% of this group. By comparison, the proportion among people not at risk stood at 16.9%.
Differences were also evident in cognitive functions. Difficulties with remembering and concentrating were reported by 20.6% of people at risk of poverty, compared with 14.5% of those in the more financially secure group.
Vision-related problems were reported by 23.8% of people at risk of poverty, while the figure for those not facing poverty risk was 18.9%.
The disparity extended to everyday self-care. Around 10.1% of people at risk of poverty said they experienced difficulties with such activities, against 5.8% of those not at risk. Communication problems were also more common among people facing financial vulnerability, affecting 7.5%, compared with 4.0% in the other group.
Hearing difficulties showed the smallest difference between the two populations. They were reported by 12.9% of people at risk of poverty and 11.1% of those not at risk.
Overall, the Eurostat findings highlight an association between financial vulnerability and a greater prevalence of health-related limitations across the European Union. The figures cover reported difficulties with basic activities and illustrate the different challenges experienced by people depending on their poverty-risk status. However, the data alone do not establish whether poverty causes these difficulties or whether other factors contribute to the observed differences. Photo by Phil Whitehouse, Wikimedia commons.
