Coping With COVID-19's Demanding Collective Goals: Is a Normative Context in Favour of Governmental Measures Related to Social Cohesion?

Statistics Sweden reports that men’s life expectancy increased by approximately two years between the periods 2001–2010 and 2011–2020, largely attributable to a reduction in cardiovascular mortality []. Despite this progress, cardiovascular diseases continue to be a leading cause of death, highlighting the need for ongoing research into protective factors and underlying mechanisms to further enhance public health outcomes related to cardiovascular disease []. Key cardiovascular risk factors include high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, smoking and body fat distribution []. The long-term impact of these and related factors on longevity is demonstrated in a Swedish longitudinal cohort study involving 855 men, which found that only 13% lived to age 90, with longevity included non-smoking, higher socioeconomic status, lower coffee consumption and low cholesterol levels []. In terms of socioeconomic factors, a study examining mortality among different occupational groups revealed that 12% of middle-aged men with low occupational status followed for 12 years died compared to 6% in the highest group []. Additionally, marriage appears to offer protective benefits; several studies indicate that unmarried individuals had 72% higher odds of mortality (OR = 1.72) and more than twice the odds of dying the first day after a coronary event compared to their married counterparts (OR = 2.14) [,]. The relationship between alcohol consumption and cardiovascular health is complex and multifaceted. A well-known concept is ‘The French Paradox’, which emerged in the 1980s. This paradox refers to the epidemiological observation that France has relatively low coronary mortality despite high consumption of saturated fats, potentially explained by higher levels of wine consumption among the French population [,]. The protective effect of wine may be attributed to its flavonoid content, which is associated with increased levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol is one of the suggested explanations [,].