Summer Heat

Michal Korach

August – Summer camps have just ended, outdoor temperatures are sweltering, leisure and recreation sites are overflowing, and simultaneously Ben-Gurion Airport is filled with throngs of departing passengers. At times it seems that everyone is flying abroad.

It is interesting, therefore, to examine where Israelis chose to spend their summer vacation last year. 

The data indicate that about 562,000 Israelis travelled abroad in August 2012. Yet evidently a greater number of Israelis chose to spend August in Israel: 732,600 Israeli guests registered in hotels within Israel (in cities, kibbutzim, and moshavim; excluding rural hospitality, youth hostels, and field schools). 

Where did they choose to spend their vacation time? Eilat, the city of eternal sunshine, is the preferred destination of Israelis the year round, and especially in August. A total of 236,100 guests stayed at hotels during August, constituting 32% of all hotel guests in Israel for this month. Two additional destinations of choice for Israelis were the Dead Sea (79,300 – 11%) and Tiberias (73,000 – 10%). Apparently, the high temperatures characteristic of these places in general and during August in particular did not deter the multitudes of visitors who swarmed to these sites. It should be noted that Jerusalem also draws many Israelis and that some 69,000 Israeli guests stayed at the city’s hotels (9%).

Israel’s hotels also hosted tourists from abroad during August, but their numbers were significantly lower than the figures for Israelis – 232,000 overseas guests versus 732,600 Israeli guests. The preferences of tourists differ from those of Israelis, though, with Jerusalem being their first choice. A total of 65,200 overseas guests stayed at Jerusalem’s hotels during August, constituting 30% of the total number of overseas guests in Israel’s hotels. The second-most popular destination was Tel Aviv – 57,600 visitors from abroad (26%), and the third was Tiberias – 16,700 visitors from abroad (7%).

Source: Quarterly Statistical Report on Tourism and Hospitality Services, Central Bureau of Statistics

Physical Exercise

Michal Korach

The Central Bureau of Statistics recently published the findings of a health survey that it had conducted for the purpose of providing data in the areas of health, use of healthcare services, health-related habits, and health insurance, as well as measuring changes in these indicators over time.

One of the survey questions addressed the issue of physical exercise. Physical exercise has important implications in terms of both physical and mental health. Engaging in physical exercise is important not only for losing weight and maintaining physical fitness, but also for improving one’s overall physical condition, reducing the likelihood of chronic illnesses, and improving wellbeing and mental health.

The survey indicates that during 2009, 20% of Israel’s population aged 20 and above engaged in physical exercise (a cumulative total of at least 30 minutes during the day) at least three times a week. The percentage of Jews and others (23%) who engaged in physical exercise was significantly higher than the percentage of Arabs (6%). Within the Jewish population there are significant differences in the level of engagement in physical exercise in accordance with place of birth: the highest percentage of those aged 20 and above who engaged in physical exercise was recorded among people born in Europe and America (25%), followed by those born in Israel (24%), Asia (21%), and Africa (16%).

The data indicate that a correlation exists between years of education and engagement in physical activity. As the years of education received increases, the percentage of people engaged in physical activity increases: among those with 0-8 years of education, 8% engaged in physical activity, compared to 23% among those with 13-15 years of education and 29% among those with 16 or more years of education.

The percentage of people who engage in physical exercise in Jerusalem is lower than in the other major cities. In Jerusalem approximately 19% of those aged 20 and above engaged in physical exercise, compared to 26% in Tel Aviv and Haifa and 23% in Rishon LeZion. As the graph indicates, the percentage of men who engage in physical exercise is generally higher than the percentage of women. The percentages of men and women who engage in physical exercise in Jerusalem are close, measuring 20% and 18%, respectively.

 

Bye Bye Baby

Michal Korach


In 2009 there were 161,400 births in Israel, with a total of 164,400 children born. Two percent of the births were of twins. During this year, the average age of mothers giving birth for the first time was 27.0, compared to 25.5 in 1997. The average age of mothers giving birth for the first time among Israel’s Jewish population (27.9) is comparable to that of the Christian population (27.5) and higher than the figure for the Muslim population (23.4).

The highest numbers of births in Israel in 2009 were recorded at Soroka Hospital in Beer Sheva (13,200), Shaare Zedek in Jerusalem (13,100), Sourasky in Tel Aviv (10,900), and Sheba/Tel Hashomer near Kiryat Ono (10,500).

An examination of the birthrate (the number of births in relation to the size of the population) indicates that the highest birthrate was recorded in Judea and Samaria (37 births per 1,000 residents – within the Jewish population only), followed by the Jerusalem District (29) and the Southern District (23). Haifa recorded the lowest rate (17). The three other districts – Central, Tel Aviv, and Northern – recorded a birthrate of 20 births per 1,000 residents.

Jerusalem serves as a national medical center for the country in general and for Jerusalem and adjacent communities in particular. The city has seven hospitals with maternity departments, three of which are located in Arab neighborhoods and serve the Arab population – The Red Crescent, Al Makassed, and Dajani Maternity Hospital.

The highest number of births within Jerusalem’s hospitals was recorded at Shaare Zedek Hospital (13,100 – representing 36% of all births in Jerusalem’s hospitals), which was more than double the number of births at the next-ranked hospitals, Hadassah Ein Kerem (5,800 – representing 16%) and Bikur Holim (5,200 – representing 14%). For several years now the number of births at Shaare Zedek Hospital has been at least double the figure for each of the following hospitals: Hadassah Ein Kerem, Bikur Holim, and Hadassah Mount Scopus.