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HEALTH

Viagra: Corsicans judged the kings of France

Up until now Corsica was best known for its idyllic beauty, it’s cuisine and it’s criminal underworld but it now has another, perhaps unwanted, claim to fame – that of being the Viagra champions of France.

Viagra: Corsicans judged the kings of France
When it comes to viagra, the Corsicans are the kings of France. Bertrand Guay/AFP

France produced its very first Viagra rankings on Friday which revealed the Mediterranean island of Corsica is sitting pretty at the top of the table.

The Corsicans, known in recent years for their fervent nationalism and organized criminal gangs, spend more on Viagra tablets than any other department of France.

In second place were the Alsatians of Alsace and in third place the folk from Paris. Men in Limousin and Auvergne, for whatever reason, seem to have less need for Viagra, as these two departments came bottom of the table.

The rankings were based on a survey of 4,600 pharmacies across France by the firm Celtipharm. Le Télégramme, a regional newspaper from Brittany published a Viagra map of France (see below) based on the findings.

The newspaper speculated if Corsica’s position at the top of the table can be put down to the local’s Italian origin and “a sexual appetite like that Berlusconi’s”.

“Or do they simply have more time on their hands on an island where the beauty doesn’t mask the lack of things to do,” Le Télégramme continued.

Vincent Auvigne, an epidemiologist, responsible for analyzing the survey said it was clear that consumption was higher in the eastern part of France, which may be due to people coming across the border from Switzerland and Germany.

 “It’s a hard map to interpret,” he said. “What is clear, though, is that consumption of viagra is seasonal, with a peak in the summer and that it is taken more in urban areas that in rural parts."

Viagra in France is not reimbursed by the social security system and costs €72 for 4 tablets – "more expensive the foie gras", Le Telegramme notes.

Nevertheless sales of Viagra have shot up in France in recent years, rising by 21 percent between 2009 and 2013. Last year €142 million worth of viagra pills were sold in France.

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HEALTH

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

Denmark's government has struck a deal with four other parties to raise the point in a pregnancy from which a foetus can be aborted from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, in the first big change to Danish abortion law in 50 years.

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

The government struck the deal with the Socialist Left Party, the Red Green Alliance, the Social Liberal Party and the Alternative party, last week with the formal announcement made on Monday  

“In terms of health, there is no evidence for the current week limit, nor is there anything to suggest that there will be significantly more or later abortions by moving the week limit,” Sophie Løhde, Denmark’s Minister of the Interior and Health, said in a press release announcing the deal.

The move follows the recommendations of Denmark’s Ethics Council, which in September 2023 proposed raising the term limit, pointing out that Denmark had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Western Europe. 

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Under the deal, the seven parties, together with the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives, have also entered into an agreement to replace the five regional abortion bodies with a new national abortion board, which will be based in Aarhus. 

From July 1st, 2025, this new board will be able to grant permission for abortions after the 18th week of pregnancy if there are special considerations to take into account. 

The parties have also agreed to grant 15-17-year-olds the right to have an abortion without parental consent or permission from the abortion board.

Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for Digitalization and Equality, said in the press release that this followed logically from the age of sexual consent, which is 15 years old in Denmark. 

“Choosing whether to have an abortion is a difficult situation, and I hope that young women would get the support of their parents. But if there is disagreement, it must ultimately be the young woman’s own decision whether she wants to be a mother,” she said. 

The bill will be tabled in parliament over the coming year with the changes then coming into force on June 1st, 2025.

The right to free abortion was introduced in Denmark in 1973. 

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