The latest Healthy Ireland survey has found that 80% of people have attended a GP in the last year - the highest since reporting began in 2015.
A total of 7,556 people over the age of 15 were surveyed as part of the study, which found that people visited their GP an average of 4.1 times over the last year.
Women remain more likely to visit their GP (86%) compared to men (74%).
However, this gender gap largely disappears when people turn 55, according to the survey.
Of those using a healthcare service in the past 12 months, 57% paid for this service. The median price paid for it was €70.
Respondents with a GP visit card show the largest increase, rising to 90%.
A total of 88% of those with a full medical card visited their GP in the last year - a 6% increase on last year.
The most common health condition was high blood pressure (8%) followed by arthritis, high cholesterol, asthma, diabetes and mental health conditions.
Alcohol
20% of the population are at risk of hazardous or harmful drinking but markers in this category were mostly down on previous years.
Over a quarter (26%) are considered binge drinkers because they drink six or more standard drinks in a sitting - down 4% since 2015.
35% of people drink at least once a week and 20% drink multiple times per week.
Consistent with the findings in 2015, people aged 55-64 are still the most likely to drink multiple times per week.
The number of people who consumed alcohol over the last year fell to 71%.
25% of the population said that they drink non-alcoholic beer, wine or spirits.
Over half of these people said they opt for non-alcoholic options when they have to drive home.
29% said they drink them to reduce alcohol consumption for health reasons.
Smoking and e-cigarettes
Smoking rates have remained static since 2019, with 13% smoking daily and 17% describing themselves as current smokers.
Only 1% of respondents said they use nicotine pouches daily.
The survey found that just 8% of people in Ireland use e-cigarettes daily with usage highest among young people at 18%.
It found that 77% of the population have never tried an e-cigarette, with 15% saying they have tried them in the past but no longer use them.
Usage was higher among young women at 19%, compared to 16% of young men.
The number of young men using e-cigarettes dropped compared to last year, but the number of young women using them had risen by 4%.
50% of all e-cigarette users are ex-smokers, while 33% of e-cigarette users are current smokers.
It comes after a new tax on e-liquid used in vape products took effect at the start of this month.
Meanwhile, people sleep for an average of 6.9 hours on weeknights, with 32% sleeping for six hours or less.
Just 5% of the population sleep for more than eight hours, according to the survey.
Women made up 60% of all carers in Ireland with 69% of all carers providing care for someone over 65.
Contraception
61% of people are aware of the Free Contraception Scheme, with awareness higher among women (75%) than men (46%).
However, 66% do not use any form of contraception, 3% said this was because they are trying to conceive.
The contraceptive pill was the most common form of prescriptive contraception at 10% and most popular among young women.
Women who said they are experiencing perimenopause or menopause transition are more likely to report using hormonal coils.
For the first time, women were asked about their experiences with menopause symptoms in this year's survey.
77% of women who are experiencing or have experienced menopause reported temperature regulation issues.
51% of women in perimenopause said they have taken medication for their symptoms.
93% of those taking Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) said it is either very (55%) or somewhat (38%) effective.
