Danish Daily Life – Week 9 2025

📵 Breaking free from the screen. Like many parents, one father found himself glued to his phone, checking the weather, reading news, or refreshing social media while making breakfast for his kids. Over time, he noticed his attention span shrinking, and he couldn’t even finish a book. Determined to regain focus, he wrote Kig Op, a book about digital addiction and how to reclaim control. He warns that ‘phubbing’ – ignoring loved ones in favor of phones – harms relationships, especially with children, who notice when parents prioritize screens over them.

🏃‍♂️ Royal Run 2025 is set for a record-breaking year. This year’s Royal Run will bring 97,500 runners to the streets of Ribe, Viborg, Horsens, Korsør, and Copenhagen, with the royal family once again lacing up their running shoes. King Frederik will kick things off in Ribe, then head to Horsens before finishing in Copenhagen. Crown Prince Christian will run in Viborg, while Queen Mary will take on Korsør.

⛪ More babies baptized in Northern Denmark. While church membership is dropping across Denmark, baptism rates in Aalborg Diocese are on the rise. In 2023, 71.1% of newborns were baptized, making it one of only two dioceses in the country where the number increased. Despite the bump in baptisms, overall National Church membership continues to decline, with the latest figures showing that 70.7% of the population are members.

🚭 Smoking declines, but nicotine use rises among youth. Fewer people smoke, with daily or occasional smokers dropping from 19% in 2022 to 17% in 2024, and youth smoking rates falling from 25% to 21%. However, e-cigarette and nicotine pouch use is rising, with 12% of 15-29-year-olds vaping and 14% using smokeless nicotine products. The government’s prevention plan includes higher taxes, stricter age controls, and bans on flavored nicotine pouches to curb addiction among young people.

🎗️ Breast cancer cases are stable in Denmark, unlike global trends. While the number of breast cancer cases is expected to rise worldwide, Denmark has seen no increase in the past decade. Experts attribute this to lifestyle factors, including childbirth patterns, as having children earlier in life is linked to a lower risk of developing breast cancer. Survival rates are at an all-time high due to better surgeries, targeted therapies, and more effective radiation treatments.

🔨 More women are training as carpenters, but progress is slow. The number of women enrolling in carpentry programs has increased from 1.8% in 2020 to 2.8% in 2024, yet the field remains overwhelmingly male-dominated. Many employers still hesitate to hire female apprentices due to concerns about workplace culture and physical demands, but those who do often change their perspective.

📚 Library loans keep rising, with digital lending growing fast. In 2024, Denmark’s libraries recorded 35 million loans, continuing an upward trend. Physical books still dominate, making up 68% of all loans, but digital lending through eReolen and Filmstriben is increasing. People aged 30-49 were the most active borrowers, responsible for two out of five loans, while younger users relied more on digital content. Women borrowed significantly more than men, making up 72% of physical book loans.