What Can the UK Learn from Denmark About Health and Wellbeing?

Yesterday’s BBC article — “What the NHS can learn from the European country that helped more people survive cancer” — highlighted Denmark’s remarkable success in healthcare and wellbeing. It’s no surprise: in the latest World Happiness Report, Denmark is ranked second in the world, with a score of 7.58 out of 10. Consistently one of the happiest countries, Denmark outperforms others not just in health outcomes but in overall life satisfaction.

So what is Denmark doing differently?

We often hear about their strong social support systems, free healthcare, and balanced approach to work and life. But there’s another piece of the picture that often goes unnoticed: the way complementary therapies are embraced and, in many cases, integrated into hospital settings.

Complementary Therapies in Denmark

Surveys show that over 56% of Danes have used some form of complementary therapy, and around 1 in 5 (20%) use it regularly. Popular therapies include massage, acupuncture, relaxation practices, and reflexology.

This isn’t fringe or unusual — complementary therapies are part of the wellbeing landscape. It’s used for stress relief, to manage pain, to support emotional balance, and as a way of maintaining overall health.

In fact, a survey of Danish hospitals found that around one third offered some form of complementary therapy to patients. These services varied — from relaxation and massage to acupuncture or reflexology — but the principle is the same: providing supportive care that works alongside conventional treatment.

What About the UK?

Here in the UK, we’re rightly proud of the NHS. But when it comes to complementary therapies, scepticism and lack of recognition still dominate. Many therapies sit firmly outside of mainstream healthcare, despite widespread public use and growing evidence of their value for stress management, pain relief, and emotional wellbeing.

Yet, the conversation is shifting. Earlier this year, a cross-party group of MPs called for doctors to be able to prescribe therapies like massage, reflexology, and reiki as part of patient care. This shows a growing awareness that complementary therapies could play a role in supporting health and reducing pressure on overstretched NHS services.

A Call for Broader Thinking

We face real challenges in the UK: rising stress, an overburdened NHS, and the growing impact of chronic illness. Greater recognition and integration of complementary therapies could give people more choice in managing their health, ease pressure on conventional services, and encourage a culture of preventative self-care.

Denmark shows us that happiness and health are not built on medicine alone. They come from balance, trust, and openness to different ways of caring for ourselves.

However, it is important to recognise that frameworks already exist in the UK to help integrate complementary therapies more confidently. The Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) is the UK’s independent voluntary regulator for complementary healthcare practitioners, established with government support in 2008.

Doctors can, under General Medical Council guidance, refer patients to practitioners listed on CNHC’s Accredited Register, which is overseen by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care. This ensures patients have access to practitioners who meet national standards, follow a strict code of conduct, and are recognised as part of the wider health workforce.

Research has shown that CNHC-registered practitioners support public health by helping clients reduce stress, improve sleep, manage pain, and make lifestyle changes that contribute to long-term wellbeing.

In summary

In short, the structure is already in place to bring complementary therapies into mainstream healthcare more effectively — it simply requires greater recognition and willingness to make use of it. Perhaps it’s time the UK followed Denmark’s lead more fully — not just in clinical policy, but in embracing a broader, more holistic and preventative view of what healthcare can mean.

As always, if you have any questions at all then please reach out anytime and I will get back to you as soon as I can. May the rest of your day be everything you need it to be

Tanya x

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