The authors, who coordinated the "Living in the Countryside" report with Francine Mullot of the Mutualité sociale agricole, note a lack of information on rural populations (compared to that available on urban populations), after briefly reviewing the evolution of the meaning of the term "rural." Questions regarding the health of these populations were raised during the regional health conferences in 1996 and 1997. A review was conducted during the seminar organized jointly by the CFES, the MSA, and the CRAES (Rhône-Alpes College of Health Education) and, in a broader context, in the Santé de l’homme dossier on “Health and Territories” in 1997.