scholarly journals Family income and health in Canada: a longitudinal study of stability and change

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Vanzella-Yang ◽  
Gerry Veenstra

Abstract Background Extensive research has shown strong associations between income and health. However, the health effects of income dynamics over time are less known. We investigated how stability, volatility and trajectory in family incomes from 2002 to 2011 predicted (1) fair/poor self-rated health and (2) the presence of a longstanding illness or health problem in 2012. Methods The data came from the 2012 wave of the Longitudinal and International Study of Adults linked to annual family income data for 2002 to 2011 from the Canada Revenue Agency. We executed a series of binary logistic regressions to examine associations between health and average family income over the decade (Model 1), number of years in the bottom quartile (Model 2) and top quartile (Model 3) of family incomes, standard deviation of family incomes (Model 4), absolute difference between family income at the end and start of the period (Model 5), and number of years in which inflation-adjusted family income went down by more than 1% (Model 6) and up by more than 1% (Model 7) from 1 year to the next. The analyses were conducted separately for women and men. Results Average family income over the decade was strongly associated with both self-rated health and the presence of a longstanding illness or health problem. More years spent in the bottom quartile of family incomes corresponded to elevated odds of fair/poor self-rated health and the presence of a longstanding illness or health problem. Steady decreases in family income over the decade corresponded to elevated odds of fair/poor self-rated health for men and more years spent in the top quartile of family incomes over the decade corresponded to elevated odds of fair/poor self-rated health for women. Conclusion Previous studies of the association between family income and health in Canada may have overlooked important issues pertaining to family income stability and change that are impactful for health.

2004 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 343-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benoît Lévesque ◽  
Marc Rhainds ◽  
Pierre Ernst ◽  
Anne-Marie Grenier ◽  
Tom Kosatsky ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND:The Health and Social Survey of Quebec Children and Youth, conducted on representative samples of children nine, 13 and 16 years of age, provided data on the prevalence and determinants of asthma and allergic rhinitis in Quebec.OBJECTIVES:To determine the prevalence of asthma and allergic rhinitis among children in the province of Quebec and to identify the determinants of these pathologies.METHODS:Three groups of more than 1100 children aged nine, 13 and 16 years were recruited. Respiratory symptoms were documented using the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood questionnaire. Questions enquiring about family income, smoking, degree of urbanization of the child's school's location and various variables related to indoor air were also included. The comparisons of proportions were done using theX2test.RESULTS:The prevalence rates for reported history of asthma varied from 14% to 15% depending on the age group. The prevalence of wheezing in the past year was 7% to 8%. Asthma was the primary cause of the limitation of activities due to a health problem in nine- and 13-year-old Quebecers, and the second most common cause in 16-year-old Quebecers. The prevalence of rhinitis, rhinoconjunctivitis and reported history of hay fever increased with age, reaching 28.0%, 15.9% and 21.1%, respectively, in the 16-year-old group. The prevalence of asthma and wheezing was associated with family history and allergies, and inversely related to family income.CONCLUSIONS:The prevalence of childhood asthma is high in the province of Quebec. It is a major cause of the limitation of activities due to a health problem for young Quebecers. A family history of asthma and an atopic predisposition are important determinants in the development of asthma in Quebec.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth A. Hackett ◽  
Amy Ronaldson ◽  
Kamaldeep Bhui ◽  
Andrew Steptoe ◽  
Sarah E. Jackson

Abstract Background Racism has been linked with poor health in studies in the United States. Little is known about prospective associations between racial discrimination and health outcomes in the United Kingdom (UK). Methods Data were from 4883 ethnic minority (i.e. non-white) participants in the UK Household Longitudinal Study. Perceived discrimination in the last 12 months on the basis of ethnicity or nationality was reported in 2009/10. Psychological distress, mental functioning, life satisfaction, self-rated health, physical functioning and reports of limiting longstanding illness were assessed in 2009/10 and 2011/12. Linear and logistic regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, income, education and ethnicity. Prospective analyses also adjusted for baseline status on the outcome being evaluated. Results Racial discrimination was reported by 998 (20.4%) of the sample. Cross-sectionally, those who reported racial discrimination had a greater likelihood on average of limiting longstanding illness (odds ratio (OR) = 1.78, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.49; 2.13) and fair/poor self-rated health (OR = 1.50; 95% CI 1.24; 1.82) than those who did not report racial discrimination. Racial discrimination was associated with greater psychological distress (B = 1.11, 95% CI 0.88; 1.34), poorer mental functioning (B = − 3.61; 95% CI -4.29; − 2.93), poorer physical functioning (B = − 0.86; 95% CI -1.50; − 0.27), and lower life satisfaction (B = − 0.40, 95% CI -0.52; − 0.27). Prospectively, those who reported racial discrimination had a greater likelihood on average of limiting longstanding illness (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.01; 1.69) and fair/poor self-rated health (OR = 1.30; 95% CI 1.00; 1.69), than those who did not report racial discrimination. Racial discrimination was associated increased psychological distress (B = 0.52, 95% CI 0.20; 0.85) and poorer mental functioning (B = − 1.77; 95% CI -2.70; − 0.83) over two-year follow-up, adjusting for baseline scores. Conclusions UK adults belonging to ethnic minority groups who perceive racial discrimination experience poorer mental and physical health than those who do not. These results highlight the need for effective interventions to combat racial discrimination in order to reduce inequalities in health.


2020 ◽  
pp. 140349482091753
Author(s):  
Gerry Veenstra ◽  
Adam Vanzella-Yang

Objectives: The study aim was to investigate whether household income mediates the association between education and health in a nationally representative sample of Canadian adults. Methods: The data came from the Longitudinal and International Study of Adults linked to income data from the Canada Revenue Agency. Odds ratios and predicted probabilities from binary logistic regression models were used to describe associations between education and (a) self-rated health, (b) longstanding illness or health problem, (c) emotional, psychological or mental health problem and (d) symptoms of psychological distress. The Karlson–Holm–Breen decomposition method was used to investigate the potentially mediating role of household income in these associations. The analyses were conducted separately for women and men. Results: Education was significantly associated with all four health indicators for both women and men. Of the four health indicators, education was most strongly associated with self-rated health for both women and men. Education was more strongly associated with self-rated health and the presence of an emotional, psychological or mental health problem for women than for men. Curiously, men with a postgraduate degree were significantly more likely than men with a bachelor degree to report symptoms of psychological distress. Only modest proportions of the associations between education and health could be attributed to differences in household income. Education and household income manifested independent associations with all four health indicators among women and with three of four health indicators among men. Conclusions: Education and household income are joint and independent predictors of health in Canada. Accordingly, both should be included in research on socioeconomic health inequalities in this context.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 331-332
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Guzman ◽  
Yuliana Soto ◽  
David Marquez ◽  
Susan Aguinaga

Abstract Latinos have high risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). Self-rated health (SRH) has been used to predict cognitive decline. Early detection of executive function changes may help identify those at higher risk of cognitive decline. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between SRH and executive function in Latinos. Latinos (N=333, 84.4% female, Mage= 64.9 ± 7.08) from the BAILA randomized controlled trial self-rated their health as 1) poor/fair, 2) good, and 3) very good/excellent. Executive function was assessed by the Trail-making B, Verbal Fluency, Stroop C & CW, and the Digit Modality tests and stratified by SRH. One-way analysis of variance showed that the effect of SRH was significant for Trails B, F(2,298)=4.01, p=.019 and Stroop CW, F(2,298)=3.07, p=.048. Tukey’s test indicated that participants who rated their health as fair/poor took longer to complete Trails B (M=196.78±83.0 seconds) compared to those who rated their health as good (M=185.25 ± 85.1 seconds) and very good/excellent (M=149.25±95.3 seconds). Stroop CW results demonstrated that those in the fair/poor health category scored lower (M=17.22±6.6) than those in good (M=19.70±8.5 words/minutes) and very good/excellent health categories (M=18.73±8.2 words/minute). In sum, the results suggest SRH is related to executive function such that lower categories of SRH are indicative of poorer executive function. SRH might be used as a proxy for executive function and as a tool that community leaders can use to identify individuals at high risk of ADRD in need of behavioral interventions.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi Chen ◽  
Jiayao Zhang ◽  
Yan Xu ◽  
Hong Sun ◽  
Zhen Ding

Abstract Background PM 2.5 pollution has become a major public health concern in urban China. Understanding the residents’ individual perceptions toward haze pollution is critical for policymaking and risk communication. However, the perceptions of middle-aged and elderly residents, who particularly vulnerable to haze pollution, are poorly understood. Methods A cross-sectional study of 400 randomly sampled individuals (aged 40 to 90 years) was conducted in Wuxi, a typical PM 2.5 -polluted city. Each participant’s demographic and health information, individual perception and pulmonary function outcomes were collected to explore the relationship between personal characteristics and pulmonary function parameters and perception factors. Results We found that the mean values for controllability (4.99 ± 2.78) and dread of self-risk (6.90 ± 2.45) were the lowest and the highest values, respectively, in our study. Education and average family income were positively related with all individual perception factors, while age was negatively associated. A history of respiratory disease was positively associated with all individual perception factors except controllability . Significant positive associations were observed between PEF (coefficients ranged from 0.18 to 0.22) and FEF75% (coefficients ranged from 0.18 to 0.29) with a variety of individual perception factors. Conclusions There was a lack of concern and knowledge, weak self-protection consciousness and a strong dread of PM 2.5 pollution among the middle-aged and elderly residents in Wuxi. Their individual perceptions were associated with age, education levels, average family income, history of respiratory disease and pulmonary function outcomes. Our findings may help policymakers develop effective policies and communication strategies to mitigate the hazards of haze among older residents.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-167
Author(s):  
Paulo Roberto Medeiros Azevedo ◽  
Joyce Bezerra Rocha ◽  
Thales Allyrio Araújo de Medeiros Fernandes ◽  
José Veríssimo Fernandes

Objective To describe cervical cancer mortality rates and their corresponding trends, and to analyze the spatial correlations of this type of cancer in Natal-RN, Brazil, between 2000 and 2012.Materials and Methods The simple linear regression model, the empirical Bayes method and the Global Moran's index were used for the statistical analysis.Results The mortality coefficient of cervical cancer in Natal, standardized by age range, was 5.5 per 100 000 women. All historical series for the coefficients studied were classifiedas stable. The Global Moran's index obtained was 0.048, with a p-value for the spatial test correlation between neighborhoods of 0.300. The average family income by neighborhood showed no significant correlation to cervical cancer mortality rates.Conclusion This study found a temporal stabilization and spatial independence trend of cervical cancer mortality rates in women from Natal, as well as the absence of correlationbetween these rates and the average family income of the of the participating women distributed by neighborhoods. In view of this, changes in the public policies should be made aimed at preventing the disease; adopting these measures could positively impact the screening program, improving the coverage of Pap smears and immunization campaigns against HPV, in order to reverse this trend and achieve a reduction of mortality rates.


2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 463-502
Author(s):  
Qusay A. Hussain AL-Nemrawi

The current study was conducted on the city of Ramadi to find out the noise pollution represented by the sounds of generators on the residents of the city and its effect on the air purity in Ramadi city، in other words، this study aims to highlight the role of generators and their impact on increasing the level of noise pollution and air purity disturbance in the study area. Where the method of the analytical approach was followed، based on the analysis of the data obtained by the questionnaire forms of the generators owners as well as the residents of the study area. This research was divided into an introduction، a study on noise pollution and its concept and the second section dealt with the analysis and interpretation of the answers to the questionnaire forms that included (33) questions which were answered by the generators owners and the residents of Ramadi. Whereas the third section، where the sound and gas measurement device (SVAN955) (Sound Leved Metr) was used. (8) sites of various uses (commercial - residential - industrial - service) were selected and the levels of sounds were determined and compared with the relative determinants. It was clarified through the study that the city of Ramadi includes (453) generators distributing among the neighborhoods. As a result of the study that was conducted in the city of Ramadi، it was found that there are many complaints from residents of the study area which is considered (80%) of the sample size because most of the generators do not contain a silencer. The study also showed that most of the pollutants resulting from the generators are discharged with the sewage network. The study highlighted that the generator sites are located near residential homes and schools and thus have high noise pollution as well as it is considered uncivilized phenomena being not surrounded by fences، isolators or trees. The study also indicated that most of the generators are not designed for this basis (modulated) with many problems and little cost. The study showed the effect of generators on the monthly income of families، as the study showed that the highest average family income is more than (550،000) dinars per month، and the average family spends more than (55) thousand dinars per month، this amount is not including household generators.


2019 ◽  
pp. 67-76
Author(s):  
Carlos A Reyes Ortiz ◽  
Claudia Payan ◽  
Geraldine Altamar ◽  
Jose F Gomez Montes ◽  
Harold G Koenig

Objective: To identify the relationship between religiosity and self-rated health among older adults in Colombia. Methods: Data are drawn from the SABE (Salud, Bienestar y Envejecimiento) Colombia Study, a cross-sectional survey conducted in 2015 involving 18,871 community-dwelling adults aged 60 years and older living in urban and rural areas of Colombia. Religiosity was assessed by self-rated religiosity (how religious are you: not at all, somewhat or very). Self-rated health during previous 30 days was assessed as very good, good, fair, poor or very poor, analyzed as an ordinal variable(1-5) using weighted logistic regression, adjusting for confounders. Results: Those who were more religious were older, female, had lower socioeconomic status, and were more likely to be married. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that older adults who were more religious had better self-rated health (OR 0.92 95% CI 0.86- 0.99, p= 0.038); however, there was a significant interaction effect between gender and religiosity on self-rated health (p= 0.002), such that the relationship between religiosity and health was stronger in men (OR 0.86, 95% CI: 0.79-0.94, p= 0.001) but not significant in women. Conclusion: Older adults in Colombia who consider themselves more religious, especially men, are less likely to perceive their physical health as poor compared to those who are less religious.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hawa O. Abu ◽  
Jane Saczynski ◽  
Jordy Mehawej ◽  
Tenes Paul ◽  
Hamza Awad ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Holistic care models emphasize management of comorbid conditions to improve patient-reported outcomes in treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). We investigated relations between multimorbidity, physical frailty, and self-rated health (SRH) among older adults with AF. Methods Patients (n = 1235) with AF aged 65 years and older were recruited from five medical centers in Massachusetts and Georgia between 2015 and 2018. Ten previously diagnosed cardiometabolic and 8 non-cardiometabolic conditions were assessed from medical records. Physical Frailty was assessed with the Cardiovascular Health Study frailty scale. SRH was categorized as either “excellent/very good”, “good”, and “fair/poor”. Separate multivariable ordinal logistic models were used to examine the associations between multimorbidity and SRH, physical frailty and SRH, and multimorbidity and physical frailty. Results Overall, 16% of participants rated their health as fair/poor and 14% were frail. Hypertension (90%), dyslipidemia (80%), and heart failure (37%) were the most prevalent cardiometabolic conditions. Arthritis (51%), anemia (31%), and cancer (30%), the most common non-cardiometabolic diseases. After multivariable adjustment, patients with higher multimorbidity were more likely to report poorer health status (Odds Ratio (OR): 2.15 [95% CI: 1.53–3.03], ≥ 8 vs 1–4; OR: 1.37 [95% CI: 1.02–1.83], 5–7 vs 1–4), as did those with more prevalent cardiometabolic and non-cardiometabolic conditions. Patients who were pre-frail (OR: 1.73 [95% CI: 1.30–2.30]) or frail (OR: 6.81 [95% CI: 4.34–10.68]) reported poorer health status. Higher multimorbidity was associated with worse frailty status. Conclusions Multimorbidity and physical frailty were common and related to SRH. Our findings suggest that holistic management approaches may influence SRH among older patients with AF.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kiara Amaro-Rivera ◽  
Elena Carbone

Abstract Objectives Self-perceived diet quality is an important psychosocial factor that can influence dietary patterns. Several studies have found an association between this variable and health-related behaviors, such as eating fruits and vegetables and exercising regularly. However, this relationship has not been well studied among minority groups. The aim of this research was to examine the associations between sociodemographic and health-related variables and self-perception of diet quality among adults living in Puerto Rico. Methods This was a cross-sectional study. A researcher-designed questionnaire was distributed within a particular community. One questionnaire was given per household to be answered by everyone living in the house. A multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the association between the dependent variable, self-perceived diet quality (specified as excellent/very good/good or fair/poor), and the following independent variables: age groups, sex, education, poverty level estimate, self-rated health, intake of fruits or vegetables, sugar-sweetened beverages and fast-food, physical activity, recreational screen time (as a proxy for sedentary time), and BMI categories. Results A total of 106 questionnaires were distributed and 93 were returned, with data collected for 254 individuals. Children (n = 57) and adults with missing data (n = 5) were excluded from the analysis. The final sample consisted of 192 adults aged ≥18 years. Among these, 53.1% were females, 52.0% completed more than high school, 41.7% were below the poverty level estimate, and 61.5% were either overweight or obese. A total of 26.6% of the participants described their diet as fair/poor. Fair/poor self-perceived diet quality was associated with higher odds of reporting fair/poor self-rated health, consuming less than one cup of fruits or vegetables per day, eating at fast-food one or more times per week, and spending three hours or more per day using a screen for recreational purposes. Conclusions Self-perception of diet quality was associated with certain health-related behaviors in our sample. Future research should examine the association between self-perceived and objective diet quality, as previous research has shown that Puerto Ricans have poor knowledge of dietary recommendation. Funding Sources N/A. Supporting Tables, Images and/or Graphs


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